Feast Day: May 29
Episcopate: c. 332–346
Patronage: Trier, Alsace, and protection against religious persecution
Attributes: Often depicted with a staff, episcopal robes, and a church or monastery in the background
Life and Legacy
Saint Maximinus of Trier, a towering figure in the 4th century, was born into a noble Christian family in Silly near Poitiers, in Gaul (modern-day France). His brother, Saint Maxentius, and his predecessor as bishop, Saint Agritius, were also holy men, and this familial environment nurtured his zeal for Christ and love for orthodoxy.
He entered the clergy at an early age and succeeded Saint Agritius as bishop of Trier around the year 332. Trier at the time was not merely a spiritual center, but one of the imperial residences of the Roman West, placing Maximinus in close proximity to the emperor and the currents of ecclesiastical and political tension that ran through the late Roman Empire.
Defender of Orthodoxy
Saint Maximinus is especially venerated for his unwavering defense of the Nicene Creed and the divinity of Christ during the Arian controversies that rocked the Church in the 4th century.
When Saint Athanasius of Alexandria, the great champion of the Nicene Faith, was exiled from his see by the pro-Arian emperor Constantius II, it was Saint Maximinus who received him with great honor in Trier around 336. Maximinus stood firm against imperial pressure and refused to yield to Arian bishops and theologians. His hospitality to Athanasius, whom he treated as a confessor and father, speaks volumes of his courage and doctrinal clarity.
He similarly supported Saint Paul of Constantinople, another bishop unjustly persecuted by Arian sympathizers. Maximinus became known as a shield of the Orthodox, and his episcopate was marked by pastoral care, resistance to heresy, and the building of the local Church on a firm theological foundation.
Episcopal Works and Monastic Foundations
Saint Maximinus oversaw the expansion of ecclesiastical structures in Trier. He is credited with the construction of churches and monastic houses, including the predecessor of the present-day Abbey of St. Maximin, one of the oldest monasteries in Western Europe. This monastery would become a center of learning and sanctity for centuries.
Death and Veneration
Saint Maximinus reposed in the Lord around the year 346, after a fruitful episcopate of about 14 years. He was buried in Trier, and his tomb quickly became a site of pilgrimage and veneration.
The Abbey of St. Maximin, built over his tomb, was for many centuries a major Benedictine monastery and a center of spiritual life in Gaul. His name is inscribed in early martyrologies, and he is especially honored in regions of modern-day Germany and Alsace.
Spiritual Legacy
Saint Maximinus of Trier exemplifies the shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep (John 10:11). He lived in a time when orthodoxy was under siege, and yet he never compromised the faith once delivered to the saints. His boldness in sheltering exiled bishops and his resistance to imperial interference serve as a model for bishops, theologians, and lay faithful alike.
Prayer to Saint Maximinus of Trier
O glorious Saint Maximinus,
Bishop and Confessor of the True Faith,
who stood firm against the assaults of heresy
and sheltered the champions of Christ’s divinity,
intercede for us,
that we may remain steadfast in the truth,
courageous in adversity,
and faithful in our witness to the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.