St. Julian the Innkeeper (or Hospitaler)
His is a great story, so good it is possibly fiction.
Julian was a nobleman who lived in the Middle Ages (no dates for his life are known). One day while hunting he was told by a deer he was stalking that there would come a day when Julian would kill his mother and father. Impossible, thought Julian, but he moved to a faraway land to avoid any possibility of that happening.
E-FACT
Not only is the term “hagiography” used to refer to the genre that these stories of holy men and women fall into, but it is also sometimes used as a negative description of contemporary writings in which the author is uncritical and unscholarly.
He eventually married a wealthy widow and moved into her castle. One day while he was away, his parents came to visit. His wife gave them her bed. When Julian returned later that night rather than in the morning when he was expected, he saw a man and woman in his bed and assumed it was his wife and a lover. He killed them both. Imagine his surprise when he saw his wife walk in from church and realized his mistake. Overcome by guilt, he left the castle to do penance, accompanied by his spouse, who had apparently forgiven his mistrust. The two used their money to build an inn for travelers near a river and a hospital for the poor.
One day Julian found a dying man on the banks of the river and brought him home, putting him in his own bed. The man turned out to be an angel who assured Julian that God had forgiven him, adding that soon both Julian and his wife would be going to their reward. Both died within a few days.
It is thought that perhaps a clergyman made up this tale to show God's mercy and forgiveness no matter what the sin. But even that cannot be documented.
St. Julian's feast day of February 12 remains on some listings but not on the liturgical calendar. He is the patron saint of innkeepers and hotel workers and boatmen.
