Odilo of Cluny

Who they were

Odilo, of the nobility of Auvergne, entered Cluny in 991 and became its fifth abbot in 994. Through his gentleness, charity and gift for organisation the monastery grew rapidly; he was a man of prayer and penance, zealous for the Divine Office.

Under him the Cluniac houses rose from thirty-seven to sixty-five and reform spread into Spain. He died on visitation at Souvigny on 31 December 1048 and was soon venerated as a saint; St Peter Damian took up his canonisation in 1063.

The miracles

There was never a formal cause: he has been honoured as a saint since before the Church's formal processes began.

Why that counted as sanctity

A gentle abbot who spread monastic renewal across Europe.

Connected on this site

• Florus Saint
  “His tomb was the origin of a monastery, re-founded in the 11th century by Saint Odilo of Cluny, fifth abbot of Cluny.” — Wikipedia
• Peter Damian Saint
  “He died on visitation at Souvigny on 31 December 1048 and was soon venerated as a saint; St Peter Damian took up his canonisation in 1063.” — this site's research