Saint of the Day: St. Gilbert of Neuffontaines

Abbot (d. 1152)

His life

+ Gilbert belonged to the nobility of Auvergne in France. Following the advice of the Norbertine abbot of Dilo, he participated in the Second Crusade (1147-1149).

+ While this crusade proved to be a failure, Gilbert survived and, together with his wife and his daughter, he decided to dedicate himself to God and enter monastic life. He distributed his considerable wealth to the poor and founded a convent, which his wife and daughter entered.

+ After spending some time living as a hermit, Gilbert completed his novitiate in the Norbertine abbey of Dilo. In 1150, he founded the abbey of Neuffontaines and became its first abbot. He also built a hospital attached to the abbey, which became famous because of the many miracles that occurred there.

+ Many miracles were attributed to Gilbert’s intercession, including the healing of many sick children. This gave rise to the later custom of parents bringing their sick children to Neuffontaines seeking St. Gilbert’s intercession for healing in the years following his death.

+ Saint Gilbert died on June 5, 1152. Pope Benedict XIII confirmed the veneration of St. Gilbert on January 22, 1728. The relics of Saint Gilbert were destroyed during the French Revolution.

For prayer and reflection

“If the object of love is what is good, then the soul should take its delight in the highest good, the things of heaven.”—Saint Gregory the Great

Spiritual bonus

On October 26 we also remember Blessed Celina Chludzinska. Honored as a founder of the Sisters of the Resurrection, she died in Krakow, Poland, in 1913 and was beatified in 2007.

Prayer

Grant us, O Lord, that amid the uncertainties of this world we may cling with all our heart to the things of heaven, for through the Abbot blessed Gilbert you have given us a model of evangelical perfection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(from The Roman Missal: Common of Holy Men and Women—For an Abbot)

Saint profiles prepared by Brother Silas Henderson, S.D.S.