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Pachomius the Great
Egyptian saint
SaintResearchedAncient RomePre-congregation
Feast: 9 May (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Born
292
Died
346
verified
Beatified
—
not needed: before formal processes
Canonised
By tradition
recognised before formal processes began
Who they were
Pachomius, after living with the hermit Palemon, went to Tabennisi, where a vision told him to build a monastery for the many who would come to him.
With great wisdom he led hermits towards common life, and became the founder of monasteries living in community; by his death there were nine monasteries of men and two of women. He died about 346.
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
The father of monks living in community.
Connected on this site
- Theodoros of Tabenna Saint Pupil
- Caprasius of Lérins Saint“There they were joined by many others, and the hermits were inspired by the monastic rule of Pachomius the Great.” — Wikipedia
Sources
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Pachomius
- Wikidata Q298698 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Pachomius the Great (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.