St. Aper (Or Evre)
St. Aper (Or Evre) [1]
Aper (or Evre), St.
bishop of Toul, was by birth rich and noble. He married a lady named Amanda, by whom he had many children. At the bar he formed an acquaintance with St. Paulinus, who was then employed in the affairs of the emperor. The example and instruction's of this holy man had the effect of disgusting him with the world; and, with his wife's consent, he vowed continence, quitted all his public employments, and retired to one of his estates in the country, where he gave himself up to prayer and mortification. He had not, however, long tasted the' delights of his new mode of life before he was, almost forcibly, made priest, and elevated to the bishopric of Toul, in Lorraine. Such, at least, is the account-given by those who make Aper the bishop of Toul to have been the same with Aper the friend of 'Paulinus, bishop of Nola. Others maintain that they were distinct individuals, and make Aper to have succeeded Ursus in the see of Toul. He seems to have been honored in the Church before the middle of the 7th century, when Salaberga, abbess of Laon, caused a church which she had built to be dedicated in his name. He is commemorated Sept. 15. See Baillet, Sept. 15.
