Plaque dorée représentant Saint Conrad de Constance, Cathédrale de Constance
Saint Conrad de Constance
Évêque
de Constance (✝ 975)
ou Kurt, évêque de
Constance en Suisse, dont la bonté et les libéralités envers les pauvres sont
légendaires. Il fit trois fois le pèlerinage en Terre Sainte. Il sut ne pas se
laisser prendre dans les affaires politiques de son temps. Il fut reconnu officiellement
comme un saint en 1123.
À Constance en Souabe, l’an 975, saint Conrad, évêque, qui fut un
excellent pasteur de son troupeau et fit profiter largement de ses biens
l’Église et les pauvres.
Martyrologe
romain
Saint Conrad patron de la ville de Constance
Issu de la famille princière des duc d’Altdorf,
Conrad naquit vers 900 et reçut une éducation choisie à l’école cathédrale de
Constance. En 934, il devint évêque de cette ville, et conduisit l’histoire de
ce diocèse pendant 40 ans environ. Ami proche de saint Ulric, ancien évêque
d’Augsbourg, saint Conrad se fit remarquer par la construction d’églises et de
monastères, ainsi que d’un hôpital. De ses voyages en Terre sainte et à Rome,
il rapporta de nombreuses reliques pour son évêché, notamment un fragment de la
sainte Croix. Saint Conrad est célébré par les Orthodoxes et les Catholiques‑romains
chaque année le 26 novembre, date de son passage à la vie éternelle.
Conrad venait de la famille des ducs d’Altdorf
et naquit vers 900. Il était le fils du duc Henri d’Altdorf, aujourd’hui
Weingarten, dans le land allemand de Baden‑Württemberg. Son nom signifie en
vieil allemand un « conseiller avisé ». Ses parents, des gens pieux et avec la
crainte de Dieu, confièrent Conrad à l’évêque Nothing, pour lui donner une
haute éducation. Comme il détestait l’art de la guerre, Conrad décida de
consacrer toute sa vie à Dieu et opta pour la carrière ecclésiastique. Sous la
direction de l’évêque Nothing, Conrad étudia à l’école cathédrale de Constance
et non au monastère Saint‑Gall, comme l’affirme l’historiographie la plus
ancienne (HH, art. Konrad von Konstanz, în: LThK 6 (1997), p. 416).
Comme il avait acquis de nombreuses
connaissances et qu’il était paré de toutes les vertus, l’évêque Nothing ne le
laissa pas partir loin de lui après son ordination en tant que prêtre, et le nomma
ecclésiarque de l’église épiscopale de Constance. Mais bientôt l’évêque Nothing
passa à la vie éternelle, et fut enseveli par l’évêque d’Augsbourg, Ulric.
C’est ainsi que Conrad fut élu évêque de Constance en 934, et ordonné par
l’évêque Ulric, avec lequel il conserva une étroite amitié toute sa vie.
Quoiqu’il fût toujours proche du roi Othon I (+ 973), Conrad ne
s’impliqua pas dans la vie politique du royaume (Empire à partir de 964). Selon
certains, dans la vie politique, Conrad resta dans l’ombre de son ami Ulric.
Pourtant, Conrad participa au couronnement d’Othon I comme empereur à Rome, aux
côtés de saint Ulric et d’autres évêques et représentants de la cour impériale.
Un fondateur d’églises et de monastères
S’il ne prit pas une part active à la vie politique, Conrad se fit
remarquer par une prodigieuse activité dans le domaine architectural. De
nombreuses églises érigées pendant cette période furent construites à son
initiative. De même, il construisit des monastères, les édifiant pour la
plupart sur ses fonds personnels. L’évêque Conrad visita plusieurs fois Rome,
la « Ville éternelle », et se préoccupa de construire plusieurs églises à
Constance suivant le modèle des églises patriarcales de Rome. Il entreprit
également plusieurs voyages en Terre sainte, et rapporta même un fragment de la
sainte Croix. Partout où il voyageait, Conrad était préoccupé de recevoir des
saintes reliques, pour transformer sa ville en un important centre de
pèlerinage. Parmi les églises construites par Conrad on compte la Rotonde Saint‑Maurice,
les églises Saint‑Jean‑Baptiste et Saint‑Laurent, et celle qui est dédiée au
saint apôtre Paul. Comme il voulait que les pèlerins se sentent plus proches de
la Terre sainte, Conrad construisit l’église Saint‑Maurice sur le modèle de l’église
du Saint‑Sépulcre à Jérusalem (Thomas ZOTZ, art. Konrad I, în: BBKL 4 (1992),
p. 280). Selon certains chercheurs, l’église Saint‑Maurice avait pour Conrad
également un symbolisme politique, puisque saint Maurice, avec saint Laurent,
avait été choisi comme patron de l’Empire romain‑germanique à l’époque
othonienne.
Conrad érigea également un hôpital à Stadelhofen, et y apporta une
parcelle de la sainte Croix. En raison de l’accueil du bois de la Croix, la
ville reçut le nom de Crucelin (Crucis Lugdunum), puis ensuite de Crucelingen
ou Creuzlingen, et est aujourd’hui la plus grande ville suisse du lac de
Constance, sous le nom de Kreuzlingen.
Relations avec les monastères de Saint‑Gall et d’Einsiedeln
L’évêque Conrad eut des relations très étroites avec le monastère de
Saint‑Gall, comme il ressort de l’ouvrage du moine Ekkenhard intitulé: Casus
sancti Galli. Il semble que, à la demande de l’empereur Othon I, l’Evêque fit
une visite canonique au monastère, en raison d’une plainte exprimée contre
l’abbé du monastère. Suite à la visite, Conrad donna une recommandation
positive du monastère, et devint plus tard son soutien et son bienfaiteur
(Johannes DUFT, Bischof Konrad und St. Gallen, in: Johannes DUFT, Die Abtei St.
Gallen. Beiträge zur Kenntnis ihrer Persönlichkeiten, Sigmaringen 1991, p. 201‑202).
En 948 l’abbé Eberhard du monastère d’Einsielden (aujourd’hui le plus
grand monastère bénédictin du territoire de la Suisse) invita l’évêque Conrad
(le territoire appartenait canoniquement à l’évéché de Constance) à consacrer
l’église du monastère. Conrad célébra la consécration avec son ami l’évêque
Ulric d’Augsbourg. Un miracle se produisit alors, que l’évêque Conrad raconta
au pape Léon VIII, à l’occasion du couronnement impérial d’Othon à Rome en 964.
Suivant cette tradition, l’église aurait été consacrée par un ange, motif pour
lequel chaque année les moines du monastère fêtent cet évènement le 14
septembre.
L’évêque Conrad est resté dans l’histoire de l’évêché de Constance comme
un bon organisateur et un administrateur talentueux, ainsi qu’un évêque pieux
et miséricorieux. Certains disent qu’il avait également le charisme de la
prophétie. Une légende raconte qu’un jour de Pâque pendant la sainte liturgie
une araignée tomba dans le saint Calice. L’Evêque consomma les saints Dons, et
au moment de l’agape l’araignée sortit intacte de sa bouche. C’est pourquoi,
dans l’iconographie, il est quelquefois représenté tenant d’une main un calice
et de l’autre une araignée.
Le patron de l’ancien évêché de Constance
Après 40 ans d’activité à la tête du diocèse de Constance, le plus grand
au nord des Alpes à l’époque médiévale, Conrad passa à la vie éternelle le 26
novembre 975 à Constance et fut inhumé dans la chapelle Saint‑Maurice. En 1089
ses reliques furent transférées dans la cathédrale nouvellement construite.
Quelques années plus tard l’évêque Ulric I, constatant la vénération dont était
l’objet son prédécesseur, demanda au moine Udalschalk d’écrire sa vie. Vers
1120, le moine Udalschalk écrivit ainsi une biographie consacrée à saint
Conrad, sous le titre: Vita Chuonradi Constantiensis episcopi. Probablement,
l’évêque Ulric I demanda la rédaction de cette vie, pour la présenter à Rome en
vue de la reconnaissance de la vie sainte de l’Evêque. C’est ainsi que l’évêque
Conrad fut canonisé officiellement par le premier concile du Latran, qui se
tint en 1123.
Etant donné qu’il a vécu avant le grand Schisme, le saint évêque Conrad
est commémoré chaque année par les Orthodoxes également à la date de sa mort,
le 26 novembre. Dès le 12ème siècle saint Conrad fut consacré
comme patron de l’évêché de Constance, aux côtés de la sainte Vierge et de
saint Pélage, jusqu’à la suppression du diocèse en 1821. La même année fut
fondé l’archevêché catholique de Fribourg, et saint Conrad fut considéré comme
l’un de ses patrons. Jusqu’à nos jours, les chrétiens de la région du lac de
Constance (Bodensee) vénèrent saint Conrad, et aux manifestations organisées
chaque année en novembre en son honneur participe un évêque catholique romain.
P. Alexandru Nan
SAINT CONRAD
Saint Conrad
naquit en Allemagne de parents nobles, et y fut élevé. Comme c'était un
personnage, de vie et de moeurs irréprochables, Nothing, évêque de Constance,
l’appela pour le faire auditeur des causes du ressort de tout son évêché. Plus
tard il fut élu prévôt de la cathédrale. Nothing étant mort, on manda saint
Udalric, évêque d'Augsbourg, qui célébra les funérailles du prélat et qui
ordonna au clergé et au peuple un jeûne de trois jours pour obtenir de la bonté
de Dieu un chef qui lui fût agréable. Au jour fixé pour l’élection ou plutôt
pour s'entendre unanimement, saint Udalric fit le portrait d'un évêque tel que
l’apôtre le trace à Timothée et à Tite. « Il faut que l’évêque soit
irréprochable... » Après la lecture de ces divers passages, l’accord fut
unanime pour choisir Conrad qui fut pris, traîné de force et institué évêque,
malgré ses résistances. Après son élévation, saint Conrad enrichit de
précieuses reliques et de riches ornements la principale église dédiée à la
sainte Vierge. Il fit bâtir trois églises, l’une dans l’intérieur de la ville
et les deux autres au dehors. La première dédiée à saint Maurice était la
reproduction exacte de l’église du Saint-Sépulcre à Jérusalem. Il y fonda douze
prébendes à perpétuité pour les clercs qui devaient la desservir; ce qui ne
l’empêcha point d'augmenter le nombre des chanoines de sa cathédrale avec ses
revenus propres. Ce saint homme, plein du désir de châtier réellement son corps
avec l’apôtre, passa trois fois la mer pour aller en la sainte cité de Jérusalem
où il visita, avec une extrême ferveur, les lieux témoins de la passion, de la
sépulture, de la résurrection et de l’ascension de J.-C. Etant un jour avec
saint Udalric au château de Laufen, il vit des oiseaux entrer et sortir d'un'
gouffre dont les eaux agitées étaient écumantes : le saint comprit
intérieurement que sous la forme de ces oiseaux étaient deux âmes qui
subissaient là leur purgatoire en punition d'une multitude de crimes qu'elles
avaient commis. Touchés tous les deux de compassion, Udalric s'empressa de dire
une messe pour les morts, et le même jour Conrad en célébra de suite une
seconde à la même intention : après quoi ils ne virent plus cette espèce
d'oiseaux Un excellent jeune homme appelé Gebhard s'était assis, sans penser à
rien, sur le trône épiscopal. Conrad lui adressa cette prophétie : «C'est trop
tôt t'asseoir sur mon siège, Gebhard; mon successeur sera celui qui occupera ma
place avant toi, savoir : Gamelon.
Le saint jour de Pâques, pendant la messe solennelle, une araignée tomba après
la consécration dans le calice, et saint Conrad l’avala. Les saints mystères,
étant achevés, on se mit, comme de juste, à table, mais le saint ne mangea pas,
comme si c'eût été le carême ; tout exténué qu'il fût. On lui demanda pourquoi
il ne mangeait point : « C'est, dit-il, que (508) j'attends l’arrivée prochaine
d'un hôte », puis baissant, la tête, sur la table, il rendit l’araignée par la
bouche.. On peut penser quelle joie ce fut pour tous ceux qui se trouvaient là,
a cette occasion, ou plutôt, à ce miracle. Saint Conrad, consommé dans
l’exercice de toutes les vertus, mourut le 6 des calendes de décembre, l’an du
Seigneur 976, après un épiscopat de 442 ans, dans une vieillesse avancée.
La Légende dorée de Jacques de Voragine nouvellement traduite en français avec introduction, notices,
notes et recherches sur les sources par l'abbé J.-B. M. Roze, chanoine
honoraire de la Cathédrale d'Amiens, Édouard Rouveyre, éditeur, 76, rue de Seine, 76, Paris mdcccci
Saint Conrad of Constance
·
Century: 10th Century
·
Patronage: -
·
Feast Day: November 26th
St.
Conrad was a member of the powerful Welf Family, and the son of Count Heinrich
of Altdorf. He was educated at the Cathedral School in Constance, and
became the provost of Constance Cathedral and in 934 was made the Bishop of
Constance.
One
of his noted achievements was that he avoided becoming wrapped up in the
politics of his day, and spent his energies on his Episcopal duties. He
was however, very close to Emperor Otto I, whom he accompanied to Italy in
962. St. Conrad is said to have made three pilgrimages to Jerusalem as
well as a number of them to Rome. He founded a number of churches on the
Episcopal estates and the hospital at Kreuzlingen. It was named after a
portion of the True Cross, which St. Conrad brought back from Jerusalem.
His following
was entirely due to the efforts of Bishop Ulrich I, of Dillingen, Bishop of
Constance 1111 – 1127. He wrote extensively about St. Conrad. St.
Conrad was canonized at the First Lateran Council in 1123. St. Conrad is
sometimes represented as a Bishop holding a chalice with a spider in it or over
it. This refers to a story that once when he was celebrating Mass, a
spider fell into the chalice. Spiders were believed at the time to be
deadly poisonous, but St. Conrad drank the Precious Blood with the spider in
it, as a token of faith.
Practical Take Away
St.
Conrad of Constance was a member of the powerful Welf Family. He was
educated at the Cathedral School in Constance, and became the Bishop of
Constance. He was noted for not getting wrapped up in the politics of his
time, but rathered focused on his Episcopal duties. He did a lot to
convert and meet the sacramental needs of his See.
Saint Conrad of
Constance
Also known as
- Konrad of Konstanz
Profile
Second son of Count Heinrich von Altdorf, part of the Guelf family. Educated at the cathedral
school at Constance, Germany (in modern Switzerland). Priest. Provost of the cathedral.
Bishop of Constance from 934 to 975. Made three pilgrimages to the Holy Lands. Accompanied Emperor Otto I to Rome, Italy. Renovated churches in his diocese,
and built three new ones on lands he inherited. Known for his charity
to the poor, and his lack of concern over the power politics
that occupied so many other bishops of the day.
During Mass
one day a spider dropped into the chalice
of Precious Blood; though Conrad believed all spiders were poisonous, his love
of communion overcame his fear, and he drank the Blood,
spider and all. He did, of course, survive.
On 14 September 948 Conrad was witness to the miraculous
consecration of the Chapel of Mary, Einsiedeln, Switzerland by Christ and some angels.
- 975 of natural causes
- 1123 by Pope Callistus II
November 26
St. Conrad,
Bishop of Constance, Confessor
THIS eminent
servant of God was, by his humility and sanctity, the bright ornament of the
most illustrious house of the Guelphs, in Germany, which so many princes have
honoured with their martial achievements and sovereign dignities. Their
pedigree is derived by some from Clodion, king of the Franks, and Wittekind the
Great, (who was created by Charlemagne first duke of Saxony,) and consequently
from Woden, the chief god, and the stock of the principal royal families of the
Saxons which founded the Heptarchy in England. The name of Guelph or Guelf was
taken by this family in the reign of Charlemagne, 1 at which time they were counts of Altorff, now called
Weingarten in Suabia, not Altorff, the university near Nuremberg in Franconia;
nor the capital of Uri in Switzerland. Conrad, abbot of Ursperg, who gives the
noble pedigree of this family, exceedingly extols the devotion of its princes
and princesses, their piety towards God, and their most religious attachment to
the apostolic see. 2 Guelph I. whose name was retained by his descendants,
was son of Isenbart, count of Altorff, and his wife Irmentrudis, sister-in-law
to Charlemagne, and foundress of the great Benedictin abbey of Altorff. 3 Judith, daughter of Guelph I. was married to the
emperor Lewis Debonnair, and is famous in the history of his troubles. Two of
her brothers became dukes of Bavaria. Conrad Rudolf, brother of Judith, was the
second count of Altorff of this name, and his son Henry the third count, and
founder of the monastery of Altonmunster. He left two sons, St. Conrad, and
Rudolf, fourth count of Altorff, whom Rimius calls Henry II. against the
authority of the abbot Ursperg and Manlius, the former of whom was intimately
acquainted with this illustrious family in the twelfth age, and copied his
account of it from original records.
Conrad was a
saint from the cradle, and was sent young to the famous schools which then
flourished at Constance under the direction of the bishop of that city. For the
city of Vendonissa or Vindisch, near Baden, being destroyed by Childebert II.
king of France, in 594, the episcopal see which had been founded there by St.
Bert, about the year 490, was removed to Constance, a city so called from the
emperor Constans. As the love of God had moved Conrad to despise the vanities
of the world, so it inspired him with an uncommon fervour in his service, lest
he should lose the crown by sloth, to purchase which he had forsaken all
things. His seriousness showed how deeply the great concerns of eternity were
impressed upon his mind, and restrained all sloth, levity, or dissolute mirth;
yet was it far from carrying with it any thing of sourness and melancholy,
which no less than all capriciousness, changeableness of temper, and uneasiness
of mind, are certain signs of pride and unmortified passions. The temper of our
saint’s mind was always even, serene, and cheerful, which discovered at the
bottom a lasting joy, which is always the fruit of inward peace, and produces
an unalterable sweetness in conversation even under the greatest
disappointments. An unaffected simplicity, which is also an attendant of
sincere virtue, shone with lustre in all his actions, and, joined with his
perfect humility and religious piety, gave him in his whole deportment an air
of dignity which belongs to virtue only, and is far superior to that which
worldly greatness bestows. Hence every one approached him with awe and
veneration mixed with confidence and affection, which the charms of his tender
and obliging charity and humility inspired. Soon after he was ordained priest,
the provostship of the cathedral, the next dignity to that of the bishop, was
conferred upon him; and that prelate, whose name was Noting, dying in 934, our
saint was unanimously chosen to fill the episcopal chair, though it was a
considerable time before his consent could by any means be extorted. St. Ulric,
bishop of Ausburg, who had strenuously promoted his election, frequently
visited him for the sake of holding pious conferences together, and so close
were the bands of holy friendship in which these two great prelates were linked
together, that they almost seemed to have but one soul which animated two
bodies. St. Conrad having dedicated himself with all that he possessed to God,
made an exchange of his estates with his brother for other lands situate near
Constance, and settled them all upon that church and the poor, having first
built and endowed three stately churches at Constance, in honour of St.
Maurice, St. John Evangelist, and St. Paul.
The holy wars
having made pilgrimages to Jerusalem very frequent in that age, our saint
thrice visited those holy places, making his journeys truly pilgrimages of
austere penance and devotion. Worldly conversation the saint always shunned as
much as possible, not only as a loss of time (which is of all things the most
precious to the servant of God) but also as the bane of the spirit of
recollection and compunction, which in one who has dedicated himself to the
divine service, and to the daily ministry of the altar, ought always to be most
perfect. How religiously exact the holy bishop was in whatever belonged to his
sacred functions, particularly to the adorable sacrifice of the mass, appears
from the following instance: It happened that a great spider dropped into the
chalice whilst the prelate was saying mass on Easter-day; the insect might have
been taken out, and then decently burnt, some spiders being poisonous and
dangerous; but out of devotion and respect for the holy mysteries, the bishop
swallowed the spider; which he vomited up some hours after without receiving
any harm. 4 In comforting and relieving the poor, in instructing
and exhorting his flock, and in all other functions of his charge our saint was
indefatigable; and he laboured in the vineyard of the Lord with equal fervour
and watchfulness from the very beginning of the morning to the last hour of the
day. He went to receive his salary in eternal joys in the year 976, having been
bishop forty-two years. He was buried in the church of St. Maurice, and two
blind men recovered their sight, and other sick their health, at his tomb.
Other miracles are recorded in the Chronicle of Constance, subjoined to his
life, and he was canonized by Calixtus II. about the year 1120. The Roman
Martyrology commemorates him on the 26th of November. See his life published by
Leibnitz, Scriptor. Brunswicens, t. 3, p. 1. Also in the History of the
Illustrious Family of the Guelphs, ib. t. 2, p. 783. Likewise
in F. Raderus’s Brevaria Sancta, t. 1, p. 101.
Note 1. Some say this name was the Roman Catulus or Catiline
turned into German. Others tell us, that Charlemagne complimenting the Count of
Altorff at court upon the birth of his son, called him his young Guelph, whence
the count gave his son that name. (See these and other etymologies in
Leibnitz’s collection.) From the silence of the ancient historians of this
family the fabulous story of the birth of three hundred and sixty-five
children, which was not so much as heard of by any of them, is abundantly
confuted. This family was ingrafted upon that of Este by Azo of Este marrying
the heiress of the Guelphs. The Actii, a Roman family in the time of the
republic, retired to Este or Ateste (now in the Venetian Lombardy) and thence
took the name of Este, or Atestina Domus. Henry of Este was created by
Charlemagne prince of Treviso and margrave of Este. The princes of his
posterity were often vicars of the empire in Italy, and much increased their
territories. Boniface, a prince of this family, became margrave of Tuscany, and
possessed Ferrara, Placentia, Mantua, Modena, Reggio, Parma, Lucca, Ancona, and
Spoletto. His daughter and heiress Mathildes married Godfrey, duke of Lorrain,
and after his death Guelph VI. duke of Bavaria. She bequeathed great part of
her estates to the see of Rome. (See Vita Mathildis Comitissæ, a Denizone
scripta, ap. Murat. Scrip. Ital. t. 5, p. 244; Ejusdem Chartula Donationis
bonorum suorum facta Ecclesiæ Romanæ, p. 384.) From Azo IV. of Este, in 1060,
the present house of Modena is descended. Ottoberto, of this family of Este,
passed into Germany, with the Emperor Otho I. in 963. Azo, his descendant, in
the next century, by a marriage with an only daughter of Guelph II. and sister
to Guelph III. upon the death of this latter, inherited the dominions of that
family in Suabia, and left them to his son Guelph IV. count of Altorff, who was
afterwards made duke of Bavaria by the Emperor Henry IV. All his posterity took
the name of Guelph: amongst them Henry the Lion was duke of Bavaria and Upper
and Lower Saxony, and united in his own dominions the hereditary estates of
five families. After many prosperous wars he was proscribed by the Emperor
Henry I. in the diet of Wurtzburgh, in 1180, but afterwards recovered, by the
intercession of the king of England and other friends, the duchies of Brunswick
and Lunenburg, with other territories in Lower Saxony, lying between the Elbe
and the Weser, which have been ever since possessed by his illustrious
posterity. Bavaria passed from Henry the Lion into the family of Otho, count
Wittelsbach, from which are descended the present electoral families of Bavaria
and the Palatinate. See the collection of the Brunswick historians, made by the
celebrated Leibnitz, who searched, for that purpose, the monasteries and libraries
of Germany. See also Origines Guelphicæ, in two additional volumes, folio, by
Schaldius, present historiographer to the house of Brunswick Lunenburg, at
Hanover, in 1750. [back]
Note 3. Guelph III. count of Altorff; being created duke of
Carinthia, removed the monastery of Altorff into his own neighbouring palace upon
the hill called Weingarten, or of the vineyards, in 1094; whence this whole
place took that name. Guelph IV. duke of Bavaria, and his wife, Judith, natural
daughter to the King of England, much enriched this abbey. Their son, Guelph
IV. who died without issue, was buried there in St. Oswald’s chapel, with his
father, mother, and grandfather. His brother and successor, Henry, duke of
Bavaria, after the death of his wife, in 1124, resigned his dominions to his
son, Guelph VI. and made his monastic profession in this house. See Bruschius,
Hist. Cœnobii Vinearum. Item, Manlii description, ejusdem. [back]
Note 4. Alpinus, in his History of Spiders, shows that some
species of spiders are medicinal, and most others are harmless. Yet some are
poisonous. See Philosophical Transactions, &c. [back]
Rev. Alban
Butler (1711–73). Volume XI: November. The Lives of the Saints. 1866.
Conrad of Constance B
(RM)
Died 975; canonized in 1123 (1823 per Attwater 2). Of the famous Guelph family
and son of Count Henry of Altdorf, he was educated at the cathedral school of
Constance, Switzerland, and was ordained. He was made provost of the cathedral
and in 934 was elected bishop of Constance. He gave his share of his
inheritance to the Church and to the poor and built and renovated many churches
in his see.
Three times he made
the pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and in an age when most prelates were
continually involved in secular politics, he succeeded in attending exclusively
to ecclesiastical interests during the 42 years of his episcopacy.
Nevertheless, he accompanied Emperor Otto I to Italy in 962 (Attwater 2,
Benedictines, Coulson, Delaney).
Saint Conrad is
pictured as a bishop holding a chalice with a spider above or in it (Roeder).
This depiction relates to the story that a spider once dropped into the chalice
as he celebrated Mass. Although it was believed then that all spiders were
deadly poisonous, Conrad nevertheless swallowed the Blood of Christ, out of
respect (Coulson). Sometimes images of Saint Conrad contain (1) a serpent and
chalice (not to be confused with Saint John); (2) asperges; or exorcising
(Roeder).
San Corrado di Costanza Vescovo
900 c. - 26 novembre 975
Nato verso il 900 dal guelfo conte Enrico di Altdorf ed entrato come
«frater adscriptus» nel monastero di San Gallo, fu affidato alla scuola della
cattedrale di Costanza per esservi educato allo stato clericale. Nel 934, in
presenza di sant'Ulrico, vescovo di Augusta, venne eletto vescovo di Costanza. Benché non abbia svolto
un'attività politica, sembra fosse molto apprezzato da Ottone I al cui seguito
probabilmente si trovò durante il viaggio a Roma per l'incoronazione imperiale
(964). Secondo una notizia leggendaria sarebbe stato tre volte a Gerusalemme. Morì il 26 novembre 975 e fu
sepolto nella basilica di San Maurizio, da lui costruita. Callisto II, in una lettera del 28 marzo 1123, indirizzata al vescovo,
clero e popolo di Costanza, dichiarò Corrado santo. (Avvenire)
Etimologia: Corrado = consigliere audace, dal tedesco
Emblema: Bastone pastorale
Martirologio Romano: A Costanza nella Svevia in Germania, san Corrado,
vescovo, che, ottimo pastore del suo gregge, con i suoi beni provvide
largamente alla Chiesa e ai poveri.
Nato verso l'anno 900 dal guelfo conte Enrico di Altdorf ed entrato come
frater adscriptus nel monastero di S. Gallo, fu affidato alla scuola della
cattedrale di Costanza per esservi educato allo stato clericale. Nel 934, in
presenza di s. Ulrico, vescovo di Augusta, con cui fu in rapporti di amicizia,
venne eletto vescovo di Costanza, dove si distinse costruendo e dotando chiese
e ospedali. Benché
non abbia svolto un'attività politica, sembra fosse molto apprezzato da Ottone
I al cui seguito probabilmente si trovò durante il viaggio a Roma per
l'incoronazione imperiale (964). Secondo una notizia
leggendaria sarebbe stato tre volte a Gerusalemme. Morì il 26 novembre 975 e fu
sepolto nella basilica di S. Maurizio, da lui costruita.
Il vescovo Ulrico di Costanza (1111-27) pregò il papa Callisto II di voler
canonizzare Corrado: il pontefice gli rispose di inviare a Roma una Vita del
santo. Fu mandata quella scritta da Udalscalco, per incarico dello stesso
Ulrico. Callisto II, in una lettera del 28 marzo 1123, indirizzata al vescovo,
clero e popolo di Costanza, dichiarò Corrado santo: il 26 novembre successivo
ebbe luogo la solenne traslazione delle spoglie. Nell'anno 1526, al tempo della
Riforma, i sacri resti vennero gettati nel lago di Costanza; si salvò soltanto
la testa. Corrado è fra i patroni di Costanza e di Friburgo in Brisgovia: il
suo culto è diffuso nella Svizzera tedesca, nel monastero di S. Gallo e in
quello di Einsiedeln, nella Svevia e a Ottobeuren.
Nell'iconografia il santo vescovo è spesso rappresentato con un calice in cui è
caduto un ragno: il motivo trae origine dall'episodio secondo il quale Corrado
avrebbe inghiottito senza esitazione e senza danno un ragno velenoso caduto nel
calice durante la Messa.
Autore: Ludwig
Falkenstein
