Leo Luke, St.

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LEO LUKE, ST.

Abbot; b. Corleone (Coriglione), Sicily, c. 885; d. Monteleone in Calabria, c. 980. While very young he became a monk at the Abbey of St. Philip in Argira. Some years later (c. 940) Arab raids and the generally usettled conditions led him to accompany many other monks to the interior of Calabria. After a pilgrimage to Rome, he became a disciple of St. Christopher of Collesano (d. c. 955), the founder of a monastery near Monteleone, and succeeded him as abbot, a position he held for more than 20 years until his death. His cultus has never been confirmed.

Feast: March 1.

Bibliography: Acta Sanctorum March 1:97102. d. perri, Note agiografiche sul protettore di Vibo Valentia, S. Leoluca abate (Vibo Valentia, Italy 1947), see review in Bollettino della badia greca di Grottaferrata 2 (1948): 231234. s. borsari, Il monachesimo bizantino nella Sicilia e nell'Italia Meridionale prenormanne (Naples 1963) 53.

[g. t. dennis]

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