Alexis of Rome, saintly figure of early Christianity

The origins of Alexis of Rome

Saint Alexius, also known as Alexis of Edessa or the Man of God, lived during the 4th and 5th centuries and died around the year 411. The choice of life made by this Roman nobleman, who became a mendicant, is at the origin of the fervor that surrounds him in the Christian world, both East and West, where he is celebrated on March 17 by the Orthodox and July 17 by the Catholics.

Alexis of Rome is the son of Senator Euphemian and Aglais, a Roman noblewoman, whose pious parents arrange his betrothal to a virtuous girl named Olympia. But then the young nobleman, with his future seemingly mapped out, suddenly disappears.

Renouncing the things of the world

Sheltered from the hardships of his time, and able to enjoy the privileges of aristocracy, Alexis de Rome decided to leave without a word to his parents, taking care only to ask his betrothed to annul their marriage, and to ask her not to follow him.

The figure of Olympia

The peculiar position of Olympia, a wife considered a model to the point of abandonment, inspired 17th-century literary playwright Nicolas Mary Desfontaines, whose book Saint Alexis ou l'Illustre Olympie is still in print.

Pilgrimage to the Orient

Alexius sets off on a pilgrimage to the East, as far as the city of Edesse, divesting himself of his identity and selling all his possessions to give to the poor, before becoming a beggar himself on the porch of a church, devoted to the Virgin Mary.

This kind of exile represents a renunciation of both his material identity as a nobleman, and his feelings, for a spiritual elevation through a life of poverty, solitude and indifference. Leading a life of misery for 17 years, he is recognized by a member of the Church and divulges his story, which draws a pious crowd around him, before seeking to return to Tarsus in the footsteps of Saint Paul to continue a life of humility.

The return to Rome

When he returned to Rome after an absence of 17 years, his features aged by a life of begging, nobody recognized him, so he took refuge under the staircase of his parents' palace among the poor for as many years, during which he was mocked by the staff who had once served him.

Feeling that death was approaching, it was then that he set about writing the story of his life in a few words.

His feast removed from the calendar

Original story, romanticized, or fiction for some, the message inspired by the hagiography of Sant Alexius, (Sant'Alesiu in Corsica and Sant Alessio in Italy), has been a source of inspiration for Christians down the centuries. Very popular around the 10th century, his life following the model of Christ nonetheless has the particularity that Saint Alexius of Rome did not die a martyr's death, which in the 17th century spirit was an important guarantee of sanctity.

Although today the cult has lost some of its popularity and its feast day was removed from the Roman liturgical calendar following the reform of 1969, it is still part of certain traditions, as is the case for the village of Valle d'Alesani, which has been under the protection of Sant'Alesiu for a thousand years, with a procession up to the eponymous chapel every July 17.