SAINT ERMENGILD OF ELY, WIDOW AND NUN

 

St. Ermengild

Queen of Mercia,

Wife of King Wulfhere (widow)

Became a nun upon widowhood

Feast day: Feb 13

My 4th cousin, 38 times removed

I could not find very many pictures of Saint Ermengild, but she seems to be a worthy object of interest. She managed to convert her pagan husband, King Wulfhere, of Mercia, to the Catholic faith. 

Wulhere appears on the right

Lichfield Cathedral

Lichfield, Staffordshire, England

While I found little more than a mention and some bare facts about Ermengild, her royal and nobel family have quite a bit of information spread throughout the internet.  

Here are a few about her husband, Wulfhere:

Wikipedia of England

History by Nicklin

British History Podcast

There is a YouTube video about King Wulfhere that begins at the time when his father, King Penda, dies:

YOUTUBE VIDEO ABOUT WULFHERE

Her family tree was full of saints, of course, incluing her mother, sainted Queen Sexburga and her daughter, Saint Werburga (for whom there are a lot of photos of pictures, as well as some handsome statues!)

Saint Werburga

Saint Ermengild's daughter

Patron Saint of the City of Chester

in Cheshire, England

Feast day: Feb 3

My 5th cousin, 38 times removed

They are all descended from King Anna, all of whose children were either saints or royal rulers. Talk about a richly appointed background! These people are all related to me in some capacity or another - mostly saints. I find it interesting that we share some of the same blood becuase I hope to inherit as much of their good tendencies as I possibly can!

King Penda

Wulfhere's Father

Although she retired to the life of the widowed nun and managed two monasteries before she died, I am most impressed by Ermengild's ability to evangelize that pagan husband of hers. That is the real feat, as far as I am concerned! Husbands, especially in those days, are not famous for being receptive to learning from their wives. She must have been a remarkably influencial woman, and I would have loved to have met her!

Here are some links to websites that talk about her:

FROM THE ENGLISH WIKIPEDIA

CATHOLIC ONLINE

THE BLOG "THE HOLY ONES"

Her feast day is February 13th, which is also my dearly departed Grammy's birthday - the only relative who ever showed me an ounce of love and affection.

Lichfield Cathedral image

While the histories of this week's sainted ancestors are jam packed with tales of their influence on world affairs, as well as ecclesiastical, there is precious little real information about Ermengilda and the other sainted women, except that they were leaders of various numbers of convents and monasteries.

But that is exactly what I would expect of contemplatives and mystics. Sometimes, these monastics who have royal relatives will be found to make a mark on world history but, for the most part, their work is behind the scenes, hidden. You and I are living like that (and I am speaking to the other half-monastics and independent hermits here.) We know that, if we DO have any worth, it is only felt in the finest of spiritual realms. All of it is behind the scenes, somewhat clandestine and furtive. Meanwhile, the public face of our faith can be, at times, very grand.

Ely Cathedral

This Catheral had its origins in 672 AD

when my cousin St. Etheldreda,

daughter of King Anna,

built an abbey church here.

I know that it can be discouraging to have our time eaten up with the mundane: Paying bills, struggling with health issues, cleaning and organizing our homes, etc. The human heart naturally seeks the embrace of a loving recognition of our spiritual labors by Our Lord, whom we adore. However, we must always keep in mind that our job requires that we remain a bit mysterious and obscure, despite being crucially necessary to the welfare of makind. 

"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when

thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret;

and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Matthew 6:6

I don't know how, exactly, our Father in Heaven will reward us "openly" for our hidden life of prayer, but I trust that He knows what is best for us and, one day, he will reveal to ALL what He means by this.

In the meantime, we can say to ourselves and to God, "ah! what a beautiful thing!" And we can hold a firm confidence that He will hear us and see the exquisite nature of our holy labors.

My living room prayer wall

We also have one another, and I treasure the correspondence I receive from each one of you that joins with me in our holy labor of prayer and work for the Lord, each in our own little prayer closet or sitting in front of our personal prayer shrines. I love hearing about the causes for which you dedicate your rosaries and chaplets, as well as your other spiritual routines and practices.

May Saint Ermengild, Seaxburga and Werburga, as well as all the other saints who intercede for us at the throne of Our Lord, watch over all of us, and may we all be blessed!

Silver Rose

Back Room Prayer Wall

SAINT PAUL OF THEBES, THE FIRST HERMIT - JANUARY 15

 

Saint Paul receiving bread from the raven

that was purported to keep him alive to

be more than 100 years old

In a couple weeks, I will be celebrating my 20th anniversary as an urban hermit, so the topic is on my mind.

You know, I am always fascinated to read about the lives of these saints who were hermits, and there are quite a few of them in recorded history.

Paul is considered the first Christian hermit. We know about him because Saint Jerome wrote about him and Saint Anthony the Great, who had a connection later in life.  Paul is said to have lived to be more than 113 years old, kept alive by a raven that brought him half a loaf of bread every evening. I don't know what to say about that. I don't think I could be kept alive by only half a loaf of bread every night!

Paul did not initially intend to become a hermit. His brother-in-law wanted to grab his inheritance, so he was about to report Paul to the authorities for being a Christian. Paul went out into the desert to escape being imprisoned and killed but he eventually realized that hermit life suited him.

Obviously, he could not benefit from his inheritance ANYWAY, living in the desert like that, so it appears that he was not that attached to money to begin with, and his brother-in-law needn't have conspired to rob him of it. I find it interesting that I was also robbed of my inheritance and, although I was originally distressed about the injustice of it, considering the level of my needs as a result of my numerous disabilities, I have come to see that it might have turned out to be a curse, if I had not been written out of my father's will after he got Alzheimer's. I would likely have been hounded by people who were intent on grabbing what they could. Money is not the solution some people imagine it to be.  

I DO wish I wasn't a burden on friends, though. That is the one regret. On the flip side, I believe that The Lord has personally sent these kind people to me as his emissaries of love.

The person who robbed the inheritance will have to pay the price instead of me, I suspect. Anyway, the lack of the inheritance provides more opportunity for suffering that I may then offer to the Lord, and I should be grateful for the grace to endure it. I know it sounds backward to some people, but suffering is a type of spiritual currency. It is just ONE of the many ways that God brings all things to the good for those who believe.

Hermits, though they live alone, are normal human beings. They do have friends, but the nature of the relationships are not frequent or typical. Saint Paul became friends with Saint Anthony the Great during two days in Paul's 113th year!

Saint Anthony the Great and Saint

Paul of Thebes, the first hermit

Anthony and Paul only spent a day and a half together, and the next time Anthony went to see him, Paul was dead. There is a charming myth that two lions helped Saint Anthony dig Paul's grave.

I would have loved to have heard the conversation between those two holy men. I can only imagine!

There have been times, when considering my hermit life, that I have thought I should give it up because I am "doing it" imperfectly, but except for the rare moment of loneliness, I still feel that this life suits me, even if I am not a saint thereby. It is good for the ego for a person not to be too "successful," especially a religious person, it seems to me.

So I will slog along in my pathetic representation of a religious hermit, do the best I can, and be grateful for it all. When I celebrate my anniversary on February 3rd, I will be suitably humble before God.

The lives of the hermit saints bear little, if any resemblance to my life, but then the life of the typical resident of Thebes at that time looks nothing like the typical American in 2023! In addition to the differences connected with living a modern life, my numerous and growing disabilities also interfere with the aceticism one would usually expect from a hermit, so I do the best I can. The constant chronic pain is my offering and may be a more painful sacrifice to give than the more austere lives of these early saints. We all do the best we can within the conditions that are provided and the parameters of our own abilities.

Don't get me wrong. I have given it a lot of thought and wondered if I "should" give up the idea of the hermit life, but, although my religious practice is not perfect and, in some superficial ways, I appear to be a fairly typical senior lady of my time and place, I have no strong desire to have any other kind of life goal. I kept trying to see myself doing anything other than what I do now, and I just could not rustle up the interest! If I had wanted a more "normal" life, such as the other women I know, I surely would have tried for it long before my 20 year anniversary, don't you think?

Whatever defects remain in my daily practice must be battled and subdued, if possible, but in any case I will not give up the goal of gaining a more perfect union with The Lord through giving myself to Him alone, even if I fail in the attempt.  Please wish me the best and pray for me.

In the meantime, if you are interested in Saint Paul of Thebes, the First Hermit, and his contemporaries, or you are curious about early hermit life and lore, please take a look at the following links:

CATHOLIC.ORG

WIKIPEDIA.ORG - SAINT PAUL

WIKIPEDIA.ORG - SAINT JEROME

WIKIPEDIA.ORG - SAINT ANTHONY THE GREAT

WIKIPEDIA.ORG - SAINT ATHANASIUS

At some point, I believe that, such as with Anthony and Paul,  I would also like to develop a friendship with at lease one other hermit - especially an urban hermit. We have much to share with one another, I think - especially after 20 years of doing this. I also wonder if it would be a good idea to find a regular confessor, especially now that Covid is not as much of a problem as it was - but I suspect that I may wait another year before risking spending too much time outside the hermitage. God will bring what He wants for me.

I hope you will all pray for me, as I pray for you.

God bless and keep you!

Silver Rose

WHAT I AM READING NOW - "Poustinia, by Catherine Doherty"

Hermit caves in Syria

I have read it before, I am sure of it, but it has been years. I am enjoying it again. Catherine Doherty's "Poustinia" explains the solitary contemplative way that is the tradition of the Eastern Catholic churches.

One of the marvelous aspects of this tradition of thought and practice is that it is widely  open to all persons, no matter what their station in life. It is a common expression of the laity. From the busy housewife who steals some moments at her prayer corner behind a sheltering curtain, to the acetic who, donning a long shift and carrying nothing but some bread and salt with him, wanders into the forest to reside completely alone, contemplative prayer life is widely practiced.



This book has my recommendation for all my readers who are attempting to live alone with God. It is quite encouraging and soothing, in addition to its obvious educational value.

Here are its particulars:

POUSTINIA

Encountering God in Silence, Solitude and Prayer

The modern spiritual classic for those seeking the open heart and 

listening soul of silent contemplation

by Catherine Doherty

Published by

Madonna House Classics

2888 Dafoe Rd, RR 2

Combermere ON KOJ 1LO

www.madonnahouse.or/publications

A lovely introductory passage:

"It seems strange to say, but what can help modern man find the answers to his own mystery and the mystery of Him in whose image he is created, is silence and solitude -- in a word, the desert. Modern man needs these things more than the hermits of old."

National House of Prayer

by Richard Long

If you'd care to read a nice biography of Catherine Doherty, please examine this LINK

Catherine Doherty

from Baroness

to

Poustinik

Photo taken by Thomas Merton

I am not writing much on the blog these days, but I hope you continue to contact me. I remain available for prayer requests, advice and encouragement.

God bless us all!

Silver Rose Parnell