Saint Jean de Matha
Fondateur des trinitaires (+ 1213)
Né en Provence, il fit ses études à Paris où il reçut l'ordination sacerdotale. Il rencontra saint Félix de Valois et ensemble décidèrent la fondation de l'Ordre des Trinitaires pour le rachat des captifs chrétiens avec l'appui de l'évêque de Paris, Eudes de Sully. Il parcourut la France, l'Italie et l'Espagne pour développer son Ordre. Il s'en fut en Tunisie pour libérer à prix d'or les captifs que les pirates barbaresques amenaient comme esclaves sur les marchés du Maghreb. Il fonda plusieurs maisons dans le Languedoc, la Provence et le Dauphiné, régions qui jadis avaient eu à souffrir des hordes sarrasines. Il meurt à Rome, libre de tout, mais épuisé de fatigues, ayant consacré toute sa vie à l'oraison et aux prisonniers.
Au début du XIIIe siècle, Saint Jean de Matha établit à Arles un des premiers couvents de Trinitaires pour le rachat des prisonniers tombés aux mains des 'barbaresques'. (Diocèse d'Aix et Arles - Une histoire)
À Rome, sur le Célius, en 1213, saint Jean de Matha, prêtre d'origine
française, fondateur de l'Ordre de la Sainte Trinité pour le rachat des
captifs.
Martyrologe romain
SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/595/Saint-Jean-de-Matha.html
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Saint Jean de Matha
Saint Jean de Matha et saint Félix de Valois priant la Sainte Vierge Marie et l’Enfant Jésus, église Saint Paul Apôtre, Cuauhtémoc, Mexico
SAINT JEAN DE MATHA ET SAINT FÉLIX DE VALOIS.
C’était dans ce siècle troublé et cependant plein de
foi où François d’Assise avait entendu une voix lui dire : « François, relève
ma maison qui tombe en ruines. » Les hérésies étaient actives ; les vices et les
crimes étaient nombreux. Cependant, au fond de l’âme humaine, une foi vivace et
inexterminable vivait et régnait. On se livrait aux passions, mais on ne les
adorait pas; on tombait et on se relevait. On faisait le mal, mais on ne le prenait
pas pour le bien. Les choses avaient gardé leur nom.
Trois grands reconstructeurs s’élevèrent au milieu des
ruines: saint Dominique, saint François, saint Jean de Matha. Le premier se
consacra aux captifs de l’erreur, le second aux captifs de la pauvreté, le
troisième aux captifs des prisons.
Jean de Matha naquit vers l’an 1156. Son père Euphrème
et sa mère Marthe étaient chrétiens. Le père destinait son fils à la science;
il étudia en effet et vit à Marseille le monde des riches. Mais, en même temps,
sa mère elle-même le conduisait dans le monde des pauvres ; ce contraste frappa
le jeune homme qui méditait et cherchait sa voie.
Il arriva à Paris vers l’an 1180. Attendu et accueilli
par plusieurs éminents personnages amis de sa famille, il sentit néanmoins le
vide. Un ennui secret s’empara de son âme. Il regretta son enfance. Comme il priait
dans l’abbaye de Sainte-Geneviève, il entendit distinctement une voix qui prononça
trois fois ces paroles de l’Écriture : Stude sapientiae, fili mi, et loetifica
cor meum.
« Étudiez la sagesse, mon fils, et réjouissez mon cœur.
»
Quand Jean sortit de l’église, il avait fait son choix
et consacré sa vie.
L’étude de la théologie le posséda dès lors tout entier.
La prière et le travail remplirent son existence.
Il fit connaissance avec un gentilhomme italien nommé
Jean Lothaire; et, un jour, dans une confidence intime, le Jean français dit au
Jean italien : « Tu seras bientôt assis sur le trône de saint Pierre. »
La prophétie se réalisa contre toute apparence.
Jean Lothaire gouverna le monde catholique sous le nom
d’Innocent III.
Le moment solennel arrivait où Jean de Matha allait dire
sa première messe. A cette époque, sa réputation de sainteté s’étendait dans le
public. Maintenant, quand elle existe, elle se circonscrit et ne va pas dans la
foule ; autrefois elle y allait. C’est pourquoi une multitude immense remplit l’église
à la première messe de Jean de Matha.
Or, au moment où le jeune célébrant élevait pour la première
fois entre ses mains l’hostie sainte, on vit son visage s’embraser, son regard
devint fixe et sa tête lumineuse. L’évêque de Paris, frappé de ce spectacle,
disait en lui-même : « Jean voit quelque chose que les autres ne voient pas. »
-Venez, lui dit-il après la messe, racontez à votre
évêque ce qui s’est passé.
-J’ai vu, dit Jean de Matha, j’ai vu l’ange du Seigneur.
Son visage était resplendissant, ses vêtements blancs comme la neige ; il
portait sur sa poitrine une croix rouge et azur; à ses pieds deux esclaves chargés
de chaînes étaient dans une attitude suppliante ; l’un était Maure, l’autre chrétien.
Sa main droite reposait sur le chrétien, sa main gauche sur le Maure. Voilà ce
que j’ai vu. »
Cependant Jean de Matha avait vaguement attendu Félix
de Valois. Félix de Valois habitait dans les montagnes au diocèse de Meaux, se
préparant dans le silence et la solitude à la destinée vers laquelle il se
sentait appelé. Il pensait nuit et jour à la rédemption des captifs.
Un jour, Jean de Matha dirigea ses pas vers le diocèse
de Meaux, et dans le diocèse de Meaux vers les montagnes. Enfin il se trouva
face à face avec Félix de Valois.
Félix de Valois avait été dirigé là par les voies les
plus mystérieuses. Son père Raoul et sa mère Éléonore avaient divorcé.
L’excommunication de Rome tomba sur la tête du comte Raoul. Le chagrin du jeune
Félix fut tel qu’il voulut quitter du même coup sa famille et le monde. Il
passa quelque temps á Clairvaux ; et, fuyant l’admiration dont il était l’objet,
il chercha une solitude.
Pour cacher son dessein, il passa quelque temps à la
cour de son oncle Thibault, comte de Champagne. Un jour il disparut. Il profita
pour cette disparition d’une excursion dans une forêt. On le chercha partout. Ses
serviteurs demeurèrent convaincus qu’il avait péri dans un ravin et racontèrent
partout sa mort.
En effet, il était mort à son ancienne vie. Mais il
naissait à une vie nouvelle. Ayant entendu parler d’un anachorète qui vivait
dans une forêt, entouré de lumière et de grâce, le jeune homme s’était rendu
près du vieillard pour partager sa vie. Il la partagea en effet et avec elle
les grâces dont elle était remplie. Il devint le confident de celui qui
ignorait les choses extérieures et savait les choses intérieures. Quand le
vieillard mourut, le jeune homme était formé. Il avait reçu avec le dernier
soupir de l’anachorète son dernier secret et son dernier présent.
Alors Félix, préparé, enrichi, se disposa à prendre
lui-même l’initiative d’une vie érémitique. Le disciple allait devenir maître.
Il revint en France ; le changement d’habits le rendit méconnaissable. Il
s’installa au diocèse de Meaux, dans une forêt, sur une montagne. Il passa sa
vie dans la prière et la contemplation. Ce fut dans cette solitude que la voix
qui parle aux solitaires se fit entendre à lui ; et elle lui parla de la
rédemption des captifs. Il ne se hâta pas de se mettre à l’oeuvre. L’action a
sa racine dans la contemplation et il laissa mûrir dans la solitude le fruit de
vie qu’il portait. A cette époque, Jean de Matha vint le visiter.
Il n'y a rien de plus singulier dans l’histoire que les
rencontres. Rien n’est plus important et rien n’est plus accidentel, plus
involontaire, plus imprévu. Deux hommes peuvent être perdus ou sauvés pour s’être
rencontrés à temps ou à contretemps. Il y a des hommes qui sont l’un pour l'autre
une planche de salut ou une pierre d’achoppement. Il y a des hommes dont les
noms sont unis quelque part et dont l’union visible sur la terre constitue le
commencement, ou le centre, ou la fin de leur destinée. Or, le doigt de Dieu
est d’autant plus visible dans la rencontre des inconnus que l’homme n’y peut
mettre aucune préméditation. Il y a peut-être tel individu qui me sera un grand
secours dans l’ordre de la pensé e ou dans l’ordre de l’action. Il m’aidera, il
me complétera, il me soutiendra, il me conseillera, il m’instruira. Mais, où est-il
? Il est absolument impossible d’établir là-dessus même la moindre conjecture.
Je n’ai aucune raison pour aller à droite ou pour aller à gauche. Non-seulement
je ne peux pas le trouver, mais je ne peux pas le chercher. Car aucune
direction ne m’offre plus de chances que la direction contraire.
Jean de Matha et Félix de Valois n’avaient aucun moyen
naturel de savoir qu’ils étaient unis dans la pensée de Dieu pour une oeuvre
commune.
Ils ne savaient même pas longtemps d’avance quelle
était cette oeuvre; ils auraient été bien embarrassés si quelqu’un leur avait
dit : « Il vous faut chercher un auxiliaire, un homme dévoué à la même idée que
vous. » Ils avaient toutes les chances naturelles pour ne pas se rencontrer.
Leur vie très différente les avait jetés dans les directions les plus
contraires; leurs familles ne se connaissaient pas ; rien ne les appelait ni l’un
ni l’autre dans une forêt près de Meaux, rien du moins de ce qui appelle les
hommes quelque part ordinairement. Pourtant ils y vinrent tous les deux, et
leur rencontre fut le point de départ de leur oeuvre commune.
Jean de Matha ouvrit le premier son âme à celui qui l’avait
précédé dans cette solitude. Félix admirait les voies par lesquelles son
nouveau compagnon lui avait été mystérieusement préparé et amené. Il fut
convenu entre eux qu’ils vivraient ensemble et attendraient dans l’oraison de
nouvelles pensées et de nouvelles lumières.
Ils vécurent trois ans ensemble. Peut-être l’homme qui
aurait assisté pendant ces trois années à leurs entretiens et à leurs prières
serait plus savant que les savants. Qui sait combien de choses secrètes se
déroulèrent aux yeux de ces deux hommes qui avaient écarté d'eux les innombrables,
causes d’erreurs qui nous assiègent constamment; aux yeux de ces deux hommes qui
n’avaient qu’un ami, et cet ami était un saint ? L’unique société de chacun
d’eux était un saint ; et ce saint était précisément celui dont l’autre avait besoin,
et chacun d’eux un ami directement donné par la main du Seigneur.
Un jour, après trois ans de vie commune, ils virent un
cerf blanc qui venait se désaltérer à la source d’eau vive. Il portait entre
son bois une croix rouge et azur semblable à celle que Jean, le jour de sa
première messe, avait vue sur la poitrine de l’ange.
Décidés alors, ils quittèrent leur solitude et vinrent
à Paris, afin de communiquer leurs projets à L’évêque, ainsi qu’aux abbés de
Sainte-Geneviève et de Saint-Victor. L’évêque, Eudes de Sully, successeur de
Maurice, approuva leur résolution et leur donna des lettres de recommandation
pour le pape Célestin III.
Ces deux saints partirent pour Rome ; mais pendant
leur voyage, Célestin mourut ; et à leur arrivée ils trouvèrent sur le trône de
saint Pierre Innocent III.
C’était l’ancien ami de Jean de Matha, Lothaire et son
compagnon d’études à Paris, auquel Jean avait autrefois dit: « Tu seras pape. »
Il était difficile de se présenter avec une meilleure recommandation
que cette prophétie. Elle dut édifier le pape complétement.
Innocent III soumit à l’examen du sacré collège une
oeuvre dont il comprenait l’importance, et décida que le 25 janvier une messe
serait célébrée dans la basilique de Latran à l’intention des deux fondateurs.
Mais le doigt de Dieu, qui voulait tout faire dans
cette histoire merveilleuse, souleva devant les yeux d’Innocent III le voile
qu’il avait soulevé devant les yeux de Jean de Matha, au jour de sa première
messe ; et le pape vit ce qu’avait vu le jeune prêtre. Il vit l’ange du
Seigneur revêtu du même habit et des mêmes couleurs, dans la même attitude, et
l’esclave chrétien et l’esclave maure étaient à ses pieds tous les deux.
Innocent III, convaincu, fonda immédiatement l’ordre
de la Très Sainte Trinité pour la rédemption des captifs, ordo sanctissimae Trinitatis de redemptione captivorum.
Les occasions ne manquaient pas au zèle des deux
fondateurs. C’était le temps des croisades. Un grand nombre de chrétiens
tombait entre les mains des infidèles. En même temps, des corsaires maures
infestaient les mers, s’emparant des passagers et des équipages. Ces malheureux
étaient conduits dans les prisons de Tunis et du Maroc, où on les entassait.
Après leur avoir enlevé la liberté, les musulmans cherchaient à leur enlever le
christianisme. Toutes les violences physiques et morales étaient accumulées sur
eux.
L’ordre de Jean de Matha s’organisa avec une force et une
sagesse qui faisaient face à toutes les éventualités de cette terrible
situation. Ses biens furent répartis en plusieurs parts consacrées soit à l’intention
des religieux, soit à la rédemption des captifs, soit au soulagement des
pauvres.
Jean l’Anglais et Guillaume d’Écosse, qui furent parmi
les premiers disciples de Jean, furent les premiers vainqueurs qui rapportèrent
en Europe le butin désiré. Ils revinrent du Maroc avec cent quatre-vingt-six
esclaves libérés. La procession de ces captifs traversa Marseille. Ils
traversaient deux à deux en casaque rouge ou brune, les mains encore meurtries
de leurs chaînes, montrant aux populations les traces affreuses des mauvais
traitements qu'ils avaient subis, puis rendant grâces à Dieu et à leurs
libérateurs.
Mais saint Jean ne se contenta pas de leur délivrance.
Il prit de nouvelles mesures et fit de nouvelles institutions pour les soigner,
pour les nourrir, pour les conduire d’étapes en étapes jusqu’au lieu choisi par
eux. Sa charité n'abandonnait pas les captifs délivrés à la misère, à la
maladie, à l’isolement. Elle voulait la délivrance complète et elle conduisait
à son foyer, à sa famille ou à son travail le captif libéré, soigné et guéri.
Jean de Matha partit lui-même pour Tunis. Malgré la
difficulté et le danger de l’entreprise, malgré le prix énorme fixé par le
souverain, dans une audience que le saint lui demanda, Jean put obtenir cent
dix esclaves.
Les musulmans, malgré l’ordre du souverain, ne respectèrent
pas la convention passée entre Jean de Matha et lui. Ils s’emparèrent du saint,
le frappèrent et le laissèrent sanglant sur la place.
Cependant Jean, que rien n’arrêtait, descendit
lui-même dans les cachots, où les scènes les plus horribles s’offrirent à lui.
Le récit des malheurs lointains est faible auprès de la vue des malheurs
présents; et l’idée que Jean s’était faite des prisons africaines était
dépassée par la réalité qui frappait ses yeux. Pour comble de douleur, il
fallait choisir. Il n’en pouvait délivrer que cent dix, et les portes du cachot
allaient se refermer sur leurs frères. Jean emmena les plus misérables, les
conduisit à Rome, et, à peine sauvé des effrayants périls d’une telle
entreprise, il songea à la recommencer pour aller délivrer les autres
malheureux.
Un second voyage fut bientôt résolu. L’infatigable
libérateur repartit pour Tunis. Le gouverneur consentit encore à échanger
quelques hommes contre beaucoup d’or. Mais les Tunisiens se montrèrent plus féroces
que leur maître. Ils s’ameutèrent contre le saint, l’accablèrent de coups et
lui enlevèrent ses captifs. Jean les revendique avec la violence du dévouement
qui ne veut pas avoir tout donné pour rien. Les Tunisiens demandent une
nouvelle rançon. La prière de Jean lui procure la somme nécessaire. Les captifs
sont remis en liberté. Mais la populace, que rien ne pouvait calmer, puisque
son agitation venait de sa fureur interne, et non d’une circonstance extérieure,
la populace se précipite sur le vaisseau de Jean, enlève le gouvernail, coupe
les mâts, déchire les voiles, et brise les rames. Le départ est devenu
impossible ; que fait Jean de Matha ? Il donne le signal du départ. Les
passagers, qui ont à choisir entre deux genres de mort, obéissent et aident le mouvement.
Les voyant faire la manoeuvre avec des tronçons de rames et de planches, les
Tunisiens poussent des huées. Jean se dépouille de son manteau, l’étend en
forme de voile; et, à genoux, le crucifix à la main, il invoque l’Étoile de la
mer. Les vents se taisent, et, en moins de deux jours, le vaisseau désemparé, sans
gouvernail, sans voiles et sans rames, fait dans le port d’Ostie son entrée
triomphale.
Le souverain pontife pleura d’admiration,
Cependant, Félix de Valois était toujours à Cerfroy.
Pendant que son ami faisait les choses du dehors, il organisait celles du
dedans. Il priait, et dans ses prières demandait au Seigneur de revoir Jean
avant de mourir. Sa prière fut exaucée. Jean vint à Cerfroy. Quels durent être
les sentiments et les entretiens de deux pareils amis, dans une pareille situation,
pleins de tels souvenirs et de tels récits ! Après avoir mêlé une dernière fois
leurs larmes, ils se séparèrent pour ne plus se retrouver qu’au ciel.
Immédiatement après le départ de Jean, Félix tomba
malade. Quand il mourut, son ami fut averti de sa gloire par une vision.
Il ne tarda pas à aller le rejoindre. Le corps de Jean
fut illustré par les miracles qui éclatèrent sur son tombeau,
L'ordre des Trinitaires a été rétabli en France le 15
septembre 1859, dans l’ancien couvent de Faucon. Il possède maintenant deux
maisons, l’une à Notre-Dame de Sise et l’autre à Cerfroy.
Le R. P. Calixte, trinitaire lui-même, a publié la Vie de saint Jean de Matha, à Paris, chez Watelin.
Ernest
HELLO. Physionomies de saints.
SOURCE : https://archive.org/stream/PhysionomiesDeSaintsParErnestHello/physionomies%20de%20saints_djvu.txt
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Prague, Charles Bridge. Sculpture of John of Matha,
Félix de Valois and Saint Ivan by F. M. Brokof.
Jeudi 26 août 1999
Très chers frères et soeurs!
1. Je suis heureux de vous rencontrer en une
circonstance aussi significative que celle-ci: vous célébrez cette année
le VIIIème centenaire de la fondation de l'Ordre de la Très Sainte Trinité et
le IVème centenaire de sa réforme. C'est pourquoi la Famille trinitaire qui
plonge ses racines dans le projet de son Fondateur saint Jean de Matha et qui
vit du même charisme, a pensé se rassembler de façon opportune en
"Assemblée générale" pour réfléchir ensemble sur les problèmes
communs et sur les solutions possibles au seuil du nouveau millénaire.
Je salue le Ministre général de l'Ordre et je le remercie des paroles
courtoises qu'il m'a adressées. Je salue également les responsables, hommes et
femmes, des divers Instituts qui appartiennent à la Famille trinitaire, ainsi
que les religieux, les religieuses et les laïcs venus de toutes les parties du
monde pour cette Assemblée. Elle constitue un moment particulièrement propice
pour intensifier le chemin de fidélité au don de l'Esprit reçu par le
Fondateur, et pour vous insérer plus profondément dans le renouveau voulu par
le Concile Vatican II, de façon à pouvoir répondre aux exigences et aux défis
du monde d'aujourd'hui.
2. Au cours de huit siècles, à travers de
multiples événements historiques, la Famille trinitaire, animée et vivifiée par
son charisme d'origine, fondé sur la glorification de la Trinité et sur
l'attention à la rédemption de l'homme, s'est développée et répandue dans
l'Eglise et dans le monde à travers la floraison de divers instituts et de
diverses associations laïques. Les divers organismes se reconnaissent dans le
nom de la Trinité, à laquelle ils sont consacrés de façon particulière, et en
saint Jean de Matha, qu'ils vénèrent comme Père commun. Tous participent au
même charisme de glorification de la Trinité et d'engagement pour la rédemption
de l'homme, se consacrant à des oeuvres de charité et de libération en faveur
des pauvres et des esclaves de notre époque.
Aujourd'hui, la Famille trinitaire, outre les religieux, est également composée
de religieuses de vie contemplative et active. Ces dernières s'articulent en
diverses Congrégations: il y a les Soeurs trinitaires de Valence, de
Rome, de Valence et de Madrid en Espagne, de Majorque, de Séville. En outre,
s'y ajoutent l'Institut séculier des Oblates trinitaires et l'Ordre séculier
trinitaire, ainsi que des Confréries et de nombreuses Associations du laïcat
trinitaire qui témoignent dans le monde de la dimension séculaire de l'esprit
trinitaire.
Je renouvelle à tous l'exhortation à vivre avec une fidélité généreuse le
charisme originel, qui conserve une actualité extraordinaire dans le monde
d'aujourd'hui. L'homme contemporain a besoin d'entendre annoncer le salut au
nom de la Très Sainte Trinité et d'être protégé de chaînes tout aussi dangereuses
que celles d'autrefois, même si elles sont moins visibles. C'est pourquoi la
Famille trinitaire fera bien de se mettre à l'écoute des implorations qui
proviennent des victimes des formes modernes d'esclavage, pour trouver des
voies concrètes répondant à leurs attentes angoissées.
Que vous soutiennent dans votre réflexion et dans votre engagement les nombreux
frères et soeurs qui vous ont précédés et qui vous ont laissé de lumineux
exemples de vertus et de sainteté dans l'accomplissement de ce même charisme:
des religieux, des religieuses et des laïcs dont les noms, souvent tachés de
sang, sont inscrits dans l'album des saints et vivent dans le témoignage de la
tradition Trinitaire.
3. A la lumière de ce témoignage héroïque, vous
voulez préparer des projets concrets avec lesquels entrer dans le nouveau
millénaire. En particulier, vous avez pensé à instituer un organisme
international de la Famille trinitaire, à travers lequel pouvoir intervenir
plus efficacement en défense des personnes persécutées ou discriminées à cause
de la foi religieuse et de la fidélité à leur conscience ou aux valeurs de
l'Evangile. Vous avez donné à ce nouvel organisme le nom de "Solidarité
internationale trinitaire", voulant intéresser toute la Famille au service
des nombreuses personnes qui souffrent et qui sont malheureuses, et qui dans
leur misère aspirent à une "épiphanie" du Christ Rédempteur.
Un autre projet très significatif est celui d'une nouvelle fondation au Soudan,
que vous avez programmée comme l'expression de la mission rédemp-trice et
miséricordieuse propre à l'Ordre. L'initiative se propose, en même temps que
l'apostolat missionnaire et de libération, le dialogue interreligieux entre
christianisme et islam, selon les indications données par le Concile Vatican II
et reprises et développées dans des documents successifs du Magistère.
4. Le grand Jubilé de l'Incarnation constitue
pour toute la Famille trinitaire un encouragement ultérieur à approfondir la
méditation du Mystère trinitaire, dans lequel elle trouve le coeur de sa propre
spiritualité. En puisant à cette Source intarissable, elle ne manquera pas de
s'engager dans le développement de toutes les
possibilités de la consécration trinitaire, en l'enrichissant d'une
nouvelle plénitude. De cette expérience trinitaire profondément vécue naîtra un
engagement renouvelé de libération à l'égard de toute forme d'oppression.
Le Chapitre général extraordinaire, qui s'est conclu ces jours derniers, a
placé au centre de votre réflexion le thème de la Domus Trinitatis et
Captivorum. Dans l'esprit original du projet de saint Jean de Matha - qui
mérite d'être valorisé également à notre époque - doit régner dans cette Domus,
le dynamisme de l'amour, qui a sa source dans le Mystère trinitaire et qui
s'étend vers les préférés de Dieu: les esclaves et les pauvres. Que
l'Esprit du Père et du Fils, qui est amour, vous pousse à devenir un don
d'amour pour les autres. L'unité et la charité seront le meilleur témoignage de
votre vocation trinitaire dans l'Eglise.
Que la Très Sainte Vierge, que vous invoquez depuis des siècles à travers la
belle prière: "Ave, Filia Dei Patris, Ave, Mater Dei Filii, Ave,
Sponsa Spiritus Sancti, Sacrarium Sanctissimae Trinitatis", vous
introduise toujours davantage dans la contemplation du Mystère et vous aide à
vivre les jours du grand Jubilé comme un temps d'espérance renouvelée et de
joie sereine dans l'Esprit.
Avec ces voeux, je vous donne de tout coeur, ainsi qu'à tous les membres de la Famille trinitaire, une Bénédiction apostolique spéciale.
© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Laurent de La Hyre (1606–1656). Saint
Jean de Matha, Fondateur de l’Ordre des Trinitaires, première moitié du XVIIe
siècle, 34 X 23, Louvre Museum
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
1. I am pleased to meet you on so important an
occasion: this year you are celebrating the eighth centenary of the
foundation of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity and the fourth centenary of
its reform. It is therefore appropriate that the members of the Trinitarian
family, firmly rooted in the project of their founder, St John of Matha, and
living the same charism, should gather in a "General Assembly" to
reflect together on their common problems and possible solutions on the
threshold of the new millennium.
I greet the Minister General of the Order and thank
him for his kind words. With him I greet those responsible for the various
institutes of the Trinitarian family, as well as the men and women religious
and lay people who have gathered from all over the world for this assembly. It
is a particularly favourable moment to intensify your fidelity to the gift of
the Spirit received from the founder and to be more vitally involved in the
renewal desired by the Second Vatican Council, so that you can meet the needs
and challenges of the world today.
2. For eight centuries, through a variety of
historical events, the Trinitarian family, motivated and enlivened by its
original charism centred on the glorification of the Trinity and on dedication
to human redemption, grew and spread in the Church and the world through the
flourishing of various institutes and lay associations. The individual groups
are known by the name of the Trinity, to which they are especially dedicated,
and by St John of Matha, whom they venerate as their common father. They all
share in the same charism of glorifying the Trinity and working for human
redemption by devoting themselves to works of charity and to the liberation of
those who are poor or enslaved in our day.
Today, in addition to the male branch, the
Trinitarian family also consists of women religious of both contemplative and
active life. The latter are divided into various congregations: there are
the Trinitarian Sisters of Valence, Rome, Valencia, Madrid, Mallorca and Seville.
There are also the women's Secular Institute of Trinitarian Oblates and the
Secular Trinitarian Order, as well as confraternities and many other lay
Trinitarian associations that witness in the world to the secular dimension of
the Trinitarian spirit.
Once again I urge them all to live with generous
fidelity their original charism, which has remained extraordinarily relevant in
today's world. Contemporary man needs to hear salvation proclaimed in the name
of the Most Holy Trinity and to be guarded from chains which are no less
dangerous for being less obvious than those of former times. The Trinitarian
family will therefore do well to listen to the entreaties of those ensnared by
modern forms of slavery so that concrete ways may be found to answer their deeply
felt expectations.
You are supported in your reflection and commitment by
the many brothers and sisters who have preceded you and have left you shining
examples of virtue and holiness in living the same charism: men and women
religious and lay people whose names, often blood-stained, are enrolled among
the the saints and live on in the witness of the Trinitarian tradition.
3. In the light of this heroic witness you would like
to make concrete plans for entering the new millennium. In particular, you have
thought of establishing an international organization of the Trinitarian family
for intervening more effectively in the defence of the persecuted or of those
suffering discrimination for their religious faith or for fidelity to their
conscience or to Gospel values.
You have called this new organization
"International Trinitarian Solidarity", intending to involve the
entire family in service to all the suffering and unfortunate people who in
their misery long for an "epiphany" of Christ the Redeemer.
Another very important project is the new foundation
in Sudan, which you planned as an expression of the redemptive and merciful
mission proper to your order. In addition to carrying out the missionary
apostolate and that of liberation, the initiative intends to promote
interreligious dialogue between Christianity and Islam, in accordance with the
directives of the Second Vatican Council, taken up and developed in later
documents of the Magisterium.
4. The Great Jubilee of the Incarnation is a further
incentive for the entire Trinitarian family to mediate more deeply on the
Trinitarian mystery which it sees as the heart of its spirituality. Drawing
from this inexhaustible source, it will not fail to be committed to developing
all the potential of Trinitarian consecration, enriching it with new fullness.
A renewed commitment to liberation from every form of oppression will flow from
this intense Trinitarian experience.
The Extraordinary General Chapter, which has just
ended, focused your reflection on the theme of the Domus Trinitatis et
Captivorum. With the original spirit of St John of Matha's project - which also
deserves appreciation in our day - in such a Domus that dynamism of
love must reign whose source lies in the Trinitarian mystery and which is extended
to God's favourites: slaves and the poor. May the Spirit of the Father
and of the Son, who is love, spur you to make yourselves a gift of love for
others. Unity and love will be the best witness to your Trinitarian vocation in
the Church.
May the Blessed Virgin, who down the centuries you
have invoked with the lovely prayer: "Ave, Filia Dei Patris, Ave, Mater
Dei Filii, Ave, Sponsa Spiritus Sancti, Sacrarium Sanctissimae Trinitatis",
enable you to contemplate the Mystery with ever greater relish and help you to
live the days of the Great Jubilee as a time of renewed hope and serene
spiritual rejoicing.
With these hopes, I cordially impart a special
Apostolic Blessing to you and to all the members of the
Trinitarian family.
Castel Gandolfo, 26 August 1999
© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
hl. Johannes von Matha. Bleiglasfenster in der Kirche Notre-Dame-du-Fort in Étampes, von dem Glasmaler Janin (Asnières), um 1891
Born in Fauçon, Provence, France, June 23, 1160 (or June 24, 1169, according to Husenbeth, or 1154 per Tabor); died in Rome, Italy, December 17, 1213; cultus approved in 1655 and 1694.
Théo Mayan. La Sainte Vierge Marie et l’Enfant Jésus, saint Félix de Valois et saint Jean de Matha, Église de La Trinité-La Palud à Marseille
Saint John of Matha
- 17 December
- 8 February on
some calendars
Profile
Born to the Provencal
nobility. Educated at Aix, France, then lived as a hermit at Faucon, France. Earned a doctorate in theology at Paris, France. Ordained in 1197.
At the first Mass he celebrated, John received a vision of an angel clothed in white with a red and blue cross on his breast.
The angel placed his hands on the heads of two slaves who knelt beside him. Later, when sitting
beside a stream with fellow hermit, Saint Felix of Valois, the two were given the vision of
a white stag between whose antlers was suspended a blue and red cross. With the
encouragement of Pope Innocent III, he founded the Hospitaler Order of the Most Holy Trinity and of Captives (Trinitarians or Redemptionists)
to ransom Christian prisoners of the Moors (the Mathurins). The congregation received papal approval in 1209. The clothing seen in the vision of the angel became the habit of the order, the Scapular of the Most
Holy Trinity was instituted, the Order was placed
under the protection of Mary under the title of Our Lady of Good Remedy, and John
was the first superior general. Hundreds of prisoners were ransomed and returned to
their homes.
Because John’s life
contains such good story elements (visions, prisoners, rescued knights, etc.), John became the topic for
several biographies in the Middle Ages, many of these were loaded heavily with
fiction. Today there are around 600 members of the Order working
in prison ministries in over twenty countries, and
they recently celebrated their 800 year anniversary.
Born
- purse
- man in Trinitarian habit (white with blue and red cross on the breast) with chains in his hands or at his feet, captives near him, and his mitre at his feet
- receiving the scapular from the Holy Trinity
- with Our Lady of Good
Remedy who hands him
a bag of money
- with Saint Felix of
Valois
- with the angel and the two captives from his vision in the background
- cannon ball and sword (referring to prisoners of war he ransomed)
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-john-of-matha/
.jpg)
Vincenzo Carducci (1576–1638). Milagroso
regreso de San Juan de Mata, vers 1600, 236 X 231, Museo de
Ciudad Real , Museo del Prado
Pictorial Lives of the Saints – Saint John of Matha
The life of Saint John
of Matha was one long course of selfsacrifice for the glory of God and the good
of his neighbor. As a child, his chief delight was serving the poor; and he
often told them he had come into the world for no other end but to wash their
feet. He studied at Paris with such distinction that his professors advised him
to become a priest, in order that his talents might render greater service to
others; and, for this end, John gladly sacrificed his high rank and other
worldly advantages. At his first Mass an angel appeared, clad in white, with a
red and blue cross on his breast, and his hands reposing on the heads of a
Christian and a Moorish captive. To ascertain what this signified, John
repaired to Saint Felix of Valois, a holy hermit living near Meaux, under whose
direction he led a life of extreme penance. The angel again appeared; and they
then set out for Rome, to learn the will of God from the lips of the Sovereign
Pontiff, who told them to devote themselves to the redemption of captives. For
this purpose they founded the Order of the Holy Trinity. The Religious fasted
every day, and gathering alms throughout Europe took them to Barbary, to redeem
the Christian slaves. They devoted themselves also to the sick and prisoners in
all countries. The charity of Saint John in devoting his life to the redemption
of captives was visibly blessed by God. On his second return from Tunis he
brought back one hundred and twenty liberated slaves. But the Moors attacked
him at sea, overpowered his vessel, and doomed it to destruction, with all on
board, by taking away the rudder and sails, and leaving it to the mercy of the
winds. Saint John tied his cloak to the mast, and prayed, saying, “Let God
arise, and let His enemies be scattered. O Lord, Thou wilt save the humble, and
wilt bring down the eyes of the proud.” Suddenly the wind filled the small
sail, and, without guidance, carried the ship safely in a few days to Ostia,
the port of Rome, three hundred leagues from Tunis. Worn out by his heroic
labors, John died in 1213, at the age of fifty-three.
Reflection – Let us
never forget that our Blessed Lord bade us love our neighbor not only as
ourselves, but as He loved us, who afterward sacrificed Himself for us.
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/pictorial-lives-of-the-saints-saint-john-of-matha/
Pierre Le Clerc. La Très Sainte Trinité, la Sainte Vierge Marie avec Saint Jean de Matha et saint Félix de Valois, 1783, église St Jean-au-Marché, Troyes (Aube, France)
ST. JOHN was born of very pious and noble parents, at Faucon, on the borders of Provence, June 24th, 1169, and was baptized John, in honour of St. John the Baptist. His mother dedicated him to God by a vow from his infancy. His father Euphemius sent him to Aix, where he learned grammar, fencing, riding, and other exercises fit for a young nobleman. But his chief attention was to advance in virtue. He gave the poor a considerable part of the money his parents sent him for his own use: he visited the hospital every Friday, assisting the poor sick, dressing and cleansing their sores, and affording them all the comfort in his power.
Being returned home, he begged his father’s leave to continue the pious exercises he had begun, and retired to a little hermitage not far from Faucon, with the view of living at a distance from the world, and united to God alone by mortification and prayer. But finding his solitude interrupted by the frequent visits of his friends, he desired his father’s consent to go to Paris to study divinity, which he easily obtained. He went through these more sublime studies with extraordinary success, and proceeded to doctor of divinity with uncommon applause, though his modesty gave him a reluctancy to that honour. He was soon after ordained priest, and said his first mass in the bishop of Paris’s chapel, at which the bishop himself, Maurice de Sully, the abbots of St. Victor and of St. Genevieve, and the rector of the university assisted; admiring the graces of heaven in him, which appeared in his extraordinary devotion on this occasion as well as at his ordination.
On the day he said his first mass, by a particular inspiration from God, he came to a resolution of devoting himself to the occupation of ransoming Christian slaves from the captivity they groaned under among the infidels: considering it as one of the highest acts of charity with respect both to their souls and bodies. But before he entered upon so important a work, he thought it needful to spend some time in retirement, prayer, and mortification. And having heard of a holy hermit, St. Felix Valois, living in a great wood near Gandelu, in the diocess of Meaux, he repaired to him and begged he would admit him into his solitude, and instruct him in the practice of perfection. Felix soon discovered him to be no novice, and would not treat him as a disciple, but as a companion. It is incredible what progress these two holy solitaries made in the paths of virtue, by perpetual prayer, contemplation, fasting, and watching.
One day, sitting together on the bank of a spring, John disclosed to Felix the design he had conceived on the day on which he said his first mass, to succour the Christians under the Mahometan slavery, and spoke so movingly upon the subject that Felix was convinced that the design was from God, and offered him his joint concurrence to carry it into execution. They took some time to recommend it to God by prayer and fasting, and then set out for Rome in the midst of a severe winter, towards the end of the year 1197, to obtain the pope’s benediction. They found Innocent III. promoted to the chair of St. Peter, who being already informed of their sanctity and charitable design by letters of recommendation from the bishop of Paris, his holiness received them as two angels from heaven; lodged them in his own palace, and gave them many long private audiences. After which he assembled the cardinals and some bishops in the palace of St. John Lateran, and asked their advice. After their deliberations he ordered a fast and particular prayers to know the will of heaven. At length being convinced that these two holy men were led by the spirit of God, and that great advantages would accrue to the church from such an institute, he consented to their erecting a new religious order, and declared St. John the first general minister. The bishop of Paris, and the abbot of St. Victor, were ordered to draw up their rules, which the pope approved by a bull, in 1198. He ordered the religious to wear a white habit, with a red and blue cross on the breast, and to take the name of the order of the Holy Trinity. He confirmed it some time after, adding new privileges by a second bull, dated in 1209.
The two founders having obtained the pope’s blessing and certain indults or privileges, returned to France, presented themselves to the king, Phillip Augustus, who authorized the establishment of their Order in his kingdom, and favoured it with his liberalities. Gaucher III. lord of Chatillon, gave them land whereon to build a convent. Their number increasing, the same lord, seconded by the king, gave them Cerfroid, the place in which St. John and St. Felix concerted the first plan of their institute. It is situated in Brie, on the confines of Valois. This house of Cerfroid, or de Cervo frigido, is the chief of the order. The two saints founded many other convents in France, and sent several of their religious to accompany the counts of Flanders and Blois, and other lords, to the holy war. Pope Innocent III. wrote to recommend these religious to Miramolin, king of Morocco; and St. John sent thither two of his religious in 1201, who redeemed one hundred and eighty-six Christian slaves the first voyage. The year following, St. John went himself to Tunis, where he purchased the liberty of one hundred and ten more. He returned into Provence, and there received great charities, which he carried into Spain, and redeemed many in captivity under the Moors. On his return he collected large alms among the Christians, towards this charitable undertaking. His example produced a second order of Mercy, instituted by St. Peter Nolasco, in 1235.
St. John made a second voyage to Tunis in 1210, in which he suffered much from the infidels, enraged at his zeal and success in exhorting the poor slaves to patience and constancy in their faith. As he was returning with one hundred and twenty slaves he had ransomed, the barbarians took away the helm from his vessel, and tore all its sails, that they might perish in the sea. The saint, full of confidence in God, begged him to be their pilot, and hung up his companions’ cloaks for sails, and, with a crucifix in his hands, kneeling on the deck, singing psalms, after a prosperous voyage, they all landed safe at Ostia, in Italy. Felix, by this time, had greatly propagated his order in France, and obtained for it a convent in Paris, in a place where stood before a chapel of St. Mathurin, whence these religious in France are called Mathurins.
St. John lived two years more in Rome, which he employed in exhorting all to penance with great energy and fruit. He died on the 21st of December in 1213, aged sixty one. He was buried in his church of St. Thomas, where his monument yet remains, though his body has been translated into Spain. Pope Honorius III. confirmed the rule of this order a second time. By the first rule, they were not permitted to buy anything for their sustenance except bread, pulse, herbs, oil, eggs, milk, cheese, and fruit, never flesh nor fish: however, they might eat flesh on the principal festivals, on condition it was given them. They were not, in travelling, to ride on any beast but asses. 1
St. Chrysostom 2 elegantly and pathetically extols the charity of the widow of Sarepta, whom neither poverty nor children, nor hunger, nor fear of death, withheld from affording relief to the prophet Elias, and he exhorts every one to meditate on her words, and keep her example present to his mind. “How hard or insensible soever we are,” says he, “they will make a deep impression upon us, and we shall not be able to refuse relief to the poor, when we have before our eyes the generous charity of this widow. It is true you will tell me, that if you meet with a prophet in want, you could not refuse doing him all the good offices in your power. But what ought you not to do for Jesus Christ, who is the master of the prophet? He takes whatsoever you do to the poor as done to himself.” When we consider the zeal and joy with which the saints sacrificed themselves for their neighbours, how must we blush at, and condemn our insensibility at the spiritual and the corporal calamities of others! The saints regarded affronts, labours, and pains, as nothing for the service of others in Christ: we cannot bear the least word or roughness of temper
Note 1. A mitigation of this rule was approved by Pope Clement IV. in 1267, which allows them to use horses, and to buy fish, flesh, and all other necessaries: on which mitigations see Historia prolixior Priorum Grandimont, published by Martenne, Ampliff. Collectio, t. 6. p. 138. This order is possessed of about two hundred and fifty monasteries, divided into thirteen provinces, in France, Spain, Italy, and Portugal. That formerly in England had forty-three houses; that in Scotland nine; and that in Ireland fifty-two. The general of the order is chosen by a general chapter, which is always held at Cerfroid. Each house is governed by a superior, who is called minister. Those in the provinces of Champagne, Normandy, and Picardy, (which last includes Flanders,) are perpetual; but in Italy and Spain, triennial. Their rule is that of the canons regular of St. Austin. Their principal exercises are to sing the divine office at the canonical hours, praising and glorifying the adorable Trinity, as angels of the earth; and to gather and carry alms into Barbary for the redemption of slaves, to which work one-third of the revenues of each house is applied. A reformation was made in this order in the years 1573 and 1576, which, by degrees, has been introduced into the greater part of the convents, and into that of Cerfroid itself. These never eat meat except on Sundays, sing matins at midnight, and wear no linen. The reformation of the barefooted Trinitarians, still much more severe, was set on foot in Spain, in 1594, by John Baptist of the Conception, who suffered many persecutions in the undertaking, and died in 1613, in great reputation for sanctity and miracles, the examination of which has been commenced in order to his beatification. [back]
Note 2. Hom. de Elia et Vidua Sarept. p. 33. 328. ed. Montf. [back]
Rev. Alban Butler (1711–73). Volume II: February. The Lives of the Saints. 1866.
SOURCE : http://www.bartleby.com/210/2/081.html
_with_the_Christ_Child%2C_Saint_Wellcome_V0033178.jpg)
Order of Trinitarians
The redemption of captives has always been regarded in
the Church as a work of mercy, as is abundantly testified
by many lives of saints who devoted themselves to this task. The
period of the Crusades,
when so many Christians were
in danger of falling into the hands of infidels, witnessed the rise of religious orders
vowed exclusively to this pious work. In the
thirteenth century there is mention of an order of Montjoie, founded for this
purpose in Spain,
but its existence was brief, as it was established in 1180 and united in 1221
with the Order of Calatrava. Another Spanish order prospered better; this was
founded in the thirteenth century by St Peter Nolasco under the title of Our
Lady of Mercy (de la Merced), whence the name Mercedarians. It soon
spread widely from Aragon,
and has still several houses at Rome, in Italy, Spain, and the old
Spanish colonies. Finally, the Order of Trinitarians, which exists to the
present day, had at first no other object, as is recalled by the primitive
title: "Ordo S. Trinitatis et de redemptione captivorum". its
founder, St. John of Math, a native of Provence and a doctor of the University of Paris,
conceived the project under the pious inspiration
of a pious solitary,
St Felix of Valois,
in a hermitage called Cerfroid, which subsequently became the chief house of
the order. Innocent
III, though little in favor of new orders, granted his approbation to this
enterprise in a Bull of
17 December, 1198.
The primitive rule, which has been in turns mitigated
or restored, enacted that each house should comprise seven brothers, one of
whom should be superior; the revenues of the house should be divided into three
parts, one for the monks,
one for the support of the poor, and one for the
ransom of captives; finally it forbade the monks when
journeying to use a horse, either through humility, or because
horses were forbidden to Christians in
the Mussulman countries,
whither the friars had
to go; hence their popular name of "Friars of the Ass".
In France the
Trinitarians were as much favoured by the kings as by the popes. St. Louis
installed a house of their order in his château of Fontainebleu. He chose
Trinitarians as his chaplains,
and was accompanied by them on his crusades. Their convent in Paris is dedicated
to St. Mathurin; hence they are also known in France as
Mathurins. Founded in 1228, the Paris house soon
eclipsed Cerfroid, the cradle of the Trinitarians, and eventually became the residence
of the general, also called grand minister, of the order. Towards the end of
the twelfth century the order had 250 houses throughout Christendom, where its
benevolent work was manifested by the return of liberated captives. This won
for it many alms in
lands and revenues, a third of which was used for ransoms. But the chief source
was collections; and to make these fruitful it was not considered enough to
attach indulgences to
the almsdeed, recourse was had to theatrical demonstrations to touch hearts and
open purses. The misfortunes of the unhappy captives in the Mussulman countries
were the readiest subjects for descriptions, sermons, and even tableaux.
In Spain these
alms-quests were made solemnly: the religious on their mules were preceded by
trumpeters and cymbal-players, and a herald proclaimed the redemption by
inviting families to
make known their kinsfolk in captivity and the alms destined for
their ransom.
From the fourteenth century the Trinitarians had lay
assistants, i.e., charitable collectors, authorised by letters patent to
solicit alms for
the order in their respective towns; these were called marguilliers. There
were also confraternities of the Holy Trinity, chiefly in
the towns where the order had no convent; these consisted
of lay tertiaries who wore the scapular of the
order, were associated with its spiritual favours, and devoted a portion of
their income to its work. In fact the Trinitarians had considerable resources
to meet the needs of their work. The funds being collected, the ransomers to
the number of three or four set sail from Provence or Spain with objects
to alleviate the lot of the captives or coax their jailers. Their destination
was usually the Barbary States, especially in the sixteenth century when the
corsairs of Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco infested
the Mediterranean and made plunder their chief means of existence. The Mercedarians went
chiefly to Morocco,
while the Trinitarians went preferably to Tunis or Algiers.
There began their trials. They had to confront the dangers of the journey, the
endemic diseases of the African coast, exposed to the outrages of the natives,
sometimes to burst of Mussulman fanaticism,
which cost several lives. The most delicate part of the task lay in the choice
of captives amid the solicitations with which the monks were besieged
and the negotiations for settling the ransom-price between the corsairs and the
Trinitarians, between the exactions of the former and the limited resources of
the latter. When the sum was not sufficient, the Trinitarians were held as
hostages in the place of the captives until the arrival of fresh funds. The
choice of captives was made according to the funds; ransom was first paid for
the natives of the regions which had contributed to the redemption. Sometimes
certain captives were previously indicated by their family who paid the
ransom. When the captives returned to Europe, the Trinitarians
had them go in procession from town to town amid scenery intended to impress
the imagination in
justification of the use of the alms and to inspire
fresh almsdeeds. The number of those ransomed during the three centuries is
estimated at 90,000. The most famous of these was Cervantes (ransomed in 1580),
who at his death was buried among the Trinitarians at Madrid in a habit
of a Trinitarian tertiary.
Despite the large sums of money which passed through
their hands, the Trinitarians had to struggle constantly with poverty. They had
to defray the expenses of numerous hospitals, as well as to
administer parochial charges.
They suffered greatly in France during the
English invasion of the fifteenth century and the wars of religion of
the sixteenth. Moreover, there were conflicts between the Mercedarians, who had
spread from Spain to France, and the Trinitarians,
who had spread from France to Spain. They contested
each other's right to collect and receive legacies: attempts at fusion failed,
and their rivalry gave rise to numerous suits in both countries and to a whole
controversial literature. Their poverty resulted in a relaxation of the rules
which had often to be revised, and in divisions in the order. While one party
followed the mitigated rule, there was a reform party which aimed at a return
to the primitive observance. Thus arose the first schism in 1578 at
Pontoise, which in 1633 succeeded in entering the mother-house at Cerfroid.
About the same time the Trinitarians of Spain formed
a schism by
separating from the Trinitarians of France under Father
Juan Bautista of the Immaculate Conception; the latter added fresh austerity to
their rule by founding the Congregation of "Discalced Trinitarians
of Spain".
This rule spread to Italy and Austria (1690),
where the ransom of captives was much esteemed during the constant wars with the Turks. Hence the three
congregations, which gave rise to regrettable dissensions. The Discalced also
went to France,
where they were suppressed by a Papal Bull in 1771.
The division between those observing the mitigated and the reformed rule was
terminated by uniting without fusing them under a common general. At this time
also they began to lay claim in France to the title
by which they have since been known: Canons Regular of
the Holy Trinity.
The Revolution of
1789 suppressed them in all the territories to which they had
spread. Joseph II had
already suppressed them in 1784 in Austria and the Low
Countries. They have retained a few houses in Italy, Spain, and the Spanish
colonies. At Rome,
where the convent of
St. Thomas was united with the chapter of St. Peter in 1387, the Trinitarians
protested many times unsuccessfully against this spoliation, when on the
occasion of the seventh centenary of the foundation of the order in 1898, the
chapter of St. Peter's voluntarily restored
it. But their chief house is the Basilica of St. John Chrysogonus which was
given to them by Pius
IX in 1856.
There have always been nuns attached to
the hospitals of
the order, but they do not seem to have formed an integral part of it.
The true Trinitarian
Sisters were founded in Spain by Maria de
Romero in 1612 and they still have convents at Madrid and in other
cities. They form part of the discalced congregation.
The Trinitarians wear a white habit, with a cross of
which the upright is red and the cross bar blue.
Moeller, Charles. "Order of
Trinitarians." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 15. New
York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 17 Dec.
2020 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15045d.htm>.
Transcription. This article was transcribed for
New Advent by Trevor Lipscombe.
Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil Obstat. October
1, 1912. 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/15045d.htm
I Trinitari (così li chiamano) visitano mercati, prigioni, luoghi di lavoro, trattano con autorità e padroni, e liberano con regolare scrittura di riscatto i primi duecento schiavi; un notaio registra tutto, e così si farà sempre. I marsigliesi si commuovono vedendo sbarcare quei duecento, con Giovanni de Matha che li accompagna alla cattedrale cantando il salmo In exitu Israël de Aegypto. (Il problema degli schiavi è all’ordine del giorno: con una missione analoga nel 1218 san Pietro Nolasco fonderà a Barcellona i Mercedari).
Nel 1209 l’Ordine avrà 30 case, e 600 verso il 1250, soprattutto in Francia e Spagna. Agli ex schiavi malati o senza famiglia dà accoglienza nei suoi ospizi. Tra il 1199 e il 1207 il fondatore si lancia in un attivismo frenetico, per aumentare i centri di accoglienza, trovare denaro da ricchi e da poveri, moltiplicare le spedizioni di riscatto. Papa Innocenzo gli dona a Roma la chiesa abbaziale di San Tommaso in Formis sul Celio, dove Giovanni crea un altro ospizio. E qui muore il 17 dicembre 1213. Nel 1665 due frati trinitari tolgono il suo corpo dalla chiesa (il convento ha cambiato proprietà) e lo portano a Madrid.
L’ordine soccombe poi alle soppressioni regie e rivoluzionarie del Sette-Ottocento, ma rinasce nel XIX secolo, con case impegnate in Europa e in America nelle missioni, assistenza ospedaliera e ministero. Manca una storia completa dei riscatti: il religioso che vi lavorava, padre Domenico dell’Assunta, fu ucciso nella guerra civile spagnola (1936) e il materiale andò perduto. Ricordiamo tuttavia un nome: quello di Miguel de Cervantes, futuro autore di Don Chisciotte. Catturato da un pirata albanese e venduto sul mercato di Algeri nel 1575, sarà liberato cinque anni dopo dal trinitario spagnolo fra Juan Gil.
Autore: Domenico Agasso
Vincenzo Carducci (1576–1638). Vicente Carducho Encuentro de san Juan de Mata y san Félix de Valois, Museo del Prado. Óleo sobre lienzo, 238 X199, Museo del Prado , catalogue: Inv. Museo de la Trinidad, Pintura, 543
GIOVANNI de Matha, santo
di Giuseppe De Luca - Enciclopedia Italiana (1933)
GIOVANNI de Matha, santo. - Nacque il 23 giugno
1160 a Faucon (Provenza) di antica nobiltà militare, studiò ad Aix dal 1172 al
1178; tornato in patria, vi fece un breve esperimento di vita eremitica e nel 1180
si recò all'università di Parigi, ove ebbe compagno di studî Lotario di Segni,
poi Innocenzo III; si laureò nel 1192 e ricevette il sacerdozio il 15 novembre
dello stesso anno. A Cerfroid (Aisne) s'incontrò e visse con S. Felice di
Valois; formulato un progetto per il riscatto degli schiavi cristiani in potere
dei Saraceni, si recarono a Roma ove giunsero il 18 gennaio del 1198 e lo
sottoposero al papa, che era, dall'8 gennaio, Innocenzo III. Dalle mani del
papa ricevuto l'abito, tornarono a Parigi, ove redassero la regola del loro
nuovo ordine della SS. Trinità o dei Trinitarî, quindi Giovanni fissò la sua
residenza in Roma, ottenne il 17 dicembre 1198 l'approvazione delle regole, ed
ebbe una legazione pontificia da compiere in Dalmazia, per ricondurre all'unita
gruppi eretici. Quell'anno stesso s'intrapresero e prime trattative le
spedizioni di riscatto presso i varî principi arabi d'Europa e d'Africa, che
poi si ripeterono in gran numero, partecipandovi spesso il santo medesimo.
Fondò varie case nel mezzogiorno della Francia e in Spagna. Morì a Roma il 17
dicembre 1213. Innocenzo XI ne fissò la festa all'8 di febbraio.
Bibl.: Fr. Callisto della Provvidenza, Vita di S.
Giovanni di Matha, trad. dal francese, Roma 1894; Fr. Antonin de
l'Assomption, Les origines de l'Ordre de la Trés-Sainte Trinité d'après
les documents, Rome 1925.
SOURCE : https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-de-matha-santo_(Enciclopedia-Italiana)/
Giacinto Calandrucci. The Vision of Saint John of
Matha, vers 1650, Pen and brown ink, black and red chalk, some corrections in
white, 36,2 X 26,5, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Carissimi Fratelli e Sorelle!
1. Sono lieto di incontrarmi con voi in una
circostanza così significativa com'è questa: voi celebrate quest'anno l'VIII
centenario di fondazione dell'Ordine della Santissima Trinità e il IV della sua
riforma. Opportunamente, pertanto, la Famiglia Trinitaria, che affonda le sue
radici nel progetto del Fondatore San Giovanni de Matha e vive dello stesso
carisma, ha pensato di raccogliersi in «Assemblea Generale» per riflettere
insieme sui comuni problemi e sulle possibili soluzioni alle soglie del nuovo
millennio.
Saluto il Ministro Generale dell'Ordine, Padre José
Hernández Sánchez, e lo ringrazio per le gentili parole rivoltemi. Con lui
saluto i responsabili e le responsabili dei vari Istituti facenti parte della
Famiglia Trinitaria, come pure i religiosi, le religiose ed i laici convenuti
per questa Assemblea da ogni parte del mondo. Essa costituisce un momento
particolarmente propizio per intensificare il cammino di fedeltà al dono dello
Spirito ricevuto dal Fondatore, e per inserirvi più vitalmente nel rinnovamento
voluto dal Concilio Vaticano II, così da poter rispondere alle esigenze e alle
interpellanze del mondo di oggi.
2. Nel corso di otto secoli, attraverso molteplici
vicende storiche, la Famiglia Trinitaria, animata e vivificata dal carisma
originario centrato sulla glorificazione della Trinità e sulla dedizione alla
redenzione dell'uomo, si è sviluppata e propagata nella Chiesa e nel mondo
mediante la fioritura di vari Istituti e di diverse Associazioni laicali. I
singoli organismi si riconoscono nel nome della Trinità, alla quale sono
consacrati in modo speciale, ed in San Giovanni de Matha, che venerano quale
Padre comune. Tutti partecipano allo stesso carisma di glorificazione della
Trinità e di impegno per la redenzione dell'uomo, dedicandosi a opere di carità
e di liberazione a favore dei poveri e degli schiavi del nostro tempo.
Oggi la Famiglia Trinitaria è composta oltre che da
religiosi, anche da religiose di vita sia contemplativa che attiva. Queste
ultime si articolano in diverse Congregazioni: vi sono le Suore Trinitarie di
Valence, di Roma, di Valencia, di Madrid, di Mallorca, di Siviglia. Si
aggiungono, inoltre, l'Istituto Secolare delle Oblate Trinitarie e l'Ordine
Secolare Trinitario, insieme con Confraternite e numerose Associazioni del
Laicato Trinitario, che testimoniano nel mondo la dimensione secolare dello
spirito trinitario.
A tutti rinnovo l'esortazione a vivere con generosa
fedeltà il carisma originario, che conserva una straordinaria attualità nel
mondo d'oggi. L'uomo contemporaneo ha bisogno di sentirsi annunciare la
salvezza nel nome della Trinità Santissima e di essere salvaguardato da catene
non meno pericolose, perché meno appariscenti, di quelle d'un tempo. La
Famiglia Trinitaria farà bene, pertanto, a mettersi in ascolto delle
implorazioni che salgono dalle vittime delle moderne forme di schiavitù, per
trovare vie concrete di risposta alle loro attese accorate.
Vi sostengono nella vostra riflessione e nel vostro
impegno i tanti fratelli e sorelle che vi hanno preceduto e vi hanno lasciato
esempi luminosi di virtù e di santità nell'attuazione dello stesso carisma:
religiosi, religiose e laici i cui nomi, spesso imporporati di sangue, sono
scritti nell'albo dei santi e vivono nella testimonianza della tradizione
Trinitaria.
3. Nella luce di questa eroica testimonianza, voi
volete approntare progetti concreti con i quali introdurvi nel nuovo millennio.
In particolare, avete pensato di istituire un organismo internazionale della
Famiglia Trinitaria, mediante il quale poter intervenire più efficacemente a
difesa dei perseguitati o discriminati a causa della fede religiosa e della
fedeltà ai valori del Vangelo o alla loro coscienza. Avete dato al nuovo
organismo il nome di «Solidarietà Internazionale Trinitaria», intendendo coinvolgere
l'intera Famiglia nel servizio verso tanti sofferenti e sventurati, che nella
loro miseria sospirano verso una «epifania» del Cristo Redentore.
Un altro progetto molto significativo è quello di una
nuova fondazione nel Sudan, che avete programmato come espressione della
missione redentrice e misericordiosa propria dell'Ordine. L'iniziativa si
propone, insieme con l'apostolato missionario e di liberazione, il dialogo
interreligioso tra Cristianesimo ed Islam, secondo le indicazioni date dal
Concilio Vaticano II e riprese e sviluppate in successivi documenti del
Magistero.
4. Il Grande Giubileo dell'Incarnazione costituisce
per tutta la Famiglia Trinitaria uno stimolo ulteriore ad approfondire la
meditazione del Mistero Trinitario, nel quale essa ravvisa il cuore della
propria spiritualità. Attingendo a quella inesauribile Sorgente, essa non
mancherà di impegnarsi nello sviluppo di tutte le potenzialità della
consacrazione Trinitaria, arricchendola di nuova pienezza. Da questa esperienza
Trinitaria fortemente vissuta fluirà un rinnovato impegno di liberazione nei
confronti di ogni forma di oppressione.
Il Capitolo Generale straordinario, concluso in questi
giorni, ha posto al centro della vostra riflessione il tema della Domus
Trinitatis et Captivorum. Nello spirito originale del progetto di San Giovanni
de Matha - meritevole di valorizzazione anche ai nostri giorni - in tale Domus deve
regnare il dinamismo dell'amore, che ha la sua fonte nel mistero Trinitario e
che si estende verso i privilegiati di Dio: schiavi e poveri. Lo Spirito del
Padre e del Figlio, che è amore, vi sospinge a farvi dono di amore per gli
altri. L'unità e la carità saranno la migliore testimonianza della vostra
vocazione Trinitaria nella Chiesa.
La Vergine Santissima, che da secoli quotidianamente
invocate con la bella preghiera: «Ave, Filia Dei Patris, Ave, Mater Dei
Filii, Ave, Sponsa Spiritus Sancti, Sacrarium Sanctissimae Trinitatis», vi
introduca sempre più nella contemplazione saporosa del Mistero e vi aiuti a
vivere i giorni del Grande Giubileo come tempo di rinnovata speranza e di
sereno giubilo nello spirito.
Con questi auspici, di cuore imparto a voi ed a tutti i componenti della Famiglia Trinitaria una speciale Benedizione Apostolica.
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