March 29th - St Rupert

March 29th - The Life of St Rupert, with the Life of St Erendruda of
Salzburg

1. The blessed and pious confessor of Christ, Rupert, was born of a noble
and royal family of the Franks, but he was far nobler in faith and in
devoutness. He was a man prudent, gentle, and truthful in his conversation,
just in his judgement, and circumspect in his counsels. He was known for his
charity, and in the universe of morals he stood out in his honesty. Indeed
many flocked to his most sacred teaching, and they received the proclamation
of eternal salvation from him. When the report of his blessed conversation
grew far and wide, he found in his acquaintance the Duke of Bavaria, Theodo,
who asked of the man of God as many intercessions as he was able. He began
to ask through his distinguished messengers that the saint might consent to
visit his province with his blessed teaching. To this the preacher of truth,
stung by divine love, gave his assent, and, having first arranged his
affairs, he consented to go to the flock of Christ which would be gained
because of him.

2. When the Duke had heard this preaching, he was overwhelmed with great
joy, and continued with his attendants on the way to meet the blessed saint
and doctor with all honor and dignity, as much as he possibly could. He
caught up with him in the city of Regensburg. The blessed man began to
admonish him soon about Christian conversation and to instruct him in the
universal faith. Thus, he converted the Duke and many other noble men to the
true faith, and he baptized them. He confirmed them in the holy religion.
Praying, the Duke allowed the holy man to choose a place, pleasing to
himself and to his followers: whichever place he desired, so that he could
build a church and complete all the other things needed for the work of the
Church. The man of God, having accepted the Duke's permission, seized the
chance to sail down the Danube valley until he came to the city of Lorch,
where he proclaimed the same doctrine of the holy life. Many there who were
ill, many who were languishing in oppression, were cleansed by the strength
of God.

3. Passing through all the Alpine region, he came at length to the kingdom
of the Carinthians. Being asked, he converted that kingdom and cleansed it
with the baptism of Christ. Climbing the highest mountain, called Tauern
(Mons Durus), he preached to the Vandals and attained the greatest fruit
graciously given by the Lord. He also built there many churches, and he
established several monasteries. At last, having charged his disciples,
religious, priests, and clergy to keep the Christian faith, he returned to
the territory of Passau. Having come back, he began to travel around the
province. He reached a certain lake which is called the Wallersee, where he
had built and consecrated a church in honor of the Apostle Peter. There
often the renowned Duke distributed his personal possessions in the same
place where he originally met the saint on his rounds.

4. Afterward another place came to the attention of St. Rupert. It was up
the River Salzach, or as it was known in olden times, the Juvavian Stream.
It had been named in the time of the Roman emperors, and a beautiful little
house had been built, which was now discovered hidden in the trees. Hearing
this, the man of God wished to look at it with his own eyes and experience
the truth about the thing, because he thought that it would profit the
faithful souls. Giving thanks to divine grace, he began to ask Duke Theodo
that he might bestow his authority upon this place, to exorcise and purify
it and to establish a church according to his pleasure. The Duke at once
consented, bestowing possessions over two leucas in length and width, that
he might do what was useful to the Church. Then St. Rupert began to renew
the place (Salzburg), building a beautiful church to the First God, which he
dedicated in honor of St. Peter, the foremost of the Apostles: and he built
finally a cloister with other houses for the use of religious men, orderly
throughout. Afterward he ordained priests, and he instituted daily solemn
observance of the canonical hours. St. Rupert wished to increase the places
of service to God. With the help of God, from the gift of the King and Duke,
and by the behests of faithful men, the places began to grow.

5. The man of God, seeing the flock of the Lord depart over the precipice of
vices because of the longings of the women, prayed to God in his heart,
saying, "Lord, if it is good in your eyes, I will pick for myself other
people fit for your service and refinement, through whom the practice of
your good life may become attractive to the women, and, as well, to the
men." He had in his country, that is, Vangionum in the state of Wormatia,
known a certain noble virgin, consecrated from the cradle to God. Her name
was Erendruda (Erentraud), and he wanted to send for her that she with
others might found a religious order for women. He built a place and a
mansion appropriate for the chaste in the Juvavian fort, and he gave it to
the charge of the Theotokos. When it was completed, he went to call
Erendruda to himself, and great joy came over the face of the blessed
Rupert, because he had lived to see this before the day of his death.
Therefore the holy priest led her into the oratory, which was consecrated to
the Theotokos, and said: "Lady Sister, do you know why I have asked you
here?" She replied: "Yes, Father, I know, for Our Lord Jesus Christ has
revealed it to my spirit, saying: Go in peace as you are called. Behold I
will be with you, and I will lead to myself through you many women's souls,
whom you shall guide by your example to the true religious path, coming to
me." When he heard this, the blessed priest rejoiced greatly in God.

6. After a short time, many virgins and noble matrons came to the virgin
Erendruda, and she led them with such discernment that in a brief time all
showed their learning and gave appropriate service to God. Such was the
virgin Erendruda in custom that she reckoned wealth to herself whatever
solace any disciple of hers received as a divine gift. Such was she in
prayer, that she considered it her whole health. Such was she in aspect,
that whether she met good people or bad, she thought herself lower than
they. What is to be remembered of the constancy and restraint of her life,
of her largesse in almsgiving, of her rectitude, of her steadfastness in
vigil and her sanctity in all of religious life? If at first she was not
strong in one or another of these, it ought to be overlooked rather than
investigated.

7. At length, when the blessed Rupert knew by divine revelation that his
death was at hand, he said to Blessed Erendruda, whom he had called to him:
"My beloved sister, my private conversation is to you; I pray that you will
tell none of this, as I have told you a secret. It has pleased God to show
me my departure from this Earth, and now I ask, Lady Sister, that you pray
for my soul when God sees fit to call it to His peace." The holy virgin
responded with tears: "If it is true as you say, master, arrange that I die
before you do!" The bishop said to her: "Sister, most dear one! You should
not wish to hasten to an inopportune death, nor to choose your exit while
sin is great. Our end has not been fixed in our wishes, but in divine
providence." The holy virgin prostrated herself at the feet of the priest
and begged him: "Father, master, I ask you to remember that you have led me
here from my own country, and now you wish to leave me a poor orphan. I ask
only one thing of you, that if I am not worthy to depart before you or with
you, at least intercede as a witness with God that I may be worthy of the
passing wished for!" The most holy priest Rupert granted these requests, and
when for a long time they had joined in talk sweetly about eternal life, and
they had wept together, they said a final sad farewell.

8. The blessed Rupert celebrated the liturgy before the entire church on the
day of the Resurrection of the Lord. He gave a homily to the people, and
distributed the Body and Blood of Christ. He gave the blessing and
benediction. When the Mass was ended, he fell down in prayer. Commending his
spirit into the hands of the Heavenly Father, he fell asleep in the Lord on
the twenty-seventh day of March. He was buried in the Basilica of Sts. Peter
and Paul, which he had himself consecrated to their honor. The entire
population of Noricum mourned him, because he had been an apostle to that
race, and he had never grieved anyone in any way. After this, the blessed
Erendruda sat night and day in the oratory and prayed to the Lord with tears
for the soul of her now dead friend Rupert. She kept watchful vigils and
awaited the gift of promised consolation. At last one night the holy Rupert
came to her in a vision and said: "I have come, beloved sister, to the
kingdom of Christ, for which I have labored for a long time." Wide awake,
she gave thanks to God, and at once she began to feel ill. She called
together all the sisters; she exhorted them; she received the Sacrament of
the Church. After they had exchanged the sweet kiss of peace, she gave up
her spirit. After this, her sacred body, preserved with spices, was buried
in the Monastery of the Most Holy Theotokos with great veneration on the
thirtieth day of June.

BIBLIOGRAPHIC NOTE

The Latin texts of the lives translated here can be found in the Acta
Sanctorum of the Bollandists under March 27. Another, possibly older, Latin
life of Rupert is given in Vol. 6 of the Merovingian series of Monumenta
Germaniae Historica and excerpts in Latin from other lives are in John
Colgan's Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae (Louvaine, 1647). An English translation
of a few sentences from the Life of Erendruda occurs in Butler's Lives of
the Saints by Thurston and Attwater under June 30.

An extremely recent secondary source on Austria-Bavaria in Merovingian and
Carolingian times is Germany in the Early Middle Ages by T. Reuter (London:
Longman,1991). Some material on the Austro-Irish Church can be found in John
T. McNeill's The Celtic Churches (University of Chicago, 1974).


Saint Quote:
When you are before the altar where Christ reposes, you ought no longer to
think that you are amongst men; but believe that there are troops of angels
and archangels standing by you, and trembling with respect before the
sovereign Master of Heaven and earth. Therefore, when you are in church, be
there in silence, fear, and veneration.
-Saint John Chrysostom

Bible Quote:
And because you are sons, God hath sent the Spirit of his Son into your
hearts, crying: Abba, Father.
Therefore now he is not a servant, but a son. And if a son, an heir also
through God. (Galatians 4:6-7)


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Invocations

Eternal Father, we offer Thee the infinite merits of Our Lord
Jesus Christ, of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary and of all the
Saints, in expiation for the sins of the world and for the
salvation of souls.

Lord Jesus, may Thy Precious Blood purify souls, For whom
Thou hast died with so much love.




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