Nicasius

Saint Nicasius, hierarch, was bishop of the city of Die (Drôme) in Gaul in the fourth century, and is known as one of the few western bishops present at the First Council of Nicaea, in the year 325. He is sometimes wrongly called Nicasius of Dijon, but the sources show that his see was Die: Dijon was not yet an episcopal see at that time. The lists of signatories of the council show him as the only bishop of Gaul.

His presence is surprising, for he represented a small and obscure bishopric, more than two thousand kilometres from his see. The Latins had only four delegations at Nicaea: Die, Rome, Carthage and Cordoba. It has been conjectured that the primate of Lyon could not come owing to health or age, and that Nicasius, having Greek parents, was chosen for his knowledge of Greek. According to Tillemont, in the eleventh century the cathedral of Die kept his relics. He is venerated in the Catholic Church on 20 March (new style), and in the Orthodox Church he is commemorated on the Sunday of the Fathers of the First Council.