Catellus of Castellammare

Saint Catellus of Castellammare lived in Campania in the ninth century; the details of his birth are not known. He served as bishop of Castellammare di Stabia and became renowned for a heart drawn to silence and prayer. Tradition remembers his close friendship with Saint Antoninus of Sorrento, who arrived in the region amid Lombard unrest. Longing for the hermit’s life, Catellus at one point entrusted the care of the diocese to Antoninus and withdrew to Monte Aureo, only to be called back when Antoninus urged him to embrace his pastoral duty. Both men sought God on the mountain, and an apparition of Saint Michael is said to have moved them to build a stone oratory there, remembered as Monte San Angelo or Punta San Michele. Catellus later endured a painful trial when he was accused of witchcraft by a priest and held captive in Rome until a new pope freed him. Returning home, he devoted himself to strengthening the church he had helped found. He is venerated as patron of Castellammare di Stabia. His feast day is January 19.