Saint Cagnoald of Laon

Saint Cagnoald of Laon came from a family of remarkable holiness, being the brother of Saint Faro of Meaux and Saint Burgundofara. He entered the monastery of Luxeuil in France, where he became a spiritual student of the great Irish monk Saint Columbanus. When Columbanus was exiled from the region, Cagnoald accompanied his master on the journey to Bobbio in northern Italy, where together they founded a renowned monastery that would become one of the most important centers of learning in medieval Europe. Cagnoald later returned to France, where he was appointed the sixth bishop of Laon, shepherding his flock with the monastic discipline and missionary zeal he had learned from his celebrated teacher.