After his wife died in childbirth, Hubert decided to live as a hermit, supporting himself by hunting wild game.
According to legend, one day while hunting, a stag appeared before him. It held a crucifix between its antlers, and scolded him for hunting, especially on Good Friday. Hubert's aim faltered. He put down his bow and arrow and promised never to hunt again.
Eventually Hubert became a priest, and years later served as bishop of Maastricht.
He never lost his love for animals and the outdoors. When rabies appeared in Belgium and France, Hubert set up a refuge for dogs, marking their foreheads with a sign of the cross, which he believed safeguarded them from rabies.
St. Hubert, the patron saint of hunters and forest rangers, is said to have died on May 30, 727.
- Little White Book, Diocese of Saginaw