Arnold of Soissons

Arnold, born in Brabant, the son of a certain Fulbertus{{cite book| title = A Gentleman of Brabant | author =John McClintock|chapter = Cyclopædia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature| year = 1889 | quote = s.v. Arnulph (St.)}}{{cite book|chapter= A French nobleman |author =Alban Butler | title= Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints| year = 1866 | quote = s.v. "Arnoul, or Arnuphus, C."}} was first a career soldier before settling at the Benedictine St. Medard's Abbey, Soissons, France. He spent his first three years as a hermit, but later rose to be abbot of the monastery. His hagiography states that he tried to refuse this honor and flee, but was forced by a wolf{{citation| title = Arnulf signifies "[noble] eagle-wolf}} to return. He then became a priest and in 1080, bishop of Soissons, another honor that he sought to avoid. When his see was occupied by another bishop, rather than fighting, he took the opportunity to retire from public life, founding the Abbey of St. Peter in Oudenburg.At Oudenburg he is known as Arnold of Oudenburg; the abbey was demolished at the time of the French Revolution.

As abbot in Oudenburg, Arnold brewed beer, as essential in medieval life as water. He encouraged local peasants to drink beer, instead of water, due to its "gift of health". During the process of brewing the water was boiled and thus freed of pathogens, making the beer safer to drink. The beer normally consumed at breakfast and during the day at this time in Europe was called small beer, having a very low alcohol content, and containing spent yeast. It is likely that people in the local area normally consumed small beer from the monastery, or made their own small beer at the instructions of Arnold and his fellow monks. During one outbreak of sickness, Arnold advised the local people to avoid consuming water, in favor of beer, which advice effectively saved lives.{{Cite web |last=Millar |first=Rupert |date=2015-08-14 |title=Beer Saint's Day: Arnold of Soissons |url=https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2015/08/beer-saints-day-arnold-of-soissons/ |website=The Drinks Business}}

One miracle tale says, at the time of an epidemic, rather than stand by while the local people fell ill from drinking water, Arnold had them consume his monastery brews. Because of this, many people in his church survived the plague.{{Cite book |last=Gately |first=Iain |title=Drink: A Cultural History of Alcohol |date=2009 |publisher=Gotham Books |isbn=978-1-592-40464-3 |location=New York |page=85}} This same story is also told of Arnulf or Arnold of Metz, another patron of brewers.

There are many depictions of St. Arnold with a mashing rake in his hand, to identify him. For example, the label on "Steenbrugge Abbey" beers has a picture of St Arnold holding a mash rake.{{Cite news |last=Mason |first=Antony |date=2020-10-23 |title=Once Matt Hancock's guiding light, Belgium now has one of the world's highest case rates |publisher=Telegraph Media Group Limited |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/belgium/articles/belgium-postcard-second-wave/}}

Arnold is honoured in July with a parade in Brussels on the "Day of Beer."{{Cite web |date=2009-08-28 |title=Don't question our Beer City: Belga's Bart Vandaele to be DC's third Brewer's Guild knight |url=http://www.dcbeer.com/news/dont-question-our-beer-city-belgas-bart-vandaele-be-dcs-third-brewers-guild-knight |access-date=2016-05-25 |website=DC Beer|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160827131515/http://www.dcbeer.com/news/dont-question-our-beer-city-belgas-bart-vandaele-be-dcs-third-brewers-guild-knight |archive-date=August 27, 2016 }}

Miracles that were reported at his tomb were investigated and approved by a council at Beauvais in 1121; in 1131 Arnold's relics were transferred to the {{ill|Church of St. Peter, Oldenburg|lt=Church of St. Peter|de|St. Peter (Oldenburg)}} in Aldenburg.{{Cite web |title=Saint Arnulf of Soissons |url=http://saints.sqpn.com/sainta2s.htm |website=Patron Saints Index|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090322041315/http://saints.sqpn.com/sainta2s.htm |archive-date=March 22, 2009 }} St. Arnold's feast day is 14 August.

• Saint Amand - patron saint of wine makers, brewers and bartenders
• Arnulf of Metz - another patron saint of brewers

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• {{Cite book |author1=Lisiardus |author2=Hariulfus |author-link2=Hariulf of Oudenburg |title=Vitae, Miracula, Translatio et alia Hagiographica sancti Arnulphi episcopi Suessionensis |series=Corpus Christianorum. Continuatio Mediaevalis 285 |publisher=Turnhout: Brepols Publishers |year=2015 |isbn=978-2-503-05301-1 |editor-last=R.I.A. Nip}}
• {{Cite book |last=Anneke B. Mulder-Bakker |title=The Invention of Saintliness |page=58 }}
• {{Cite book |title=Saint Arnold. Évêque de Soissons Apôtre de la Flandre. Fondateur de l'Abbaye d'Oudenbourg |year=1889 |editor-last=H. Claeys}}

• [http://www.bartleby.com/210/8/153.html "St. Arnoul, or Arnulphus, Bishop of Soissons, Confessor"], Butler's Lives of the Saints
• [http://www.beerhistory.com/library/holdings/patron_saints.shtml Arnold and other patron saints of beer]

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Category:1040s births

Category:1087 deaths

Category:Medieval French saints

Category:Bishops of Soissons

Category:11th-century Christian saints