#willibrord

[mioritic]

Brunnenfigur des Heiligen Willibrord, Sankt Martin, Utrecht

Bildarchiv Foto Marburg

[cruger2984]

THE DESCRIPTION OF SAINT WILLIBRORD The Apostle to the Frisians and Patron Against Epilepsy and Seizures Feast Day: November 7

Do you remember the myth of Veit the sorcerer? Yes, that charismatic violinist who plunged the entire city of Echternach into a dancing mania that even rivaled Berlin's 24-hour techno sessions. The town kept raving frenziedly until one of Luxembourg's most famous saints put an end to the sorcery: enter Willibrord.

Known as the apostle of Frisia in the Netherlands, Willibrord was a missionary archbishop whose life was marked by dedication and fervor for spreading Christianity.

He was born in the year 658, and educated in a monastery led by St. Wilfrid. At the age of 20, he went to Ireland to study and live in a monastery there. After 12 years, he had a desire to preach the faith in northern Germany, but was denied because it was a dangerous region, and other monks had tried and failed.

Willibrord traveled to Rome, where he flung himself at the feet of the pope, asking for permission to preach the Gospel to pagan nations. The pope gave him authority to do so, and gave him a number of relics with which he could consecrate altars in churches he built.

He preached in parts of what is now the Netherlands before being ordained a bishop in 695. As he aged, he only seemed to gain zeal and energy for the spread of the Gospel. With help from patrons, he established a monastery in Echternach, Luxembourg, which became the center of learning and culture.

A town surrounds the abbey in Echternach today. Each Tuesday after Pentecost, the people of the town gather for a festival known as the Dancing Saints. Its origins are obscure, but it has been celebrated since the 1500s. The people of the town process with a dancing step to music, moving through the town, over a bridge, to the tomb of Willibrord. The ceremony ends with a benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.

In one of his journeys, Willibrord landed upon an island that was revered as a holy place by the Danes. The people there refused to kill anything on the island for food—either animals or plants—and only drew water from a spring in complete silence. Willibrord set out to demonstrate this reverence as foolishness and killed several animals and ate them with his companions. He then baptized three people in the spring, loudly pronouncing the words to the rite.

In other places, he confronted paganism, overthrowing idols and boldly proclaiming the truth of Our Lord Jesus Christ. For a time, he was joined by St. Boniface.

Willibrord was known as cheerful and wise, and he nourished all of his evangelical activity with a healthy prayer life of meditation and reading. From time to time, he would return to the monastery he founded at Echternach for retreat and prayer. He died there on this date in 739 at the age of 81, and is buried in the abbey church, which is a place of pilgrimage. His relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica.

[mioritic]

Luxembourgish postage stamp depicting the Abbey of Echternach, released for the 12th centenary of the death of St. Willibrord

Designed by Samuel Louis (Sem) Hartz, issued 1939

[mioritic]

"Echternach - Le Sarcophage de St. Willibrord" — postcard ca. 1920

Rijksmuseum

[mioritic]

Postage stamp issued to commemorate the 1200th anniversary of St. Willibrord's death, depicting the annual dancing procession in Echternach, Luxembourg

Designed by Samuel Louis (Sem) Hartz, issued 1939

[none-ofthisnonsense]

who wants to listen to me talk about willibrord

[the-carrot-clarinet]

Started studying art history