Most feast days honor martyrs, founders, or missionaries. The Augustinians keep May 16 as a celebration of friendship. On that day, the Order of St. Augustine commemorates Sts. Alypius and Possidius, two men who walked beside Augustine of Hippo through his conversion, his ministry, and the controversies that marked his life. Aleteia reports on this unusual feast, which honors companionship as a path to holiness. For Catholic readers seeking models of faithful friendship, these two lesser-known saints offer a quiet witness.
What happened
The Augustinian Order observes May 16 as the joint feast of Sts. Alypius and Possidius. Neither saint is widely known outside Augustinian circles. Alypius was Augustine’s childhood friend from Thagaste (modern Algeria). He followed Augustine to Carthage, Rome, and Milan, where both men were baptized by St. Ambrose in 387. Possidius became Augustine’s student and later his biographer, recording the details of his teacher’s life in the earliest biography of the saint.
Both men served as bishops in North Africa. Alypius led the see of Thagaste. Possidius governed Calama. Both defended Augustine’s teachings against Donatist and Pelagian controversies. Possidius was present at Augustine’s deathbed in 430 during the Vandal siege of Hippo. The Augustinian liturgical calendar places their shared feast in May, linking their memory to the season of Augustine’s own baptism.
Read the full account at Aleteia for more on the liturgical history.
Why this matters
The Church calendar is crowded with solitary heroes: desert fathers, cloistered mystics, martyrs who died alone. The feast of Alypius and Possidius points to a different model of holiness. These men became saints not despite their friendship with Augustine but through it. They challenged him, supported his ministry, and carried his legacy forward after his death. The Augustinians honor them together because their sanctity was intertwined.
This feast also reminds us that intellectual and spiritual formation happens in community. Augustine’s theology developed through argument, correspondence, and shared prayer with friends like these. The Confessions themselves are addressed to God but written for a community of readers. Alypius and Possidius embody the truth that no saint is self-made.
For Catholic readers
Consider who has shaped your own faith through friendship. The May 16 feast invites gratitude for companions who pray with us, correct us, and remain beside us through doubt and growth. If you want to learn more about these two saints, Possidius’s biography of Augustine, the Vita Augustini, is available in English translation and offers a firsthand account of their shared ministry.
Sources:
1. Aleteia — original report
