October 6 -- Feast of Saint Pardulphus

Pardulphus (Pardulph, Pardoux) was a seventh and eighth century Frankish monk.  Tough times to be a Frank, with the Umayyad (Saracen, Muslim, Moor) invasion of Europe.  They had taken Spain and were marching on the Frankish territory, right up until the Battle of Tours (Poitiers, ma‘arakat Balâṭ ash-Shuhadâ).   

Arms of Saint-Pardoux, France

Of course, none of that was bothering Pardulph.  Even though he was down in the Aquitaine, right smack between the warring armies, he was too busy to notice.  With what, you wonder?  He was the abbot of a very strict monastery, so he was busy fasting, praying, working, praising, and once a week, eating.  He subsisted on fungi that were donated by the local peasants, accepting no fowl.  He also generally refused all heat except the rays of sunlight, though occasionally he was willing to draw heat from some stones that had been warmed. 

Church of Saint-Pardoux

When the church of Saint Aubin was being built, some of the carpenters cut the boards too short.  The master carpenter was furious and intended to whip the men who made the error, but Pardulph prayed for intercession and the boards all grew too long.  They were cut again, this time to the right length, and the butt ends were hung in the church as a testament to the miracle. 

Back to the Umayyad invasion.  As the army came through, the monastery was evacuated (except for Pardulph).  At seventy-five years old, he decided to hunker down and let his prayers be his shield.  They must have been some powerful prayers because the retreating Umayyad army opted not to burn and loot the place as they marched past it on their way south.