November XV

St. Gertrude, V. Abbess

From her book of Divine Insinuations, and her Life compiled by Dom. Mege, prefixed to his edition of that work, In 1664. See also Dr. Cave, Hist. Liter, t. 2, p. 301.

a. d. 1292.

St. Gertrude was of an illustrious family, born at Eisleben, or Islebe in Upper Saxony, and sister to St. Mechtildes. At five years of age she was offered to God in the Benedictin nunnery of Rodalsdorf, and at thirty was chosen abbess of that house, in 1251: and, the year following, was obliged to take upon her the government of the monastery of Heldelfs, to which she removed with her nuns. In her youth she studied Latin, as it was then customary for nuns to do; she wrote and composed in that language very well, and was versed in sacred literature. Divine contemplation and devout prayer, she always looked upon as the principal duty and employment of her state, and consecrated to those exercises the greatest part of her time. The passion of our Redeemer was the favorite object of her devotions; and, in meditating on it, or on the blessed Eucharist, frequently she was not able to contain the torrents of tears which flowed from her eyes. She spoke of Christ, and of the mysteries of his adorable life, with so much unction, and in such transports of holy love, as to ravish those who heard her. Ecstasies and raptures of the divine love, and the gifts of divine union in prayer, were familiar to her. She mentions that once hearing those words, I have seen the Lord face to face, sung in the church, she saw, as it were, a divine face, most beautiful and charming, whoso eyes pierced her heart, and filled both her soul and body with inexpressible delight which no tongue could express.¹ The divine love which burned in her breast, and consumed her soul, seemed the only spring of all her affections and actions. For this precious grace her pure soul was prepared by the crucifixion of her heart to the world, and to inordinate self-love in all its shapes. Watching, fasting, abstinence, perfect obedience, and the constant denial of her own will, were the means by which she tamed her flesh, and extirpated or subdued whatever could oppose the reign of the most holy will of God in her affections. But profound humility and perfect meekness had the chief part in this work, and laid the foundation of the great virtues and graces to which the divine mercy raised her. Though she was possessed of the greatest natural talents, and of most extraordinary gifts of divine grace, her mind was penetrated, and entirely filled only with the deepest sentiments of her own nothingness, baseness, and imperfections. It was her sincere desire that all others should have the same contempt of her, which she had of herself, and she used to say, that it seemed to her one of the greatest of all the miracles of God’s infinite goodness, that his divine majesty was pleased to suffer the earth to bear her. Though she was the superior and mother of the rest, she behaved towards them as if she had been the lowest servant, and one that was unworthy ever to approach them: and such were the sincere sentiments of her heart. How much soever she gave herself up to the exercises of heavenly contemplation, she neglected not the duties of Martha, and was very solicitous in attending to all the necessities of every one, and in providing all things for them, especially all spiritual helps. In their progress in all the exercises and virtues of an interior and religious life, she found the happy fruits of her zealous endeavors, and pious instructions. Her tender devotion to the Mother of God, sprang from the ardor of her love for the divine Son. The suffering souls in purgatory had a very great share in her compassion and charity.

We have a living portraiture of her pure and holy soul in her short book Of Divine Insinuations, or Communications and Sentiments of Love, perhaps the most useful production, next to the writings of St. Teresa, with which any female saint ever enriched the church, for nourishing piety in a contemplative state.* The saint proposes exercises for the renovation of the baptismal vows, by which the soul entirely renounces the world and herself, consecrates herself to the pure love of God, and devotes herself to pursue in all things his holy will. The like exercises she prescribes for the conversion of a soul to God, and for the renovation of her holy spiritual espousals, and the consecration of herself to her Redeemer, by a bond of indissoluble love, praying that she may totally die to herself, and be buried in him, so that he alone, who is her holy love, be acquainted with this her hidden state or sepulchre, and that she may have no other employment but that of love, or what his love directs. These sentiments she repeats with, admirable variety throughout the work, and, in the latter part, dwells chiefly on the most ardent desires of being speedily united to her love in everlasting glory, entreating her divine Redeemer, by all his sufferings and infinite mercies, to cleanse her perfectly from all earthly affections and spots, that she may be admitted to his divine presence. Some of these sighs, by which she expresses her thirst after this happy union with her God in bliss, are so heavenly, that they seem rather to proceed from one who was already an inhabitant of heaven, than a pilgrim in this mortal life; so strongly were the affections of the saint fixed there. This is particularly observable in that exercise, wherein she advises the devout soul sometimes to set apart a day to be devoted without interruption to praise and thanksgiving, in order to supply any defects in this double duty in daily devotions and to endeavor as perfectly as possible to be associated in this function to the heavenly spirits. The like exercises she proposes for supplying all defects in the divine love, by dedicating an entire day to the most fervent acts of pure love. The saint, as a chaste turtle, never interrupted her sweet sighs and moans, admitting no human consolation so long as her desire was delayed; yet rejoicing in hope and love, in perfect resignation to the will of God, in the visits of the Divine Spirit, in suffering with and for her loving Redeemer, and in laboring for his service. Her desires were at length fulfilled, and, having been abbess forty years, she was called to the embraces of her heavenly Spouse in 1292, her sister, Mechtildes, being dead some time before. The last sickness of St. Gertrude seemed rather a languishing of divine love than a natural fever; so abundantly did her soul enjoy in it the sweetest comforts and presence of the Holy Ghost. Miracles attested how precious her death was in the sight of God. She is honored with an office in the Roman Breviary on this day. The Lypsanographia, or catalogue of relics kept in the electoral palace of Brunswick-Lunenbourg, printed at Hanover, in 1713, in folio, mentions, among others, the relics of St. Gertrude in a rich shrine.

The exercises by which St. Gertrude made such sublime advances in the school of divine love, all tended to the closest union of her heart to God by the most inflamed desires and purest affections; and were directed at the same time to remove all obstacles to this union, by cleansing her soul and purifying her affections, by tears of compunction, by the renunciation of sensual delights, and the most perfect denial of herself. Hence she prayed continually that by the grace of the omnipotent divine love she might be strengthened to resign herself to holy love, so that nothing of self should remain in her, but should be totally consumed by the flame of holy love, like dust carried away by the wind, so as not to leave the least grain or trace behind.² For this exterior action, both of self-denial and of charity, zeal, and all other virtues are necessary; but interior exercises are far more essential, in which the soul must frequently in the day raise herself up to God by the most ardent desires of love, praise, and thanksgiving, and study to die to herself by sincere and repeated sentiments of humility, compunction, meekness, patience, and self-denial.

St. Leopold, Marquis of Austria, C.

Leopold, the fourth of that name, from his infancy commonly called The Pious, was son of Leopold III., and Itta, daughter to the emperor Henry IV.* By attending diligently to the instructions of God’s ministers, and meditating assiduously on the pure maxims of the gospel, he learned that there is but one common rule of salvation for princes and private persons this he studied, and from his cradle he labored to square by it his whole life. In his youth he laid a good foundation of learning; but it was his chief study to live only for eternity, to curb his passions, to mortify his senses, to renounce worldly pleasures, to give much of his time to prayer and holy meditation, and to apply himself to the exercise of all manner of good works, especially those of almsdeeds and charity. By the death of his father, in 1096, he saw it was become his indispensable duty to study and procure in all things the happiness of a numerous nation committed by God to his charge. The Austrians were then a very gross and superstitious people: it was necessary to soften their minds, to imbue them with the principles of reason and society, and make them Christians. The work was tedious and difficult. The saint prepared himself for it by earnestly asking of God that wisdom which he stood in need of for it; and by active endeavors, through the divine blessing, succeeded beyond what could have been hoped for. He was affable to all, studied to do good to every one, and eased as much as possible all public burdens of the people. His palace seemed the seat of virtue, justice, and universal goodness. When he was constrained to proceed to punishments, he endeavored to engage the criminals to receive them with patience, and in a spirit of penance, and to acknowledge the severity which he used to be necessary and just. He pardoned malefactors as often as prudence allowed him to do it; for he considered that the maintenance of justice and the public peace and safety depended upon the strict execution of the laws.

When the civil war broke out between the unnatural excommunicated emperor, Henry IV., and his own son, Henry V., Leopold was prevailed upon to join the latter, to whose cause he gave the greatest weight. Motives of justice and religion, and the authority of others determined him to take this step; yet Cuspinian tells us,¹ that he afterwards did remarkable penance for the share which he had in those transactions. In 1106 he took to wife Agnes, a most virtuous and accomplished princess, daughter to the emperor Henry IV., sister to Henry V., and widow of Frederic, duke of Suabia, by whom she had Conrad, afterwards emperor, and Frederic, father of Frederic Barbarossa. To St. Leopold she bore eighteen children, of which seven died in their infancy: the rest rendered their names famous by great and virtuous actions. Albert, the eldest, having given uncommon proofs of his valor and military skill, died in Pannonia, a few days after his father. Leopold, the second, succeeded his father in Austria, and reigned also in Bavaria. Otho, the fifth son, made great progress in his studies at Paris, became first a Cistercian monk, and abbot of Morimond, was afterwards chosen bishop of Frisingen, accompanied the emperor Conrad into the Holy Land, and died at Morimond in great sentiments of piety. His famous Chronicle from the beginning of the world, and other works, are monuments of his application to his studies. The marchioness Agnes would have her part in all her husband’s good works. With him she read the holy scriptures, and with joy interrupted her sleep in the night to rise to the usual midnight devotions of the church, to which this religious couple added together long meditations on the truths of everlasting life. Leopold, in the year 1117, founded the monastery of the Holy Cross, of the Cistercian order, twelve Italian miles from Vienna, near the castle of Kalnperg, where he lived. The saint and his religious marchioness were desirous to have been able to watch continually at the foot of the altar in singing the divine praises; but being obliged by their station in the world often to attend other affairs, though in all these they found God, whose holy will and greater glory they proposed to themselves in every thing they did; they resolved to found a great monastery of fervent regular canons, who might be substituted in their places, to attend night and day to this angelical function. This they executed by the foundation of the noble monastery of Our Lady of New Clausterberg, eight miles from Vienna. The marquis out of humility would not lay the first stone, but caused that ceremony to be performed by a priest. The church was dedicated in 1118 by the archbishop of Saltzburg, assisted by the bishop of Passau, the diocesan, and the bishop of Gurck. The foundation was confirmed by the pope, and by a charter of Leopold,* signed by Ottacar, marquis of Stiria, and many other counts and noblemen, in presence of the bishops, who fulminated an excommunication. with dreadful anathemas, against any who should invade the rights or lands of this monastery, or injure or molest the poor servants of Christ who there followed the rule of St. Austin.

Stephen II. king of Hungary, invaded Austria, but was repulsed by St. Leopold, who defeated his troops in a pitched battle. The Hungarians returned some years after, but were met by the holy marquis on his frontiers, and their army so ill handled that they were glad to save their remains by a precipitate flight. Upon the death of Henry V. in 1125, some of the electors and many others desired to see Leopold raised to the imperial dignity; but the election of Lothaire II., duke of Saxony, prevailed. Conrad and Frederic, sons of the marchioness Agnes by the duke of Suabia, who had also stood candidates, raised great disturbances in the empire, to which they afterwards both succeeded. But Leopold adhered with such fidelity to Lothaire, as to give manifest proofs of his sincere disinterestedness, and to show how perfectly a stranger he was to jealousy and ambition. He attended the emperor as his friend in his journey into Italy. After a glorious and happy reign he was visited with his last sickness, in which he confessed his sins with many tears, received extreme unction and the other rites of the church, and never ceasing to call on Christ his Redeemer, and to recommend his soul, through his precious death, into his divine hands with admirable tranquillity and resignation, passed to a state of happy immortality on the 15th of November, in 1136. He was buried at his monastery of New Clausterberg, two German miles from Vienna, and on his and his holy consort’s anniversaries two large doles are still distributed by the community to all the poor that come to receive it. St. Leopold was honored by God with many miracles, and was canonized by Innocent VIII., in 1485. See his life by Vitus Erempercht, published by F. Rader, in Bavaria Sancta, vol. 3, p. 143; the History of the foundation of Medlic, quoted at large by Lambecius, (Bibl. Vindob. vol. 2;) and Francis of Possac’s oration before Innocent VIII. in order to the saint’s canonization, (in Surius, t. 79,) in which many miracles are recited. See other manuscript monuments quoted by F. Rader.

St. Eugenius, M.

Was a disciple of St. Dionysius, first bishop of Paris, and suffered martyrdom at Paris soon after him, according to the New Paris Breviary in 275. His relics were translated to Toledo, in Spain, in 1148, as is rested by Mariana. It is by mistake that some have confounded this martyr with Eugenius, the pious and learned archbishop of Toledo.*

St. Malo, or Maclou

first bishop of aleth in brittany

He was a native of England, and cousin-german to St. Sampson and St. Magloire. At an early age he was sent for his education into Ireland where he made a rapid progress in learning and virtue. Being ordained priest, he was soon after elected to a bishopric by the suffrages of the people; but he declined that dignity, and retired into Brittany, where he put himself under the direction of a holy recluse, named Aron, near Aleth. About the year 541 he was made bishop of this city, and died the 15th of November, 565.^† It is from him the city of St. Malo has its name; for his sacred remains were carried thither after Aleth had been reduced to a village, and the episcopal see transferred to St. Malo. See Leland, Collect. t. 2, p. 430.

¹ Insin Divin l. 2, c. 22.

* This book has run through several editions: one was given by the devout Carthusian, Lanspergius who died at Cologne, in 1539: another by the great contemplative Lewis Blosius, the reformer of the abbey of Liesse, who refused the archbishopric of Cambray, and died in 1568. But the most correct is that of Dom. Mege, the Maurist monk, in 1664, under this title: S. Gertrudis insinuationum divinæ pietatis ecxciua

² Insin. Divin. p. 52.

* Austria was part of Norleum, and afterwards of Pannonia, when it fell a prey to the Huns and Abates. Charlemagne expelled them, and settled colonies from whom the country was called Osterniccha and Osteriandia; whence Austria signifies the eastern country, as Austrasia in France. Charlemagne and his successors placed there governors of the borders called marches, to restrain the Huns, &c. Upper Austria frequently was subject to Bavaria. Leopold I, was created by the emperor Otho I marquis of Austria in 940. St. Leopold was the sixth marquis, and his son Leopold V. was also duke of Havana, from whom the present dukes of than country derive their pedigree. Henry II. marquis of Austria, was created the first duke by the emperor Frederic Barbaregan. Rodulph, count of Hapeburg, possessed the county of Bregents, near Constance, and Alsace; after he became emperor of Germany he entered this archy of Austria in 1136, with which he invested his son Albert; from which time his descendants have remained posessed of it. See Bertius. Rernm Germanie.; Aventinus Annal. Belorum; Rader, Not. in S. Leopold Fiefs or feodal principalities were established by the Lombards in Italy, and, after the extinction of their kingdom, adopted in Germany, &c. Titles merely honorary were first made hereditary by Otho I. The name of Hertzog, which the Germans give to their dukes, signifies a leader of an army. Laudgraves were originally governors of provinces; margraves of marches, frontiers, or conquered countries; but graves or particular places of importance; rhinegrave, of the country about the Rhine; wild grave, of he forest of the Ardennes, this word signifying wild count. See Selden on Titles of Honor, Du Cange &c.

¹ Cuspin. in Austr March, p. 3.

* He everywhere styles himself Marchio Criemaus, for marquis of Austria.

* Eugenius held that see twelve years, and died in 657: was a prelate of eminent sanctity, presided in the ninth and tenth councils of Toledo, and is author of several pious epigrams, and a poem on the Hexaemeron, or work of six days, that is, the creation of the world, published by F. Sirmond in 1619. He a mentioned by his immediate successor. St. Ildefonsus.

^† Colgan says in 570. See Act. SS. Hib. p. 195, Usher, &c.

 Butler, A., The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal Saints (New York 1903) IV, 469-474.