In the 800’s, the Muslim conquerors of Spain made Cordoba their capital. Christians were considered low class and had to pay a monthly tax. Christians were restricted but were permitted to worship. Some, like Eulogius’s younger brother, rose to high positions in the government. In the large cities like Toledo and Córdoba, Christians in some cases observed the civil laws.
ThoughChristianity was restricted, they were permitted to worship keep their churches as long as they paid a tax on every parish, cathedral, and monastery. The tax was increded whenever the conqueror decided. Many Christians fled to Northern Spain; others hid in the monasteries of Sierras. The number of Christians shrank.
Under Abd-er Rahman II, fierce persecution began. Many Christians were accused of abusing the memory of Mohammed, of entering mosques, and of conspiracy against the Government.
It is believed Saint Eulogius was born around 819. By 848 he was a priest among the Christians of Catalonia and Navarre. His family was of the senatorial class, who owned land in Córdoba from Roman times. Eulogius like his five brothers, received an excellent education in The youngest of the brothers, Joseph, held a high office in the palace of Abd-er-Rahman II; two other brothers, Alvarus and Isidore, were merchants and trading in Central Europe. His sisters, Niola and Anulona, the first remained with her mother; the second was educated from infancy in a monastery where she later became a nun.
After completing his studies in the monastery of St. Zoilus, Eulogius continued to live with his family the better to care for his mother; and to study with Abbot Speraindeo, an important writer of that time. He took holy orders as a priest and was placed at the head of the church school at Cordova.
He and his friend Alvarus Paulus studied all branches of science, they could. They wrote letters, essays, and poetry. Alvarus married, but St. Eulogius preferred his priesthood.
In 848, Eulogius visited monasteries in northern Iberia, among them San Zacharias, where he received texts of St. Augustine, Horace, Juvenal, and Virgil and brought them back to Cordoba.
Eulogius was known to be so kind that everyone regarded him as a friend. A gifted leader, who was known for his encouragement. As a priest serving in an occupied country, he used this gift to strengthen his friends facing danger.
In 850 the Muslims began to persecute Christians because some had spoken against Mohammed and converted Muslims to Christianity. They imprisoned the bishop and priests of Cordoba, including Eulogius. In jail, he read the Bible to his companions, encouraging them to remain faithful.
The earliest account of the Quran in a language other than Arabic is credited to Eulogius, who translated Sura al-Ahzab verse 37, around the year 857.
In 857, a girl named Leocritia of a noble family of the Moors converted to Christianity. Her family was Irate. She asked for his help with them. Eulogius hid her with his friends for a time. Eventually, they were all discovered and condemned to death. St. Eulogius was beheaded on March 11, 857, and St. Leocritia four days later on March 15, 857. St. Eulogius is buried in the Cathedral of Oviedo.