Viator of Lyon

Saint Viator of Lyon was a Gallic saint of the fourth century, a lector or catechist of the Church of Lyon, who followed his bishop, Saint Justus, into the desert of Egypt. He is believed to have reposed around the year 389. He is commemorated on 21 October.

His name and beginnings

The name "Viator" meant in Latin "a traveller on the road". In Roman law the word came to name a minor officer of the courts who went out to summon people to appear before the magistrate. This may have been his earlier occupation, or the name may point to the family he came from. According to tradition, he was a lector or catechist at the cathedral of Lyon and was held in high esteem by Bishop Justus and by the faithful.

Bishop Justus

Justus was born in Vivarais and was a deacon of the Church of Vienne. After 343 he was chosen bishop of Lyon, succeeding Verissimus. In 374 he took part in the regional council at Valence, and in 382 he attended the Council of Aquileia as one of the two representatives of the bishops of Gaul.

Shortly after returning from Aquileia, Justus confided to Viator his wish to leave the see of Lyon in order to take up the ascetic life of a monk in the desert of Scetis in Egypt. The decision seems to have had several causes: his gentle, studious and contemplative nature; his age, for he had been bishop many years and was perhaps already in his sixties; and a sad event that had happened in Lyon a short time before. A madman had raced through the marketplace with a sword, wounding and killing many citizens. He then ran to the cathedral and claimed the right of sanctuary. A mob gathered to storm the church. Bishop Justus intervened and, assured that the man would have a fair trial, agreed to hand him over. No sooner had this been done than the mob seized the man from the magistrate's guard and killed him on the spot. The bishop came to believe that, by failing to protect the murderer better, he had shown himself unworthy to lead the Christian community, and he resolved to devote the rest of his life to repentance.

Departure for Egypt

In 381 Bishop Justus left Lyon secretly for Marseille. Viator, who knew his intention, decided to follow his bishop and teacher and caught up with him at Marseille, whence they boarded ship together for Alexandria. There they joined the community of monks in the desert of Scetis, some forty or fifty miles south of Alexandria, beyond the mountains of Nitria, in the Libyan Desert. At that time the abbot of the community was Saint Macarius of Egypt (died 390), a disciple of one of the founders of Egyptian monasticism, Saint Anthony (died 356), known for his holiness and his strict asceticism. Most of the monks lived in cells, dug in the ground or built of stones, each out of sight of the others, and came together only on Saturdays for the Divine Liturgy. They supported themselves by manual labour and ate only the poorest food. Fasting, prayer, silence and night vigils marked their life. Bishop Justus died around 389. According to tradition, the two died at a monastery of Scetis, today Wadi El Natrun.

Veneration

Their relics were brought to Lyon (the day of the translation is recorded as 2 September). By the fifth century four feast days were kept in Lyon every year in honour of Saints Justus and Viator. Their remains lie in the church of Saint-⁠Just in Lyon. The Clerics of Saint Viator (the Viatorians), a congregation, take their name from him.