Saint Saint Taurinus

Taurinus of Évreux (died ca. 412), also known as Taurin, is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church. His legend states that he was the first bishop of Évreux. He evangelized the region and died a martyr. His largely legendary life is known through a manuscript of the 10th century, itself based on a ninth-century text. The legendary life was written by a monk named Deodatus, who added details according to the standard passiones of the time, mixing factual information with wonderful stories. The garbling of dates and traditions thus ensures that it is impossible to date the time of Taurinus' episcopacy, although scholars usually place it at the beginning of the fourth or in the middle of the fifth century. Taurinus was born in Rome to Tarquinius, a heathen, and Eustycia (Eusticie, Euticia), a devout Christian. An angel appeared to Eustycia to announce that her son would have a great destiny. He was baptized by Pope Clement I; Denis the Areopagite (misidentified with Denis, first bishop of Paris), who was considered one of the first disciples of Paul, was his godfather. According to Louis Duchesne this legend arose about the ninth century, when Abbot Hilduin of Saint-Denis was intent on proving the identity of Dionysius the Areopagite with Dionysius (Denis), first Bishop of Paris. Thus, the legend assured that there was an "apostolic succession" from Paul directly to the episcopate of Évreux. Taurinus became bishop of Evreux around 385. His legend states that Taurinus faced a demon at Évreux that took three shapes: that of a lion, a bear and a buffalo. These metamorphoses either represented various deadly sins, or represented the official Roman religion (lion), the worship of Diana (bear), and the local agrarian-based religions (the buffalo).