Born at Silly, close to Poitiers, Saint Maximinus served as the Bishop of Trier. He died there on either May 29, 352, or September 12, 349. St. Agritius, whom he replaced as Bishop of Trier in 332 or 335, taught him and gave him his priestly ordination. Because of his position, Maximinus had close ties to both Constantine II and Constantins during the period, as Trier served as the Western Emperor's official residence.
He was a fervent advocate of the Orthodox faith against Arianism and a close companion of St. Athanasius, whom he welcomed as a distinguished guest during his two-year, four-month exile in Trier (336–8).
In 341 he also honored the exiled patriarch Paul of Constantinople and carried out his return to Constantinople. In 342, four Arian bishops traveled to Trier from Antioch to persuade Emperor Constans to support them. However, Maximinus refused to welcome them and convinced the emperor not to accept their suggestions. He convinced Emperor Constans to hold the Synod of Sardica in 343 with Pope Julius I and Bishop Hosius of Cordova, and he most likely attended. The fact that the Arians denounced him specifically at their heretical synod at Philippopolis in 343, together with Pope Julius I and Hosius of Cordova, shows that they regarded him as one of their main adversaries.
He participated in the Synod of Milan in 345 and is reported to have presided over the Synod in Cologne in 346, where Bishop Euphratas of Cologne was removed due to his Arianism-leaning. Additionally, he dispatched Sts. Castor and Lubentius to serve as missionaries in the Mosel and Lahn regions.
His cult started as soon as he passed away. His feast day is celebrated on May 29. He is revered as Trier's patron. His remains were interred at the St. John church near Trier in the autumn of 353, the same church that saw the establishment of the renowned Benedictine abbey of St. Maximinus in the seventh century and continued to thrive until 1802.
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