SOURCE : http://magnificat.ca/cal/fr/saints/saint_hubert.html
Jean
Bourdichon (1503-1508), Grandes Heures d'Anne de Bretagne, Fol. 191v -
Saint-Hubert
Master of the Life of the Virgin,
The Conversion of Saint Hubert: Left Hand Shutter , oil on oak wood, circa
1485-1490, 123 x 83.2, National Gallery, Central
London
3 novembre
Saint Hubert
Saint Hubert qui occupa le siège de saint Servais de
705 à 727, était apparenté, selon une hypothèse assez plausible, à Plectrude,
femme du maire du palais Pépin II. Il semble qu’il se maria et que son fils
distingué, Florbert (évêque de Liège de 727 à 746), signalé par son biographe,
était plus qu'un fils spirituel.
Une Vie, écrite vers 745, dit qu’Il arrachait
bien des gens à l'erreur des gentils : il la fit cesser. Des pays éloignés
on accourait vers lui, et il confirmait par la grâce septiforme ceux qui
étaient lavés par l'eau du baptême... Plusieurs idoles et sculptures qu'on
allait adorant en Ardenne furent détruites et livrées au feu. Comme par la
suite des fanatiques vénéraient d'une manière sacrilège cette poussière et ces
cendres, il leur infligea trois ans de pénitence. De même en Taxandrie et en
Brabant, il détruisit plusieurs images et beaucoup de sculptures, et il
construisit en divers lieux, à la sueur de son front, des sanctuaires en
l'honneur des saints martyrs. La treizième année de son épiscopat, la
veille de Noël, il fit transporter à Liège les restes de saint Lambert, qui
reposaient dans l'église Saint-Pierre de Maestricht. Dans
l'église Saint-Lambert, on construisit un mausolée magnifique. Mais il n'y
eut pas, semble-t-il, de transfert officiel du siège épiscopal de Maestricht à
Liège, pas plus que jadis de Tongres à Maestricht.
Hubert pêchant à Nivelle-sur-Meuse, dans une barque,
s'appuyait d'une main sur un piquet à enfoncer, lorsqu'un serviteur,
involontairement, lui assena un coup de maillet sur la main et lui broya les
doigts. Le lendemain, comme il était retourné à la pêche avec ses gens, un coup
de vent chavira la barque. De la berge Hubert pria. Un homme est sous l'eau,
roulé, un pan de sa tunique enroulé à un piquet. Je le secouais trois
fois, impossible de me dégager. Assiégé par l'eau, je m'écriais : “Par ses
mérites, au secours, toi qui as créé mer et terres !” Aussitôt délié, je
glissais entre deux poteaux et, en quelques brasses à peine, je m'évadais
jusqu'à la berge. Et tous les serviteurs s'en sortirent sains et saufs. L'évêque
dut s'aliter à cause de sa blessure. La douleur l'empêchait de dormir. Il
répétait sans cesse le psaume Miserere. Dieu éprouvait son
athlète : pendant trois mois, les doigts suppurèrent. Enfin, une nuit
qu'il somnolait, un ange lui montra une basilique neuve en disant : Il
y a beaucoup de demeures dans la maison de mon Père (Jean XIV 2) ; et
celle-ci que tu vois, je te la donnerai pour que tu la possèdes devant Dieu
pour l'éternité. Et il lui prédit la fin de sa tribulations au bout d'un
an.
Saint Hubert augmenta son ascèse, ses aumônes et,
l'année se terminant, il vint prier longuement au tombeau de saint Lambert,
puis se rendit aux Saints-Apôtres, à Liège, et désigna l'endroit où il
voulait reposer. Il consentit d’aller en Brabant pour la dédicace d'une église
et comme on lui insinuait qu'il pourrait abréger la longue cérémonie, il
répondit : Faisons les choses amplement, de notre mieux : voilà
pour aujourd'hui le programme !
Il fit non seulement la fonction liturgique, mais
prêcha encore à tierce (9 heures) et à sexte (midi) sur la mort, sur sa
mort. Faites pénitence, il va venir, il est proche, le jour du jugement.
La mort est voisine, elle ne tarde pas à venir, comme dit l'Écriture. Oui, de
ce sommeil nous serons tous pris. Si quelqu'un de vous se sent empêtré dans une
faute ou tombé dans les péchés, vite qu'il recoure aux médecines salutaires,
tant qu'une porte est encore ouverte, afin que l'âme ne meure pas avec le
corps. Les méfaits qu'il a commis, qu'il s'en repente de tout cœur. Et vous,
frères, pesez et soupesez bien ce que vous avez fait, et maintenant faites
attention à ce que vous faites. Moi, pauvre pêcheur, quand je parle pour vous,
c'est pour moi que je crains. Sinon autant que je le dois, du moins autant que
je le puis, j'avertis. Celui qui méprise le héraut, qu'il craigne le
juge ! Voilà que mon juge est là tout près qui va me dire : Où sont
ceux que tu as instruits, où sont ceux que tu as prêchés, où sont-ils ? Je
t'ai constitué pour être à la tête de mon troupeau. Rends compte de ta gestion (Luc
XVI 2) : combien as-tu exigé, combien as-tu travaillé, combien me
rapportes-tu d'argent ? Et moi, misérable, que répondrai-je, inutile
serviteur, quand il apparaîtra dans toute sa majesté, glorieux, avec les saints
anges et archanges, les trônes et les dominations ? Le juge sévère viendra
exiger son dû et rendre ce qu'il a promis. Alors, si je peux sortir quelques
biens de vous, je dirai : Ceux-là, ils ont gardé tes commandements et tes
préceptes (Jean XVII 6) ; ta loi, grâce à mon enseignement, ils
ne l'ont pas oubliée. Et vous, contents, vous porterez vos gerbes devant le
Seigneur, dans une liesse éternelle. Ah ! pas de cette redoutable sentence
que le serviteur mauvais et paresseux mérita d'entendre ! mais plutôt
celle que le fidèle serviteur a méritée Dans le détail tu as été fidèle,
je vais te donner une belle situation. Entre dans la joie de ton maître. Et
aussi : Venez, bénis de mon Père, recevez le royaume (Matthieu XXV 21
34). Puissiez-vous mériter de venir heureusement dans ce royaume par la grâce
de celui qui vous a appelés à la gloire, et qui m'a donné le pouvoir de vous
conduire jusqu'ici. Aujourd'hui, vous, tous, je vous recommande à Jésus-Christ
pour que dans ses préceptes, par mes paroles, vous persévériez toujours !
Saint Hubert, après la cérémonie, se rendit à un
banquet où il accepta un peu d’une coupe de vin, fit une prière sur la table,
donna à tous des pains bénits (eulogies) et mangea peu, les yeux au ciel. Comme
il se levait de table, un anachorète qui comptait douze ans de vie solitaire
l'invita à boire un peu plus. Il répondit : Au revoir dans le royaume
de Dieu ! mais ici, je ne boirai pas plus. Puis il gagna sa barque,
probablement sur le Dyle.
Quand il en sortit, il avait grand soif et grand
froid. Il alla se reposer, mais fut tiré de son sommeil par des serviteurs qui
se battaient au couteau. Alors on le mit sur un cheval et, soutenu par des
mains amies, il rentra chez lui (à Tervueren) pendant la nuit. La fièvre
grandit du lundi au vendredi. Il psalmodiait sans pouvoir dormir. Une nuit, le
démon le tourmenta spécialement. Hubert appela un disciple, demanda l'heure. Le
coq n'avait pas encore chanté. Il voulut de l'eau bénite, de l'huile sainte.
Avant l'aube, il avait déjà récité son office jusqu'à vêpres. Au matin, après
avoir récité le Credo et le Pater en présence de son fils
distingué, Florbert, Hubert mourut (30 mai 727). Son corps fut porté
aux Saints-Apôtres de Liège où, seize ans après sa mort, il fut
retrouvé intact. Le 3 novembre 743, le maire du palais Carloman aida à porter
ses reliques devant l'autel. En 825, Liège les céda partiellement au monastère
d'Andage qui devint Saint-Hubert, et prétendit posséder le corps dans son
intégralité.
SOURCE : http://missel.free.fr/Sanctoral/11/03.php
Bekehrung des Hubertus von Lüttich in einer
spätmittelalterlichen Buchmalerei,
Also known as
Apostle of the Ardennes
Hubert the Hunter
Hubertus…
30 May (translation
of relics)
Profile
Grandson of Charibert, King of Toulouse.
Eldest son of Bertrand, Duke of
Aquitaine. Worldly, popular and dissolute layman courtier at
Nuestria in northwest France in
his youth.
For political reasons he emigrated,
to Austrasia in the border area between modern France and Germany. Married in 682 to
Floribanne, daughter of Dagobert, Count of
Louvain. Father of
one son, Saint Floribert
of Liege.
Hubert was passionately devoted to hunting.
While chasing a
stag on a Good
Friday morning, he received a vision of a crucifix between
the animal’s antlers. A voice warned him, “Hubert, unless you turn to the
Lord, and lead a holy life, you shall quickly go down to hell.” It was
a conversion experience
for Hubert.
Spiritual student of Saint Lambert
of Maastricht. When his wife died,
Hubert renounced all his worldy positions, titles and wealth, handed his
patrimony, and the care of his son, to his brother, and studied for
the priesthood.
After ordination,
he served as assistant to Saint Lambert. Pilgrim to Rome,
where he was when Lambert was murdered.
Chosen bishop of Maastricht.
Known for his excellent preaching and
his generosity to the poor,
stripping the diocese of
all excesses to help them. Following another vision, and to defend of the
memory of Lambert,
he moved his mentor’s body from
Maastricht to Liege,
and built a church for it on the site of Lambert‘s martyrdom.
First bishop of Liege.
Hubert evangelized the
Ardenne region, converting pagans and
strengthening Christians.
He tracked down some of the old idolatrous places
of worship, but generally permitted the new converts to
decide for themselves to destroy the old idols. They all, naturally, did so.
Hubert predicted the date of his own death,
and died while
reciting the Our Father. He became highly revered in the Middle Ages, and
there were several military orders named in his honor. His association with
the hunt led
to his patronage of furriers and trappers,
and against rabies and
bad behavior in dogs,
primarily hunting dogs.
The breed commonly known as bloodhounds are also called Saint
Hubert’s hounds.
Born
c.656 at
Maastricht, Netherlands
30 May 727 at
Fura (modern Tervueren), Brabant, Belgium of
natural causes
interred at Saint Peter’s collegiate church in Liege, Belgium
relics translated
in 825 to
the abbey which
has since been renamed Saint Hubert’s
–
in Belgium
bishop celebrating Mass as
an angel brings
him a scroll
bishop with
a hound and
hunting horn
bishop with
a stag with
a crucifix
huntsman adoring
a stag with
a crucifix in
its antlers
kneeling before a stag as an angel brings
him a stole
kneeling in prayer,
a hound before
him and often with hunting gear
nearby
knight with
a banner showing
the stag‘s
head and crucifix
stag with
a crucifix over
its head
young courtier with
two hounds
Additional Information
A
Garner of Saints, by Allen Banks Hinds, M.A.
Book
of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Catholic
Encyclopedia, by C F Wemyss Brown
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Alban
Butler
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Francis
Xavier Weninger
Saints
of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
Short
Lives of the Saints, by Eleanor Cecilia Donnelly
books
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
Sacred
and Legendary Art, by Anna Jameson
other sites in english
Honoring
the Patron Saints of Hunters
What Does Jägermeister Have to Do with Saint Hubert?
images
sitios en español
Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
sites en français
Abbé Christian-Philippe Chanut
fonti in italiano
MLA Citation
“Saint Hubert of Liège“. CatholicSaints.Info. 29
May 2021. Web. 3 November 2021. <https://catholicsaints.info/saint-hubert-of-liege/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-hubert-of-liege/
Saint Hubert évêque et le cerf, église Notre-Dame.Villedieu-les-Poêles
(Normandie, France).
St. Hubert
Confessor,
thirty-first Bishop of
Maastricht, first Bishop of Liège, and Apostle of
the Ardennes, born about 656; died at Fura (the modern Tervueren), Brabant, 30
May, 727 or 728. He was honored in the Middle Ages as the
patron of huntsmen, and the healer of hydrophobia (rabies). He was the eldest
son of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, and grandson of Charibert, King of Toulouse, a descendant
of the great Pharamond. Bertrand's wife is variously given as Hugbern, and as
Afre, sister of Saint Oda. As a youth, Hubert went to the court of Neustria,
where his charming manners and agreeable address won universal esteem, gave him
a prominent position among the gay courtiers, and led to his investment with
the dignity of "count of the palace". He was a worldling and a lover
of pleasure, his chief passion being for the chase, to which pursuit he devoted
nearly all his time. The tyrannical conduct of Ebroin caused a general
emigration of the nobles and others to the court of Austrasia. Hubert soon
followed them and was warmly welcomed by Pepin Heristal, mayor of the palace,
who created him almost immediately grand-master of the household. About this
time (682) he married Floribanne, daughter of Dagobert, Count of Louvain, and seemed to
have given himself entirely up to the pomp and vanities of this world. But a
great spiritual revolution was imminent. On Good Friday morn,
when the faithful were
crowding the churches, Hubert sallied forth to the chase. As he was pursuing a
magnificent stag, the animal turned and, as the pious legend
narrates, he was astounded at perceiving a crucifix between its antlers, while
he heard a voice saying: "Hubert, unless thou turnest to the Lord, and
leadest an holy life, thou shalt quickly go down into hell". Hubert
dismounted, prostrated himself and said, "Lord, what wouldst Thou have me
do?" He received the answer, "Go and seek Lambert, and he will
instruct you."
Accordingly, he set out immediately for Maastricht, of
which place St.
Lambert was then bishop. The latter
received Hubert kindly, and became his spiritual director.
Hubert, losing his wife shortly after this, renounced all his honors and his
military rank, and gave up his birthright to the Duchy of Aquitaine to his
younger brother Eudon, whom he made guardian of his infant son, Floribert.
Having distributed all his personal wealth among the poor, he entered upon
his studies for the priesthood,
was soon ordained,
and shortly afterwards became one of St. Lambert's chief
associates in the administration of his diocese. By the advice
of St. Lambert,
Hubert made a pilgrimage to Rome and during his
absence, the saint was
assassinated by the followers of Pepin. At the same hour, this was revealed to
the pope in
a vision, together with an injunction to appoint Hubert bishop, as being a
worthy successor to the see. Hubert was so much
possessed with the idea of
himself winning the martyr's crown
that he sought it on many occasions, but unsuccessfully. He distributed his
episcopal revenues among the poor, was diligent
in fasting and prayer, and became
famous for his eloquence in the pulpit. In 720, in
obedience to a vision, Hubert translated St. Lambert's remains
from Maastrict to Liège with
great pomp and ceremonial, several neighboring bishops assisting.
A church for the relics was
built upon the site of the martyrdom, and was made
a cathedral the
following year, the see being
removed from Maastricht to Liège, then only a small
village. This laid the foundation of the future greatness of Liège, of which Lambert
is honored as patron, and St. Hubert as founder and first bishop.
Idolatry still lingered in the fastnesses of the
forest of Ardennes--in Toxandria, a district stretching from near Tongres to
the confluence of the Waal and the Rhine, and in Brabant. At the risk of his
life Hubert penetrated the remote lurking places of paganism in his
pursuit of souls,
and finally brought about the abolishment of the worship of idols in his
neighborhood. Between Brussels and Louvain, about twelve
leagues from Liège,
lies a town called Tervueren, formerly known as Fura. Hither Hubert went for
the dedication of a new church. Being apprised of his impending death by a
vision, he there preached his valedictory sermon, fell sick almost immediately,
and in six days died with the words "Our Father, who art in Heaven . . . "
on his lips. His body was deposited in the collegiate church of St.
Peter, Liège. It
was solemnly translated
in 825 to the Abbey of Amdain (since called St. Hubert's) near what is now the
Luxemburg frontier; but the coffin disappeared in the sixteenth century. Very
many miracles are
recorded of him in the Acta SS., etc. His feast is kept on 3
November, which was probably the date of the
translation. St. Hubert was widely venerated in
the Middle Ages,
and many military
orders were named after him.
Brown, C.F. Wemyss. "St.
Hubert." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York:
Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 2 Nov.
2021 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07507a.htm>.
Transcription. This article was transcribed for
New Advent by H. Jon Thomas.
Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil
Obstat. June 1, 1910. Remy Lafort, S.T.D.,
Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2020 by Kevin Knight.
Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07507a.htm
Hochkönigsburg (Elsass). Saal der Jagdtrophäen: Wandmalerei mit der Bekehrung des heiligen Hubertus.
Haut-Koenigsbourg castle (Alsace). Hunting room: Mural showing the conversion of saint Hubertus.
Wallfahrtskirche Heilig Kreuz, ehemalige Klosterkirche
des Klosters Bergen in Bergen, einem Ortsteil von Neuburg an der Donau im Landkreis
Neuburg-Schrobenhausen (Bayern), Fresken von Johann Wolfgang Baumgartner, von
1758; Darstellung: Hl. Hubertus
Weninger’s Lives of the Saints –
Saint Hubert, Bishop of Maestricht and Liege
Article
Saint Hubert, bishop of Maestricht and Liege, was the
son of Bertrand, duke of Aquitain. In his childhood, he was led in the path of
piety; but coming afterwards to the Court of King Theodoric, and thence to that
of Duke Pepin of Heristal, he lost all love for devotion, and was carried away
by the pleasures of the world. Yielding to Pepin’s wish, he married Floribana,
a very virtuous duchess, but did not in the least change his conduct. His
occupations were gaming and feasting. He was also passionately fond of hunting,
and wasted much of his precious time in roving through fields and forests.
Saint Oda, a sister of his mother, who had very carefully guided his early
youth, was very sad on account of his having given himself entirely to worldly
pursuits, and prayed daily to God for his conversion. Her prayer was at length
granted. One day, when Hubert was in full pursuit of a noble stag, the animal,
suddenly turning round, stood still. Hubert gazed at it in astonishment, and
saw a crucifix between its antlers, while from its lips he heard distinctly:
“Hubert! Hubert, how long wilt you pursue wild animals, and waste the time
given thee to work out thy salvation? I warn thee that, if you wilt not lead a
better life, you shalt be cast into hell.” Hubert, who, on seeing the image of
his crucified Lord, had immediately dismounted and thrown himself upon the
ground, listened trembling, and was deeply moved at these words. A second Saul,
he cried: “Lord, what wilt you have me do?” “Go to Maestricht,” was the reply;
“Bishop Lambert will tell thee what you must do.”
Hubert, somewhat consoled by these words, although
still full of fear at the terrible menace, repented of his past conduct, and
immediately went to Saint Lambert. Sinking down on his knees before the bishop,
Hubert wept so bitterly that he could not utter a word. Lambert asked him the cause
of his grief, and why he had come. Hubert related all that had happened, and
humbly begged the holy bishop to show him the path he ought to follow in order
not to be cast into hell. The bishop, having encouraged him to trust in the
mercy of God, advised him to make a thorough confession* and then instructed
him in regard to his future conduct. After this, Hubert returned home, and,
without informing any one of what had happened to him, he showed by his life
that he was quite a different man. His only desire now was to leave the world
entirely, and to serve God more perfectly. The early death of his wife gave him
the desired opportunity for doing so; for, God called her to Himself after she
had given birth to a son.
Hubert, recognizing the hand of the Almighty in this
event, gave thanks to Him, and going to his holy teacher, told him that he was
determined to lead the life of a hermit, in order the better to atone for his
sins and to serve God in peace. Saint Lambert praised his resolution,
instructed him how to regulate his life in the desert, gave him his blessing
and dismissed him quite consoled. On his return home, Hubert was informed that
his father had become very sick, and hastening to him, he remained with him
until his end. By this death, Hubert became heir to the whole duchy; but he
resigned it to his younger brother, gave his own possessions to the poor,
reserving only as much as was needed for his son, whom he gave in charge of his
brother, to be educated according to his station in life. In this manner,
Hubert freed himself from every earthly tie, and, going into the forest where
he had had the above-mentioned apparition, he led during seven years a most
austere and holy life.
After this time, he felt an inner desire to make a
pilgrimage to Rome, and having the permission of Saint Lambert, he went thither
as a poor pilgrim, and visited with great devotion the churches and the tombs
of the Saints. During his stay there, Saint Lambert was cruelly murdered in his
church, for having fearlessly reproved the King of France for his unchaste
life. An angel appeared on the following night to Pope Sergius, and informing
him of the death of Saint Lambert, commanded him at the same time to appoint
Hubert, the disciple of Lambert, whom he would see enter the Church of the
Apostles on the following day, as his successor. When the Pope awoke, he went
into the church, and when he saw Hubert enter in the garb of a pilgrim, he
called him and asked him who he was and whence he came. Hubert gave his name,
adding that he was a disciple of bishop Lambert, and that the purpose of his
pilgrimage was to visit the holy places. The Pope desired to hear no more, but
taking Hubert by the hand, led him to the shrine of Saint Peter and said to
him: “Your teacher, Saint Lambert has been killed by wicked people, but is
already crowned in heaven; and you shall become his successor.” The humble
servant of God endeavored to excuse himself, but the Pope informed him of the
divine command, which Hubert could not disobey. He was therefore consecrated by
the Pope himself, and returned as bishop to Maestricht. Before he had reached
the city, his appointment and consecration had been made known, so that he was
joyfully received by the people and the clergy, and placed upon the episcopal
throne. The first resolution of the new bishop was to conform his life to the
example of his holy teacher, Saint Lambert, who was already honored as a
martyr. Hubert transferred his see to Liege, where Saint Lambert had been
buried; and not satisfied with guarding and leading by word and example the
flock entrusted to his care, he also endeavored to uproot entirely the idolatry
which still existed in the neighboring places; and his undertaking was blessed
with great success.
After having converted many thousand souls to Christ,
and administered his functions as a true and holy pastor for nearly 30 years,
he was called to receive the eternal reward of his faithful services. A year
before he died, his last hour was made known to him by divine revelation,
while, at the same time, the glory which was prepared for him in heaven was
shown him in an ecstasy. In his last sickness, after he had received the holy
Sacraments, he saw a great number of spirits of hell, who menacing him most
fearfully, tried to approach him. Asking for holy water, he sprinkled himself
and his bed with it and thus drove away the hosts of hell. After this, he
raised his eyes on high, and having recited the Apostles’ Creed and the Lord’s
Prayer, he expired. The power of the intercession of the Saint is still seen at
this day, especially in favor of those who are bitten by rabid animals.
Practical Considerations
• “How long will you pursue wild beasts and waste the
precious time given you to work out your salvation?” This was asked of Hubert
by Christ, the Lord. The same question I address to you. How long will you
waste the time of your life? Behold, the present days of your life are the days
of your salvation; that is, they are days which God has given you to work out
your salvation. You have, until now, wasted so many days, because you did not
employ them to the end for which they were given.
How long will you continue thus? Has not the Almighty
waited long enough for your conversion? Have you not reason to fear that He
will say to you what He said to Hubert: “I warn thee that if you dost not soon
change thy conduct, you shall go to hell.” Heed it well: “Soon!” God may suffer
from you a certain number of iniquities; He destines for you a certain number
of graces, a certain number of. days. How large this number is, you do not
know. For some men it is large, for others small. If you fill the measure of
sin without being converted, you will die and go to destruction in your sins.
When the number of your graces or of your days is full, you will not receive
others from God, and your time will have expired in which to work out your
salvation. God will then let you die and will banish you eternally from His
face. If it is, therefore, your earnest desire to escape hell, follow Saint
Hubert, and reform your life. Today the Almighty gives you yet time and grace;
whether He will give you the same also tomorrow, I do not know. “We must,
therefore,” says Saint Ambrose, “work, with the grace of the Almighty, without
delay.” “And we helping, exhort you that you receive not the grace of God in
vain,” writes Saint Paul. “For he saith: in an accepted time have I heard thee,
and in the day of salvation have I helped thee. Behold, now is the acceptable
time; behold, now is the day of salvation!” (2nd Corinthians 6) But who
receives the grace of God in vain? Saint Anselm says: “Those who do not
cooperate with it, or who, by their indolence, cause the grace received to be
idle and of no effect.” Take care that you do not belong to these. Work today
with the grace; because today is the day of salvation, a day on which you can
work at your salvation.
• Hunting, gaming and such amusements were the pastime
and occupation of Hubert: God threatened him with hell if he did not change his
conduct. Why this? Is gaming or hunting a mortal sin? No, in itself, it is not.
But as Hubert passed most of his time in these diversions, as he was
passionately devoted to them, and did not earnestly occupy himself with his
salvation, he sinned, and would have gone to eternal destruction, had he not
changed his conduct. Heed this most important truth. There are many worldly
pleasures and pastimes, which in themselves are no sin; but if we devote
ourselves passionately to them, waste much time on them and hence neglect the
duties of our station, and do not endeavor earnestly to gain Heaven, then we
sin, and may cause our eternal ruin; because we have not used our time well and
have not given it to that object for which God bestowed it upon us. My fear
that many thus go to perdition, is great beyond words! They flatter themselves
with the empty pretext: “I do nothing wrong; playing at this or that game is
not doing evil; hunting or dancing is not a sin.” But is it not sinful enough
to employ the noble time, given us by God to work out our salvation, almost
entirely in idle amusements? Is it not evil enough to do no good? A servant who
does no other evil, except not to employ his time according to the will of his
master, does evil enough, and must not expect to be rewarded, but to be beaten
with many stripes. “And that servant who knew the will of his Lord, and
prepared not himself, and did not according to his will, shall be beaten with
many stripes.” (Luke 12) “And the unprofitable servant cast ye out into the
exterior darkness!” (Matthew 25)
Examine yourself; and if you are such an unprofitable
servant – reform!
MLA Citation
Father Francis Xavier Weninger, DD, SJ. “Saint Hubert,
Bishop of Maestricht and Liege”. Lives of the
Saints, 1876. CatholicSaints.Info.
23 May 2018. Web. 3 November 2021.
<https://catholicsaints.info/weningers-lives-of-the-saints-saint-hubert-bishop-of-maestricht-and-liege/>
Святы Губерт; палатно, алей. 1934
Święty Hubert; płótno, olej, 1934
Short Lives of the Saints – Saint
Hubert, Bishop
Entry
Hubert of Aquitaine was a nobleman of the court of
Pepin d’Heristal in the seventh century. He was given up, as was the custom of
his fellow-courtiers, to the pursuit of worldly pleasures, and was specially
devoted to the chase. One day in Holy Week, when hunting in the forest of
Ardennes, he pursued a milk-white stag which, turning at last upon the
astounded Hubert, revealed a crucifix shining between its antlers. Penetrated
with awe at this miracle of the divine mercy, the hunter fell upon his knees,
and then and there dedicated himself entirely to the service of God. He became
a hermit in the forest of Ardennes, and, after years of penance, was elected
successively to the bishoprics of Maestricht and Liege. He was a preacher of
great power and unction, and by his zeal freed his large diocese from all
remains of idolatry. God accorded him the gift of miracles before his death,
which took place November 3, 727.
. . . Thrice-happy Hubert! thou art nigh
The foot-stool of the King!
In this lone place, O child of grace,
Henceforth in penance bide;
Forsake the court, forego the chase,
And follow the Crucified!”
– from “Legend of the Best-Beloved”
Favorite Practice – To permit no delay between
God’s inspiration and your correspondence to it.
MLA Citation
Eleanor Cecilia Donnelly. “Saint Hubert,
Bishop”. Short
Lives of the Saints, 1910. CatholicSaints.Info.
22 April 2021. Web. 3 November 2021.
<https://catholicsaints.info/short-lives-of-the-saints-saint-hubert-bishop/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/short-lives-of-the-saints-saint-hubert-bishop/
Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568–1625) /
Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640), Het
visioen van de heilige Hubertus
Miracle of Saint Hubert, 1617, 63 x 100.5, Museo del Prado
November 3
St. Hubert, Bishop of Liege, Confessor
GOD, who is wonderful in his mercies above all his works, called St. Hubert from a worldly life to his service in an extraordinary manner; though the circumstances of this event are so obscured by popular inconsistent relations, that we have no authentic account of his actions before he was engaged in the service of the church under the discipline of St. Lambert, bishop of Maestricht. He is said to have been a nobleman of Aquitain; passed his youth in the court of Theodoric III. and probably spent some time in the service of Pepin of Herstal, who became mayor of the palace of Austrasia in 681. He is also said to have been passionately addicted to the diversion of hunting, and was entirely taken up in worldly pursuits, when, moved by divine grace, he resolved at once to renounce the school of vanity, and enter himself in that of Christ, in which his name had been enrolled in baptism. St. Lambert was the experienced and skilful master by whose direction he studied to divest himself of the spirit of the world, and to put on that of Jesus Christ: and to learn to overcome enemies and injuries by meekness, and patience, not by revenge and pride, rather to sink under, than to vanquish them. His extraordinary fervour, and the great progress which he made in virtue and learning strongly recommended him to St. Lambert, who ordained him priest, and intrusted him with the principal share in the administration of his diocess. That holy prelate being barbarously murdered in 681, St. Hubert was unanimously chosen his successor, and the death of his dear master inflamed him with a holy desire of martyrdom, of which he sought all occasions. For charity conceives no other sentiments from wrongs, and knows no other revenge for the most atrocious injuries than the most tender concern and regard for sinners, and a desire of returning all good offices for evil received; thus to overcome evil by good, and invincibly maintain justice. St. Hubert never ceased with David to deplore his banishment from the face of God, and tears almost continually watered his cheeks. His revenues he consecrated to the service of the poor, and his labours to the extirpation of vice and of the remains of idolatry. His fervour in fasting, watching, and prayer far from ever abating seemed every day to increase; and he preached the word of God assiduously, with so much sweetness and energy, and with such unction of the Holy Ghost, that it was truly in his mouth a two-edged sword, and the people flocked from distant places to hear it from him. Out of devotion to the memory of St. Lambert, in the thirteenth year of his episcopal dignity, he translated his bones from Maestricht to Liege, then a very commodious and agreeable village upon the banks of the Meuse, which from this treasure very soon grew into a flourishing city, to which the ruins of Herstal, a mile distant, and of several other palaces and fortresses on the Meuse, contributed not a little. St. Hubert placed the relics of the martyr in a stately church which he built upon the spot where he had spilt his blood, which our saint made his cathedral, removing thither the episcopal see from Maestricht in 721, which St. Servatius had translated from Tongres to Maestricht in 382. Hence St. Lambert is honoured at Liege as principal patron, and St. Hubert as founder of the city and church, and its first bishop.
The great forest of Ardenne, famous in the Commentaries of Julius Cæsar and later writers, was in many parts a shelter for idolatry down to that age. 1 St. Hubert, with incredible zeal penetrated into the most remote and barbarous places of this country, and abolished the worship of idols; and as he performed the office of the apostles, God bestowed on him a like gift of miracles. Amongst others the author of his life relates as an eye-witness, that on the three days’ fast of the Rogations which the whole church observes, the holy bishop went out of the city of Maestricht in procession, through the fields and villages with his clergy and people, according to custom, following the standard of the cross and the relics of the saints, and singing the litany. This religious procession was disturbed in its devotions by a woman possessed by an evil spirit; but the holy bishop silenced her and restored her to her health by signing her with the cross. In the time of a great drought he obtained rain by his prayers. A year before his happy death he was advertised of it in a vision, and favoured with a sight of a place prepared for him in glory. Though the foreknowledge which faith gives us of the great change for which we wait the divine will, be equally sufficient to raise up our hearts thither, the saint from that time redoubled his fervour in sighing after that bliss, and in putting his house in order; and reserved to himself more time for visiting the altars, and the shrines of the saints, especially the tomb of St. Lambert, and the altar of St. Albinus, commending his soul to God through the intercession of the saints with many tears. Going to dedicate a new church at Fur, (which seems to be Terture in Brabant,) twelve leagues from Liege, he preached there his farewell sermon; immediately after which he betook himself to bed ill of a fever, and on the sixth day of his sickness, reciting to his last breath the Creed and the Lord’s Prayer, sweetly reposed in Christ, on the 30th of May, in 727. His body was conveyed to Liege, and deposited in the collegiate church of St. Peter. 2 With the leave of the bishop, and of the emperor Lewis Debonnair, it was translated, in 825, to the abbey of Andain, since called St. Hubert’s, in the Ardennes, on the frontiers of the duchy of Luxemburg. The abbot is lord of the territory, which comprises sixteen villages. The shrine of St. Hubert is resorted to by many pilgrims, and has been honoured by many miraculous cures, especially of persons bit by mad dogs. 3 The principal feast of St. Hubert, probably on account of some translation, is kept on the 3rd of November. See the history of his life from the time of his conversion, written by one who had conversed familiarly with him; also the History of the Translation of his relics to Andain (or St. Hubert’s) by Jonas, (probably the Bishop of Orleans,) and an anonymous history of his miracles compiled in the eleventh age, all published by Mabillon, Sæc. Ben. 4, p. 293, &c. Likewise Le Cointe and Miræus, in their Annals of France and Belgium; Placentius, Hist. Episcoporum, Leod. p. 272, Buxhorn, Antiq. Leod. p. 7, &c.
Note 1. A small district on both sides of the Meuse still retains the name of the country of Ardenne. The ancient forest of that name was inclosed betwixt the Rhine and the Meuse. Some authors have extended it on one side into Champagne, and on the other as far as the Scheldt. Those at least who carry it beyond this river into Artois, seem to take this name of Ardenne for any great wood, as the Romans understood the word Hercynian. On which account they called by the same name Hercynia the whole great German forest, which was extended from the Ardennes or the Rhine, through all Germany to the Danube. They seem to have mistaken the German word Hartz, a wood, and the plural Hartzen, for an appellative, which they corrupted into Hercynia. The name of Hercynian or Hartz-Forest is given by moderns only to that wood which it thirty English miles broad, and about sixty long, situated in Brunswic-Lunenburg, Thuringia, Anhalt, and Hildersheim. See the Natural History of Hartz-Forest by H. Behrens, M.D. [back]
Note 2. The military order of knights of St. Hubert was instituted by Gerard V., duke of Cleves and Gueldres, in memory of his victory gained in 1444, on St. Hubert’s day, over the house of Egmont, which pretended a claim to those duchies. The knights wore a gold collar ornamented with hunting horns: on which hung a medal with an image of St. Hubert before their breast. The duke of Neuburgh became heir to Cleves, and in 1685 was made elector palatine of the Rhine. This honour is since conferred by the elector palatine on certain gentlemen of his court with pensions. The knights now wear a gold collar with a cross and an image of St. Hubert, &c. See Statuta Ordinis Militaris S. Huberti a ser. Principe Joan. Gul. Comite Palatino Rheni S. R. J. elect. renovati. an. 1708. Also the Jesuit Bonanni, Schoonebeck, Bern. Giustiniani and F. Honoratus of St. Mary in their histories of military orders of knighthood. [back]
Note 3. Against this dreadful venom the blessing of heaven is so much the more earnestly to be implored, as no confidence can be placed in bathing in the sea or other vulgar remedies, as Somerville truly observes; neither is the new secret a sure prescription, though it sometimes succeeds. Nevertheless, superstitious notions and practices, which easily creep into the best devotions amongst the vulgar, cannot be too carefully guarded against on all occasions, and require the particular attention of all pastors concerned in these pilgrimages, &c. at St. Hubert’s, that every practice be regulated and directed by true piety and religion. See Dr. Thiers, Traités des Superstitions, l. 6, c. 4, p. 107. F. Le Brun, Hist. Crit. des Pratiques Superstit. l. 4, c. 4, p. 195. Raynaud, t. 8, p. 114. Bend. XIV. de Canoniz. &c. [back]
Rev. Alban Butler (1711–73). Volume XI: November. The Lives of the Saints. 1866.
SOURCE : http://www.bartleby.com/210/11/032.html
_-_Mus%C3%A9e_d%C3%A9partemental_Maurice-Denis_%C2%AB_Le_Prieur%C3%A9_%C2%BB_-_%22La_l%C3%A9gende_de_Saint_Hubert_-_4_7_Le_miracle%22_(Maurice_Denis%2C_1870-1943)_(48296744977).jpg)
Maurice Denis, "La légende de Saint Hubert : Le miracle" (Maurice Denis, 1870-1943), quatrième panneau d’une suite de sept. Décor pour l'hôtel particulier du baron Denys Cochin à Paris. 7 panneaux, Huile sur toile, 1896-1897, Saint-Germain-en-Laye (Yvelines) - Musée départemental Maurice-Denis « Le Prieuré » (Musée départemental Maurice Denis "The Priory")
Sant' Uberto
di Tongeren-Maastricht Vescovo
Regione delle Ardenne (?), ca. 685 - Tervuren
(Belgio), 30 maggio 727
Patronato: Cacciatori, Fonditori, Cani
Etimologia: Uberto = spirito brillante, dal
tedesco
Emblema: Bastone pastorale, Libro, Cervo, Cane
Martirologio Romano: A Tervueren sempre nel
Brabante in Austrasia, transito di sant’Uberto, vescovo di Tongeren e
Maastricht, che, discepolo e successore di san Lamberto, si adoperò con tutte
le forze per diffondere il Vangelo nel Brabante e nelle Ardenne, dove estirpò i
costumi pagani.
Il suo nome fa subito venire in mente la leggenda del cervo che gli sarebbe apparso, con un crocifisso splendente sul capo, mentre egli cacciava nei boschi delle Ardenne, in un giorno di raccoglimento: un Venerdì santo. Leggenda, e nemmeno esclusiva, perché cose simili si raccontano di altri santi. Su di lui le notizie certe scarseggiano. Sappiamo che era di famiglia nobile e che fu discepolo di san Lamberto vescovo di Tongres (Belgio), il quale trasferì poi la sua sede a Maastricht (Olanda).
Lamberto lo ordinò sacerdote, e morì tragicamente – forse per una vendetta – ai primi dell’VIII secolo. A succedergli fu chiamato appunto Uberto, che ricevette la consacrazione episcopale a Roma dal papa Sergio I. Questo, non più tardi del 701, perché in quell’anno papa Sergio morì, in settembre. La sua allora era una diocesi di boschi e di gente dei boschi, in parte ancora lontana dal cristianesimo, sicché egli dovette dedicarsi soprattutto alla predicazione. Nel dicembre del 717-718 fece portare il corpo del predecessore Lamberto da Maastricht a Liegi, dov’era stato ucciso e dove ebbe definitiva sepoltura. Nel 722 trasferì a Liegi anche la sede vescovile.
Dopodiché, per anni, ci sono soltanto narrazioni postume e fantasiose. Di certo sappiamo che anche da vescovo Uberto andava a pescare: e che un giorno, trafficando con un amo, si ferì a una mano. Secondo un’altra leggenda, in quel momento una voce dall’alto gli preannunciò la morte vicina. Dopo l’incidente – che deve avere avuto sviluppi infettivi – Uberto dà disposizione di essere seppellito a Liegi. Ma non interrompe la sua attività, e nel maggio 737 consacra una nuova chiesa vicino a Lovanio. Poi crolla. Il male si è aggravato, e lui muore sei giorni dopo quel rito, a Tervuren (una ventina di km da Lovanio). Sepolto in San Pietro a Liegi, è presto venerato come santo in Belgio e Olanda, poi anche in Francia e in Germania. Sedici anni dopo la morte (3 novembre 743) il suo corpo viene trasferito davanti all’altar maggiore della chiesa di San Pietro, e per l’evento è accorso a Liegi addirittura Carlomanno, Maestro di Palazzo, e in sostanza padrone del regno franco: un altro segno di questa diffusa venerazione e del suo “peso” anche politico. Intanto si diffondono leggende sulla sua vita, e lungo il tempo nasceranno confraternite intitolate al suo nome; in Germania, l’Ordine cavalleresco di Sant’Uberto durerà fino al 1918.
Nell’825 i resti del santo vengono portati in un’abbazia benedettina delle Ardenne, che prenderà il suo nome, e vi resteranno fino alle devastazioni e incendi della rivolta dei Gueux (“pezzenti”) nel 1568, scomparendo nel saccheggio del monastero. I cacciatori lo hanno proclamato loro patrono, e così i fonditori e lavoratori di metalli e i pellicciai. Già nel IX secolo la festa di Sant’Uberto si celebrava il 3 novembre, e a questa data lo ricorda il Martirologio romano.
Autore: Domenico Agasso
