St. Hilary of Poitiers (about 315–367) was a pagan philosopher in Gaul who found the true God by reading the Scriptures, became a Christian with his wife and daughter, and was chosen bishop of Poitiers, where he led the Western Church’s defense of the divinity of Christ against Arianism. Exiled by the emperor to Asia Minor, he wrote his great work On the Trinity, which closes with a beautiful prayer. He is called the “Athanasius of the West,” was the teacher of St. Martin of Tours, and is among the first known writers of Latin hymns. Pope Pius IX declared him a Doctor of the Church in 1851. His feast day is January 13. Below are his story, his prayer, and a prayer to St. Hilary.
A short prayer to St. Hilary, written for this page:
St. Hilary, you searched for God until you found Him in the Scriptures, and you suffered exile for the truth.
Pray for all who are searching for God, and keep me faithful to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Who was St. Hilary of Poitiers?
Hilary was born around 315 into a wealthy pagan family of Poitiers, in Gaul. Unsatisfied by philosophy, he read the Bible and was struck by God’s name revealed to Moses, “I am who am,” and by the prologue of St. John’s Gospel. He was baptized with his wife and his daughter, Abra, and around 350 the people of Poitiers chose him as their bishop.
When the Emperor Constantius favored the Arians and pressured the bishops of Gaul to condemn St. Athanasius, Hilary refused. In 356 he was exiled to Phrygia, in Asia Minor, where he studied the Greek theologians and wrote On the Trinity and On the Synods. He returned in 360, worked to bring the bishops of Gaul back to the faith of Nicaea, and welcomed the young soldier Martin, whom he made an exorcist and who founded the monastery of Ligugé near Poitiers. Hilary died around 367.
St. Hilary’s prayer
Hilary ends his twelve books On the Trinity with a prayer to the Father for the gift of persevering faith (On the Trinity XII.57):
Keep, I pray Thee, this my pious faith undefiled, and even till my spirit departs, grant that this may be the utterance of my convictions: so that I may ever hold fast that which I professed in the creed of my regeneration, when I was baptized in the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Let me, in short, adore Thee our Father, and Thy Son together with Thee; let me win the favour of Thy Holy Spirit, Who is from Thee, through Thy Only-begotten. For I have a convincing Witness to my faith, Who says, Father, all Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine, even my Lord Jesus Christ, abiding in Thee, and from Thee, and with Thee, for ever God: Who is blessed for ever and ever. Amen.
The faith of the Trinity, given at Baptism (Matthew 28:19–20, Douay-Rheims):
Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.
Hilary term
Because his feast falls in January, the term of the English law courts and of the universities of Oxford and Dublin that begins in January is still called the Hilary term.
Feast day
The optional memorial of St. Hilary, bishop and Doctor of the Church, is January 13.
Frequently asked questions
Why is St. Hilary called the Athanasius of the West?
Because, like St. Athanasius in the East, he defended the divinity of Christ against the Arians and suffered exile for it.
Was St. Hilary married?
Yes. He was married with a daughter when he became a Christian and was chosen bishop.
When is St. Hilary’s feast day?
January 13.
More saints
- Doctors of the Church
- St. Athanasius
- St. Martin of Tours
- Glory Be prayer
- Nicene Creed
- Saint of the day
Texts and sources
- Hilary of Poitiers, On the Trinity XII.57, trans. E. W. Watson and L. Pullan, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series II, vol. 9 (1899), public domain (Wikisource).
- Matthew 28:19–20 (Douay-Rheims).