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Died 753 AD, Roermond, Netherlands | ||
Wiro of Roermond, also Wiro or Wera of Utrecht (and possibly also the same as Vira of Northumbria; d. c. 700) is a Christian saint of the 8th century. His feast day is 8 May.
Contents
Life
Wiro was a native of Anglo-Saxon England, probably of Northumberland. He seems to have been associated with Saint Willibrord, and to have been appointed the second bishop of Utrecht in about 739–741. He was also a missionary and preached in the region of the Maas and the Rhine, where his legend associates him with the priest Plechelm and the deacon Otger, with whom he later founded St. Peter's Abbey on land given him by Pippin II in the present Sint Odilienberg near Roermond in the Netherlands, where he is also buried.
It is not clear to what extent his vita is historical. It seems clear that the monastery was founded towards the end of the 7th century.
He may be identical with the missionary bishop Vira from Northumbria, mentioned by Alcuin, among others.
The Basilica of Saints Wiro, Plechelm and Otger at Sint Odilienberg is dedicated to Wiro and his companions.
Veneration
Veneration of Wiro and his two companions began early in Roermond. The monastery he founded was transferred to Roermond, in 1361, accompanied by his relics, which were lost during the Reformation. They were re-discovered later in the 16th century, and a feast day was celebrated for some years to commemorate the rediscovery. In 1881 the original grave was found in the former abbey, and most of the bones were returned to it.
Wiro's feast day is 8 May, but in Roermond 11 May. Since the Middle Ages his skull had been in Utrecht, where he was the patron saint of the bishopric. Pilgrimages are still made to his grave in Roermond.