December 20
Saint Dominic of Silos
Abbot
(1000 – 1073)
“The riches of the abbey were for the poor and not for kings.”
Saint Dominic of Silos
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or on the Book Cover Image above to buy it!
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or on the Book Cover Image above to Buy it!
Saint’s Life Story
His Early Life
Dominic was born in the year 1000 to a peasant family in Cañas, Navarre, Spain, a shepherding town in the Pyrenees Mountains. As a shepherd boy at an young age, Dominic was out in the fields working and helping his father to manage their flocks, leading a life marked by simplicity, innocence, and devotion. Even as a child, Dominic spent long hours in prayer and meditation, cultivating a heart attuned to God’s will.
Benedictine Monk
However, Dominic felt a calling to a deeper spiritual life. Then, the monastery of his choice accepted him and he became a Benedictine monk at the San Millán de Cogolla monastery, a renowned Benedictine center, in La Rioja, Spain. There, he embraced the Rule of Saint Benedict, dedicating himself fully to study, prayer, and the service of God. Dominic was a model pupil and a devoted member of the community.
Priest and Prior
Dominic was ordained a priest by the Bishop of Nájera at the age of 26. After Dominic was ordained a priest, he served as novice master. Eventually, his fellow monks elected him as their prior of the monastery by Abbot García in 1038.
Exiled From Monastery
One day, the King García, the King of Navarre knocked on his monastery, but not for spiritual reasons. King García demanded that Dominic surrender the monastery’s lands and money to him. Dominic replied, humbly but also resolutely, “The riches of the abbey were for the poor and not for kings.”
Fled to King Ferdinand
Then, the King savagely persecuted Dominic for strenuously defending the monastery’s rights. As a result, Dominic and two of his fellow monks were forcibly driven from the monastery and fled to King Ferdinand I of Old Castile. Seeking refuge, they approached King Ferdinand I for protection. Fortunately, King Ferdinand recognized Dominic’s worth. King Ferdinand had suzerainty over the monastery of San Sebastian (now Santo Domingo), Silos, in the diocese of Burgos and gave this to Dominic for his new home there.
Abbot of San Sebastian Monastery
In his “new” monastery, Dominic faced numerous challenges, including the dilapidated state of the monastery, its financial difficulties, and its spiritual decline. Dominic was rewarded with being appointed the abbot of Silos.
With unwavering determination and faith, Dominic set out to revive the spiritual life of the monastery. He initiated efforts to improve its financial stability and undertook the physical reconstruction of the monastery. The cloisters of the abbey – a gem of Romanesque architecture – stand to this day as the best monument to his enterprise.
Scriptorium
Dominic loved the great illuminated manuscripts of the Church – books of liturgy, the Psalms, the Scriptures, and books of prayer. He set up a scriptorium at Silos that was soon producing some of the finest Christian books that Spain has ever seen, including the magnificent Apocalypse now housed in the British Library.
The monastery became one of the centers of the Mozarabic liturgy (a variant of the Latin rite), and also preserved the Visigothic script of ancient Spain.
Famous Spiritual Center
The fame of Dominic’s holiness and learning spread, and attracted so many monks that the whole monastery soon had to be enlarged. Under his leadership, the revived Silos monastery soon became a renowned spiritual center known for its excellence in book design and printed art. Significant charity work towards the local poor was made possible through the proceeds of the gold and silver workshop at the monastery.
Dominic utilized his influence to gain wealthy patrons who endowed the monastery. In addition, these funds provided Dominic with the ability to complete the beautiful work of redemption of the Christians, who had been taken prisoner by the Moors. He paid their ransom and rescued these Christians. Numerous miracles were attributed to him, including healings of all kinds.
His Death
After a life of tireless service to God and the Church, on December 20, 1073, Dominic died in the monastery of San Sebastian, in Silos, Spain. At his death, the monastery had 40 monks.
Three years after his death, on January 5, Dominic’s body was translated into the church, which was the equivalent of local canonization. Dominic’s abbatial staff was used to bless Spanish queens and it remained by their bedside until they had a safe delivery.
About 100 years after his death, a young woman made a pilgrimage to his tomb and prayed that she would conceive a child. There, Saint Dominic of Silos appeared to her, reassuring her that she would bear another son. The woman was Blessed Joan de Aza de Guzmán. Her son grew up to be Saint Dominic de Guzmán (whom she named after Saint Dominic of Silos), the founder of the Dominican order.
Born: 1000 in Cañas (modern Rioja), Navarre, Spain
Died: December 20, 1073 in Silos, Spain
Beatified: Unknown
Canonized: 1250 by Pope Innocent IV
Feast Day: December 20
Patron Saint: Against Hydrophobia; Against Insects; Against Rabies; Against Rabid Dogs; Captives; Pregnant Women; Prisoners; Shepherds
Reflection
Saint Dominic of Silos was a Benedictine monk and abbot who lived at a time when faithfulness often required quiet perseverance. After being unjustly expelled from his monastery for defending Church rights against King García, Dominic did not grow bitter. Instead, he trusted that God would use even hardship for good. He was given refuge by King Ferdinand I of Old Castile and appointed Abbot. When he was later called to restore the dilapidated monastery of Silos in spiritual decline with financial problems, he embraced the task with humility, patience, and unwavering trust in God.
Under his leadership, the monastery became a place of prayer, peace, and renewal. Dominic governed with gentleness rather than force, choosing reconciliation over resentment and stability over ambition. His life teaches us that true reform begins in the heart—with fidelity to prayer, obedience, and trust in God’s timing.
Saint Dominic of Silos reminds us that holiness is often hidden and steady. Faithfulness in trials, when carried with patience and hope, becomes a powerful witness to God’s grace.
When I experience setbacks, misunderstandings, or injustice, do I respond with patience and trust like Saint Dominic of Silos — or do I allow resentment and discouragement to take root?
Prayers
Saint Dominic of Silos,
You were strengthened to remain steadfast through rejection and renewal alike.
Through your intercession, help me to choose forgiveness over bitterness, peace over anxiety, and perseverance over discouragement.
May God grant me a heart grounded in prayer, a spirit of patience in trials, and the grace to trust His work in every season of my life.
May my faith, like yours, be steady, humble, and deeply rooted in God.
Saint Dominic of Silos, pray for us. Amen.
Saint Links
All Saint Stories – St. Dominic of Silos
All Saints & Martyrs – Saint Dominic of Silos
America Needs Fatima – Saint Dominic de Silos
AnaStpaul – Saint of the Day – 20 December – St Dominic de Silos O.S.B. (c1000-1073)
Catholic Insight – Saint Dominic of Silos and His Chanting Monks
Catholic News Agency – St. Dominic of Silos Feast day: Dec 20
Catholic Online – St. Dominic of Silos
CatholicSaints.Info – Saints of the Day – Dominic (Domingo) of Silos, Abbot – by Katherine I Rabenstein
Daily Prayers – Dominic of Silos
Editions Magnificat – Saint Dominic of Silos Abbot († 1073)
Franciscan Media – Saint Dominic of Silos
Go to Mary – Saint Dominic of Silos
Independent Catholic News – St Dominic of Silos
Melanie Rigney – Dominic of Silos
Omnes – Saint Dominic of Silos, exemplary abbot of monasteries
Reason2BCatholic – Saints Alive! | St Dominic of Silos
Rev Butler’s Lives Of The Saints Complete Edition – St Dominic of Silos, Abbot
Saint Mary’s Press – Saint Dominic of Silos (1000-1073)
Saint of the Day – December 20 St. Dominic of Silos
The Monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos – St. Dominic of Silos
University of Notre Dame – St. Dominic of Silos
Video Link
St. Dominic of Silos: Never Give Up – YouTube Video (Awaken The Saint)