Alypius of Thagaste
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Saint Alypius of Thagaste was an early bishop of the Catholic Church, having been made Bishop of Tagaste (modern day Algeria) in 394. He is also credited with building the first monastery in Africa. He was a lifelong friend of Saint Augustine of Hippo and joined him in his conversion (in 386; Confessions 8.12.28) and life in Christianity. He came from an aristrocratic family and his early life was as a magistrate in Rome. Most of what is known about him comes from Augustine's autobiographical Confessions.
One commonly cited event, from the Confessions (6.8.13) concerns a young Alypius who had extremely strong moral beliefs being taken by friends to watch violent Roman games in the arena. He initially resists this, keeping his eyes shut, but he is unable to control himself because of the sounds and eventually succumbs and opens his eyes. To his horror, he finds himself enjoying the spectacle and even invites other friends to come with him later. However, he eventually repents of this and returns to the spiritual fold. Although he is now revered as a Saint, no record of him as a Saint appears until he was added into the Roman Martyrology by Pope Gregory XIII in 1584. His feast day is August 15.
