Brice : reliquary wood
 Eglise St Brice Couvonges

www.ifrance.com/couvonges/statuaire.htm

TWO STORIES

1

On Martin's death in 397, Brice was designated to succeed him as bishop. However, the people of the diocese revolted, substituted a priest named Justinian, and Brice left town to avoid a stoning.

2

When Martin died, his prediction about Brice came true. Brice succeeded him as bishop of Tours in 397, by the popular vote of the people. For 30 years he taught, baptized and confirmed. He administered and fulfilled all his duties as bishop. He was accused several times of being lax, but his time as bishop was uneventful until the other prediction of Martin, came to haunt him.

It was a rumour that Martin had sired a son by a seamstress belonging to his staff. The story recorded by Gregory of Tours, tells how Brice had the child brought to him. He said to the child, "I admonish you in the name of Jesus Christ to say in the presence of everybody, if I am the man who fathered you." To which the baby replied, "You are not my father".

Not surprisingly, such preciousness seemed suspicious to those present, and they thought that there must be some trick. (Unless Gregory of Tours who recorded the story is unreliable). In the event, Brice's people were not convinced. They expelled their bishop by physical force.

Brice didn't resist, realising that this was the fulfillment of Martin's prophecy. About 430, he used his free time to make a journey ad limina, which took him seven years. During his 'exile' Brice had an opportunity to repent of his ways and completely changed his lifestyle. On his way back home he founded several new Christian centres.

Justinan held the see for over 30 years, during which Brice came to his senses, and began to lead a pious and admirable life. Formal ecclesiastical investigations cleared him of wrong doing, and he had the support of Pope Zosimus. When Justinian died c.430, Brice returned to Tours to claim his seat. The locals, however, remembered him and his past, and ran him out of town again, taking a priest named Armentius as bishop.
When Armentius died in 437, Brice returned to Tours again to claim his proper place, and this time, preceded by the news of having led a better life during his 40 years of exile, he stayed and governed his diocese until his death in Tours of natural causes, in 444. He was buried in the same church as Martin. God had destined the pair of them to serve as the foundations for the church of Tours.

(Attwater, Benedictines, Delaney, Encyclopedia).

Tours sixteenth century