Saint Clodoald
'Cloud', moine près de
Paris (+ 560)
Clovis et Clotilde avaient une fille et trois fils. Demeurée veuve à 40 ans après le décès de son royal époux, Clotilde se consacre à ses enfants. La fille fait un beau mariage, mais les fils se font la guerre au désespoir de leur mère. Bientôt Clodomir, l'aîné, meurt à la guerre. Ses trois enfants sont confiés à leur grand mère. Pour leur malheur, ils sont héritiers royaux. En 525, les fils de Clodomir sont égorgés par leurs oncles pour le plus grand chagrin de sainte Clotilde qui voyait ses petits enfants assassinés par ses enfants assassins. Seul échappe, par le dévouement de quelques fidèles, le plus jeune, Clodoald ou Cloud qui est âgé de 5 ans et que l'on cache dans un monastère. Il prend, de lui-même, l'habit monastique quelques années plus tard. A la fin d'une vie remplie de bonnes œuvres, le rescapé du carnage royal vint finir ses jours en ermite sur une colline proche de Paris, colline qui désormais porte son nom.
Voir aussi:
- Saints parisiens - diocèse de Paris
- Histoire de Saint-Cloud - site de la commune
- vidéo: L'orgue de l'église Saint-Clodoald de Saint-Cloud accompagne la visite de l'église.
À Nogent sur le territoire de Paris, en 560, saint Cloud, prêtre. Il était le
plus jeune des fils du roi Clodomir et, après le meurtre de son père et de ses
frères, il fut recueilli par son aïeule sainte Clotilde et, méprisant un
royaume terrestre, il se consacra au Seigneur en se coupant les cheveux de sa
propre main pour faire partie du clergé.
Martyrologe romain
SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/1809/Saint-Clodoald.html
Peinture
d'une des chapelles latérales de Notre-Dame de Paris - Photo prise le
12/04/2016
Saint Cloud
Prince, Moine et Prêtre
(515-560)
Clodoald, plus connu sous
le nom de Cloud, était le fils du roi Clodomir et petit-fils de Clovis et de
sainte Clotilde. Après la mort de son père, ses oncles, Childebert et Clotaire,
firent demander à leur mère Clotilde, de leur envoyer les enfants de Clodomir
pour les proclamer successeurs de leur père. La sainte veuve revêtit Cloud, qui
n'avait que deux ans, et ses deux frères de leurs plus beaux habits et les
envoya avec confiance, ne se doutant pas que ses petits-enfants allaient être
égorgés sans pitié par ses propres fils. Cloud fut sauvé du massacre et put
échapper à toutes les recherches de ses oncles.
Le jeune prince grandit
en paix dans un monastère, et, trouvant toute sa joie au service de Dieu, il
préféra la tonsure à la couronne. Il choisit plus tard, pour y finir ses jours,
le monastère d'Agaune, dont les neufs cents religieux partagés en neuf choeurs,
se succédaient tour à tour devant l'autel et chantaient l'office sans
interruption, le jour et la nuit.
Dieu ne voulut pas
laisser longtemps ce trésor enfoui, car il accompagna les vertus du prince du
don des miracles. Un jour qu'il se promenait aux environs de sa cellule, un
mendiant à moitié nu se présente à lui, implorant sa charité. Le prince, devenu
moine, n'avait rien; les pauvres vêtements qu'il portait étaient les seuls
objets qu'il eût à sa disposition; il ne voulut pas cependant rebuter un membre
du Sauveur Jésus, et, se dépouillant de son manteau, il en revêtit le mendiant.
Le soir, celui-ci reçut l'hospitalité dans une chaumière voisine, et, pendant
qu'il dormait, ô prodige! Le vêtement qu'il avait reçu rayonnait d'un éclat
plus merveilleux que les brillants habits des princes.
Cloud fut ordonné prêtre
malgré les protestations de son humilité, et fut le premier des princes de
France qui gravit les degrés de l'autel. C'est à Paris qu'avait eu lieu
l'ordination; il obtint du roi Childebert, son oncle, une propriété voisine de
la capitale pour y finir ses jours dans la solitude. Dès qu'on sut le lieu de
la retraite du serviteur de Dieu, on y accourut de toutes parts pour se mettre
sous sa direction; quelques cellules furent d'abord bâties, bientôt un
monastère devint nécessaire; Cloud y vécut sept ans au milieu de ses frères,
leur donnant l'exemple de toutes les vertus. Les vertus de saint Cloud avait
attiré vers lui de nombreux disciples; ses miracles firent accourir des foules
immenses à son tombeau, autour duquel se forma la ville de Saint-Cloud. La
piété naïve de nos pères a porté les cloutiers à le choisir pour patron.
Abbé L. Jaud, Vie des Saints pour tous les jours de l'année, Tours, Mame, 1950
SOURCE : http://magnificat.ca/cal/fr/saints/saint_cloud.html
7 septembre
Histoire des Francs de saint Grégoire de Tours
(Livre III, VI) Or tandis que Godomar1 tournait le dos avec son armée et que
Clodomir2, qui le poursuivait, s'était écarté des
siens une grande distance, les adversaires, contrefaisant son signe (de
ralliement) lui crient : « Tourne-toi par ici, par ici ! disent-ils, car
nous sommes tes hommes. » Mais lui, leur ajoutant foi, partit et se
jeta au milieu des ennemis. Sa tête fut coupée et on l'éleva en l'air, fixée à
une lance. Ce que voyant, les Francs, qui reconnaissaient Clodomir tué, mettent
en fuite Godomar après s'être ressaisis, écrasent les Burgondes et soumettent
le pays à leur domination3.
Sans plus tarder Clotaire épousa la femme de son frère
nommée Gontheuque. Quant à ses fils, la reine Clotilde, sitôt que les jours de
deuil furent passés, les accueillit et les garda. L'un s'appelait Théobald, le
second Gonthier, le troisième Cloud. De nouveau Godomar récupéra son royaume.
(Livre III, XVIII) Tandis que le reine Clotilde
demeurait à Paris, Childebert4, voyant que sa mère aimait d'une affection
exclusive les fils de Clodomir, que nous avons cités ci-dessus, en éprouva de
la jalousie et craignant qu'avec la faveur de la Reine ils ne trouvassent accès
au trône envoya secrètement vers son frère le roi Clotaire5 pour lui dire : « Notre mère
garde avec elle les fils de notre frère et veut qu'ils soient dotés du royaume
; tu dois venir à Paris et après avoir délibéré ensemble, il faudra décider ce
qu'on doit faire d'eux : auront-ils la chevelure coupée comme le reste du
peuple ou bien après qu'ils auront été tués le royaume de notre frère sera-t-il
partagé également entre nous deux ? »
Vivement réjoui par ces paroles, Clotaire vint à
Paris. Childebert avait fait courir dans la population le bruit que les rois se
réunissaient pour élever ces petits enfants sur le trône. Lorsqu'ils furent
réunis, ils envoyèrent dire à la Reine qui demeurait alors dans la dite ville
: « Envoie-nous les enfants pour qu'on les élève sur le
trône. » Elle en fut joyeuse, car elle ignorait leur fourberie ;
ayant donc donné aux enfants de la nourriture et de la boisson, elle les envoya
en disant : « Je ne croirai plus que j'ai perdu mon fils si je
vous vois lui succéder dans son royaume. » A peine étaient-ils partis
qu'ils furent appréhendés et séparés de leurs domestiques et de leurs
nourriciers ; on séquestra les uns et les autres, en mettant d'un côté les
esclaves, de l'autre les petits enfants. C'est alors que Childebert et Clotaire
envoyèrent à la Reine Arcadius (...) avec des ciseaux et une épée tirée du
fourreau. Dès son arrivée, il montra à la Reine les deux objets en disant
: « C'est à ta volonté, O très glorieuse reine, que tes fils nos
seigneurs font appel. Que juges-tu qu'il faut faire des enfants ? Donnes-tu
l'ordre de les laisser vivre avec les cheveux coupés ou de les étrangler tous
les deux. » Mais elle, terrifiée de la nouvelle et outrée de rancœur
surtout lorsqu'elle vit l'épée hors du fourreau et les ciseaux, se laissa
gagner par l'amertume et, ne sachant plus dans sa douleur ce qu'elle disait,
répondit simplement : « Je préfère s'il ne doivent pas monter sur le
trône, les voir morts que tondus. » Mais lui sans faire attention à
sa douleur ni se demander ce que dans la suite elle déciderait à la réflexion,
s'en revint rapidement annoncer et dire : « La Reine étant
consentante, poursuivez l'œuvre commencée, car elle-même veut que votre projet
soit exécuté. »
Aussitôt Clotaire ayant saisi l'aîné des enfants par
le bras, le tua cruellement en lui plantant un couteau dans l'aisselle. A ses
cris son frère se prosterne aux pieds de Childebert et lui saisissant les
genoux s'écrie avec des larmes : « Au secours, père très pieux, que
je ne périsse pas comme mon frère. » Alors Childebert, le visage
baigné de larmes, déclara : « Je t'en prie, frère très doux,
accorde-moi dans ta générosité la vie de celui-ci et je te donnerai ce que tu
exigeras pour son salut à condition qu'il ne soit pas tué. » Mais
l'autre l'ayant accablé d'injures, s'écria : « Rejette-le loin de toi
ou c'est toi à coup sûr qui mourras à sa place. C'est toi, ajouta-t-il,
qui as eu l'initiative de cette chose, et maintenant tu te dédis aussi
rapidement de ton engagement. » En entendant ces mots, celui-là
repoussant l'enfant le projeta sur celui-ci. Ce dernier l'attrapant et lui
ayant planté un couteau dans le côté comme il avait fait auparavant pour le
frère l'étrangla ; ensuite ils assassinèrent les esclaves ainsi que les
nourriciers.
Après ces meurtres Clotaire, montant à cheval, s'en
alla sans se soucier du meurtre de ses neveux ; mais Childebert se rendit
dans le faubourg. Quant à la Reine, après avoir déposés les deux petits corps
dans un cercueil, elle les suivit accompagnée d'un grand chœur de chantres et
avec une immense tristesse jusqu'à la basilique de Saint-Pierre6 où elles les ensevelit tous deux
ensemble. L'un avait dix ans et l'autre sept ans. Quand au troisième, Cloud, on
ne put le saisir parce qu'il s'échappa avec le secours d'hommes courageux.
Dédaignant le royaume terrestre, il se donna à Dieu et coupant de sa propre
main ses cheveux, il devint clerc et, persistant dans les bonnes œuvres, il
était prêtre quand il quitta ce monde.
Le prince Cloud reçut le sacerdoce des mains
d'Eusèbe, évêque de Paris, vers 551. L'habit monastique lui fut donné par saint
Séverin, pieux solitaire du Petit-Pont, dans les environs de Paris ; après
avoir vécu quelques temps dans une retraite provençale, il vint près de Paris,
dans le bourg de Nogent qui, après sa mort prit le nom de Saint-Cloud7 ; il y fonda une église sous le vocable
de Saint-Martin où il vécut jusqu'à sa mort, vers 560, et où il fut inhumé8. Les reliques de saint Cloud, gardées à
Paris pendant les invasions normandes et plus tard rendues à la collégiale9 (809), furent détruites par les
révolutionnaires, à l'exception d'un os du bras qui fut sauvé par une pieuse
femme, d'une vertèbre et d'un morceau du suaire recueilli par un des porteurs
de la châsse ; ces précieuses reliques ont été solennellement rendues à
l'église paroissiale le 12 juin 1848.
1 Godomar :
roi des Burgondes, frère de Sigismond.
2 Clodomir :
fils de Clovis et de sainte Clotilde, né vers 495 et baptisé dès sa naissance.
A la mort de Clovis (511) il partagea le royaume avec ses deux frères
(Childebert et Clotaire) et eut pour sa part la vallée de la Loire d'Orléans à
Tours, Bourges, Poitiers, Chartres, Sens et Auxerre.
3 Il
s'agit de la bataille de Vézeronce (canton de Morestel, dans l'Isère) que
la Chronique de Marius d'Avenches situe en 524.
4 Childebert :
fils de Clovis et de sainte Clotilde. A la mort de Clovis, il eut Paris, les
pays jusqu'à la Somme, les côtes de la Manche jusqu'à la Bretagne, Nantes et
Angers.
5 Clotaire :
fils de Clovis et de sainte Clotilde. A la mort de Clovis, il eut Soissons,
Noyon, Laon, Arras et le vieux pays franc avec Tournai, Cambrai, Térouanne et
Tongres.
6 Il
s'agit de la basilique fondée par Clovis et où il a été enseveli, qui, depuis,
est devenue l'abbatiale Sainte-Geneviève.
7 La
terre de Saint-Cloud, propriété de l'Eglise de Paris, fut érigée par Louis
XIV en duché-pairie en faveur de l'archevêque de Paris.
8 L'église Saint-Martin,
dans laquelle saint Cloud avait été inhumé, prit au VIII° siècle le nom de
Saint-Cloud qui désigna aussi le bourg de Nogent. L'église, devenue collégiale
vers 811, endommagée par les Normands fut reconstruite au XII° siècle et
détruite par les révolutionnaires ; l'actuelle église paroissiale de
Saint-Cloud, commencée par Marie-Antoinette (1788), fut achevée sous Napoléon
III.
9 Le
corps de saint Cloud était enseveli dans la crypte de l’église et
recouvert d’une large plaque de marbre noir bleuâtre où l’on pouvait lire
« Le corps vénérable de saint Cloud, issu de la noble race des rois,
consacre ce tombeau. Il n’eut pas le sceptre d’un royaume périssable, mais il
éleva cette basilique au Seigneur et en donna la juridiction à l’église-mère et
au pontife de la ville de Paris. »
SOURCE : http://missel.free.fr/Sanctoral/09/07.php
Saint Cloud et le temps
des fondations
On l’appelait Clodoald et
dans la langue franque son nom signifiait "illustre et redoutable".
Né en 522, il était le petit-fils du roi Clovis qui s’était fait baptiser par
saint Rémi, à Reims, le 25 décembre 498, et de sainte Clotilde qui, de son
côté, était issue d’une famille catholique. Clovis devint ainsi le premier roi
barbare catholique et, par le fait, le défenseur de l’Église. Ainsi, des
monastères seront établis afin de protéger les agglomérations par la prière :
ce sera éminemment le cas à Saint-Cloud.
De la logique de la
vengeance à celle du pardon
En dépit de cette
conversion, les moeurs des Francs étaient demeurées rudes et cruelles : la
vengeance était de mise et l’on n’hésitait pas à tuer ceux qui faisaient
obstacle aux ambitions de pouvoir et de possession. Ainsi, à la mort de Clovis,
ses quatre fils se partagèrent le royaume paternel : il s’agissait, pour
chacun, de s’imposer par la force plutôt que par la qualité de
l’administration… On cherchait à s’accaparer des territoires riches de chevaux
et d’esclaves pour faire la guerre…
Ainsi, Clodomir, le
second fils, était devenu roi d’Orléans ; il épousa Gondioque qui lui donna
trois fils : Théodebald, Gunthar (Gonthier) et Clodoald. Il passa le plus clair
de son règne à guerroyer. Il fut tué en 524, lors d’une bataille, après avoir
été trompé par des adversaires qu’il poursuivait. Conformément à la loi
salique, sa tête fut tranchée et plantée au bout d’une lance, en signe
d’accomplissement d’une faide (vengeance d’honneur dans la tradition
germanique).
Ses trois fils furent
recueillis par sa mère, Clotilde, tandis que sa veuve épousa son beau-frère,
Clotaire ; mais cela ne suffit pas pour que ce dernier obtienne le territoire
de son défunt frère : la loi salique imposait le partage du royaume entre les
fils de Clodomir.
Le troisième fils de
Clovis, Childebert, craignant que la reine mère ne plaçât les enfants de
Clodomir sur le trône, invita Clotaire à Paris pour élaborer un accord. Voulant
récupérer le territoire de leur défunt frère, ils décidèrent de tondre ou tuer
leurs neveux. S’étant emparés, par ruse des enfants, les oncles envoyèrent un
émissaire à Clotilde ; il portait une paire de ciseaux et une épée : il demanda
à la reine-mère ce que ses fils devaient faire de leurs neveux : les laisser
vivre avec les cheveux coupés ou les égorger. La reine répondit : "S’ils
ne sont pas élevés au trône de leur père, j’aime mieux les voir morts que
tondus." Il semble qu’elle redoutât les guerres civiles qui pourraient
être engendrées par la suite : les cheveux longs, symbole de royauté chez les
Francs, finissant toujours par repousser, Théodebald, Gunthar et Clodoald
auraient pu revendiquer le trône un jour ou l’autre…
Sans pitié, Théodebald et
Gunthar furent sauvagement égorgés par leurs oncles, tandis que Clodoald, qui
n’avait que quatre ans, parvint à échapper au massacre grâce à l’aide de
serviteurs fidèles.
On le mit à l’abri des
poursuites vengeresses en le cachant peut-être à Tours, près du tombeau de
saint Martin. C’est là que le jeune homme aurait eu la révélation d’une
vocation à la vie religieuse.
Il se coupa alors
lui-même les cheveux au cours d’une cérémonie par laquelle il déclarait qu’il
renonçait à la royauté. Et même s’il eut plusieurs occasions de recouvrer les
États de son père, il ne voulut point en profiter. La grâce lui avait ouvert
les yeux sur la vanité des grandeurs terrestres. Il choisit de s’engager sur la
voie du pardon.
Une vocation sollicitée
par le peuple
Il se consacra
entièrement au service de Dieu : après avoir distribué aux églises et aux
pauvres les biens que ses oncles n’avaient pu lui ravir, il se retira auprès
d’un saint religieux, Séverin, qui menait une vie solitaire et contemplative
dans un ermitage aux portes de Paris. Le jeune prince devint son disciple et
reçut de ses mains l’habit religieux. Il demeura quelque temps en sa compagnie,
pour s’y former à toutes les vertus monastiques.
Mais, très vite, la
réputation de sa sainteté se répandit et celui qui voulait être ermite était
trop sollicité. Il se retira donc une nouvelle fois en un lieu inconnu
(peut-être en Provence ou peut-être encore près de Rocamadour, dans le Quercy
?) ; mais il fut retrouvé à cause des témoignages que l’on rapportait sur sa
sagesse, sa charité et ses miracles. Ainsi : un pauvre vint demander l’aumône
au saint. Le moine ne possédait rien, mais il ne voulut pas laisser le mendiant
partir sans rien. Clodoald lui donna sa cuculle (son capuchon de moine). Le
soir, ce miséreux trouva l’hospitalité d’une chaumière. La nuit, le vêtement
rayonna d’une clarté surnaturelle qui illumina toute la maison ! Comment ne pas
entendre un écho de l’Évangile : "Ce que vous avez fait à l’un de ces
petits qui sont mes frères, c’est à moi que vous l’avez fait." (Mt 25, 40)
?
Il se rendit finalement
aux sollicitations de ses amis et rentra à Paris. Ses oncles, qui ne devaient
plus avoir d’inquiétude quant à ses intentions, le rappelèrent eux aussi…
Entendant l’opinion du
peuple, les notables se rassemblèrent et ils décidèrent de demander à l’évêque
Eusèbe d’ordonner Clodoald prêtre : c’était en 551. La vocation sacerdotale
peut s’exprimer de bien des manières et on aurait tort de la limiter à un appel
privé et intime ; le Concile Vatican II l’exprime clairement : "Le devoir
de cultiver les vocations revient à la communauté chrétienne tout entière"
(Optatam totius n° 2).
Pour la première fois, un
prince de sang royal recevait l’ordination sacerdotale dans notre pays.
Les oncles, décidément
rassurés ou convertis (?) dotèrent leur neveu de quelques terres, dont celles
de Nogent : il vint s’y installer avec quelques compagnons et il y fonda un
moustier (monastère).
De fait, on observe qu’au
cours des 6ème et 7ème siècles, la précarité de la vie et la brutalité des
moeurs amenèrent de nombreux laïcs à quitter le monde. Si le monachisme avait
connu un premier élan grâce au rayonnement de saint Martin de Tours, c’est à l’époque
mérovingienne que les fondations se multiplièrent.
Nogent était alors peuplé
de vétérans de l’armée romaine auxquels on avait donné ce territoire, de
l’autre côté de la Seine, pour y survivre avec leurs familles. Il semble
qu’existait déjà une église dédiée à saint Probas.
Dans son souci pastoral,
le Saint travailla en même temps à édifier une Église de pierres vivantes en
prenant soin des pauvres habitants de la localité quelque peu abandonnée et à
élever un sanctuaire plus digne, qu’il dédiera à saint Martin pour rassembler
ces chrétiens dans l’emprise du monastère. En témoignent bien les deux
peintures symétriques du choeur de l’actuelle église Saint-Clodoald ; l’une
représente l’abbé dirigeant les travaux de construction du lieu de culte, l’autre
le montrant en train de faire l’aumône et de s’occuper de malades.
Ces hommes qui vivaient
misérablement de chasse et de pêche apprirent des moines à défricher et à
cultiver les terres ainsi mises en valeur. Sans doute l’implantation de la
vigne sur les coteaux du fleuve date-t-elle de cette époque.
Une profonde empreinte
Clodoald vécut sept
années à Nogent. Il marqua profondément et durablement l’endroit. C’est à ce
titre que l’on peut évoquer la belle légende du "Pas de saint Cloud"
: le moine se rendit sur le bateau qui transportait par la Seine les matériaux
pour son église, se chargea d’une colonne, mais, épuisé par le fardeau, son
pied glissa ; l’effort qu’il déploya pour retrouver son équilibre fut tel que
le chemin garda l’empreinte de son pas ! Toujours est-il qu’à partir du 7ème
siècle Nogent prit le nom de Saint-Cloud.
Pour éviter tout risque
que ses propriétés ne deviennent à sa mort l’objet de convoitises, il les légua
à l’évêque de Paris.
Il mourut le 7 septembre
560 et ses disciples l’inhumèrent dans la crypte de l’église qu’il avait bâtie
: celui-ci devint tout de suite un lieu de pèlerinage très couru.
Prière à l’intercession
de Saint Cloud
Grand saint Cloud, tes
qualités évangéliques ont brillé d’un tel éclat,
Qu’elles ont conduit
l’évêque de Paris à t’ordonner prêtre
À la joyeuse et unanime
demande du peuple chrétien.
Nous te prions
d’intercéder auprès du Père
Pour les hommes et les
femmes de notre pays,
Et, en particulier, pour
les habitants de cette ville
Qui a tellement été
marquée par ta vie, par ta mort
Et par toutes les
merveilles réalisées sous ton invocation.
Que Jésus Christ, unique
bon Pasteur,
Suscite des prêtres
humbles, vibrants de charité et donnés au ministère,
Soucieux d’édifier
l’Église au coeur de la cité,
Proches des petits et des
pauvres,
Comme tu le fus toi-même
sur les rives de la Seine.
Que l’Esprit Saint fasse
entendre son appel
À beaucoup d’enfants et
de jeunes
Prêts à travailler pour
que vienne le règne de Dieu,
Pour illuminer leurs
frères des clartés de l’Évangile
Et pour les sanctifier
dans la célébration des sacrements.
Ô grand saint Cloud, que
tes prières soutiennent les nôtres
Afin que notre pays et
notre diocèse aient la joie d’accueillir des prêtres nombreux,
Des prêtres saints qui
aiment passionnément leur prochain,
Au point de se consacrer
totalement pour son service et son bonheur.
Amen.
Inspirée d’une prière de
la fin du 19ème siècle : l’une des intentions du pèlerinage restauré en 1863
était les vocations sacerdotales. Le chanoine Pierre Romand était alors curé et
monseigneur Jean-Pierre Mabille évêque de Versailles (dont dépendait
Saint-Cloud). La confirmation du pape Pie IX arriva en 1864.
Père Yvon Aybram
Extrait de la fiche n°3
"Quatre figures de prêtres" pour l'Année Sacerdotale du diocèse de
Nanterre
SOURCE : http://www.mavocation.org/vocation/saints/1312-saint-cloud.html
Clodoald
ou Saint-Cloud (522-560), petit-fils de Clovis Ier, rencontre Saint Séverin
Also
known as
Clodoald
Clodoaldo
Clodoaldus
Claud
Profile
Born to French royalty,
son of King Clodomir
and Clotilde, and grandson of King Clovis and Saint Clotilda.
His father died in
battle when his children were
still quite young. The king‘s sons
were raised in Paris, France by
their grandmother, Saint Clotilda,
until an ambitious uncle murdered two of them in a power grab. Clodoaldus
escaped, renounced all claims to the throne, and lived as a studious hermit.
Spiritual student of Saint Severinus
the Hermit. Young Cloud withdrew to Provence to live as a prayerful hermit,
but when his identity became known, his hermitage became
a destination point for pilgrims,
and he returned to Paris. Priest.
Built a monastery near Paris,
a house later known as Saint Cloud,
retired there, and led a community of holy brothers by his example. The town of
Saint Cloud grew up around the monastery.
Born
560 in France of
natural causes
Name
Meaning
out of the mist [middle
english]
Saint
Cloud, Minnesota, diocese of
Additional
Information
Book
of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Alban Butler
Saints
of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
Short
Lives of the Saints, by Eleanor Cecilia Donnelly
books
1001 Patron Saints and Their Feast Days, by Australian
Catholic Truth Society
Lives of the Saints, by Omer Englebert
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
Saints
and Their Attributes, by Helen Roeder
Some Patron Saints, by
Padraic Gregory
other
sites in english
Holy Myrrh-Bearers Orthodox Church
images
video
sitios
en español
Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
sites
en français
Abbé
Christian-Philippe Chanut
fonti
in italiano
MLA
Citation
“Saint Cloud“. CatholicSaints.Info.
16 June 2024. Web. 6 September 2024. <https://catholicsaints.info/saint-cloud/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-cloud/
Article
CLODOALDUS (CLOUD)
(Saint) (September 7) (6th century) The third son of Clodomir, King of Orleans,
and grandson of Clovis and of Saint Clotilde, by the latter of whom he was
brought up. Having lived for some time as a disciple of the hermit Saint
Severinus, he was ordained priest and gathered many followers, who took up
their abode with him at a spot in the neighbourhood of Paris, which has
retained the name of Saint Cloud. He died A.D. 560 at the age of forty.
MLA
Citation
Monks of Ramsgate.
“Clodoaldus”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 10
October 2012.
Web. 7 September 2024. <http://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-clodoaldus/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-clodoaldus/
.jpg)
Vitrail
signé « Perrier et Sicard » représentant saint Front (à gauche) et
saint Cloud, église de Biras, Dordogne, France.
Saint Cloud
Saint Cloud is the
most illustrious Saint among the princes of the royal family of the first
French dynasty, the Merovingians (499-752). Born in 522, he was the son of
Chlodomir, King of Orleans and eldest son of Clovis and Saint Clotilda. He was
not yet three years old when his father was killed during a war. His
grandmother, Saint Clotilda, brought him and his two brothers to Paris to be
educated, and loved them dearly.
Their ambitious uncles,
however, desiring to divide the kingdom of Orleans between themselves, slew
with their own hands the two young brothers of Cloud. He, by a special
dispensation of Providence, was saved from the massacre. Later, renouncing the
world, he privately consecrated himself to the service of God. After distributing
to the poor what he could salvage of his heritage, he retired to a hermitage to
be under the discipline of a holy recluse named Severinus, who dwelt near the
gates of Paris and who clothed him with the monastic habit. His uncles left him
alone, seeing his inalterable decision to live as a religious, and conceded
certain heritages to him. When he became famous through an act of charity
rewarded by a miracle, he withdrew secretly to Provence. There again, his
hermitage was sought out by petitioners. He decided to return to Paris, where
he was received with the greatest joy.
At the earnest request of
the people, he was ordained a priest in 551 by Eusebius, Bishop of Paris, and
served the Church of that city for some time in the functions of the sacred
ministry. Again he found himself in great honor; he therefore retired to
Nogent, a place now known as Saint Cloud, two leagues south of Paris, where he
built a monastery. There he was joined by many pious men, who fled from the
world for fear of losing their souls in its midst. Saint Cloud was chosen by
them to be their Superior, and he animated them to virtue both by word and
example. He was also indefatigable in instructing and exhorting the faithful of
the neighboring regions. He died at Nogent in 560, and the major part of his
relics remain still in the parochial church of the village.
SOURCE : http://www.ucatholic.com/saints/saint-cloud/
Cloud (Clodoald, Clodulphus)
of Nogent, Abbot (RM)
Died c. 560. Saint Cloud
was the grandson of King Clovis and Saint Clotilde. Upon the king's death in
511, his realm was divided between his four sons. His second son, Clodomir of
Orléans, was killed 13 years later (524) in a battle against his cousin, King
Gondomar of Burgundy (who had already murdered Saint Sigismund), leaving three
sons to share his dominions, the youngest of which was Clodoald or Cloud.
The fatherless boys were
thereafter raised in Paris by their grandmother, Saint Clotilde, who lavished
them with care and affection, while their kingdom was administered by their
uncle Childebert of Paris. When Cloud was eight, Childebert plotted with his
brother Clotaire of Soissons, to seize their land by eliminating the boys.
Through an agent they gave their mother, Clotilde, the choice of killing her
grandsons or forcibly closing them up in a monastery. Childebert's familiar so
twisted Clotilde's reply that it was made to appear that she had chosen death.
Clotaire seized and
stabbed the eldest, 10-year-old Theobald. In fear the second child, Gunthaire,
fled to his uncle Childebert, whose heart was so softened by fear and sickened
at the brutal murder of his nephew Theobald that he tried to protect him. But
Clotaire disapproved of such faintheartedness. He dragged Gunthaire from
Childebert's arms and killed him, too. With his two brothers were murdered,
Cloud escaped to safety and lived in hiding in Provence. The uncles suffered
the same fate that they imposed on their nephews. It is said that Cloud cut off
his hair with his own hands to indicate his renunciation of the world.
When Cloud came of age,
he decided that he already knew enough about the world of the court and
politics. Although he had opportunities to regain his kingdom, he resigned all
claim to the Frankish throne by voluntarily being tonsured as a monk. He then
hid himself in a hermit's cell, where he gained masterly over his passions
through austerity and prayer.
Later he placed himself
under the discipline of Saint Severinus, a hermit living near Paris. With the
guidance of this experienced master the fervent novice made great progress in
Christian perfection; but he was troubled at being so close to Paris and the
center of power, where he was known. So he withdrew to Provence, where he
passed several years, and wrought many miracles. Seeing he gained nothing by
the remoteness of his cell from Paris because so many came to him for healing
and counsel, he returned to Paris, where he was received with joy. At the
earnest request of the people he was ordained priest by Bishop Eusebius of
Paris, in 551, and served that church for some time.
Afterwards, he became the
abbot-founder of Nogent-sur-Seine near Versailles, which is now a collegiate
church of canons regular called Saint Cloud. Until his death at age 36, Saint
Cloud was generous in distributing his wealth to churches and the poor, and
indefatigable in teaching the people in the area around Nogent. His relics can
still be found at Saint-Cloud's (Attwater, Benedictines, Encyclopedia,
Husenbeth, Walsh).
In art, Saint Cloud is
portrayed as a Benedictine abbot giving his hood to a poor man as a ray of
light emanates from his head. He may also be shown with royal insignia at his
feet or instructing the poor (Roeder). He is invoked against carbuncles (Roeder).
SOURCE : http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0907.shtml
Pictorial
Lives of the Saints – Saint Cloud, Confessor
Saint
Cloud is the first and most illustrious Saint among the princes of the royal
family of the first race in France. He was son of Chlodomir, King of Orleans,
the eldest son of Saint Clotilda, and was born 522. He was scarce three years
old when his father was killed in Burgundy; but his grandmother Clotilda
brought up him and his two brothers at Paris, and loved them extremely. Their
ambitious uncles divided the kingdom of Orleans between them, and stabbed with
their own hands two of their nephews. Cloud, by a special providence, was saved
from the massacre, and, renouncing the world, devoted himself to the service of
God in a monastic state. After a time he put himself under the discipline of
Saint Severinus, a holy recluse who lived near Paris, from whose hands he
received the monastic habit. Wishing to live unknown to the world, he withdrew
secretly into Provence, but his hermitage being made public, he returned to
Paris, and was received with the greatest joy imaginable. At the earnest
request of the people, he was ordained priest by Eusebius, Bishop of Paris, in
551, and served that Church some time in the functions of the sacred ministry.
He afterward retired to Saint Cloud, two leagues below Paris, where he built a
monastery. Here he assembled many pious men, who fled out of the world for fear
of losing their souls in it. Saint Cloud was regarded by them as their
superior, and he animated them to all virtue both by word and example. He was
indefatigable in instructing and exhorting the people of the neighboring
country, and piously ended his days about the year 560.
Reflection – Let us
remember that “the just shall live forevermore; they shall receive a kingdom of
glory, and a crown of beauty at the Hand of the Lord.”
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/pictorial-lives-of-the-saints-saint-cloud-confessor/
Statue
de saint Cloud, Chapelle Saint-Michel de Guéhenno (Morbihan, France)
Statue of Saint Clodoald, Saint Michael chapel of Guéhenno (Morbihan, France)
SAINT CLOUD
September 7th
On Sept. 7, the Catholic
Church honors the memory of Saint Clodoald, popularly known as Saint Cloud,
who escaped from violent political intrigue to pursue holiness as a monk and
priest.
Born in 522, Clodoald was the grandson of the Frankish King Clovis I, whose
conversion to orthodox Christianity – rather than the Arian heresy – made him
the first Catholic ruler of present-day France.
After Clodoald's father Clodomir was killed in 524, he and his brothers
Theudovald and Gunthar were raised by their grandmother Queen Clothilde, whom
the Church now honors as St. Clothilde.
Clovis' kingdom had been divided equally among his four sons following his
death in 511. In an effort to secure Clodomir's share of the territory after
his death, two of Clodoald's uncles plotted to kill the three boys who were
under the protection of the queen. While the uncles managed to kill Gunthar and
Theudovald, Clodoald fled and was taken in by the archbishop Saint Remigius of
Rheims,
Forced into seclusion by the plot against him, the young man became determined
to renounce the power and wealth that had brought grief to his
family. Placing himself in God's service, Clodoald lived in a small monastic
cell where he pursued a life of asceticism and contemplative prayer. He gave
his inheritance to the poor, and eventually became a disciple of the
hermit St. Severinus near Paris.
No longer pursued by his uncles, Clodoald appeared before the bishop of Paris
in 542. He formally received the monastic habit from the bishop, who cut
off the long hair that had signified his Frankish royal origins. Clodoald
eventually left Paris to live as a hermit in the forest for several years,
growing closer to God in his contemplative vocation and studying Sacred
Scripture extensively.
During these years, pilgrims began making their way to the hermitage, seeking
his prayers which were known to work miracles. Though he had left
Paris to live in anonymity and solitude, the hermit now sensed a need to return
to the city, where he was ordained a priest in 551. His two murderous uncles
are said to have repented of their deeds during the time of his ministry.
In 554 Clodoald returned to the monastic life, founding and leading a community
of monks in the village of Nogent near Paris. There, he was known for his
generosity toward the poor, and his attention to the work of
religious instruction among the people. He died on Sept. 7, 560, at
the age of 38.
Under the name of “St. Cloud,” Clodoald became the namesake of several cities
and towns. These include the Parisian suburb of Saint-Cloud, and later St.
Cloud, Minnesota, whose Catholic diocese has been placed under his patronage.
SOURCE : https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-cloud-708
St. Cloud
Feastday: September 7
Patron: of against carbuncles; nail makers; Diocese of Saint Cloud, Minnesota
Birth: 522
Death: 560
On the death of Clovis,
King of the Franks, in the year 511 his kingdom was divided between his four
sons, of whom the second was Clodomir. Thirteen years later he was killed
fighting against his cousin, Gondomar, leaving three sons to share his dominions.
The youngest of these sons of Clodomir was St. Clodoald, a name more familiar
to English people under its French form of
Cloud from the town of Saint-Cloud near Versailles. When Cloud was eight years
old, his uncle Childebert plotted with his brother, to get rid of the boys and
divide their kingdom. The eldest boy, Theodoald was stabbed to death. The
second, Gunther fled in terror, but was caught and also killed. Cloud escaped
and was taken for safety into Provence or elsewhere.
Childebert and his
brother Clotaire shared the fruits of their crime, and Cloud made no attempt to
recover his kingdom when he came of age. He put himself under the discipline of
St. Severinus, a recluse who lived near Paris, and he afterwards went to Nogent
on the Seine and had his heritage where is now Saint-Cloud. St. Cloud was
indefatigable in instructing the people of the neighboring country, and ended
his days at Nogent about the year 560 when he was some thirty-six years old.
St. Cloud's feast day is
September 7th.
SOURCE : https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=174
Saint Cloud, (Saint
Clodoald) the Patron Saint of the Diocese of Saint Cloud (522 – c.
560)
Saint Cloud was born in
522 A.D. He was the grandson of Clovis, founder of the Kingdom of the Franks,
and his wife Saint Clothilde. Following the death of his parents, Cloud and his
two brothers were cared for by their grandmother, Saint Clothilde, the widowed queen.
Upon his father’s death, Cloud’s uncles sought to seize his father’s throne by
plotting the murder of Cloud and his two brothers. They succeeded in killing
his brothers, but Saint Cloud escaped and sought sanctuary with Saint Remigius,
the Bishop of Rheims, located a short distance from Paris. And so, Cloud grew
from childhood into young manhood under the guidance and protection of the holy
bishop and his sainted grandmother.
Little is known of
Cloud’s life from the age of five until eighteen. He lived most of those years
with the Bishop of Rheims, and the latter years with Saint Severin, a hermit.
During these formative years he drew closer to God through silence and
solitude. Although this life-style was forced upon him by his uncles’ plot to
murder him, Cloud grew to appreciate his separation from the world and a life
of silence.
At the age of twenty,
Saint Cloud left his hermitage, appeared before the Bishop of Paris surrounded
by religious and civic leaders and members of the royal family — his royal
family. Remember, Cloud was a prince and heir to the throne! He clothed himself
in royal robes and carried a scissors in one hand and a coarse garment in the
other. He offered the coarse garment to the bishop who clothed him with it as a
symbol of his preferred “spiritual” rather than “material” riches. With the
scissors, the bishop cut Cloud’s long hair, which was a symbol of his royalty.
In the silence and solitude of his hermitage, Cloud had established priorities
in his life. He had learned the difference between true and false pleasures.
After Saint Severin the
hermit died, Cloud left the neighborhood of Paris to find solitude deeper in
the forest. He sought silence to communicate with God more intimately as he
prayed for the needs of people. God answered his prayers in a strange sort of
way by sending people out to find him in the forest. They came by the hundreds
because they learned that Cloud had the gift of healing the bodies and souls of
the afflicted. His was a ministry of healing and reconciliation.
Cloud lived eleven years
as a hermit. During those years, he spent time poring over the Scriptures.
These were not idle years for the prince who had fled the royal court for a
life devoted to Christ! For this reason artists throughout the centuries have
portrayed Cloud holding a bible.
Although Cloud shared
many gifts with others, there was one gift he could not share — the Eucharist,
the Body and Blood of Christ. People recognized this, and many urged Eusebius,
Bishop of Paris, to ordain the hermit-prince a priest. The bishop complied, and
in 551 A.D. Cloud was ordained a priest for the Church of Paris. He became
pastor of a small village consisting of poor men and women who fished in the
river, and farm families in a small village near Paris. Today, the village (now
a suburb of Paris) is called Saint Cloud.
In the village, Saint
Cloud used his gifts of healing, counseling, preaching and celebrating the
Eucharist in ministry to the people. As time passed, the uncles of Saint Cloud
repented of their sin and reconciled themselves with their nephew. They, in
turn, restored many castles, estates and lands to Cloud. As a hermit, he sold
some of these properties and distributed his wealth to the poor. He received
permission from the Bishop Eusebius to use a small portion of that wealth to
build a church with his own hands, and he dedicated it to Saint Martin of
Tours.
Cloud radiated that deep
joy of a Christian heart in love with God. Others recognized this in Cloud and
came to live near him. In time, he became a leader and teacher of those who
joined him. They formed a religious community, not like a convent or monastery,
but an association of persons dedicating themselves to love of God and service
to God’s people. The last seven years of his life, Saint Cloud lived in this
community attached to the Church of Saint Martin of Tours. Surrounded by the
community, he died serenely on September 7, 560 A.D., at age 38.
On September 12, 1891,
after Bishop Otto Zardetti consulted with the priests, religious and lay people
of our newly created diocese, Pope Leo XIII named Saint Cloud the patron saint
of the Church of Saint Cloud, MN. Since that time our diocesan patron has been
honored each year on his feast day, September 7. Saint Cloud is also the patron
saint of the St. Cloud Hospital.
In May, 1922, Joseph F.
Busch, Bishop of the Diocese of Saint Cloud, was present in Saint Cloud,
France, for the 14th centenary of the birth of Saint Cloud, the patron saint of
the city. At or around that time, Bishop Busch ordered a statue of the saint to
be carved by the French artist, M. Tourmoux. It was to reside at the new St.
Cloud Hospital in Saint Cloud, MN. The statue of Saint Cloud arrived in
Minnesota in October, 1927, and was placed over the altar in the St. Cloud
Hospital chapel.
A painting of Saint Cloud
now hangs in the entryway of the Diocese of Saint Cloud’s Chancery in St.
Cloud, MN. Another statue of the patron saint sits in the Bishop’s office in
the Chancery.
SOURCE : https://stcdio.org/about/biography-saint-cloud/
katholische
Pfarrkirche Saint-Clodoald in Saint-Cloud,
Statue des hl. Chlodoald
September 7, 2018
Saint Clodoald: A Light
for a World Trapped in Darkness
What do we do when we
face the evil of our past? Not what we have done, but rather the evils
done to us in our innocence. How should we respond to evil done against
us?
The lives of two men with
similar origins might give us some idea of, on the one hand, what to avoid when
facing evil and, on the other hand, what to strive for. The two men are
Julian the Apostate and Clodoald, more commonly known as St. Cloud.
Apostating into Darkness
Emperor Constantine’s
death in 331 led to his son Constantine II becoming Roman emperor. The
fearful Constantine II purged his family of potential political rivals, having
his uncles and most of his male cousins executed. One of the survivors
was the six-year-old Julian. The shock of this familial slaughter scarred
Julian; though baptized, he grew to reject the Christian Faith, to which his
family’s murderers belonged.
Julian himself became
emperor in 361. At first, he hid his apostasy, though before long it
became the driving force behind his imperial decisions. He hated
Christianity, yet in his vengeance he ironically helped strengthen Christian
orthodoxy. Arianism, though condemned as a heresy at the Council of
Nicaea in 325, remained influential thanks to official political support by
Julian’s “Christian” relatives. Julian removed that political protection
and brought orthodox bishops back from exile. His hope was that the
warring Christian factions would annihilate each other; instead, orthodox Christians
were able to reestablish the Church in the Empire.
Julian also attempted to
attack Christianity by undermining Christ Himself. The emperor sought to
prove Christ a fraud by rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem. Since
Christians saw Christ as the fulfillment of the Jerusalem Temple and the
sacrifices therein (see, for example, the Letter to the Hebrews), rebuilding
the Temple would show, at least in Julian’s mind, that the whole Christian affair
was not worth the wood of the cross.
From the start the
venture was fraught with disaster. Earthquakes stalled the work, yet Julian’s
workers continued; fireballs which erupted from the base of the Temple,
however, were more than they could endure. Julian soon abandoned the project.
Christ remained the Victor, and His flock drew strength from this spiritual
victory. This strength came out clearly during the short persecution Julian
launched against Christians just before his death in 363.
So we see the way of vengeance.
Julian let his anger ferment over the decades until it burst forth, raging
against Christ and his Church. In as much as he embraced this rage, he
and his mission failed.
Handing on the Light
France owes its title of
“Eldest Daughter of the Church” to Clovis and St. Clotilda, the first Frankish
king to convert to Christ and his saintly wife. Upon Clovis’ death in
511, rule of his kingdom passed to his three sons, the eldest of which,
Clodomir, was soon slain in battle.
Clodomir’s widow married
her brother-in-law, Clotair, and Clodomir’s three sons went to live with their
grandmother, St. Clotilda.
Fearful of the boys’
potential to revolt against his authority, their uncle Clotair tricked Clotilda
into handing over the boys to him, whereupon he and his other brother murdered
two of the three boys (none yet old enough to rule).
The surviving brother,
Clodoald, was a mere eight years old. Exactly how Clodoald escaped his
murderous uncles is unknown; some faithful Christians, it seems, hid him and smuggled
him out of the Frankish court. He grew up in the care of the Church, and
when he came of age he shaved his head (his hair being a symbol of his status
as royal heir), publicly renounced his claim to the Frankish throne, and
entered the religious life. He began his religious life as a hermit under
the tutelage of St. Severinus. Receiving a religious habit from the holy
monk, Clodoald left the relative bustle of the hermitage outside of Paris for
the quiet life in Provence. His hope was to serve Christ through prayer
and quiet study.
Seeking Out Clodoald
Yet the holy man is
rarely allowed to live his reclusivity. People learned of Clodoald’s
hermitage and began to flock to him. He had already given away all of his
possessions, save his monk’s habit. He performed miraculous healings and
counseled those who came to him. One day, a poor man came begging;
Clodoald gave him his only remaining possession: his religious habit. The
next night, however, the beggar returned with the habit, which was glowing in
the night. Locals witnessed the glowing garment, and word spread,
inspiring more people to come and visit the saint.
In 551, Clodoald became a
priest at the request of the people of Paris. He worked among them
tirelessly; he even reconciled with his murderous uncles, who repented and
returned to the Faith. Still desiring peace, Clodoald, or Cloud, as he
became commonly called, withdrew from Paris to the town of Nogent with a small
community of men who sought to, like him, withdraw from the corruptions of the
Frankish court. They established a monastery on land donated by Cloud’s
uncles; there St. Cloud live out the rest of his short life. He died in
the monastery he founded in 560, only 38 years old. His community did not
die with him, however. It grew so that the town and monastery became
interchangeable; Nogent became the modern-day town of Saint-Cloud in France.
And What of us?
What are we to do when
faced with evil done against us? We may either exact revenge or work with
Our Lord to bring good out of evil. In both of the stories examined here,
we can see the beauty of God’s Providence.
In the murder of his
family, Julian saw only darkness, and it was that darkness that he
embraced. Yet from this evil, Christ’s Church emerged from the shadows of
oppression and Christ’s Divinity was once again glorified.
In the murder of his
brothers, Clodoald, St. Cloud, saw God’s mercy in his survival. He
followed God’s call for him to bring human love and divine charity to a
barbarian world which knew Him not. In his short, humble life, St. Cloud
gave Christ to those who hungered for Him, not only in word and sacrament, but
also in the sacrifice of his own life. We can see this in the story of
his habit. He gave his whole life to his flock, sparing not the clothes
he wore, and Christ used what he gave to illuminate the darkness of his age.
We, then, should take the
path of St. Cloud, which was the path of Him who is “the Way, the Truth, and
the Life” (John 14:6) and who declared He is the “light of the world” (John
8:12). Christ, in his love, shared that role of light with us (Matthew
5:14-16), so that His light might pierce even the darkest corner of the world:
the shadows in our own hearts.
Like St. Cloud, we turn
to Christ. Even in these dark days for our world and for the Church, it
is in Him that we find our way, our light, and our peace.
image: Saint
Cloud (Clodoald) by Fr. James Bradley / Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
Tagged as: Julian the
Apostate, saints, St. Clodoald
Matthew B. Rose received
his BA (History and English) and MA (Systematic Theology) from Christendom
College. He is the chairman of the Religion department at Bishop Denis J.
O'Connell High School in Arlington, VA. Matthew also runs Quidquid Est, Est!, a Catholic
Q & A blog, and has contributed to various online publications. He and his
family live in Northern Virginia.
SOURCE : https://catholicexchange.com/saint-clodoald-a-light-for-a-world-trapped-in-darkness/
September 7
St. Cloud, Confessor
From St. Gregory of
Tours, Hist. Fr. l. 3, c. 11 and 18; and from the Life of this saint, with the
remarks of Mabillon, Sæc. Ben. 3, p. 136. See Abbé Lebeuf, Hist. du Diocèse de
Paris, t. 7, An. 1757; Stilting, t. 3, Sept. p. 91.
A.D. 560.
ST. CLOUD, called in
Latin Chlodoardus, is the first and most illustrious saint among the princes of
the royal family of the first race in France. He was son of Chlodomir, king of
Orleans, the eldest son of St. Clotilda, and was born in 522. He was scarcely
three years old when his father was killed in Burgundy in 524; but his
grandmother, Clotilda, brought up him and his two brothers, Theobald and
Gunthaire, at Paris, and loved them extremely. Their ambitious uncles,
Childebert, king of Paris, and Clotaire, king of Soissons, divided the kingdom
of Orleans between them, and stabbed with their own hands the two eldest of
their nephews, Theobald and Gunthaire, the former being ten, the latter seven
years old. Cloud, by a special providence, was saved from the massacre, and cut
off his hair with his own hands, by that ceremony renouncing the world, and
devoting himself to the service of God in a monastic state. He had many fair
opportunities of recovering his father’s kingdom; but, young as he was, he saw
by the light of grace that all that appears most dazzling in worldly greatness
is no better than smoke, and that a Christian gains infinitely more by losing
than by possessing it. In the true estimation of things, he most emphatically
deserves to be styled a king who is master of himself, and has learned the art
of ruling those passions to which kings are often miserably enslaved. This victory
over himself the pious prince gained, and constantly maintained by humility,
meekness, and patience, by austerity of life, watchfulness, assiduous prayer,
and holy contemplation. By this means he enjoyed in a little cell a peace which
was never interrupted by scenes of ambition or vanity, and he tasted in the
service of God too solid a joy to think of exchanging it for the racking
honours or bitter pleasures of a false world, or of converting the tranquillity
and real delight which he possessed into the dangers, confusion, and perplexity
of a court. Coarse clothing gave him more satisfaction than the richest purple
could have done; he enjoyed in his own breast and in his cell all he desired to
possess in this world, and he daily thanked God who had drawn him out of
Babylon before he was infected with its corruption and intoxicating Circean
wine. His contempt of all earthly things increased in proportion as he advanced
in virtue and heavenly light.
After some time he
removed from his first abode to put himself under the discipline of St.
Severinus, a holy recluse who lived near Paris, from whose hands he received
the monastic habit. Under this experienced master the fervent novice made great
progress in Christian perfection; but the neighbourhood of Paris being a
trouble to him who desired nothing so much as to live unknown to the world, he
withdrew secretly into Provence, where he passed several years, and wrought
many miracles. Seeing he gained nothing by the remoteness of his solitude,
after his hermitage was once made public by many resorting to him, he at length
returned to Paris, and was received with the greatest joy imaginable. At the
earnest request of the people he was ordained priest by Eusebius, bishop of
Paris, in 551, and served that church some time in the functions of the sacred
ministry. He afterwards retired to Nogent, on the Seine, now called St. Cloud,
two leagues below Paris, where he built a monastery dependent on the church of
Paris. In this monastery he assembled many pious men, who fled out of the world
for fear of losing their souls in it. St. Cloud was regarded by them as their
superior, and he animated them to all virtue both by word and example. All his
inheritance he bestowed on churches, or distributed among the poor. The village
of Nogent he settled on the episcopal see of Paris, as is mentioned in the
letters patent, by which this place was erected into a duchy and peerage in
favour of the archbishop. 1 St.
Cloud was indefatigable in instructing and exhorting the people of the
neighbouring country, and piously ended his days at Nogent about the year 560.
He is commemorated in the Roman Martyrology on the 7th of September, which
seems to have been the day of his death. The monastery has been since changed
into a collegiate church of canons, where the relics of the saint are still
kept, and the place bears his name.
John Picus, prince of
Mirandula, who died in the year 1494, the thirty-second of his age, a prodigy
of wit and learning, and after his conversion from the love of applause and
pleasure had lived a truly Christian philosopher, expressed himself on the
happiness of holy retirement and contempt of the world as follows: 2 “Many
think it a man’s greatest happiness in this life to enjoy dignity and power,
and to live in the plenty and splendour of a court; but of these, you know, I
have had a share; and I can assure you I could never find in my soul true satisfaction
in any thing but in retreat and contemplation. I am persuaded the Cæsars, if
they could speak from their sepulchres, would declare Picus more happy in his
solitude than they were in the government of the world; and if the dead could
return, they would have chosen the pangs of a second death rather than risk
their salvation a second time in public stations.”
Note 1. See Abbé
Lebeuf, Hist. du Diocése de Paris, t. 7. [back]
Note 2. Joan. Picus
de Mirand. ep. ad amicum Andræam corneum. [back]
Rev. Alban
Butler (1711–73). Volume IX: September. The Lives of the
Saints. 1866.
SOURCE : http://www.bartleby.com/210/9/071.html
A
statue of en:Clodoald (Saint Cloud) from the en:St. Cloud Hospital in St. Cloud, en:Minnesota.
San Clodoaldo Principe
e sacerdote
Festa: 7 settembre
524 - 560
Nacque nel 522 ed era
figlio di Chloromiro, re di Orleans, che era, a sua volta, figlio di Clodoveo,
re dei Franchi. Più tardi rinunciò al mondo, consacrandosi al servizio di Dio.
Dopo aver distribuito le sue fortune ai poveri, si ritirò a vita eremitica
sottoponendosi ad una dura disciplina. Morì nel 560 e la maggior parte delle
sue reliquie sono rimaste nella chiesa parrocchiale del suo villaggio. La sua
festa ricorre al 7 di settembre.
Patronato: Fabbricanti
di chiodi
Martirologio
Romano: Nel villaggio di Saint-Cloud nel territorio di Parigi in Francia,
san Clodoaldo, sacerdote, che, nato da stirpe regale, dopo la morte violenta
del padre e dei fratelli, fu accolto dalla nonna santa Clotilde e, rifiutato
con sdegno il potere terreno, si fece chierico.
Tutte le tre grandi dinastie francesi, Merovingia, Carolingia e Capetingia, hanno donato alla Chiesa eletti fiori di santità. Tra i discendenti di Meroveo si annoverano innanzitutto Clodoveo, il primo re franco che si fece battezzare e sua moglie Santa Clotilde. Questa coppia ebbe perciò un ruolo molto simile a quello avuto dai Santi Etelberto e Berta nel Kent e Mirian III e Nana in Georgia. Clodoveo non è però mai stato venerato come santo, come avvenuto invece per altri suoi emuli quali San Vladimiro di Kiev, Santo Stefano I d’Ungheria e San Boris Michele I di Bulgaria.
Dopo Santa Clotilde, dunque, il primo principe franco di cui fu autorizzato il culto fu suo nipote Clodoaldo, volgarmente chiamato Saint Cloud. Suo padre Clodomiro, re d’Orléans, aveva sconfitto in battaglia il re di Borgogna San Sigismondo e lo aveva fatto prigioniero di guerra con sua moglie ed i figli. Assassinato, gli successe al trono suo fratello Gondomaro, che vendicò l’uccisione del fratello eliminando a sua volta Clodomiro. I suoi tre figli, Thibault, Gonthaire e Clodoald, si trovarono allora affidati alla custodia della nonna Santa Clotilde, che li allevò cristianamente nella speranza che un giorno potessero suddividersi il regno di loro padre, provvisoriamente affidato a dei luogotenenti ed allo zio Childeberto. Quest’ultimo e suo fratello Clotario iniziarono però a complottare per eliminare i tre giovani nipoti e spartirsi i territori di cui erano eredi.
Un paggio di Childeberto fu allora inviato a ricattare Clotilde, costringendola a scegliere tra la morte dei ragazzi e la vita monastica. Clotario si impuntò però nel lasciare a Clotilde la sola libertà di scelta sul tipo di esecuzione ed immediatamente pugnalò Teodaldo, il maggiore dei tre. Il secondogenito Gunther, in preda al terrore, fuggì da Childeberto che tentò di proteggerlo, ma sopraggiunse Clotario e lo uccise. Clodoaldo invece, forse per un disegno particolare della Provvidenza, riuscì a salvarsi dall’ira omicida dello zio e ad essere portato il luogo sicuro da alcuni amici. Secondo la versione tramandata da San Gregario di Tours, una volta raggiunta la maggiore età, anziché reclamare il trono perduto preferì pronunciare i voti, ponendosi così interamente al servizio di Dio. I suoi studi non consistettero che nella lettura delle Sacre Scritture ed il suo piacere nel vivere nella più severa ascesi. Dopo aver dispensato alle chiese ed ai poveri tutti quei beni materiali che erano sfuggiti alla razzia dei suoi zii, decise di seguire le orme del santo eremita Severino, che conduceva una vita solitaria e contemplativa in un eremo alle porte di Parigi. Il giovane principe ricevette dalle sue mani l’abito religioso e si intrattenne per qualche tempo in sua compagnia al fine di formarsi degnamente a tutte le virtù monastiche. Childeberto e Clotario non poterono ignorare il loro nipote, ma vedendolo senza pretesa alcuna lo lasciarono in libertà e gli donarono quanto necessario per vivere più comodamente nel luogo del suo ritiro. Ma Clodoaldo, non ritenendo la sua condotta ancora abbastanza solitaria, abbandonò la periferia parigina e si trasferì segretamente in Provenza, lontano dalla vista e dalla compagnia di tutti i suoi conoscenti. Mentre si stava costruendo la propria cella, un povero si presentò dinnanzi a lui. Pur essendo anch’esso povero, senza ne oro ne argento ne provvigioni da potergli donare, si spogliò generosamente del proprio saio. Questo atto di carità fu così gradito a Dio che la notte successiva l’oggetto donato s’illuminò come per incanto e gli abitanti dei dintorni furono testimoni di questo miracolo. Riconobbero così in San Cloud un eccellente servo di Cristo. Iniziarono dunque a recarsi da lui per onorare la sua santità e per ricevere i suoi consigli. Clodoaldo constatò suo malgrado di essere ormai divenuto più popolare in Provenza che a Parigi e scelse allora di tornare a Nogent-sur-Seine, a sud-ovest di Parigi. Ma qui Eusebio, l’allora vescovo della capitale francese, lo ordinò prete su sollecitazione del popolo. Dopo aver esercitato per qualche tempo il suo ministero, morì santamente il 7 settembre probabilmente dell’anno 560. Questo principe sacerdote fu da subito onorato con un culto assai popolare e per assonanza fu considerato patrono dei fabbricatori di chiodi.
Autore: Fabio Arduino
