Chronicon Pictum, Márk Kálti (fl. 14th century)
Roi (+ 1038)
Roi de Hongrie, il fut le
premier à consacrer un royaume à la Vierge Marie. Il avait été baptisé lors de
la conversion de son père vers 982. Il épousa sainte
Gisèle, la sœur de l'empereur d'Allemagne Henri II. Couronné roi de
Hongrie avec l'approbation du pape Sylvestre II, il consacra les quarante
années de son règne à organiser et christianiser son nouveau royaume, fondant
huit évêchés et de nombreux monastères, faisant venir des missionnaires de
Bavière ou de Bohême, construisant de nombreuses églises pour les fidèles. Il a
laissé le souvenir d'un grand roi, d'un homme irréprochable et d'une immense
bonté.
C'est de leur fils cadet saint
Émeric qu'il nous est parvenu le plus d'informations.
Le martyrologe romain
fait mémoire de saint Étienne de Hongrie le 16 août. Il est décédé le 15 août
1038 qui est donc sa naissance au ciel et sa
fête. Il a été canonisé le 20 août 1083.
Mémoire de saint Étienne,
roi de Hongrie. Après avoir reçu par le baptême la nouvelle naissance, et du
pape Silvestre II la couronne royale, il veilla à développer la foi du Christ
dans son peuple, organisa l’Église dans son royaume et la dota de biens et de
monastères. Roi juste et pacifique dans le gouvernement de ses sujets, il
quitta ce monde pour le ciel à Albe Royale le jour de l’Assomption en 1038.
Martyrologe romain
SOURCE : http://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/7905/Saint-Etienne-de-Hongrie.html
Naissance de saint Étienne dans Chronica Hungarorum, XIVe siècle
Stephen's birth depicted in the Illuminated Chronicle, Chronicon Pictum - Márk Kálti (fl. 14th century)
Naissance
de saint Étienne dans Chronica Hungarorum, XIVe siècle
Stephen's birth depicted in the Illuminated Chronicle - Márk Kálti (fl. 14th century)
Saint Étienne
Roi de Hongrie
(977-1038)
Les Hongrois étaient les
descendants de ces fiers et terribles envahisseurs connus sous le nom de Huns.
Saint Étienne eut le bonheur d'être l'apôtre en même temps que le roi des
Hongrois, et de les civiliser.
Avant sa naissance, sa
mère eut une vision de saint Étienne, martyr, lui prédisant que son enfant
achèverait l'oeuvre de la conversion de la Hongrie, commencée par ses parents.
Aussi le prédestiné reçut-il au baptême le nom d'Étienne. Ses premières
inclinations le portèrent à Dieu; sa première parole fut le nom de Jésus; ses
études furent aussi remarquables par ses succès que par sa piété.
Il avait vingt ans quand
il succéda à son père. Pour donner tous ses soins à la christianisation de son
royaume, il commença par établir une paix solide avec tous ses voisins. Ce ne
fut pas sans peine que le pieux roi put mener à bonne fin son entreprise; son
peuple était tout barbare et endurci dans les superstitions du paganisme; il
lui fallut soutenir une guerre contre ses propres sujets; mais le jeûne, l'aumône
et la prière lui assurèrent la victoire. Étienne fit alors venir des apôtres
pour évangéliser cette nation ignorante et grossière; il publia des lois très
sévères contre le meurtre, le vol, l'adultère, le blasphème et d'autres crimes;
il pourvut à la protection des veuves et des orphelins et à la subsistance des
pauvres; il fonda et enrichit les églises: aussi vit-on bientôt ce pays offrir
une magnifique végétation chrétienne.
Dans toutes ses oeuvres,
le saint roi était secondé par sa pieuse épouse, Gisèle, soeur de l'empereur
saint Henri. L'humilité accompagnait tous les bienfaits du prince; souvent il
choisissait la nuit pour accomplir ses oeuvres de charité; il lavait en secret
les pieds des pèlerins, et cachait discrètement ses aumônes. Un jour qu'il était
sorti incognito pour distribuer de l'argent aux malheureux, comme il n'avait
point réussi à contenter tout le monde, il fut dévalisé et foulé aux pieds;
loin de s'en fâcher et de se faire connaître, il offrit à la Sainte Vierge
cette humiliation et résolut de ne jamais rien refuser à aucun pauvre. Il était
impossible que ses revenus pussent suffire à tant de charités, sans quelque
merveille d'en haut. Un jour que saint Étienne priait, absorbé en Dieu, il fut
enlevé en l'air par les Anges jusqu'à ce que son oraison fût achevée. Dieu
opéra en sa faveur beaucoup d'autres prodiges.
Ses dernières années
furent éprouvées par des maladies, qu'il supporta avec patience et courage.
Abbé L. Jaud, Vie des Saints pour tous les jours de l'année, Tours, Mame, 1950
SOURCE : http://magnificat.ca/cal/fr/saints/saint_etienne_de_hongrie.html
The rebel Koppány's
execution after his defeat by István, depicted in the Chronicon
Pictum
L'esecuzione
di Koppány da
parte di Stefano raffigurata nella Chronica
Picta
Saint Étienne de Hongrie,
Premier roi apostolique
de Hongrie
Conseils
de St Etienne à son fils
L'Occident, réunifié par les
Carolingiens, pouvait croire achevées les invasions barbares, quand, à la fin
du IX° siècle, des peuplades venues du midi de l’Oural, les Magyards, poussés
par les Petchénègues, envahirent la cuvette du Danube puis s’aventurèrent
jusqu'en Lorraine et en Italie du Nord. L’origine de ces hordes de Magyards ou
de Hongrois[1] est
mystérieuse ; si leur langue se rattachait au finois et au basque, leur
civilisation était proche des Turcs et des peuples de la steppe
asiatique ; ils rappelaient les Huns ou les Avars, fixés dans la plaine
danubienne aux V° et VII° siècles ; nomades qui combattaient à cheval, ils
attaquaient les abbayes, rançonnaient les villes pour entasser le butin dans
des chariots, et vendre comme esclaves les femmes et les jeunes gens.
Le 10 août 955,
l'empereur romain-germanique Otton le Grand battit les tribus hongroises à
Lechfeld, près d’Augsbourg. Dès lors, les Hongrois se regroupèrent pour se
sédentariser sous la famille des Arpads. Dix-huit ans plus tard, quand le duc
Géza épousa Sarolta, fille du chef de Transylvanie, le christianisme, venu de
Byzance et de Bulgarie, pénétra en Hongrie. De l’union de de Geza et de Sarolta
naquit Vajk (ou Vaïk ou Baïk) vers 969, à Esztergom[2].
Après la mort de Sarolta, Géza épousa Ethelgide (ou Adélaïde), fille du prince
polonais Miesco qui s’était converti au christianisme en 966. Des missionnaires
slaves, comme Vojtech, le futur saint Adalbert, évêque de Prague, entrèrent en
Hongrie, en même temps que les évêques bavarois Pilgrim de Passau et Wolfgang
de Ratisbonne.
Vers 969, sous
l'influence d’Ethelgide et d'Adalbert de Prague qu’elle avait attiré en
Hongrie, Géza reçut le baptême, suivi de son fils, Vajk, qui prit le nom
d'Etienne, parce que le protomartyr était apparu à ses parents ; à sa
mère, il avait prédit : « un fils va bientôt naître de toi, il sera
le premier à porter la couronne royale en Hongrie[3] » ;
à son père, il avait dit : « Tu projettes de répandre l’Evangile
mais, pour cette prédication, tes mains ne sont-elles pas trop souillées de
sang ? Un fils va donc te naître. Il deviendra saint, c’est-à-dire
qu’après avoir régné sur la terre, il régnera éternellement dans les cieux.
Pour préparer cette avènement, Dieu va susciter un prophète. Sois attentif à
son message : c’est lui qui, parmi ton peuple, sèmera le bon grain. »
Adalbert a probablement baptisé Etienne à Esztergom, résidence des Arpads, en
974. Géza qui mourut en 997, avait, deux ans plus tôt, marié Etienne à Gisèle,
fille du duc Henri II de Bavière et sœur du saint empereur Henri.
A la mort de Géza,
Koppany, cousin païen du duc Etienne, maître de la région située au sud du lac
Balaton, revendiqua le pouvoir. Le duc Etienne envahit les terres de Koppany et
le vainquit à Vesprin, attribuant sa victoire à l’intercession de saint Martin
de Tours, natif de Pannonie[4] :
en remerciement, il fonda le monastère du Mont-Saint-Martin (Pannonhalma)
qu'il confia à Astric, ami de saint Adalbert. Tout au long de son règne,
Etienne dut se défendre contre les révoltes païennes qui éclatèrent en Hongrie,
singulièrement celle du puissant Ajtony de Marosvar qui, trahi par son
lieutenant Csanad, fut défait et tué. Au sud, Etienne repoussa les Petchénègues
et les Bulgares.
Pour mieux christianiser
le pays, Etienne voulut créer, des structures écclésiastiques permanentes, en
dehors des clercs allemands qui étaient prêts à germaniser l'Eglise hongroise.
L'empereur était alors Otton III, installé à Rome où il avait mis sur le siège
de saint Pierre son maître, Gerbert d'Aurillac, devenu le pape Sylvestre II.
Otton III et Sylvestre qui avaient accepté de créer une Eglise nationale en
Pologne et fondé l’archevêché de Gniezno, furent favorables à la création d'une
Eglise nationale hongroise et le pape offrit à Etienne une couronne royale. Le
roi Etienne I° fut couronné en la cathédrale d’Esztergom, à la Noël de l’an
1000, et reçut le titre de « roi apostolique » pour souligner qu’il a
reçu la couronne du pape.
Le roi Etienne créa deux
archevêchés (Esztergom pour Anastase et Kalocza pour Astric) et huit évêchés
(Veszprem, Pecs, Györ, Eger, Vac, Bihar, Czanad et Szekesfehervar). Chaque
groupe de dix villages dut avoir son église et assurer, par la dîme, la
subsistance du clergé.
En route pour la Terre
sainte, Gérard, abbé de Saint-Georges de Venise, arriva à Zara où un abbé de
Dalmatie l'invita à évangéliser les Hongrois. Introduit à la cour, il devint
précepteur d'Imre, fils d'Etienne, puis évêque de Czanad. Gérard ouvrit une
école pour les futurs prêtres, veilla au faste des cérémonies liturgiques et
construisit deux monastères, l'un en l'honneur de saint Georges, l'autre dédié
à la Vierge.
D'autres monatères furent
fondés par des moines venus de Bohème, voire de France, car Etienne était en
relation avec saint Odilon de Cluny. Le réformateur romain Richard de
Saint-Vanne traversa plusieurs fois la Hongrie, et y introduisit des livres
liturgiques occidentaux. Etienne s'occupa personnellement des nouveaux
monastères et des écoles. Il rédigea pour son fils une « Instruction pour
la formation morale », sorte de miroir du prince[5].
Marié, Imre qui avait fait vœu de virginité, mourut accidentellement à l'âge de
vingt-quatre ans.
A l'imitation des rois
chrétiens d'Occident, Etienne, législateur, publia un Décret d’une
cinquantaine d'articles, qui octroyait à l'Eglise de nombreux privilèges.
Ainsi, il soumettait les laïcs à son autorité et à la justice épiscopale et il
associait le clergé au conseil royal. Évêques et abbés formaient, avec les
grands, une puissante aristocratie, maîtresse des terres et des hommes.
Grâce à Etienne, la
Hongrie devint le passage obligé pour les pèlerins allant en Terre Sainte, la
route de terre étant souvent plus sûre que celle de mer. Le roi fit construire
à Jérusalem une église dédiée à saint Georges et, à Rome, une hôtellerie pour
les pèlerins hongrois. Il donna de l'argent pour édifier une église à
Constantinople. Il accueillait les pèlerins, les voyageurs et les artistes
d'Italie, de Germanie et d'Orient. La croix que la reine Gisèle fit fabriquer
pour le tombeau de sa mère (conservée à Munich) est l'œuvre d'orfèvres
bavarois. La chasuble de Notre-Dame de Szekesfehervar, transformée en manteau
de sacre, est réalisée par des brodeurs influencés par des artistes orientaux.
Etienne partagea la vie
des clercs. Très dévôt à la Vierge, fait célébrer le jour de la maîtresse (15
avril) et élever dans son palais de Szekesfehervar une basilique en l'honneur
de la Mère de Dieu qui le conseille dans ses campagnes militaires. Ainsi,
menacé par l'empereur Conrad II en 1030, il doit à Marie la retraite de l'armée
germanique.
Le saint roi Etienne
mourut le 15 août 1038 ; son fils étant mort avant lui, il désigna pour
lui succéder Pierre Orseolo qui fut détrôné par son beau-frère, Samuel.
L'évêque Gérard de Czanad, qui avait refusé de sacrer l'usurpateur, fut tué par
les païens (1046), cependant que les Petchenègues envahissaient le pays. La
Hongrie ne retrouva la paix qu'avec le règne de Ladislas (1077-1095) qui,
émerveillé par les miracles qui se multipliaient sur le tombeau d'Etienne,
demanda au pape Grégoire VII la permission d'élever les restes de son
prédécesseur, le 15 août 1083, c'est-à-dire de le déclarer saint.
Grégoire VII canonisa
Etienne, son fils Imre et l'évêque Gérard de Czanad. Les pèlerins affluèrent
dès lors au tombeau royal d'Alba Regalis (Szekesfehervar), au sud de Budapest.
En 1686, quand Budapest fut reprise aux Turcs, Innocent XI étendit le culte de
saint Etienne à l’Eglise universelle.
[1] Les
ancêtres des Hongrois appartenaient à la branche ougrienne des peuples
finno-ougriens ; leur plus proches parents étaient les Mansis ou Vogouls,
et les Hansis ou Ostiaques, dont les descendants vivent aujourd’hui entre
l’Oural et le cours inférieur de l’Ob. Le mot magyard est
l’appellation que se sont donnée les Hongrois : la première syllabe, magy,
est l’équivalent du nom du peuple Mansi (Vogoul) ; la seconde
syllabe, ar (autrefois er), provient du finnois et tchérémisse
qui signifie homme. Le nom sous lequel on les désigne à l’étranger semble
provenir d’un peuple bulgaro-turc, les onogours, avec lesquels les ancêtres des
Magyards ont vécu en union tribale : ougrine en vieux russe, ungar en
allemand, hungarus en latin, hongrois en français.
[2] Esztergom,
sur la rive droite du Danuble, est appelée Gran par les Allemands.
[3] Etienne se
dit en grec Stephanos, ce qui signifie couronné.
[4] La Pannonie (le
pays du blé) est la plaine fertile qui s’étend entre Danuble et Norique.
[5] Puisque
personne ne doit aspirer à la couronne s'il n'est fidèle catholique, nous
donnerons la première place, dans nos instructions, à la sainte Foi. Avant
tout, je recommande donc, très cher fils, de conserver précieusement la foi
catholique ... Que tous vous reconnaissent comme un vrai chrétien ! Après la
foi, ce qui occupe la seconde place, c'est l'Eglise, propagée par les apôtres
et répandue dans tout l'univers ... Quiconque diminue ou défigure la dignité de
la sainte Eglise, mutile le corps du Christ. Ce qui fait l'ornement de
l'Eglise, c'est l'ordre des pontifes ... Sans eux, on ne constitue ni roi ni
prince ... Si vous les vénérez, vous guérirez vous-même de vos péchés et
gouvernerez bien le royaume. Le quatrième astre du gouvernement c'est la
fidélité des nobles : boulevard du royaume, défenseurs des faibles, vainqueurs
des ennemis ... Sachez les commander sans orgueil ni envie ! Le cinquième joyau
de la couronne, c'est la sagesse, assortie de la patience. En effet, les rois
patients règnent, les rois impatients tyrannisent. Accueil des hôtes : voilà
vraiment la cinquième fleur de la dignité royale ... En cet esprit, très cher
fils, accueille les étrangers avec bienveillance et traite-les avec honneur.
Les sages conseillers tiennent la septième place près du trône ... Sache-le
donc, très cher fils : chacun à sa place ; les jeunes gens aux armes, les
vieillards aux conseils. En effet, les avis des sages sont enfermés dans les
cœurs des gens d'expérience. Il ne faut pas les livrer aux bavardages des
insensés. En cet esprit, l'imitation des ancêtres occupe la huitième place.
Sache-le : le suprême ornement du royaume, c'est d'imiter ses honorables
parents. Quiconque résiste à son père est l'ennemi de Dieu. L'esprit de
désobéissance fanerait les fleurs de la couronne. La prière, primordial moyen
de salut pour le souverain, vient en neuvième position ... Prie, mon fils, pour
que Dieu écarte de toi tous les vices. Dixième précepte : c'est l'accord des
vertus qui orne la couronne royale puisque le seigneur des vertus est le roi
des cieux ... Quiconque ne possède pas cette synthèse vertueuse ne peut régner
ici-bas ni au royaume des cieux.
Nádasdy
Mausoleum - Szent István, Magyarország királya és Szent Imre herceg
Nádasdy Mausoleum - Saint Stephen, King of Hungary and Saint Emeric, Prince of Hungary
Conseil
de St Etienne à son fils
« Puisque personne
ne doit aspirer à la couronne s'il n'est fidèle catholique, nous donnerons la
première place, dans nos instructions, à la sainte Foi. Avant tout, je
recommande donc, très cher fils, de conserver précieusement la foi catholique
... Que tous vous reconnaissent comme un vrai chrétien ! Après la foi, ce qui
occupe la seconde place, c'est l'Eglise, propagée par les apôtres et répandue
dans tout l'univers ... Quiconque diminue ou défigure la dignité de la sainte
Eglise, mutile le corps du Christ. Ce qui fait l'ornement de l'Eglise, c'est
l'ordre des pontifes ... Sans eux, on ne constitue ni roi ni prince ... Si vous
les vénérez, vous guérirez vous-même de vos péchés et gouvernerez bien le
royaume. Le quatrième astre du gouvernement c'est la fidélité des nobles :
boulevard du royaume, défenseurs des faibles, vainqueurs des ennemis ... Sachez
les commander sans orgueil ni envie ! Le cinquième joyau de la couronne, c'est
la sagesse, assortie de la patience. En effet, les rois patients règnent, les
rois impatients tyrannisent. Accueil des hôtes : voilà vraiment la cinquième
fleur de la dignité royale ... En cet esprit, très cher fils, accueille les
étrangers avec bienveillance et traite-les avec honneur. Les sages conseillers
tiennent la septième place près du trône ... Sache-le donc, très cher fils :
chacun à sa place ; les jeunes gens aux armes, les vieillards aux conseils. En
effet, les avis des sages sont enfermés dans les coeurs des gens d'expérience.
Il ne faut pas les livrer aux bavardages des insensés. En cet esprit,
l'imitation des ancêtres occupe la huitième place. Sache-le : le suprême
ornement du royaume, c'est d'imiter ses honorables parents. Quiconque résiste à
son père est l'ennemi de Dieu. L'esprit de désobéissance fanerait les fleurs de
la couronne. La prière, primordial moyen de salut pour le souverain, vient en
neuvième position ... Prie, mon fils, pour que Dieu écarte de toi tous les
vices. Dixième précepte : c'est l'accord des vertus qui orne la couronne royale
puisque le seigneur des vertus est le roi des cieux ... Quiconque ne possède
pas cette synthèse vertueuse ne peut régner ici-bas ni au royaume des cieux. »
.jpg)
L'Occident, réunifié par
les Carolingiens, pouvait croire achevées les invasions barbares, quand, à la
fin du IX° siècle, des peuplades venues de l'Est, les Magyards, s'installèrent
dans la cuvette du Danube et s’aventurèrent jusqu'en Lorraine et en Italie du
Nord. L’origine de ces hordes de Magyars ou de Hongrois est mystérieuse et, si
leur langue se rattache au finois, leur civilisation est proche des Turcs et
des peuples de la steppe asiatique ; ils rappellent les Huns ou les Avars,
fixés dans la plaine danubienne aux V° et VII° siècles ; nomades qui combattent
à cheval, ils attaquent les abbayes, rançonnent les villes pour entasser le
butin dans des chariots, et vendre comme esclaves les femmes et les jeunes
gens.
En 955, près d’Augsbourg,
l'empereur germanique Otton le Grand battit les tribus hongroises qui se regroupèrent
pour se sédentariser sous la famille des Arpads. Quand, vers 972, le prince
Geza épousa Sarolta, fille du chef de Transylvanie, le christianisme, venu de
Byzance et de Bulgarie, pénétra en Hongrie. Après la mort de Sarolta, Geza
épousa Ethelgide ou Adélaïde, fille du prince polonais Miesco, converti au
christianisme en 966. Des missionnaires slaves, comme Vojtech, le futur saint
Adalbert, évêque de Prague, entrèrent en Hongrie, en même temps que les évêques
bavarois Pilgrim de Passau et Wolfgang de Ratisbonne.
Vers 969, Geza, sous
l'influence d’Adélaïde et d'Adalbert de Prague, reçut le baptême, suivi de son
fils, Vajk, qui prit le nom d'Etienne qui serait apparu à ses parents pour leur
prédire qu’il recevrait, outre une couronne temporelle, une couronne éternelle
(Stephanos, en grec, signifie couronné). Adalbert aurait baptisé
Etienne à Esztergom, résidence des Arpads. Geza maria alors son fils à Gisèle,
fille du duc Henri de Bavière, et mourut en 997.
A la mort de Geza,
Koppany revendiqua le pouvoir, mais Etienne le vainquit au sud du lac Balaton
et, pour remercier saint Martin, natif de Pannonie il fonda le monastère du Mont-Saint-Martin (Pannonhalma),
qu'il confia à Astric, ami de saint Adalbert. D’autres révoltes éclatèrent
en Hongrie sous le puissant Ajtony qui, trahi par son lieutenant
Csanad, fut défait et tué. Au sud, Etienne repoussa les Petchenègues.
Pour mieux christianiser
le pays, Etienne voulut créer, des structures ecclésiastiques permanentes, en
dehors des clercs allemands qui étaient prêts à germaniser l'Eglise hongroise.
L'empereur était alors Otton III, installé à Rome où il a mis sur le siège de
saint Pierre son maître Gerbert d'Aurillac, devenu le pape Sylvestre II. Otton
III et Sylvestre qui avaient accepté de créer une Eglise nationale en Pologne
et fondé l’archevêché de Gniezno, furent favorables à la création d'une Eglise
nationale hongroise et le pape offrit à Etienne une couronne royale.
Le roi Etienne créa deux
archevêchés (Esztergom pour Anastase et Kalocza pour Astric) et huit évêchés.
En route pour la Terre
sainte, Gérard, abbé de Saint-Georges de Venise, arriva à Zara où un abbé de
Dalmatie l'invita à évangéliser les Hongrois. Introduit à la cour, il devint
précepteur d'Imre, fils d'Etienne, puis évêque de Czanad. Gérard ouvrit une
école pour les futurs prêtres, veilla au faste des cérémonies liturgiques et
construisit deux monastères, l'un en l'honneur de saint Georges, l'autre dédié
à la Vierge. D'autres monatères furent fondés par des moines venus de Bohème,
voire de France, car Etienne était en relation avec saint Odilon de Cluny. Le
réformateur romain Richard de Saint-Vanne traversa plusieurs fois la Hongrie,
et y introduisit des livres liturgiques occidentaux. Etienne s'occupa
personnellement des nouveaux monastères et des écoles. Il rédigea pour son fils
une Instruction pour la formation morale, sorte de miroir du prince. Marié,
Imre qui avait fait voeu de virginité, mourut accidentellement à l'âge de
vingt-quatre ans.
A l'imitation des rois
chrétiens d'Occident, Etienne, législateur, publia un Décret d’une
cinquantaine d'articles, qui octroyait à l'Eglise de nombreux privilèges.
Ainsi, il soumettait les laïcs à son autorité et à la justice épiscopale et il
associait le clergé au conseil royal. Évêques et abbés formaient, avec les
grands, une puissante aristocratie, maîtresse des terres et des hommes.
Grâce à Etienne, la Hongrie
devint le passage obligé pour les pèlerins allant en Terre Sainte, la route de
terre étant souvent plus sûre que celle de mer. Le roi fit construire à
Jérusalem une église dédiée à saint Georges et, à Rome, une hôtellerie pour les
pèlerins hongrois. Il donna de l'argent pour édifier une église à
Constantinople. Il accueillait les pèlerins, les voyageurs et les artistes
d'Italie, de Germanie et d'Orient. La croix que la reine Gisèle fit fabriquer
pour le tombeau de sa mère (conservée à Munich) est l'oeuvre d'orfèvres
bavarois. La chasuble de Notre-Dame de Szekesfehervar, transformée en manteau
de sacre, est réalisée par des brodeurs influencés par des artistes orientaux.
Etienne partagea la vie
des clercs. Très dévôt à la Vierge, fait célébrer le jour de la maîtresse (15
avril) et élever dans son palais de Szekesfehervar une basilique en l'honneur
de la Mère de Dieu qui le conseille dans ses campagnes militaires. Ainsi,
menacé par l'empereur Conrad II en 1030, il doit à Marie la retraite de l'armée
germanique.
Le saint roi Etienne
mourut le 15 août 1038, successeur désigné, Pierre Orseolo, fut détrôné par son
beau-frère Samuel. L'évêque Gérard de Csanad, qui avait refusé de sacrer
l'usurpateur, fut tué par les païens (1046), cependant que les Petchenègues
envahissaient le pays. La Hongrie ne retrouva la paix qu'avec le règne de
Ladislas (1077-1095 qui, émerveillé par les miracles qui se multipliaient sur
le tombeau d'Etienne, demanda au pape Grégoire VII la permission d'élever les
restes de son prédécesseur, le 15 août 1083, c'est-à-dire de le déclarer saint.
Grégoire VII canonisa
Etienne, son fils Imre et l'évêque Gérard de Csanad. Les pèlerins affluèrent
dès lors au tombeau royal d'Alba Regalis (Szekesfehervar), au sud de Budapest.
SOURCE : http://missel.free.fr/Sanctoral/08/16.php
Chronicon Pictum, Márk Kálti (fl. 14th century)
.jpg)
Stephen
I defeats Kean "Duke of the Bulgarians and Slavs", Chronicon
Pictum, Márk Kálti (fl. 14th century)
Miniatura
con Santo Stefano d'Ungheria, tratta dal Chronicon Pictum (XIV secolo)
02/09 St Etienne, roi,
confesseur
Mort en 1038. Fête
étendue à l’Eglise universelle en 1686. Dans beaucoup de diocèses de
France, St Etienne est seulement commémoré car on fête aujourd’hui
les bienheureux Martyrs des Carmes (comme par exemple le Bhx Antoine de
Ravinel).
Leçons des Matines (avant
1960)
Quatrième leçon. Etienne
introduisit en Hongrie la foi chrétienne et le titre de roi. Après avoir obtenu
du souverain Pontife la couronne royale, et avoir été sacré par son ordre, il
fit hommage de son royaume au Siège apostolique. Sous l’inspiration d’une
piété, et avec une munificence admirables, il fonda à Rome, à Jérusalem et à
Constantinople, divers établissements hospitaliers ; en Hongrie, l’archevêché
de Strigonie et dix évêchés. Vénérant le Christ lui-même dans les pauvres,
Etienne était également plein d’amour et de libéralité pour eux, et jamais il
n’en renvoya un seul sans l’avoir consolé et secouru. Bien plus, après
d’immenses sommes distribuées pour soulager leur indigence, on le vit souvent
donner aussi, avec une bénignité extrême, le mobilier de son palais Il avait
coutume de laver de ses mains les pieds aux pauvres, d’aller la nuit, seul et
sans se faire connaître, visiter les hôpitaux, servir les malades et accomplir
tous les autres devoirs de la charité ; c’est en témoignage de ses vertus que
sa main demeura sans corruption, lorsque son cadavre fut tombé en poussière.
Cinquième leçon. Son amour
de la prière l’amenait à veiller des nuits presque entières ; et pendant qu’il
avait l’esprit fixé dans la contemplation des choses célestes, il advint qu’on
le vit ravi en extase et élevé de terre. Par le secours de l’oraison, il
échappa plus d’une fois miraculeusement aux conspirations des méchants et aux
attaques d’ennemis puissants. De son mariage avec Gisèle de Bavière, sœur de
l’empereur saint Henri, il eut un fils nommé Emeric, qu’il éleva avec tant de
vigilance et une si solide piété, que, dans la suite, la sainteté remarquable
de ce prince en fut la conséquence et la preuve. Etienne sut si bien conduire
les affaires de son royaume, qu’il s’entoura d’hommes d’une prudence et d’une
sainteté consommées, et ne décida jamais rien sans leur avis. Sous la cendre et
le cilice il demandait à Dieu, par de très humbles prières, la grâce de voir,
avant de mourir, la Hongrie tout entière acquise à la foi catholique. Son grand
zèle à propager la foi lui valut d’être appelé l’apôtre de cette nation et le
souverain Pontife l’autorisa, ainsi que ses successeurs, à faire porter la
croix devant eux.
Sixième leçon. Animé d’une ardente dévotion envers la Mère de Dieu, il construisit une vaste église en son honneur, et l’établit patronne de la Hongrie. En retour, la Vierge Marie l’introduisit au ciel le jour même de son Assomption, que les Hongrois appellent le jour de la Grande Souveraine, d’après une institution de ce saint roi. Quand il fut mort, son corps répandit une odeur suave et une liqueur céleste. Le Pontife romain voulut qu’on le transférât dans un lieu plus digne de lui, où on l’ensevelit avec beaucoup d’honneur. Cette translation fut accompagnée de nombreux miracles de tous genres. Le jour de sa fête a été fixé, par le souverain Pontife Innocent XI, au quatre des nones de septembre, en mémoire d’une victoire éclatante : celle que l’armée de Léopold, empereur des Romains et roi de Hongrie, remporta à la même date sur les Turcs, leur reprenant, avec le secours de Dieu, la ville de Budapest.
SOURCE : http://www.introibo.fr/02-09-St-Etienne-roi-confesseur
Portrayal
of Stephen I, King of Hungary on the coronation pall, 1031, textile, embroidery,
Hungarian National Museum / Magyar
Nemzeti Múzeum, , Budapest VIII. Own work, scanned by Szilas from A magyar
Szent Korona by Tóth Endre, Szelényi Károly, Kossuth 2000, Budapest
Also
known as
Stephen the Great
Istvan
formerly 2
September
20 August (translation
of relics)
15 August (Székesfehérvár, Hungary)
Profile
Born to a pagan family,
but was baptized at
age 10 with his father. King of
the Magyars in Hungary. Married to Blessed Gisella
of Ungarn, sister of emperor Saint Henry
II. Evangelized both
their peoples. Saint Astricus served
as his advisor. Stephen united the Magyars into a single nation, suppressing
revolts led by pagan nobles.
Crowned king on Christmas
Day 1001 by
Emperor Otto III by
authority of Pope Sylvester
II. Organized dioceses,
and founded monasteries. Father of Saint Emeric;
brought Saint Gerard
Sagredo to tutor his son.
Born
15 August 1038 at
Szekesfehervar, Hungary
20 August 1083 by Pope Saint Gregory
VII
king with
sword and banner of the cross
king offering
his crown to the Blessed Virgin Mary
king on
horseback with banner of the cross
king holding
a church in his hands
king holding
a standard or banner with the Blessed Virgin Mary
Additional
Information
Book
of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Alban
Butler
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Francis
Xavier Weninger
New
Catholic Dictionary, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Roman
Martyrology, 1914 edition
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
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
Oxford Dictionary of Saints, by David Hugh Farmer
Saints
and Their Attributes, by Helen Roeder
other
sites in english
images
video
sitios
en español
Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
sites
en français
Abbé
Christian-Philippe Chanut
fonti
in italiano
Readings
My beloved son, delight
of my heart, hope of your posterity, I pray, I command, that at every time and
in everything, strengthened by your devotion to me, you may show favor not only
to relations and kin, or to the most eminent, be they leaders or rich men or
neighbors or fellow-countrymen, but also to foreigners and to all who come to
you. By fulfilling your duty in this way you will reach the highest state of
happiness. Be merciful to all who are suffering violence, keeping always in
your heart the example of the Lord who said, “I desire mercy and not
sacrifice.” Be patient with everyone, not only with the powerful, but also with
the weak. Finally be strong lest prosperity lift you up to much or adversity
cast you down. Be humble in this life, that God may raise you up in the next.
Be truly moderate and do not punish or condemn anyone immoderately. Be gentle
so that you may never oppose justice. Be honorable so that you may never
voluntarily bring disgrace upon anyone. Be chaste so that ;you may avoid all
the foulness of lust like the pangs of death. All these virtues I have noted
above make up the royal crown, and without them no one is fit to rule here on
earth or attain to the heavenly kingdom. – from Saint Stephen’s
advice to his son
MLA
Citation
“Saint Stephen of
Hungary“. CatholicSaints.Info. 20 April 2024. Web. 24 November 2025.
<https://catholicsaints.info/saint-stephen-of-hungary/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-stephen-of-hungary/
Book of Saints
– Stephen – 2 September
(Saint) King (September
2) (11th
century) The Apostle and first Christian King of Hungary.
On the death of his father Geysa (A.D. 977),
he succeeded him as Voivoda of the Hungarians and
proved himself an able and strenuous rider. Victorious in many wars, he was
zealous not only for the temporal good of his people (to whom he gave an
excellent Code of Laws) but above all for their conversion from
the worship of idols to the Christian religion.
In this he was so successful that Pope Sylvester
II bestowed on him the title of “Apostolic King” – a title retained by his
successors. He founded many Bishoprics and
thoroughly organised the Church and State of Hungary,
which country he dedicated to Our Blessed Lady. He died August
15, A.D. 1038,
and was at once acclaimed as a Saint.
MLA
Citation
Monks of Ramsgate.
“Stephen”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info.
15 August 2016. Web. [php] echo date(‘j F Y’);[/php].
<https://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-stephen-2-september/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-stephen-2-september/
József Pesky (1795–1862), King st. Stephen teaching his son st. Emerich, Side altar of Saint Stephen of
Hungary in the Roman Catholic cathedral in Kalocsa, Hungary
St. Stephen the Great
St. Stephen the Great
(977-1038), was the son of the Magyar chieftain Geza, Stephen succeeded him as
leader in 997. Already raised a Christian, in 996 he wed the daughter of Duke
Henry II of Bavaria and devoted much of his reign to the promotion of the Christian
faith.
He gave his patronage to
Church leaders, helped build churches, and was a proponent of the rights of the
Holy See. Stephen also crushed the pagan counterreaction to Christianity,
converting the so-called Black Hungarians after their failed rebellion. In
recognition of his efforts, Stephen was anoited king of Hungary in 1000,
receiving the cross and crown from Pope Sylvester II.
The remainder of his
reign was taken up with the consolidation of the Christian hold on the region.
His crown and regalia became beloved symbols of the Hungarian nation, and
Stephen was venerated as the ideal Christian king. Canonized in 1083 by Pope
St. Gregory VII, he became the patron saint of Hungary.
SOURCE : http://www.ucatholic.com/saints/saint-stephen-the-great/
St. Stephen the Great
Feastday: August 16
Patron: of Hungary
Death: 1038
St. Stephen the Great
(977-1038), was the son of the Magyar chieftain Geza, Stephen succeeded him as
leader in 997. Already raised a Christian, in 996 he wed the daughter of
Duke Henry
II of Bavaria and devoted much of his reign to the promotion of
the Christian faith.
He gave his patronage to Church leaders, helped build churches, and was a
proponent of the rights of the Holy See. Stephen also crushed the pagan counterreaction
to Christianity, forcibly converting the so-called Black Hungarians after their
failed rebellion. In recognition of his efforts, Stephen was anoited king
of Hungary in
1000, receiving the cross and crown from Pope Sylvester II. The remainder of
his reign was taken up with the consolidation of the Christian hold
on the region. His crown and regalia became
beloved symbols of the Hungarian nation, and Stephen was venerated as the
ideal Christian king.
Canonized in 1083 by Pope St. Gregory VII, he became the patron saint of
Hungary.
SOURCE : https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=409
Szent István /Soproni Kiss Sándor (festőművész), Hoffer Ottó (építész), 2008, Szent István király alakja kezében kettős kereszttel/ - Veszprém megye, Várpalota, Szent István utca 20, Mártírok útja felőli oldal.
Szent István /Soproni Kiss Sándor (festőművész), Hoffer Ottó (építész), 2008, Szent István király alakja kezében kettős kereszttel/ - Veszprém megye, Várpalota, Szent István utca 20, Mártírok útja felőli oldal.
New
Catholic Dictionary – Saint Stephen of Hungary
First king and apostle of
Hungary, confessor, born Gran in 975; died Stuhlweissenburg in 1038; son of
Geza, prince of the Magyars. He was baptized, 986; married Gisela, sister of
Emperor Saint Henry II; succeeded to the throne, 997; was crowned by Pope Sylvester
II, 1001, and was granted the right to establish episcopal sees; founded a
monastery at Jerusalem and hospices irl Rome, Ravenna, and Constantinople; gave
his kingdom a Christian constitution and an ecclesiastical foundation by
establishing 10 bishoprics. Patron of Hungary. His incorrupt right hand is in
the national palladium. Feast, Roman Calendar, 2 September.
MLA
Citation
“Saint Stephen of
Hungary”. New Catholic Dictionary. CatholicSaints.Info. 9
October 2012.
Web. [php] echo date(‘j F Y’);[/php].
<http://catholicsaints.info/new-catholic-dictionary-saint-stephen-of-hungary/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/new-catholic-dictionary-saint-stephen-of-hungary/
Interior
of Roman Catholic church in Mucsi, Tolna, Hungary
Mucsi, római katolikus templom belső tere 2024
Interior
of Roman Catholic church in Mucsi, Tolna, Hungary
Mucsi,
római katolikus templom belső tere 2024
Saints
of the Day – Stephen (Istvan) of Hungary, King
Born at Esztergom, c.975;
died at Szekesfehervar (Buda), Hungary, on August 15, 1038; canonized by
Gregory VII in 1083; feast day was September 2; feast of his translation,
August 20.
Vaik (baptized Istvan or
Stephen) and his father, the duke of Geza, were baptized the same day in 985 by
Saint Adalbert of Prague. What is unusual is that Stephen should have grown
into such a zealous Christian. His father had converted out of political
necessity. The Magyars had settled in Hungary at the end of the 9th century and
the elite had become nominal Christians.
In 995, Stephen married
Gisela, sister of the man who would become Emperor Saint Henry II, and in 997
succeeded to his father’s dukedom over the Magyars of Hungary. After engaging
in warfare to consolidate the country, Stephen introduced limited feudalism,
retained control over the people as a whole by reducing the powers of the
nobles, abolished tribal divisions, and established counties with governors
that he appointed.
Having restored order to
the country and consolidated the Magyars into a national unity, he sent Saint
Astrik (Anastasius) to Rome to obtain approval to organize an ecclesiastical
hierarchy and to request that Pope Silvester II recognize him as king. The pope
agreed, probably with the acquiescence of Emperor Otto III whose ambassadors
were in Rome at the time. When the pope’s legate arrived, Saint Stephen went to
meet him and listened, standing with great respect as they were read, to the
pope’s bulls confirming Stephen’s religious foundations and the elections of
bishops. Thus, in 1001, Stephen was solemnly coronated the first king of
Hungary with the crown sent to him by Pope Silvester. This is the famous crown
captured in World War II by the American army and returned to Hungary by the
United States in 1978.
Stephen, together with
his wife, worked energetically for the conversion of his people to
Christianity, establishing episcopal sees and monasteries; among his
foundations were the Benedictine Saint Martin’s Abbey of Pannonhalma, which
still functions as such, and the see of Vesprem and the primatial see of Esztergom,
which he placed in the hands of Saint Astrik, Hungary’s first archbishop. He
built the church in Szekesfehervar, where the Hungarian kings were crowned and
buried. Stephen also secured the services of prominent foreign monks, such as
Saint Gerard Sagredo, the abbot of San Giorgio Maggiore of Venice, who tutored
Stephen’s only son, the young Saint Emeric (Imre). His father had diligently
trained his son to succeed him, but he died prematurely in a hunting accident
in 1031.
But his methods with recalcitrant
pagans were marked by the roughness of the age and place. He established
Christianity as the state religion and severely punished superstitious customs
derived from paganism. Blasphemy and adultery were equally treated as crimes
such as theft and murder. He both commanded all except the clergy to marry and
forbade marriages between Christians and pagans. Tithes were commanded to
support the poor and the churches. Every tenth town was required to build a
church and support a priest, and the king himself supplied the furnishings for
each. At times there was a lively resistance, supported by his political
rivals.
Saint Stephen holds an
honored place in Hungarian history, and seems personally to have had a better
title to sainthood than some other royal and national heroes. His own virtue
was a silent sermon to all who knew him. He was accessible to all and treated
the poor and oppressed with justice. He also used to distribute alms to the
poor, sometimes in disguise, and almost lost his life in this activity.
His last years were
embittered by ill-health and the shameless quarrels among his relatives
regarding the succession to the crown. Miracles were claimed at his tomb
shortly after his death. Stephen’s relics were solemnly enshrined in the Church
of Our Lady (Buda) in 1083 at the same time as those of his son Saint Emeric by
order of Pope Saint Gregory VII (Attwater, Benedictines, Delaney, Farmer,
Walsh, White).
In art, Saint Stephen is
dressed in royal regalia with a sword and banner of the cross. He may also be
shown (1) offering the regalia to the Virgin; (2) on horseback; (3) with his
son, Saint Emeric (Roeder); (4) holding a church in his hand; or (5) holding a
standard with the figure of the Blessed Virgin on it (White). Stephen is the
patron saint of Hungary (Roeder).
MLA
Citation
Katherine I
Rabenstein. Saints of the Day, 1998. CatholicSaints.Info.
24 July 2020. Web. [php] echo date(‘j F Y’);[/php].
<https://catholicsaints.info/saints-of-the-day-stephen-istvan-of-hungary-king/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saints-of-the-day-stephen-istvan-of-hungary-king/
Santo
Stefano ritratto nel Tempio di San Sava, a Belgrado
Свјетлопис
живописа Св. Стјепана угарског у крипти храма Св. Саве у Биограду
St. Stephen of Hungary
Feast
day: Aug 16
On Aug. 16, the Catholic
Church celebrates the feast day of King Saint Stephen of Hungary, the monarch
who led his country to embrace the Christian faith during the 11th century.
Before the future saint's birth in 975, his mother, the duchess Sarolt, is said
to have received a vision in which the original Saint Stephen – the Church's
first martyr – appeared telling her she would bear a son who would evangelize
their land.
Together with her husband, the Hungarian duke Geza, Sarolt is believed to have
been converted and baptized by the bishop Saint Adalbert of Prague. The same
saint baptized their son Vaik in 985, giving him the name of Stephen.
Geza had desired to convert the Hungarians to the Catholic faith, a passion
shared by Stephen once he reached adulthood and succeeded him in power. After
conclusively defeating an alliance of rival pagan nobility, he used their
acquired wealth to build a monastery, and invited clergy to convert
the people.
Stephen established laws favoring Christianity over paganism, and sent an
emissary to Rome with a request for the Pope to proclaim him as king.
Pope Sylvester II accepted the request, sending him a crown and a gold
processional cross, while also giving Stephen certain religious privileges.
He showed great diligence as king, while devoting the rest of his time to his
religious duties – including charity toward the poor and sick, as well as the
worship of God – and to his household. Gisela, Stephen's wife, was the sister
of the ruler later canonized as the Holy Roman Emperor Saint Henry II.
Greatly devoted to the Virgin Mary, Stephen had several churches built in her
honor both in Hungary and outside the kingdom. Her intercession is credited
with preventing a war between Hungary and the Holy Roman Empire under Conrad
II, and stopping an assassination plot against Stephen himself.
The Hungarian king also established a monastery in Jerusalem, and set up
institutions to aid pilgrims in other major cities. Stephen counted
saints among his friends and correspondents, and fulfilled the Pope's charge to
use his royal authority for the good of the Church.
Suffering came to the king, however, when only one of his children survived
to adulthood. Stephen's only living son Emeric received a strong
Catholic upbringing, and was expected to succeed his father. But Emeric died
before Stephen, after a hunting accident in 1031.
Emeric was later canonized as a saint in his own right, and Stephen eventually
came to rejoice that his son had been permitted to enter God's presence before
him. The king's final years, however, were marked by illness as well
as a succession dispute among his relatives.
In 1038, on the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, Stephen delivered
his final words to leaders of the Church and state, telling them to protect and
spread the Catholic faith.
To the Virgin Mary, the king directed one of his final prayers: “To thee, O
Queen of heaven, and to thy guardianship, I commend the holy Church, all
the bishops and the clergy, the whole kingdom, its rulers and inhabitants; but
before all, I commend my soul to thy care.”
St. Stephen of Hungary died on Aug. 15, 1038. He was buried alongside his son
St. Emeric, and the two were canonized together in 1083.
SOURCE : https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-stephen-of-hungary-565
Holy right hand displayed in St. Stephen's Basilica, Budapest
Budapest bazylika sw Stefana
Štefanova
pravá ruka v Bazilike
svätého Štefana v Budapešti
La Sacra Destra esposta a Budapest nella Basilica di Santo Stefano
St. Stephen
First King of Hungary, b. at Gran, 975; d. 15 August,
1038.
He was a son of the Hungarian chief
Géza and was baptized,
together with his father,
by Archbishop St.
Adalbert of Prague in 985, on which occasion he changed his heathen name Vaik
(Vojk) into Stephen. In 995 he married Gisela, a sister of Duke Henry of
Bavaria, the future Emperor
St. Henry II, and in 997 succeeded to the throne of Hungary. In order to
make Hungary a Christian nation
and to establish himself more firmly as ruler, he sent Abbot Astricus to Rome to petition Pope Sylvester II for
the royal dignity and the power to establish episcopal sees.
The pope acceded
to his wishes and, in addition, presented him with a royal crown with which he
was crowned at Gran on 17 August,
1001 (see HUNGARY: History).
He founded a monastery in Jerusalem and hospices for pilgrims at Rome, Ravenna, and Constantinople. He was a
personal friend of St.
Bruno of Querfurt and corresponded with Abbot St. Odilo of Cluny.
The last years of
his life were
embittered by sickness and family troubles.
When on 2 September, 1031, his only son, St. Emeric, lost his life on a
boar hunt, his
cherished hope of transferring the reins of government into the hands of a
pious Christian prince
were shattered. During his lifetime a quarrel arose among his various nephews
concerning the right of
succession, and some of them even took part in a conspiracy against his life. He was buried beside his
son at Stuhlweissenburg,
and both were canonized together
in 1083. His feast is
on 2 September, but in Hungary his chief
festival is observed on 20 August, the day on which his relics were
transferred to Buda. His incorrupt right hand is treasured as the most
sacred relic in Hungary.
Sources
Three old lives are
extant: Vita major in Mon. Germ. Hist., Script., XI, 229-39, written probably
before 1083; Cronica Ungarorum in Mon. Pol. hist., I, 495-515, written about
1086; Vita minor in Mon. Germ. Hist., Script., XI, 226-9, written about 1100.
Another Life written by HARTWIG shortly after the Vita minor in Script. rerum
Hung., I, 413-28, is based on the three preceding ones. KARACSONYI, Szent
Istvan kiraly elete (Budapest, 1904); IDEM, Szent Istvan kiraly okleveley es a
Szilveszter bulla (Budapest, 1894); HORN, St. Etienne, roi apostolique de
Hongrie (Paris, 1899); STILTING, Vita s. Stephani regis Hungarioe (Raab, 1747;
Kaschau, 1767); BUTLER, Lives of the Saints, 2 September; BARING-GOULD, Lives
of the Saints, 2 September.
Ott,
Michael. "St. Stephen." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol.
14. New York: Robert Appleton
Company, 1912. <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14287a.htm>.
Transcription. This
article was transcribed for New Advent by Robert B. Olson. Offered to
Almighty God for Robert Hambourger, Ph.D. and family.
Ecclesiastical
approbation. Nihil Obstat. July 1, 1912. Remy Lafort, S.T.D.,
Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2023 by Kevin Knight.
Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14287a.htm
September 2
St. Stephen, King of
Hungary, Confessor
From
his life written by Chartuiz and from the historians Bonfinius, in Hist.
Hungar. l. 1. Hermannus Contractus, &c. See also Czuittinger, Specimen
Hungariæ Litteratæ, p. 1, t. 1. The Elzivirian edit. of Resp. et Status
Hungariæ, pp. 117, 154. Antonius Pagi in Baron. and Gabriel de juxta Hornad, L.
De Initiis Religionis Christianæ inter Hungaros. Francofur. 1740.
A.D.
1038.
GEYSA, the
fourth duke of the Hungarians, 1 by conversing with certain
Christian captives, and afterwards with certain holy missionaries, as
Piligrinus, bishop of Passaw, St. Wolfgand, bishop of Ratisbon, &c., or
their disciples, became infinitely delighted with the sanctity of the maxims of
our holy faith, and was convinced of its divine truth and original by the
motives and arguments which are, as it were, the stamp which God has put upon
his revelation in order to confirm it to us. And though he had reason to fear
great disturbances from the ferocity of his people upon a change of religion,
he despised such dangers, and was baptized together with his wife Sarloth, and
several of his officers and courtiers. Sarloth was so penetrated with the
wonderful mysteries of religion, and so strongly affected with the great ideas
of eternity, that she walked in the paths of heroic perfection with a fervour
not inferior to that of the saints. Being some time after with child, she was
assured by St. Stephen, the protomartyr, in a dream, that she bore in her womb
a son who should complete the work she and her husband had begun, and abolish
idolatry in that nation. The child was born in 977, at Gran, the ancient
Strigonium, at that time the metropolis of the country, and on account of the
above-mentioned vision was christened Stephen. St. Adalbert, bishop of Prague,
who for some time preached the gospel to the Hungarians, and, according to the
German historians, baptized St. Stephen, had certainly no small share in the
honour of his education; and Theodatus, an Italian count of singular piety, was
his tutor; these two holy persons by their example and instructions were, under
God, the great instruments of his future sanctity. Geysa died in 997, and
Stephen, who had been chosen waywode—that is, leader of the army, or duke, some
time before, then took the reins of the government into his hands
His
first care was to settle a firm peace with all the neighbouring nations. This
being done, he turned his thoughts wholly to root out idolatry, and as much as
in him lay to make Christ reign in the hearts of all his subjects. Performing
himself the part of a missionary, he often accompanied the preachers, and
pathetically exhorted his people to open their eyes to the divine truth. Many,
however, were so obstinately attached to the superstitions of their ancestors,
as to take up arms in defence of idolatry; and having at their head a count of
great interest and valour named Zegzard, with a numerous army, they laid siege
to Vesprin. St. Stephen placed his confidence in the Lord of Hosts, and
prepared himself for the engagement by fasting, almsdeeds, and prayer, invoking
particularly the intercession of St. Martin and St. George. Though inferior to
the rebels in the number of his forces, by the divine assistance, he gave them
a total overthrow, and slew their leader. To give to God the entire glory of
this victory, he built near the place where the battle was fought, a great
monastery in honour of St. Martin, called the holy hill; and besides estates in
land, he bestowed on it one-third part of the spoils. It is immediately subject
to the holy see, and is called in Hungary the Arch-abbacy. St. Stephen having
quelled the rebels, found himself at liberty to prosecute his design; which he
did by inviting into his dominions many holy priests and religious men, who, by
their exemplary lives and zealous preaching, sowed the seed of faith, civilized
that savage nation by the precepts of the gospel, built churches and
monasteries, and some of them obtained the crown of martyrdom.
The
zealous prince founded the archbishopric of Gran or Strigonium, and ten
bishoprics, and sent Astricus, or Anastasius, the newly elected bishop of
Coloctz, to Rome, to obtain of Pope Sylvester II. the confirmation of these
foundations and of many other things which he had done for the honour of God
and the exaltation of his holy church; and, at the same time, to beseech his
holiness to confer upon him the title of king, which his subjects had long
pressed him to assume, and which he now only asked to satisfy their desires,
and that he might with more majesty and authority accomplish his great designs
for promoting the glory of God, and the good of his people. Miceslas, duke of
Poland, upon marrying a Christian princess, the daughter of Boleslas, duke of
Bohemia, had embraced the faith in 965. About thirty-four years after this, he
sent an embassy to Rome to obtain the title of king confirmed to him by the
authority of the apostolic see. Sylvester II., who was then pope, was disposed
to grant his request, and prepared a rich crown to send him with his blessing. 2 But the extraordinary zeal,
piety, and wisdom of St. Stephen deserving the preference, his holiness
delivered this crown for him to his ambassador Astric, together with the
present of a cross, granting, by a special privilege, that it should be carried
before him in his armies. At the same time he, by a bull, confirmed all the
religious foundations which our holy prince had made, and the elections of the
bishops. St. Stephen went to meet his ambassador upon his return, listened
standing, with great respect, to the pope’s bulls whilst they were read, and
fell on his knees as often as the name of his holiness was repeated. To express
his profound sense of religion, and to inspire all his subjects with a holy awe
for whatever belonged to the divine worship, he treated the pastors of the
church with honour and respect. The same prelate who had brought the crown from
Rome, anointed and crowned him king with great solemnity and pomp in the year
1000. 3
The
good prince, by a public act, and with extraordinary devotion, declared that he
put all his dominions under the special patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
and never ceased most earnestly offering his daily prayers to implore her
powerful intercession for obtaining the divine blessing upon all his subjects.
Whence, in many medals and coins of this kingdom, she is styled patroness of
Hungary. It is incredible with what ardour the king exhorted his people,
especially his domestics, to the practice of all virtues. With a view to
propagate on earth the divine honour and praise beyond his own life, and to the
end of time, he filled Hungary with pious foundations. At Alba he built a
stately church in honour of the Mother of God, in which the kings of Hungary
were afterwards both crowned and buried. This city St. Stephen made his usual
residence, whence it is called Royal Alba, to distinguish it from Alba Julia,
or Weissemberg, in Transylvania. He founded, in old Buda, the monastery of SS.
Peter and Paul, and in Rome on mount Cœlio, the church of St. Stephen, with a
college of twelve priests; also an inn and hospital on the Vatican-hill for the
entertainment of Hungarian pilgrims; and he built a church at Jerusalem; not to
mention the magnificent monastery of St. Bennet, and many other churches in
Hungary. Throughout all his dominions he commanded tithes to be paid to the
churches, though these are redeemed to this day in many places by the noblemen
for a certain sum of money.
St.
Stephen, who would seek no alliance but by which piety might be strengthened in
his realm and family, took to wife Gisela, sister to St. Henry, king of
Germany, who was shortly after crowned emperor; and that holy prince admirably
seconded and assisted our saint in all his pious designs. St. Stephen abolished
many barbarous and superstitious customs derived from the ancient Scythians,
and by severe punishments repressed blasphemy, murder, theft, adultery, and
other public crimes. To put a stop to incontinence and idolatry he commanded
all persons to marry, except religious and churchmen, and forbade all marriages
of Christians with idolaters. He was of most easy access to people of all
ranks, and listened to every one’s complaints without distinction or
preference, except that he appeared most willing to hear the poor, knowing them
to be more easily oppressed, and considering that in them we honour Christ, who
being no longer among men on earth in his mortal state to receive from us any
corporal services, has substituted and recommended to us the poor in his place
and right. The good king provided for their subsistence throughout his whole
kingdom, and took them, especially the helpless orphans and widows, under his
special protection, declaring himself their patron and father. Not content with
his general charities and care for all the indigent, he frequently went
privately about to discover more freely the necessities of any who might be
overlooked by his officers. One day it happened, that, whilst he was dealing
about his plentiful alms in disguise, a troop of beggars set upon him, threw
him down, beat him, plucked him by the beard and hair, and took away his purse,
seizing for themselves what he intended for the relief of many others. The king
esteemed himself happy to suffer in the service of his Redeemer, and addressed
himself in these words to the Blessed Virgin: “See, O queen of heaven, in what
manner I am requited by those who belong to your Son, my Divine Saviour. As
they are his friends, I receive with joy this treatment from their hands.” He
learned, however, from this accident no more to expose his person, but he
renewed his resolution never to refuse an alms to any poor person who asked
him. His nobles rallied him on this occasion; but he rejoiced in all
humiliations, and God was pleased to testify how agreeable his sincere and
heroic piety was, by conferring on him many extraordinary graces, with the
gifts of prophecy and many miraculous cures.
How
difficult soever it may seem to practise extraordinary severities and
humiliations in the midst of a court, and surrounded by the most flattering
objects of softness and pride, where such gospel maxims are seldom heard, yet
the extraordinary fervour of our saint found means for the exercise of both. He
desired to serve and wash the feet of poor men in public; but the fear of
giving offence to his subjects, whose minds were not yet framed to imbibe such
ideas of a prince’s humility, made him only do it privately. He lost no part of
his time in vain amusements or idle company; but divided himself between the
duties of religion, and those of his station. To the former, he regularly
allotted many hours every day; and the latter he sanctified by religious
motives, and by the constant recollection of his soul. Thus, if he was not able
always to praise God with his tongue, he did it without intermission by his
life, all his actions being directed to the same point of God’s holy will and
greater glory. His charitable and zealous application to all external duties of
life, and to the government of his kingdom; his alms-deeds, mildness,
temperance, patience, and other virtues, succeeding one another in their
victories and repeated heroic acts, sanctified his whole life, and made it, as
it were, one uninterrupted sacrifice to God. The least faults of frailty and
inadvertence by which its perfection might be impaired, he laboured to expiate
by daily penance and tears. The shining example of his virtue was a continual
most powerful sermon to those who conversed with him. His happy influence over
his children, was most sensible in the virtuous courses they pursued. St.
Emeric, his eldest son, walked in his steps with so much fervour as to be in
his youth the admiration of Christendom. Rising always at midnight he recited
matins privately on his knees, pausing a little in devout meditation at the
close of every psalm. Many wonderful things are related of his virtues and
miracles; to comprise his character in one word, nothing could be more amiable,
more pious, or more accomplished than this young prince. His father trained him
up not only in the perfect practice of the most heroic piety, but also formed
him in the art of government.
St.
Stephen’s excellent code of laws, to this day the basis of the laws of Hungary,
are inscribed to his son, Duke Emeric. In fifty-five chapters the pious
legislator has comprised the wisest and most holy regulations of the state. He
pathetically exhorts his son to sincere humility (which he calls the sole
exaltation of a king), to patience, meekness, assiduous and devout prayer,
charity, compassion for the poor, the protection of all who are in distress,
&c. He forbids, on pain of severe punishment, all grievous public crimes,
especially of impiety and irreligion, as a violation of the Sunday or a fast-day,
talking in the church, a culpable neglect to call in the priests to assist
dying persons, &c. He commands the most religious respect to be paid to all
holy things, and to the clergy. 4 These wholesome laws he caused
to be promulgated throughout his dominions, and had them always most strictly
observed; as on the exact execution of the laws the tranquillity of the state depends
The
protection of his people engaged him sometimes in war, wherein he was always
victorious. The prince of Transylvania, his cousin, invaded his dominions; St.
Stephen defeated him in battle, and made him prisoner; yet gave him his
liberty, and restored him his dominions, requiring of him this only condition,
that the gospel should be allowed to be freely preached in them. The saint was
never the aggressor in any war; that with the Bulgarians was obstinate; but
they were at length overcome, and obliged to receive the laws which he
prescribed them. There is no saint whose virtue is not exercised by
tribulation. Sickness deprived St. Stephen of all his children. St. Emeric, the
eldest was carried off the last. He had then begun to sustain a great part of
the burden of the state, and to be both a comfort and an assistance to his
father. The interest of the state, and that of the infant church of his
kingdom, conspired with nature to make this stroke more severe; but the good
king bore the loss with entire resignation, adoring in it the holy will of God.
St. Emeric was canonized by Benedict IX. and is honoured among the saints on
the 4th of November. This affliction weaned the king’s heart more and more from
the world, and he desired, if it had been possible, to reserve to the care of
his own soul the remaining part of his life, that, being freed from all worldly
concerns, he might be preparing for his last passage. But, as the affairs of
both the church and state did not allow this, he continued to endure the toil
of business, knowing that he was accountable to God for the least neglect or
omission in the particular duties of his station towards his Creator, his
subjects, or himself. He endeavoured, however, to redouble his fervour in all
his religious exercises, and applied himself particularly to those which are
more immediately preparatory for a happy death, to which he principally
directed his devotions and charities.
Though
brave and expert in war, he had always been a lover of peace; but, from this
time, he took a resolution to spill no blood in war, in which he earnestly
begged the interposition of Divine Providence, which did not fail him. For to
hostilities he, after this, opposed no other arms than fasting, prayers, and
tears, and by them alone was ever victorious. The Bessi, a fierce nation of
Bulgarians, the most implacable enemies of the Hungarians, made a furious
irruption into his territories; but moved with veneration for the sanctity of
the holy king, they on a sudden repented of their enterprise, begged, and
easily obtained his friendship, and returned peaceably home. St. Stephen, by an
act of justice, caused some of his own subjects to be hanged on his frontiers,
for having plundered them in their retreat. After the death of our saint’s good
friend St. Henry, the emperor, his successor Conrad II. invaded Hungary with a
powerful army in 1030, and advanced so far, that St. Stephen was compelled to
lead out his army against him, though still trusting in God that the effusion
of blood would be prevented. All things seemed to be disposed for a decisive
battle when St. Stephen again recommended himself and his earnest desire of
peace to the Blessed Virgin; and to the surprise of all men, the emperor on a
sudden turned his back with his army, and without having executed any thing,
marched home into Germany with as great precipitation as if he had been
defeated.
St.
Stephen laboured three years under a complication of painful distempers. During
this time four palatins, exasperated at the strict execution of justice which
he caused to be observed, entered into a conspiracy to take away his life. One
of them got into the king’s chamber in the night with a dagger under his cloak;
but let it fall in a fright upon hearing the king ask who was there? Seeing
himself discovered, he threw himself at the feet of his sovereign, and obtained
his pardon; but his accomplices were executed. The saint perceiving that his
last hour drew near, assembled his nobles, and recommended to them the choice of
a successor, obedience to the Holy See, and the practice of Christian piety. He
then again commended his kingdom to the patronage of the Blessed Virgin, and
after having received the sacraments of penance, the viaticum, and extreme
unction, happily expired on the feast of the Assumption of our Lady, the 15th
of August, in 1038, being threescore years old, of which he had reigned
forty-one from the death of his father, and thirty-eight from the time he had
been crowned king. His sacred remains were honoured with miracles, and
forty-five years after his death, by an order of the pope, at the request of
the holy king St. Ladislas, were enshrined and placed in a rich chapel which
bears his name within the great church of our Lady at Buda. He was canonized by
Benedict IX. in the manner described by Benedict XIV. 5 Innocent XI. appointed his
festival on the 2nd of September, in 1686, with an office of the whole church,
the emperor Leopald having on that day recovered Buda out of the hands of the
Turks, after many signal victories over those infidels. In Hungary his chief
festival is kept on the 20th of August, the day of the translation of his
relics.
Virtue
is the most excellent dignity, and the only good of rational beings, as St.
Austin observes. 6 Genius, learning, power,
riches, and whatever else a man enjoys are only good when made subservient to
virtue. Hence the ancient Stoics called such external goods conveniences, not
good things, because, said they, virtue alone deserves the name of good. 7 This is our glory, our riches,
and our happiness in time and eternity. To acquire and continually improve in
ourselves this inestimable treasure is the great business of our lives. Yet how
careless are the generality of mankind in this particular! Many spare no pains
to cultivate their minds with science, or to excel in accomplishments of the body,
and in every qualification for the world, yet neglect to reform and regulate
their heart. Half that attention which they give to their body or studies,
would make them perfect in virtue. An hour, or half an hour a day, employed in
holy meditation, pious reading, and self-examination would be of infinite
service in this most important and noble study. This would teach us the divine
maxims of virtue, inspire us with its sublime sentiments, and instruct us in
its exercises; and a constant attention and watchfulness in all our actions
would inure us to the practice, and ground us in perfect habits of it. Were we
but thus to learn well one virtue every year, we should soon be perfect saints.
Holy kings upon the throne never suffered any avocations or business to be an
impediment to this earnest application to the science of a Christian. Virtue no
sooner gains the empire in the hearts of men but it rules and sanctifies the
whole circle of their actions, makes all the employments of their state an
uninterrupted exercise of its various acts, and advances daily in fervour and
perfection.
Note
1. The
Huns, far the most numerous and famous of all the ancient barbarous nations,
have subsisted above two thousand years, and are unquestionably the same people
with the present inhabitants of Great Tartary, as is demonstrated by Joseph
Assemani and Deguignes. Some of their colonies are at this day possessed of
China, Corea, Japan, and several other kingdoms in the eastern parts of Asia;
others, under the name of the Turkish tribes, seized on Persia, and still reign
there; others, who have been called the Ottoman Turks, extinguished the power
of the Saracen caliphs, to whom they left only a limited religious authority in
matters relating to the Mahometan superstition, whilst upon the ruins of their
monarchies in Syria and Egypt, and of the Grecian empire, they erected the
present Ottoman empire. Other migrations of these Huns had the greatest share,
next to the Goths, in the destruction of the Roman empire in the West. See
Histoire Générale des Huns, des Turcs, des Mogols, et des autres Tartares
Occidentaux, par M. Deguignes, Interprète du Roy pour les Langues Orientales,
&c., 4to. in five tomes, Paris, 1756, 1757. In this work, the learned
author has obliged the world with a new and original history of China, and
these other Asiatic kingdoms, compiled with great care and judgment from the
most authentic Chinese and Arabian histories and monuments.
The ancient Huns were divided into Asiatic and European; the latter dwelt upon the banks of the Volga, and about the Palus Mœtis. The implacable hatred which the Goths bore them, and the difference of these Huns, both from the Goths and Normans, and from all the ancient German nations, both in complexion and the frame of the body, and in dress, manners, and language, demonstrate them to have been very different nations in their original foundation. The skins of beasts served the Huns for clothes with the fur turned outwards, as the Hungarians and Poles use to this day in their caps. The goodness and beauty of these skins or furs made the distinctive ornaments of their nobility, and the skins of martens (pelles murinæ) were sought after far and near. (See Helmoldus, Chron. Slav. l. 1, c. 1, and Jos. Assemani, Comm. in Kalend.) The Hungarian language is a dialect of that of the Huns, and differs equally from the Sclavonian and Teutonic. Ammianus Marcellinus, (l. 31, c. 2.) St. Jerom, (ep. Fab.) the Abbot Regino, the Annals of Metz. an. 889, &c., assure us the Huns and the Hungari came from Scythia beyond the Tanais, near the foot of Mount Caucasus. Zonaras, Cedrenus, Eurapolates, Jornandes, and Samocatta, call the Hungarians Huns and Turks. They therefore are mistaken, who with George Eccard (Franciæ Orient. l. 31, n. 82,) pretend that the Hungarians were of a Sclavonian or Sarmatian original.
Attila, the famous leader of the Huns in their greatest European expedition,
left them at his death, in 453, possessed of Pannonia. Soon after this country
fell a prey to the Goths, called Gepidæ, and afterwards to the Hunni Abares,
who were so called, according to Paulus Diaconus, from a king of that name.
They were driven from their original seats near the Volga, by a tribe of the
Turci, as Somocatta, Evagrius, and Theophanes mention; and broke into Pannonia
together with the Longobardi, whose king was called Auduin. This prince’s son
and successor Alboin, being invited by Narses into Italy, led thither the
Longobardi in 568, leaving all Pannonia to their allies the Abares, as Paulus
Diaconus relates, l. 1, de Gestis Longobard. Charlemagne extinguished the
kingdom of the Lombards in Italy in 774, after it had lasted two hundred and
six years under twenty-four kings; and also that of the Abares in Pannonia in
799, after a furious war of eight years’ continuance, in which all the princes
and noblemen of that nation were slain, and most of the strong cities levelled
with the ground, as Eginhard relates in the life of Charlemagne. From that time
these Abares continued subject to the French or German empire till the invasion
of the Hunni Iguri, Hunnoguri, or Hungari. See Jos. Assemani. (in Kalend. t. 1,
par. 2, c. 6.) These were another nation of the Huns, so called, either from
Ogor their leader, or from their country Iguria, the same that is at present
known by the name of Jura, as Hebersteinius (Rer. Muscow. Comm. p. 63,) proves
from the languages, manners, and many customs of the two nations at this day.
This province lies beyond the Hyperborean mountains, many miles from Moscow,
from the coasts of the frozen ocean towards Siberia, to Mount Caucasus, as we
learn from Paulus Jovius (l. de legatione ad Muscovit. p. 123,) and from
Gaugnini, who lived many years a commanding officer in those parts. (In
descript. Muscoviæ, p 167.) These Hungarians were driven from that country
about the year 680, by a numerous swarm of the Patzinacitæ from the borders of
Asia; and after wandering some years in the deserts about the Danube, where
they lived by fishing, hunting, and plundering other countries, they gathered
all their strength, and entering Pannonia in 889, defeated the imperial forces,
subdued the Hunni Abares, and settled themselves in that country, as the annals
of Metz and those of St. Bertin relate. (See Joseph Assemani Comm. in Kalendar.
Univ. t. 3, p. 2, c. 2, p. 220.) De Peysonnel, who was long French Consul in
Crim Tartary, and afterwards at Smyrna, and travelled over all these countries
to make observations on their antiquities, remarks, that the Hungarians, though
surrounded with nations most of which derive their dialects from the Sclavonian
or old Sarmatian, use a language which has no affinity with it, or with any
other known language in the world, except a sensible analogy with the
Circassian, spoken from the sea of Asoph to the Caspian sea. The Turks also
acknowledge an affinity between their language and the Hungarian, and call the Hungarians
their brothers. This is to be understood of the original words of their
primitive language; for the modern Turkish is chiefly composed of Persic and
Arabic, as may be seen in the modern dictionaries of the Turkish language,
printed at Vienna, principally that by Miniski of the Arabian, Persian, and
Turkish languages, at Vienna, in 1680, and reprinted at London by the care of
Mr. Jones of Oxford, in 1771. These Hungari are called by some of the Byzantine
historians, Magiars and Turks, which word signifies any vagabond people. The
ancient Scythians were in the middle ages called Huns, and often Turks; which
names they changed at home in later times into that of Tartars, this last
denomination being derived from the name of a famous great king Tatar or
Tartar, who reigned among them in Asia, and gave his name first to a particular
tribe among them near the confines of China. (See the new Universal History, t.
20, Jos. Assemani (loc. cit.) et Peysonnel Observ. Hist. et Geogr. in 4to.
Paris, 1763.) Jo. Pray, Annales Hunnorum, Avarum et Hungarorum, Viennæ, 1770.
fol. 4 vol.
Arpadus was leader and general of the
Hungarians, when they settled in Pannonia, from whom St. Stephen was the fifth
in a lineal descent. Constantine Porphyrogenetta (c. 40, 41,) describes the
boundaries of their conquests and kingdom to have been on the East Bulgaria and
the Patzinacitæ, who about the same time made themselves masters of the country
towards the mouth of the Danube and north to Valachia and Transylvania; on the
west Moravia, where then reigned Sphendoplocus; and beyond Belgrade the
Dalmatians. (See Joannes Eberhardi Fischeri Questiones Academicæ. 1. De Origine
Hungarorum. 2. De Gente et Nomine Tartarorum. 3. De Nominibus variis Imperii
Sinensis. 4. De Hyperboreis, Gottingæ, 8vo.) Abulgasi informs us, that the
original Tatars or Tartars inhabited the country near the lake Boronor, now
Kokoner, between the sandy deserts of Gobi and Tibet, mentioned by Du
Halde. Boro and Koko have almost the same signification in
the language of the Kalmouks, the present inhabitants of that region, the
descendants of these most ancient of the Tartars. The white Tartars, who are
employed by the Chinese in keeping their wall, are a different people, inhabit
the country from the eastern coast of the Caspian sea to the borders of
Siberia, speak the Turkish language, and are Turks or Huns. All these were
called Scythians. The great conqueror Gingiskan, or rather Diskinchis-kan, was
not a Tartar, but from Mogol. With an army partly of Indians from Mogol, but
chiefly of Tartars, of two millions of men, he overran all the East, as the
Armenian, Persic, and Arabic Annals inform us. (Ib. Disquis. 2.) See F.
Desericius, De Initiis et majoribus Hungarorum, Budæ, 1748; and Deguignes,
Hist. des Huns, l. 6, p. 512. [back]
Note 2. The Poles, Bohemians, Dalmatians, and
Istrians, are originally Sclavonians, who seized those countries in several
migrations. The ancient country of the Slavi or Slavonians lay in certain
provinces of that part of Sarmatia which is at present called Great Russia, or
Muscovy, as Joseph Assemani shows, (t. 1, part 2, c. 5, p. 292.) See D’Anville,
p. 32. These Slavi were a people very different from the rest of the Scythians
called Huns, no less than from the Goths, as the same learned author proves,
(ib. c. 8, et t. 2, c. 9,) though the Slavi have been sometimes confounded with
the Hunni. Lechus led a numerous colony of these Slavonians into Poland, became
the founder of that nation, and built Genesna about the year 550. His brother
Zechus settled another colony of the same people in Bohemia, expelling hence
the Marcomanni who in the reign of Augustus had subdued the Boii, a nation
which had been possessed of that country five or six hundred years, and whose
name it still retains. (ibid.) Miceslas duke of Poland died in the year 999,
whilst his ambassadors were at Rome. His son and successor Boleslas I. surnamed
Chabri or the Great, took the title of king of Poland in the year 1000, and was
acknowledged in that quality by the Emperor Otho III., the pope, &c. This
prince vanquished the Bohemians and Moravians, subdued Red Russia, took Kiow,
and raised Poland to that pitch of grandeur which it has ever since maintained,
and which received a great accession in 1316, by the marriage of Jagello,
called afterwards Uladislas V. duke of Lithuania, with Hedwige, heiress of
Poland. [back]
Note
3. This is expressly
affirmed by Ditmar, Turoczius, and all contemporary writers, and demonstrated
by Stilting, § 19, p. 504, et § 20, p. 507, against Schwartzius and some other
Protestants. The salutary laws which St. Stephen enacted, and which were
confirmed in a general assembly of the bishops and noblemen of his kingdom, are
recorded by Stilting, § 34, p. 547, and others. [back]
Note 4. Decreto 2, c. 4; Decreto 1, c. 2,
3. [back]
Note
5. L. 1, De Servorum Dei Beatific. et
Canoniz. c. 41. [back]
Note 6. L. 19, De Civ. Dei, c. 3, p.
544. [back]
Note
7. Ib. l. 9, c. 4, p. 220. [back]
Rev. Alban Butler
(1711–73). Volume IX: September. The Lives of the Saints. 1866.
King St. Stephen on the 10,000 forint Hungarian banknote (2014)
Banconota da 10000 fiorini ungheresi che rappresenta re Stefano emesso nel 1998
Weninger’s
Lives of the Saints – Saint Stephen, King of Hungary
Article
Saint Stephen, who is
justly called the Apostle of the Hungarians, on account of his unwearied zeal
in disseminating the true faith, was born in Hungary. His father, Geisa, was a
renowned leader and general of the wild Huns and ruled over them with the title
of Duke. Severely as he treated his heathen subjects, he was mild to the
Christians who came into his dominions, and when God had bestowed upon him the
grace of recognizing the truth of the Christian religion, he determined to
establish it in his land. One day, when, occupied with this thought, he laid
himself down, an angel appeared to him in his sleep, who announced to him that
he would become father to a son, who was chosen by God to execute all that he
was just now revolving in his mind. The angel further said, that on the
following day, a messenger of God would come to him, whom he should receive,
and to whose words he should listen with due reverence. A similar vision was
shown, at the same time, to the wife of Geisa. Saint Stephen, the protomartyr,
appeared to her, and, among other things, told her to give his name to the
child to whom, she was soon to give birth. Saint Adalbert, bishop of Prague,
arrived on the following day. He instructed the duke and duchess in the truth
and baptized them. The prince who was soon afterwards bom, was joyfully
received into the Church of the Lord by the holy bishop, who gave him, in
Baptism, the name of Stephen. Geisa led an edifying life until he died.
When Stephen had arrived
at manhood, and had taken the reins of government, he resolved most earnestly,
to exterminate all idolatry among his people, and everywhere to plant the
emblem of the Christians, the Cross. To be more secure in his pious
undertaking, he formed an alliance with the neighboring princes in order to
prevent them from assisting those of his subjects who might oppose his design.
Notwithstanding this, some of the Hungarian nobility dared to take up arms in
defense of idolatry, and to make war against their legitimate Lord. Saint
Stephen, full of trust in the Almighty, met the rebels with his small force and
defeated them so completely, that in future none ever dared refuse him
obedience. The great and rich booty of which Saint Stephen became possessed on
this occasion, he appropriated to the building of a Monastery in honor of Saint
Martin, a native of Hungary. The Saint then invited from different Catholic
lands, priests and religious men to Hungary to instruct the people. Those who
were converted were favored with many privileges and immunities by the devout
prince, while the refractory were dealt with in such a manner, that they were
prevented from opposing others in embracing Christianity. In various cities and
villages he erected Churches and Chapels, endowing them all richly. The number
of the faithful grew in a short time so much, that he divided Hungary into ten
dioceses, to all of which he endeavored to give holy bishops. He sent a certain
bishop Anastasius to Rome, to request the Pope to confirm all he had done for the
propagation of the Christian faith, and also to beg the holy Father to proclaim
him King, so that he would be invested with greater power, happily to conclude
the conversion of the entire country. During the night on which Anastasius
arrived at Rome, an Angel informed the Pope of Saint Stephen’s request, and
commanded him to give to the Saint’s ambassador the crown which he had designed
for another prince. Inexpressibly rejoiced at everything that Anastasius
related to him, the Pope confirmed what Saint Stephen had done to disseminate
the faith of Christ, and granted him the privilege to act further as he and his
bishops thought the welfare of the Church demanded. He also sent him the crown
and a cross of gold which should be carried before him after the coronation. No
sooner had Anastasius returned, than Saint Stephen was solemnly anointed and
crowned as first King of Hungary. After this he married Gisela, the sister of
the holy emperor Henry, a princess not less talented than pious, who assisted
him most assiduously in all his virtuous undertakings. Besides Saint Stephen’s
apostolic zeal in spreading the true faith, his charity and generosity deserved
the admiration of the world. He was almost prodigal in distributing alms, and
spared neither his own garments nor the royal treasures. He often washed the
feet of the poor, visited the hospitals during the night and served the sick.
Many hours of the night he passed so devoutly in prayer, that he frequently
went into ecstasy and was raised high above the earth. The hours of the day he
devoted most earnestly to the affairs of the government, and every one of his
subjects had free access to him. He indulged neither in hunting, gaming, nor
other similar amusements, giving all his time to the administration of the
state and devout exercises; “for,” said he, “they are more pleasing to me than
hunting, gaming and whatever else may amuse a king.” Towards the Queen of
heaven, whom he called “My Lady,” he was most devout from his tender youth and
he chose her as patroness of Hungary. To her honor he built a most magnificent
temple at Alba, where he resided. He built churches in her honor in several
cities not in his dominions, as at Jerusalem, at Rome and at Constantinople,
and to these he attached large convents. Hence, it is not surprising that the
divine Mother protected her faithful servant, as the following events will
prove.’ When the emperor Conrad II. invaded Hungary with his army, Saint
Stephen humbly begged his holy patroness to take him under her mighty protection.
Then, at the head of his army, he went to meet the much stronger forces of the
enemy. The following day, when every one expected that a battle would take
place, an imperial message arrived, ordering all the generals of the emperor’s
army to retreat without showing any hostility to the Hungarians. In this
manner, the king won a bloodless victory, which he gratefully ascribed to his
heavenly patroness. In truth, the Queen of heaven had rescued him; for, the
emperor knew nothing of the message nor the order it contained, and when his
generals showed him his own hand and seal, he was convinced that Saint Stephen
was under the protection of a higher power, and marched away with his forces.
At another time, four of the most distinguished noblemen entered into a plot
against the holy king, and one of them came into the royal apartment during the
night, to murder him. On entering, the dagger, which he had concealed under his
cloak, fell upon the floor, and the noise of it aroused the king, who was sick.
He asked who was there, and the man, trembling with fear, cast himself at his
feet, discovered the plot, and entreated his pardon. Stephen recognized again
the motherly protection of the Blessed Virgin, and out of love for her,
pardoned him, but committed his accomplices into the hands of justice. Speaking
of the sickness of the holy king, we must not omit to relate that God visited
his servant, notwithstanding his fidelity and zeal, with great sorrows. He sent
him a sickness which lasted three years, and what was still more painful,
deprived him, by an early death, of all his children except one son. Saint
Stephen brought up this son, who was called Emeric, with the greatest care, and
wrote, with his own hand, several instructions for him which he desired him to
observe. Foremost among these were, that he should remain faithful to the
Catholic faith, protect and disseminate it; that he should show due honor and
obedience to the clergy; that he should cherish his subjects; attend to his
prayers with fervor; be generous to the poor and suffering; deal out justice,
and submit himself in adversity to the will of the Almighty. Emeric manifested
in his conduct that he endeavored to live according to these holy precepts, and
thus gave inexpressible peace and comfort to his father. The king daily begged
the Almighty to preserve the life of this beloved son, that the Christian faith
might have a protector in him. But this son also, whose holy life was an
example of all Christian virtues, was destined to die before his father’s eyes,
whose grief was too great for words; but greater still was his heroic
resignation to the will of the Most High. He even conquered himself so far as
to thank God that He had called his beloved son before him into the Kingdom of
heaven.
The holy son was soon
followed by the holy father. When his last hour, which God revealed to him,
approached, he devoutly received the holy Sacraments, and then exhorted the
bishops and the first men of the state to Christian charity and union; to rule
with justice; to remain true to their faith; and not only take the utmost care
to protect this, the only faith instituted by Christ, but also to propagate it
more and more. After this, the dying Saint turned his eyes to God and his
blessed patroness, Mary, and addressing the latter, he said: “To thee, O Queen
of heaven, and to thy guardianship, I commend the holy Church, all the bishops
and the clergy, the whole kingdom, its rulers and inhabitants; but before all,
1 commend my soul to thy care.” In such devout sentiments, he died, on the
festival of the Assumption of Our Lady, his greatly venerated patroness. He was
truly a great king, adorned with all the virtues of a Christian. His holy body
gave out a heavenly fragrance, and the health of many infirm was restored by touching
the sacred relics. The hand with which the holy king had distributed so many
generous alms, and which had done so many acts of kindness to the sick and the
unfortunate, remained incorrupt long after his death.
Practical Considerations
• The whole life of Saint
Stephen shows that he labored much for the honor of God and the spiritual and
temporal welfare of man; and that he bore the crosses God laid upon him with
Christian patience. For all this he now receives his reward in heaven: because
his intentions were always holy, and his heart was free from sin. If you desire
to be rewarded for your good works, and for what you do and suffer, your
intentions, while working and suffering, must be good, as was told to you
yesterday. But at the same time, you must be iu a state of grace; for, the holy
church teaches: first, that we can earn a reward from God through our good
works, because God has promised to recompense them. Secondly; that we can gain
heaven, or an eternal reward in heaven by our good works, if they are performed
in the proper manner. The judgment which Christ pronounces on the last day when
he will invite the just to take possession of the heavenly kingdom as a
recompense for their good works, is sufficient proof of this. It is, however,
also necessary to know that we must be in a state of grace, that is, not
burdened with a mortal sin, if we desire to obtain heaven by our good works;
for, the grace of God is the root of all supernatural merits. When we perform
our labors, or suffer, in a state of disgrace, in a mortal sin, we cannot
expect, for such work or suffering, a reward in heaven, however good the works,
or however bitter the suffering may have been. “And if I should distribute all
my goods to feed the poor and have no charity, it profits me nothing,” to gain
an eternal reward. Thus writes Saint Paul(1st Corinthians 13) Hence, if you
desire an eternal reward for your works and your sufferings, take heed that you
may be constantly in a state of grace.
• The holy king continued
his good works and his patient suffering in a state of grace until his last
hour. Hence he now enjoys an eternal reward. Had he, in the last year, nay,
even in the last hour of his life, committed a mortal sin and died in it, he
would not have received a recompense in heaven either for his good works, or
his sufferings. For, the true faith teaches that, by committing a mortal sin,
we lose all the merits of the good works we had previously performed. The words
of God testify to the truth of this: “But if the just man turn himself from his
justice and do iniquity all his justice which he hath done shall not be
remembered and in his sin he shall die.” (Ezekiel 18) Learn from this what harm
may be done by one mortal sin, and how earnestly we should endeavor to avoid
it. If you were sure that you would lose all you possess, for which you have
labored many years with care and pains, if you committed a mortal sin, tell me,
would you consent to do it? Most assuredly, you would not, unless you had lost
all your good sense. Why then do you commit sin so wantonly when you are
assured that you will thereby lose much greater possessions, even the entire
treasure of your merits? Is not this loss and the loss of heaven much more to
be considered than that of all your temporal possessions? Ah, consider this
earnestly, and be not your own enemy; do not injure yourself. “They that commit
sin and iniquity, are enemies to their own souls.” (Tobias 12) What has been
said above is for every one; but the following words are especially for those
parents whom death early deprives of their children. Many are sad at this, they
murmur and complain against God. They ought to remember the conduct of the holy
king Stephen, when he lost his beloved, kind and pious son; and they should
endeavor to imitate him. That they should grieve or weep when death takes a
child from them, is no sin, provided they remain within the limits of Christian
patience and resignation. But to grieve immoderately, and to murmur and
complain against God, is sinful. Tell me, you sad father, you weeping mother,
who is it that has taken your child from you? Is it not God, the Lord over the
life and death of all men? Does not your child belong more to the Almighty than
to you? Does He wrong you by taking it from you? Not in the least. He is the
Lord and Creator; He can take His own whenever He likes. Or shall He first ask
your permission? Shall He account to you why He does it? I trust that you do
not entertain so unreasonable a thought. Why then do you murmur and complain
against your God? You must know that what God did, was done either out of love
for the child, or, from love to you. Perhaps God, reading the future knew that
by your immoderate love or the bad education you would give to your child, you
would draw upon yourself eternal misery. Perhaps He saw that your child would
become a slave to sin and vice, and lose heaven. Is it not, therefore a sign of
love towards you and your child, that God took it early to Himself? You ought
to rejoice at the happiness it has attained, if it died in innocence Could you
have procured for him greater felicity? It ought surely to be enough for you to
know that God demanded your child. The Lord called it away. What more can you
require? If you will act sensibly, submit to the decrees of Providence, and
confess before God, that you subject your will to His. Offer to Him the grief
that death has caused you, and remember that all that God does is well done.
Say with Holy Writ: “It is the Lord, let him do what is good in his sight.” (1
Kings 3)
MLA
Citation
Father Francis Xavier
Weninger, DD, SJ. “Saint Stephen, King of Hungary”. Lives
of the Saints, 1876. CatholicSaints.Info.
30 April 2018. Web. [php] echo date(‘j F Y’);[/php].
<https://catholicsaints.info/weningers-lives-of-the-saints-saint-stephen-king-of-hungary/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/weningers-lives-of-the-saints-saint-stephen-king-of-hungary/
Pictorial
Lives of the Saints – Saint Stephen, King
Geysa,
fourth Duke of Hungary, was, with his wife, converted to the faith, and saw in
a vision the martyr Saint Stephen, who told him that he should have a son, who
would perfect the work he had begun. This son was born in 977, and received the
name of Stephen. He was most carefully educated, and succeeded his father at an
early age. He began to root out idolatry, suppressed a rebellion of his pagan
subjects, and founded monasteries and churches all over the land. He sent to
Pope Sylvester, begging him to appoint bishops to the eleven sees he had
endowed, and to bestow on him, for the greater success of his work, the title
of king. The Pope granted his requests, and sent him a cross to be borne before
him, saying that he regarded him as the true apostle of his people. His
devotion was fervent. He placed his realms under the protection of our Blessed
Lady, and kept the feast of her Assumption with peculiar affection. He gave good
laws, and saw to their execution. Throughout his life, we are told, he had
Christ on his lips, Christ in his heart, and Christ in all he did. His only
wars were wars of defense, and he was always successful. God sent him many and
sore trials. One by one his children died, but he bore all with perfect
submission to the will of God. When Saint Stephen was about to die, he summoned
the bishops and nobles, and gave them charge concerning the choice of a
successor. Then he urged them to nurture and cherish the Catholic Church, which
was still as a tender plant in Hungary, to follow justice, humility, and
charity, to be obedient to the laws, and to show ever a reverent submission to
the Holy See. Then, raising his eyes towards heaven, he said. “O Queen of Heaven,
august restorer of a prostrate world, to thy care I commend the Holy Church, my
people and my realm, and my own departing soul.” And then, on his favorite
feast of the Assumption in 1038, he died in peace.
Reflection – “Our duty,”
says Father Newman, “is to follow the Vicar of Christ whither he goeth, and
never to desert him, however we may be tried; but to defend him at all hazards
and against all comers, as a son would a father, and as a wife a husband,
knowing that his cause is the cause of God.”
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/pictorial-lives-of-the-saints-saint-stephen-king/
Statue
de saint Étienne devant le château de Buda
King
Saint Stephen's modern sculpture, Buda Castle, Budapest
Statue
de saint Étienne devant le château de Buda
King
Saint Stephen's modern sculpture, Buda Castle, Budapest
ST STEPHEN OF HUNGARY
(A.D. 1038)
The people whom we call
Magyars came into the country of Hungary during the last years of the ninth
century, settling in the land around the Danube from several districts to the
east of it, under the general leadership of a chief called Arpad. They were a
fierce and marauding people and met Christianity in the course of their raids
into Italy, France and westward generally. St Methodius and others had already
planted the faith in Pannonia, but it was not until the second half of the
tenth century that the Magyars themselves began to pay any serious
consideration to the Church. Geza, the third duke (voivode) after Arpad, saw
the political necessity of Christianity to his country, and (encouraged by St
Adalbert of Prague) he was baptized and a number of his nobles followed his
example. But it was largely a conversion of expediency, and had the usual
result of such conversions: the Christianity of the converts was largely
nominal. An exception to this was Geza's son, Vaik, who had been baptized at
the same time as his father and been given the name of Stephen (Istvan); he was
then only about ten and so had not acquired pagan ways and fixed habits of
mind. In the year 995, when he was twenty, he married Gisela, sister of Henry,
Duke of Bavaria, better known as the Emperor St Henry II, and two years later
he succeeded his father as governor of the Magyars.
Stephen was soon engaged
in wars with rival tribal leaders and others; and when he had consolidated his
position he sent St Astrik, whom he designed to be the first archbishop, to
Rome to obtain Pope Silvester II's approval for a proper ecclesiastical
organization for his country; and at the same time to ask his Holiness to
confer upon him the title of king, which his nobles had long pressed him to
assume and which he now asked that he might with more majesty and authority
accomplish his designs for promoting the glory of God and the good of his
people. Silvester was disposed to grant his request, and prepared a royal crown
to send him with his blessing, acting no doubt in concert with political
representations from the Emperor Otto III who was then in Rome. At the same
time the pope confirmed the religious foundations which the prince had made and
the elections of bishops. St Stephen went to meet his ambassador upon his
return and listened, standing with great respect, to the pope's bulls whilst
they were read; to express his own sense of religion and to inspire his
subjects with awe for whatever belonged to divine worship, he always treated
the pastors of the Church with great honour and respect. The same prelate who
had brought the crown from Rome crowned him king with great solemnity in the
year 1001.[1]
Firmly to root
Christianity in his kingdom and to provide for its steady progress after his
own time, King Stephen established episcopal sees only gradually, as Magyar
clergy became available; Veszprem is the first of which there is reliable
record, but within some years Esztergom was founded and became the primatial
see. At Szekesfehervar he built a church in honour of the Mother of God, in
which the kings of Hungary were afterwards both crowned and buried. This city
St Stephen made his usual residence, whence it was called Alba Regalis to
distinguish it from Alba Julia in Transylvania. He also completed the
foundation of the great monastery of St Martin, begun by his father. This
monastery, known as Martinsberg or Pannonhalma, still exists, and is the mother
house of the Hungarian Benedictine congregation. For the support of the
churches and their pastors and the relief of the poor throughout his dominions
he commanded tithes to be paid. Every tenth town had to build a church and
support a priest; the king himself furnished the churches. He abolished, not
without violence, barbarous and superstitious customs derived from the former
religion and by severe punishments repressed blasphemy, murder, theft, adultery
and other public crimes. He commanded all persons to marry except religious and
churchmen, and forbade all marriages of Christians with idolators. He was of
easy access to people of all ranks, and listened to everyone's complaints, but
was most willing to hear the poor, knowing them to be more easily oppressed and
considering that in them we honour Christ who, being no longer among men on
earth in His mortal state, has recommended to us the poor in His place and
right. It is said that one day, while the king was distributing alms in
disguise, a troop of beggars crowding round him knocked him down, hustled him,
pulled at his beard and hair, and took away his purse, seizing for themselves
what he intended for the relief of many others. Stephen took this indignity
humbly and with good humour, happy to suffer in the service of his Saviour, and
his nobles, when they heard of this, were amused and chaffed him about it; but
they were also disturbed, and insisted that he should no more expose his
person; but he renewed his resolution never to refuse an alms to any poor
person that asked him. The example of his virtue was a most powerful sermon to
those who came under his influence, and in no one was it better exemplified
than in his son, Bd Emeric, to whom St Stephen's code of laws was inscribed.
These laws he caused to be promulgated throughout his dominions, and they were
well suited to a fierce and rough people newly converted to Christianity. But
they were not calculated to allay the discontent and alarm of those who were
still opposed to the new religion, and some of the wars which St Stephen had to
undertake had a religious as well as a political significance. When he had
overcome an irruption of the Bulgarians he undertook the political organization
of his people. He abolished tribal divisions and divided the land into
"counties", with a system of governors and magistrates. Thus, and by
means of a limited application of feudal ideas, making the nobles vassals of
the crown, he welded the Magyars into a unity; and by retaining direct control
over the common people he prevented undue accumulation of power into the hands
of the lords. St Stephen was indeed the founder and architect of the
independent realm of Hungary. But, as Father Paul Grosjean, Bollandist, has
remarked, to look at him otherwise than against his historical background gives
as false an impression as to think of him as a sort of Edward the Confessor or
Louis IX. And that background was a very fierce and uncivilized one.
As the years passed,
Stephen wanted to entrust a greater part in the government to his only son, but
in 1031 Emeric was killed while hunting. "God loved him, and therefore He
has taken him away early", cried St Stephen in his grief. The death of
Emeric left him without an heir and the last years of his life were embittered
by family disputes about the succession, with which he had to cope while
suffering continually from painful illness. There were four or five claimants,
of whom one, Peter, was the son of his sister Gisela, an ambitious and cruel
woman, who since the death of her husband had lived at the Hungarian court. She
had made up her mind that her son should have the throne, and shamelessly took
advantage of Stephen's ill-health to forward her ends. He eventually died, aged
sixty-three, on the feast of the Assumption 1038, and was buried beside Bd
Emeric at Szekesfehervar. His tomb was the scene of miracles, and forty-five
years after his death, by order of Pope St Gregory VII at the request of King
St Ladislaus, his relics were enshrined in a chapel within the great church of
our Lady at Buda. Innocent XI appointed his festival for September 2 in 1686,
the Emperor Leopold having on that day recovered Buda from the hands of the
Turks.
There are two early lives
of St Stephen, both dating apparently from the eleventh century, and known as
the Vita major and the Vita minor. These texts have been edited in Pertz, MGH.,
Scriptores, vol. xi. A certain Bishop Hartwig early in the twelfth century
compiled from these materials a biography which is printed in the Acta
Sanctorum, September, vol. ii. Other facts concerning the saint may be gleaned from
the Chronica Ungarorum edited in Endlicher's Monumenta, vol. i. Although the
supposed bull of Silvester II is certainly spurious, and although very serious
doubts have been raised as to the genuineness of the crown alleged to have been
sent by the pope, still there does seem to be evidence of special powers
conferred by papal authority which were equivalent to those of a legate a
latere. The belief, however, that St Stephen was invested with the title of
"Apostolic King" is altogether without foundation. See e.g. the
article of L. Kropf in the English Historical Review, 1898, pp. 290-295. A very
readable, but rather uncritical, life by E. Horn (1899) has appeared in the
series "Les Saints". For more reliable and detailed information we
have to go to such Hungarian authorities as J. Paulers, Mgr Fraknoi and Dr
Karácsonyi. In a later volume of the Acta Sanctorum, November, vol. ii, pp.
477-487, the Bollandists, when dealing with the life of Bd Emeric, have
discussed many points which have a bearing on the history of the king, his
father. Among the publications marking the ninth centenary of the death of St
Stephen were F. Banfi, Re Stefano il Santo (1938), and B. Hóman Szent István
(1938); the last has been translated into German (1941). See also Archivum Europae
centro-orientalis, vol. iv (1938); and C. A. Macartney, The Medieval Hungarian
Historians (1953).
[1] The alleged bull of
Pope Silvester granting the title of Apostolic King and Apostolic Legate to St
Stephen, with the right to have a primatial cross borne before him, is a
forgery, probably of the seventeenth century. The upper part of the crown sent
by the pope, fitted on to the lower part of a crown given to King Geza I by the
Emperor Michael VII, is preserved at Budapest.
SOURCE : http://www.katolikus.hu/hun-saints/stephen.html
Santo Stefano
d'Ungheria Re
Festa: 16 agosto - Memoria
Facoltativa
Esztergom, Ungheria, ca.
969 - Budapest, Ungheria, 15 agosto 1038
Di nobilissima famiglia,
e gli ricevette da bambino una profonda educazione cristiana. Consacrato re
d'Ungheria nella notte di Natale dell'anno mille con il titolo di "re
apostolico", organizzò non solo la vita politica del suo popolo, riunendo
le 39 contee in unico regno, ma anche quella religiosa gettando le fondamenta
di una solida cultura cristiana. Egli divise il territorio in diocesi, eresse
chiese monasteri, fra cui quello famoso di San Martino di Pannonhalma, ed
appoggiò il clero servendosi come collaboratori di Benedettini di Cluny. Aveva
sposato una principessa, Gisella di Baviera, ora venerata come Beata, che lo
sostenne nella sua opera e che alla sua morte si richiuse nel monastero
benedettino di Passau. Anche il loro figlio Emerico è venerato come Santo.
Santo Stefano d’Ungheria potrebbe essere considerato modello e patrono delle
anime chiamate da Dio per missioni di colossale portata. Il segreto per cui lui
ottenne la radicale trasformazione del suo popolo fu il compiere la sua
vocazione tra le braccia di Maria.Nel 1083 il pontefice San Gregorio VII sancì
la elevatio corporis di tutti coloro che convertirono la Pannonnia al
cristianesimo, in primis il re Stefano. Il Beato Innocenzo XI promulgò la sua
canonizzazione equipollente il 28 novembre 1686. San Paolo VI fissò la
memoria facoltativa di Santo Stefano d'Ungheria al 16 agosto, giorno seguente
il suo anniversario di morte. In entrambe le date è ricordato dal Martirologio
Romano. Sino al Messale Romano del 1962 la data della festa era il 2 settembre.
Patronato: Ungheria
Etimologia: Stefano
= corona, incoronato, dal greco
Martirologio
Romano: Santo Stefano, re d’Ungheria, che, rigenerato nel battesimo e
ricevuta da papa Silvestro II la corona del regno, si adoperò per propagare la
fede cristiana tra gli Ungheresi: riordinò la Chiesa nel suo regno, la arricchì
di beni e di monasteri, fu giusto e pacifico nel governare i sudditi, finché a
Székesfehérvár in Ungheria, nel giorno dell’Assunzione, la sua anima salì in
cielo.
(15 agosto: A Székesfehérvár in Pannonia, nell’odierna Ungheria, anniversario
della morte di santo Stefano, re di Ungheria, la cui memoria si celebra
domani).
Nell’anno 983 venne consacrato vescovo di Praga Adalberto, un personaggio dietro al cui nome germanico si celava in realtà un autentico slavo, Voytech, appartenente a una nobile famiglia della Boemia. Quando la principessa Adelaide gli chiese di inviare missionari in terra ungherese, egli finì per unirsi a loro e a lungo si è sostenuto che proprio ad Adalberto si dovesse la conversione del principe magiaro Geza, che venne da lui battezzato nel 985 insieme al figlio Vajk, al quale fu imposto il nome di Stefano e che diventerà il vero artefice della definitiva cristianizzazione dell’Ungheria.
In verità, gli storici, di recente, hanno manifestato seri dubbi circa il fatto
che sia stato Sant’Adalberto ad amministrare il battesimo a Stefano, al quale
fu imposto tale nome assai probabilmente in onore del santo protomartire
patrono della diocesi di Passavia, che svolse un ruolo decisivo nella
conversione di Geza e delle genti magiare.
Fondatore della chiesa ungherese
Stefano nacque fra il 969 e il 975, intorno al 995-996 sposò Gisella, figlia del Duca di Baviera e nel 997 succedette al padre sul Trono d’Ungheria. Ciò lo costrinse a un’aspra guerra contro un altro pretendente alla Corona, e nel 1000 Papa Silvestro II, con il beneplacito dell’Imperatore Ottone III, gli fece pervenire le insegne regali: nel Natale di quello stesso anno Stefano fu consacrato e incoronato primo Re di Ungheria.
Tra i più importanti provvedimenti da lui adottati, vi fu quello riguardante la strutturazione della Chiesa ungherese: a questo proposito la tradizione gli attribuisce la creazione di dieci diocesi e la fondazione e il consolidamento di numerose abbazie, tra le quali spicca quella benedettina di Pannonhalma.
Egli stabilì poi che venisse costruita una chiesa comune ogni dieci villaggi. La cristianizzazione del popolo ungherese operata dal santo re si effettuò nel segno della riforma cluniacense. Per altro egli si mantenne in corrispondenza con l’abate di Cluny Odilo.
Inoltre, Stefano fece venire dall’estero molti ecclesiastici, affinché collaborassero alla sua opera di evangelizzazione: il più famoso di questi fu san Gerardo, proveniente da Venezia, che diventò vescovo e che perse la vita in seguito a una rivolta pagana.
Stefano ebbe massimamente a cuore la sicurezza dei pellegrini che si recavano in Terra Santa: rese meno precario il loro cammino lungo le terre balcaniche e fece costruire a Gerusalemme un alloggio per gli ungheresi che là si recavano.
È opportuno ricordare che la nuova chiesa da lui creata, con le scuole erette presso i capitoli e i chiostri, pose la basi dell’insegnamento in Ungheria. Stefano si dimostrò pure un valente sovrano, capace di rafforzare il suo regno e di condurre un’equilibrata politica estera.
Il santo re morì nel 1038 e fu canonizzato nel 1083, dopo che il nuovo sovrano Ladislao si era fatto protettore del suo culto, presentandosi così come il suo erede spirituale e una sorta di secondo fondatore del regno cristiano d’Ungheria.
La canonizzazione sarebbe avvenuta per ordine del papa Gregorio VII e alla
presenza di un suo legato. Particolarmente interessante risulta il fatto che
Stefano fu il primo sovrano medievale a essere santificato come “confessore” e
non come martire, a motivo dei meriti religiosi da lui acquistati durante la
vita: in Stefano la figura del re giusto si fonde con quella del santo
cristiano e ciò rappresentò subito la chiara dimostrazione che un sovrano può diventare
santo al fianco della Chiesa.
Un culto sempre vivo nella devozione degli ungheresi
La Legenda maior che lo riguarda fa di Stefano un autentico soldato di Cristo, sempre assistito da una schiera di santi: non bisogna dimenticare a questo proposito che anche la moglie Gisella, che negli ultimi anni di vita divenne badessa di un monastero benedettino bavarese, è annoverata tra i santi e le sue reliquie sono ancora oggi assai venerate e meta di continui pellegrinaggi.
Vi sono poi una Legenda Minor, che ci tramanda l’immagine di un re Stefano energico e rigoroso, e una terza leggenda, che potrebbe essere stata composta dal vescovo di Gyor Arduino, la quale aggiunge numerosi particolari sulla vita e l’opera di Stefano: per esempio, in essa si racconta come il santo re, in punto di morte, avesse offerto il proprio regno alla Vergine Maria.
La novità più significativa contenuta in questa leggenda di Arduino è
rappresentata dal racconto della canonizzazione del 1083. Il culto di Santo
Stefano non si è mai appannato nel corso dei secoli e ancora oggi è assai vivo
in Ungheria: la sua festa è la più importante e la più sentita dal popolo
magiaro, che la celebra con particolare partecipazione. L’iconografia di
Stefano è assai ricca: egli vi appare sempre come il re saggio, magnanimo e
devoto.
Autore: Maurizio Schoepflin
Ippolito Scarsella (1551–1620), The
Virgin Receiving St Stephen of Hungary in Paradise, seconda metà del XVI sec.,
80 x 67, Collezione privata
Padre e figlio battezzati insieme: sono Geza, principe dei Magiari, e suo figlio Vaik, che prende il nome di Stefano; l’anno è il 973/974. Ancora pochi decenni prima, i Magiari o Ungari atterrivano l’Europa con le loro micidiali spedizioni di preda, troncate poi nel 955, con una strage, dal futuro imperatore Ottone I di Sassonia. Geza avvia un’opera di enorme difficoltà: radicare nella terra questo popolo che vi era stato sempre attendato; sostituire la tenda con la casa, il lavoro nelle terre proprie al saccheggio di quelle altrui. Morto lui, tocca a Stefano l’impresa di dare agli Ungari uno Stato con indipendenza garantita. Qui è fondamentale l’aiuto di Silvestro II, il papa dell’anno Mille, che si fa patrono dell’Ungheria con un segno chiarissimo: manda a Stefano da Roma la corona regia, insieme al titolo di “re apostolico” (che durerà fino alla caduta dell’Impero austroungarico, nel 1918).
L’opera di Stefano richiederebbe lo sforzo di generazioni: è duro sostituire il nomadismo con la stabilità. Il re deve inventare un’amministrazione dello Stato, e si ispira al modello occidentale dei “comitati” o contee; sviluppa ancora l’opera di suo padre per la diffusione del cristianesimo, creando subito una struttura di vescovadi e di monasteri (questi, con la regola di Cluny) e tenendo d’occhio personalmente la disciplina del clero. Buoni successi ottengono i missionari cechi, molto popolari (sono compatrioti del grande Adalberto di Praga, che ha dato la cresima a Stefano). Stefano si rivela un sovrano avanzato per il suo tempo anche con le Admonitiones, che sono un apprezzato vademecum del buongoverno.
Ma deve fare i conti con resistenze durissime alla sua legislazione e al suo sforzo per una cristianizzazione rapida. Ha contro di sé anche alcuni parenti, che aspettano soltanto la sua morte per ribellarsi. E Stefano non ha un erede diretto, perché il suo unico figlio, Emerico, è morto in giovanissima età.
Morendo, designa allora a succedergli un mezzo italiano, suo nipote dal lato materno: Pietro Orseolo, figlio del doge veneziano Pietro II. Il nuovo Stato ungherese c’è, e fra gli alti e bassi della storia vedrà compiersi il suo primo millennio. Ma alla morte di Stefano incomincia una stagione torbida, per motivi politici e per motivi religiosi. Il nuovo re Pietro Orseolo, poco dopo la proclamazione, viene già spodestato. Recupera poi il trono con l’aiuto tedesco, e infine nel 1046, ancora sconfitto, sarà accecato e ucciso. Le lotte continuano in varie parti del Paese, anche con l’uccisione di missionari cristiani, tra cui quella di san Gerardo e dei suoi compagni. Ma al ritorno della tranquillità il cristianesimo è già profondamente radicato in gran parte del Paese.
Autore: Domenico Agasso
