Saint
Chrodegang de Metz, vitrail de la chapelle Sainte-Glossinde, Metz.
Vetrata con San Crodegango; Metz, cappella di Santa Glossinda
Saint Chrodegang, évêque
Né vers 712 en Belgique, dans le pays de Hesbaye, Chrodegang fut élevé au monastère bénédictin de Saint-Trond où il apprît à connaître la règle de saint Benoît. Il suivit d’abord la carrière civile et fut chancelier de Charles Martel. Il conserva cette charge sous Pépin-le-Bref, même après sa nomination au siège épiscopal de Metz, le 1er octobre 742.
A la mort de saint Boniface, à partir de 754, il remplaça celui-ci comme légat
du pape en Germanie et continua son œuvre d’évangélisation. Attentif à la vie
de ses prêtres, il ranima chez eux l’esprit de ferveur et organisa les
chanoines de sa cathédrale sous le mode canonial. Il montra le même zèle pour
l’observance religieuse dans les monastères de son vaste diocèse et fonda, vers
749, la célèbre abbaye de Gorze, qui deviendra ensuite un chef d’Ordre. En 752,
il fut choisi par Pépin pour une ambassade délicate auprès du Pape Etienne II,
menacé par les Lombards. Les chantres qu’il ramena de Rome furent à l’origine
de l’école grégorienne de Metz dont il est considéré comme le fondateur. De
Rome également, il ramena les usages liturgiques. Il eut part à presque toutes
les affaires importantes de son temps. Il mourut le 6 mars 766. Son corps fut
inhumé dans l’abbaye de Gorze.
Saint Chrodegang
37e evêque de
Metz (+ 766)
Archevêque de Metz et confesseur.
Il fut l'un des premiers à adopter puis à propager en Gaule la liturgie romaine de Rome et le chant grégorien naissant. Il donna aux chanoines des collégiales et des cathédrales une règle de vie fraternelle. Il fut inhumé à l'abbaye de Gorze qu'il avait fondée.
Sur le site du diocèse de Metz où il est fêté le 3 octobre: Archevêque de 742 à 766.
"Sous les Carolingiens, grâce à saint Chrodegang et à Drogon, le diocèse
connaît une des plus brillantes périodes de son histoire : les paroisses
urbaines et rurales se multiplient et les monastères soumis aux règles de saint
Colomban et de saint Benoît s'implantent des rives de la Moselle à celle de la
Sarre et de la Blies. Saint Chrodegang, légat pontifical pour le royaume des
Francs (754), attache son nom à une règle canoniale, à la réforme de la
liturgie et à celle du chant religieux." (Histoire du Diocèse de Metz)
Saint Chrodegang fut l'un des plus illustres évêques du VIIIe siècle. Premier
ministre de Charles Martel, puis de Pépin, il fut ordonné évêque de Metz le 1er
octobre 742. A la mort de Boniface, il remplaça celui-ci comme légat du pape en
Germanie et continua son œuvre d'évangélisation. Attentif à la piété des
prêtres de son diocèse, il ranima l'esprit de ferveur des premiers siècles, fit
du chapitre de sa cathédrale une communauté régulière, donna à ses chanoines et
à ses clercs une règle exemplaire. Il montra le même zèle pour l'observance
religieuse dans les monastères de son vaste diocèse et fonda, vers 749, la
célèbre abbaye de Gorze. En 752, il fut choisi par Pépin pour une ambassade
délicate auprès du pape Etienne, menacé par les Lombards. Les chantres qu'il
ramena de Rome furent à l'origine de l'école grégorienne de Metz dont il est
considéré comme le fondateur. Il eut part à presque toutes les affaires
importantes de son temps. Il mourut le 6 mars 766. Son corps fut inhumé dans
l'abbaye de Gorze. Une relique importante est conservée à la cathédrale.
"Né vers 712 en Belgique, dans le pays de Hesbaye, il fut élevé au monastère bénédictin de Saint-Trond où il apprît à connaître la règle de saint Benoît. Ses parents étaient nobles et de race franque. Aussi suivit-il la carrière civile et fut-il chancelier de Charles Martel. Il conserva cette charge sous Pépin-le-Bref, même après sa nomination au siège épiscopal de Metz, le 1er octobre 742.
A la mort de saint Boniface, il remplaça celui-ci comme légat du pape en Germanie et continua son œuvre d'évangélisation.
Attentif à la vie de ses prêtres, il ranima chez eux l'esprit de ferveur de la première communauté de Jérusalem et fit du chapitre de la cathédrale une communauté régulière auquel il donna la désignation d'Ordo canonicus.
Il montra le même zèle pour l'observance religieuse dans les monastères de son vaste diocèse et fonda, vers 749, la célèbre abbaye de Gorze, qui deviendra ensuite un chef d'Ordre.
En 752, il fut choisi par Pépin pour une ambassade délicate auprès du Pape Etienne II, menacé par les Lombards.
Les chantres qu'il ramena de Rome furent à l'origine de l'école grégorienne de Metz dont il est considéré comme le fondateur. De Rome également, il ramena les usages liturgiques et il en résulta ce que Cyrille Vogel appelle 'un cérémonial romano-franc ou romanogermanique'.
Il eut part à presque toutes les affaires importantes de son temps.
Il mourut le 6 mars 766. Son corps fut inhumé dans l'abbaye de Gorze."
Martyrologe romain du 6 mars: À Metz, en 766, saint Chrodegand, évêque, qui
rédigea une règle de vie, pour les prêtres de son diocèse qu'il réunit en
chapitres de chanoines, pour qu'ils vivent dans la vertu à l'intérieur du
cloître; il promut aussi merveilleusement le chant d'Église.
Martyrologe romain
La vie de Saint
Chrodegang
Camille Paul Cartucci,
Metz
La communauté de
paroisses Sainte Thérèse-Saint Symphorien a choisi comme patron commun st
CHRODEGANG. Sa vie a été écrite par Paul Diacre. Elle est étroitement liée à
l'histoire de l'Austrasie, de la fin des Mérovingiens à l'avènement des
Carolingiens. Qui était celui qui fut, comme pasteur, l'un des plus grands
évêques de METZ ?
Saint CHRODEGANG naît en
712 près de Liège. Ses parents sont des proches de Charles Martel, maire du
palais. En 722, Chrodegang a 10 ans. Il est placé pour ses études à l'abbaye
belge de st Trond. En 732, à 20 ans, il est nommé à Metz, à la cour de Charles
Martel, qui vient de repousser les Arabes à Poitiers. En 737, à 25 ans, il
devient chancelier de Charles Martel. En 742, Chrodegang a 30 ans. Il ajoute à
ses fonctions, après la mort de Charles Martel, celle d'évêque de Metz. Il est
ordonné le 1er octobre. A 36 ans, en 748, il fonde, dans la solitude de
vastes forêts, l'abbaye de Gorze, soumise à la règle de st Benoît, avec des
moines venus de Rhénanie. Ils seront vite assez nombreux pour essaimer en
Bavière et en Alsace. En 752, Chrodegang a 40 ans. Pépin le Bref vient d'être
sacré roi de France. Il choisit Chrodegang pour une ambassade délicate à Rome
auprès du pape Etienne II, menacé par les Lombards. Chrodegang ramène le pape à
st Denis, avec des chantres qui furent à l'origine de l'école grégorienne de
Metz, et l’accompagne durant son séjour en Francie (de 753 à 755). Chrodegang
est considéré comme le fondateur de cette Schola Cantorum.. Le chant dit
grégorien et les usages liturgiques de Rome se répandirent dans tout le pays,
malgré les hésitations du clergé franc à délaisser les coutumes gallicanes.
Chrodegang assista à
plusieurs conciles provinciaux: en 753 par exemple, à celui de Verberie. En
754, il prit part au concile de Quierzy-sur-Oise. De ce concile, il faut
retenir une affirmation majeure pour la théologie du salut : "Deus
omnipotens omnes homines SINE EXCEPTIONE salvos fieri vult". En 755,
Chrodegang participe au concile de Verneuil et, en 757, à celui de Compiègne.
Les conciles réformateurs dénonçaient la décadence du clergé. En 754, à 42 ans,
Chrodegang publie une règle de vie des chanoines, inspirée de st Augustin, et
fait du chapitre de la cathédrale une communauté régulière. Le terme de
"chanoine" ou "homme-canon" apparaît déjà en 536. Les
prêtres de la ville épiscopale étaient tenus à la vie commune et à l'office de
chœur, tout en menant une activité pastorale, notamment la prédication. Le
regroupement du clergé amena Chrodegang à construire des bâtiments
communautaires, à embellir la cathédrale et à restaurer plusieurs des 34
églises que comptait alors la ville. Le pape en fait son légat pour les
diocèses d'Austrasie. En 764, Chrodegang reçoit du pape les reliques des saints
martyrs romains, pour Gorze, St Avold et Lorsch, près de Worms, en Bavière. A
54 ans, le 6 mars 766, Chrodegang meurt à Metz, après "23 ans, 5 mois et 5
jours d'épiscopat". Son corps est inhumé à l'abbaye de Gorze, à laquelle
il avait légué de grands biens.
Son nom offre bien des
variantes: Chrodegangus, Chrotgandus, Godegrand, Rotgandus, etc. La rue messine
qui lui est dédiée l'écrit Chrodegand. C'était aussi l'orthographe dans la
liturgie du diocèse, jusqu'à la récente réforme, où il est redevenu Chrodegang.
La fête liturgique de st
Chrodegang fut longtemps célébrée à l'anniversaire de sa mort, le 6 mars.
Restant toujours éclipsée par le carême, elle a été transférée au 3 octobre,
anniversaire de son ordination épiscopale.
Les reliques du saint
furent transférées de Gorze à l'abbaye messine de st SYMPHORIEN, pour des
raisons de sécurité. Elles y furent conservées jusqu'à la Révolution, où elles
furent dispersées. Il en reste aujourd'hui une part à la cathédrale.
La seule église
diocésaine qui lui soit dédiée est celle d'Althorn, dans le pays de Bitche,
auquel on revient toujours.
En 1965, le diocèse de
Metz célébra le 12ème centenaire de la mort de st Chrodegang, archevêque, 36èmesuccesseur
de saint Clément sur le siège épiscopal de Metz. On rappela alors le triple
renouveau dont l'évêque fut à l'origine: liturgique, pastoral et monastique.
Chrodegang, en fidèle disciple de st Benoît, voulait une liturgie diocésaine de
qualité; il recommandait à ses clercs, outre la vertu d'humilité, la fidélité
quotidienne à la "lectio divina", la lecture perm
Parole de Dieu et une
charité vraiment apostolique.
Autel et statue de Saint Chrodegang dans l'abbatiale Sainte-Glossinde à Metz
Also
known as
Chrodegand
Chrodegangus
Chrodegrang
Chrodegrangus
Chrodogand
Chrodogandus
Chrotgang
Chrotgangus
Crodegando
Droctegangus
Godegrand
Godegrandus
Grodegandus
Grodegangus
Grodogangus
Gundigran
Krodegandus
Ratgang
Rodigang
Rudigangus
Ruggandus
Ruodgangus
Ruotgangus
Rutgangus
Sirigang
Sirigangus
Profile
Son of Sigram and
Landrada; related to Pepin
the Short; brother of Saint Opportuna
of Montreuil. Educated at Saint Trond abbey. Secretary to Charles
Martel. Chancellor of France.
Even while holding such positions, he went about in hair shirts, fasting, praying,
and supporting the poor. Bishop of Metz, France in 742 even
though he was still a layman.
Chief minister to Pepin
the Short. Ambassador to
the Vatican. Mayor of the Palace. Involved in the coronation of Pepin as King of
the Franks,
the first Carolingian king.
Defended Rome and
the papacy against
the Lombards.
Worked to reform the Frankish Church,
including educating the clergy,
and encouraging them to live in communities based largely on the Benedictine Rule.
Founded and restored churches and monasteries.
Introduced the Roman liturgy and Gregorian Chant to his see,
from which they spread to other parts of Europe.
Participated in several councils.
Born
c.714 at
Hesbaye, Brabant,
near Liege, Belgium
relics,
in the Benedictine Abbey of
Saint-Symphorien, were destroyed during the French
Revolution
Additional
Information
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of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
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Butler
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of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
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Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
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MLA
Citation
“Saint Chrodegang of
Metz“. CatholicSaints.Info. 5 February 2022. Web. 15 January 2025.
<https://catholicsaints.info/saint-chrodegang-of-metz/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-chrodegang-of-metz/
CHRODEGANG (Saint) Bishop
(March 6) (8th century) A noble Frank, Councillor and Chancellor of Charles
Martel, the famous champion of Christendom and victor of Poitiers. After the
death of Charles, Saint Chrodegang became Bishop of Metz. He met and escorted
Pope Stephen III when the latter visited France, and undertook for him a
mission to the king of the Lombards. His zeal for Church discipline was
remarkable and bore much fruit. The wise Rule he drew up for the government of
the Canons Regular would of itself serve to perpetuate his memory. He died
March 6, A.D. 766.
MLA
Citation
Monks of Ramsgate.
“Chrodegang”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 6
October 2012.
Web. 15 January 2025.
<http://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-chrodegang/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-chrodegang/
New
Catholic Dictionary – Saint Chrodegang
(703-766)
Confessor, Bishop of
Metz, born Hasbania, Belgium; died Metz,
Lorraine. Educated at the court of Charles
Martel, he became chancellor and
prime minister. He introduced the Roman liturgy and chant into
his diocese and
established community life for his cathedral clergy,
composing a special rule for them. He founded the Abbey of
Gorze and Saint Peter’s Abbey on
the Moselle, and introduced the League of Attigny, a confraternity of
prayer. Relics, in the Benedictine Abbey of
Saint-Symphorien, were destroyed during the French Revolution. Feast, 6
March.
MLA
Citation
“Saint Chrodegang”. New Catholic Dictionary. CatholicSaints.Info. 15
September 2012.
Web. 15 January 2025.
<http://catholicsaints.info/new-catholic-dictionary-saint-chrodegang/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/new-catholic-dictionary-saint-chrodegang/
St. Chrodegang
(Called also CHRODEGAND,
GODEGRAND, GUNDIGRAN, RATGANG, RODIGANG and SIRIGANG).
Bishop of Metz,
born at the beginning of the eighth century at Hasbania, in what is now Belgian Limburg,
of a noble Frankish family;
died at Metz,
6 March, 766. He was educated at
the court of Charles
Martel, became his private secretary, then chancellor, and in 737 prime
minister. On 1 March, 742, he was appointed Bishop of Metz,
retaining his civil office at the request of Pepin. In his influential position
St. Chrodegang laboured earnestly for the welfare of Church
and State, and was ever solicitous to strengthen the bonds of union between
the temporal and spiritual rulers. In his diocese he
introduced the Roman Liturgy and chant, community life for the clergy of
his cathedral,
and wrote a special rule for them. He founded (748) the Abbey of Gorze (near
Metz), and remained its friend and protector. He also established St. Peter's
Abbey, on the Moselle, and did much for Gengenbach and Lorsch. For the latter
he is said to have obtained the relics of St.
Nazarius, and for Gorze those of St.
Gorgonius. In 753 he was sent by Pepin to Pope
Stephen III to assure him of the sympathy of the Frankish rulers
against the inroads of Aistulf,
King of the Lombards. He accompanied the pope to
Ponthieu. After the death of St.
Boniface, Pope
Stephen conferred the pallium on
St. Chrodegang (754-755), thus making him an archbishop,
but not elevating the See
of Metz. St. Chrodegang was buried in the Abbey of Gorze. He was a man of
imposing appearance, of a mild, though firm, character, of great liberality to
the poor,
and of more than ordinary ability, well versed in Latin and German. The rule
containing thirty-four chapters which he gave his clergy (c.
755) was modeled according to the rules of St. Benedict and of the Canons of
the Lateran (Mansi,
XIV, 313; Hardouin,
IV 1181; Migne,
P.L., LXXXIX, 1097). Through it he gave a might impulse to the spread of
community life among the secular
clergy. It was later increased to eighty-six chapters (D'Archey,
Spicilegium, I, 656). In 762, during a dangerous illness, he introduced among
his priests a
confraternity of prayer known
as the League of Attigny.
Mershman,
Francis. "St. Chrodegang." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol.
3. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908. 6 Mar.
2016 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03729b.htm>.
Transcription. This
article was transcribed for New Advent by Christine J. Murray.
Ecclesiastical
approbation. Nihil Obstat. November 1, 1908. 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 : http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03729b.htm
March 6
St. Chrodegang, Bishop of
Metz, Confessor
From Paul the Deacon, l.
2. de Gest. Longob. c. 16. Henschenius, p. 453. Mabill. Annal. Ben. l. 22. t.
2. & Act SS. Ord. Ben. t. 4. p. 184. Ceillier, t. 18. p. 176. His life,
published by George Von. Eckart, Hist. Franciæ Orient. t. 1. p. 912. Also
Meurisse, Hist. des Evêques de Metz, l. 2.
A.D. 766
THIS saint, nobly born in
Brabant, then called Hasbain, was educated in the abbey of St. Tron, and for
his great learning and virtue was made referendary, chancellor of France, and
prime minister, by Charles Martel, mayor of the French palace, in 737. He was
always meanly clad from his youth; he macerated his body by fasting, watching,
and hair-cloths, and allowed his senses no superfluous gratifications of any
kind. His charity to all in distress seemed to know no bounds; he supported an
incredible number of poor, and was the protector and father of orphans and
widows. Soon after the death of Charles Martel, he was chosen bishop of Metz,
in 742. Prince Pepin, the son and successor of Charles, uncle to our saint by
his mother, Landrada, would not consent to his being ordained, but on the
condition that he should still continue at the helm of the state. Chrodegang
always retained the same sweetness, humility, recollection, and simplicity in
his behaviour and dress. He constantly wore a rough hair-shirt under his
clothes, spent great part of the night in watching, and usually at his
devotions watered his cheeks with tears. Pope Stephen III. being oppressed by
the Lombards, took refuge in France. Chrodegang went to conduct him over the
Alps, and King Pepin was no sooner informed that he had passed these mountains
in his way to France, but he sent Charles his eldest son, to accompany him to
Pont-yon, in Champagne, where the king was to receive him. The pope being three
miles distant from that city, the king came to meet him, and having joined him
alighted from his horse, and prostrated himself, as did the queen, his
children, and the lords of his court; and the king walked some time by the side
of his horse to do him honour. The pope retired to the monastery of St. Denys;
and King Pepin, in the year 754, sent St. Chrodegang on an embassy to Astulph,
king of the Lombards, praying him out of respect to the holy apostles not to
commit any hostilities against Rome, nor to oblige the Romans to superstitions
contrary to their laws, and to restore the towns which he had taken from the
holy see; but this embassy was without effect. The saint, in 755, converted the
chapter of secular canons of his cathedral into a regular community, in which
he was imitated by many other churches. He composed for his regular canons a
rule, consisting of thirty-four articles. In the first he lays down humility
for the foundation of all the rest. 1 He
obliged the canons to confess at least twice a year to the bishop, before the
beginning of Advent and Lent. 2 But
these churches, even that of Metz, have again secularized themselves. The saint
built and endowed the monasteries of St. Peter, that of Gorze, and a third in
the diocess of Worms, called Lorsh or Laurisham. He died on the 6th of March,
in 766, and was buried at Gorze, to which by his will, which is still extant,
he demised several estates. He is named in the French, German, and Belgic
Martyrologies.
The zeal of St.
Chrodegang in restoring the primitive and apostolic spirit in the clergy,
particularly their fervour and devotion in the ministry of the altar, is the
best proof of his ardour to advance the divine honour. To pay to Almighty God
the public homage of praise and love, in the name of the whole church, is a
function truly angelical. Those, who by the divine appointment are honoured
with this sublime charge resemble those glorious heavenly spirits who always
assist before the throne of God. What ought to be the sanctity of their lives!
how pure their affections, how perfectly disengaged from all inordinate
attachments to creatures, particularly how free from the least filth of
avarice, and every other vice! All Christians have a part in this heavenly
function.
Note
1. Ch. 14.
Note
2. See the other regulations abridged in Fleury, &c. the entire
rule published genuine in Le Cointe’s Annals, t. 5. and in the later editions
of the councils.
Rev. Alban
Butler (1711–73). The Lives of the Saints. Volume III : March.
1866.
SOURCE : http://www.bartleby.com/210/3/061.html
Chrodegang of Metz B (AC)
Born at Hesbaye, Brabant, near Liege, in c. 712-15; died at Metz, March 6, 776.
A near relative of Pepin the Short, Chrodegang was probably educated at Saint
Trond Abbey and became Charles Martel's secretary and chancellor of France.
Even then he went about in hair shirts and unostentatious clothing, fasting and
praying, and many of the poor depended entirely upon his charity.
In 742, shortly after the death of Charles Martel, he became bishop of Metz
though he was still a layman. So treasured was his advice by Martel's son Pepin
the Short that Pepin refused to allow the saint to be consecrated until Chrodegang
had promised to continue as his chief minister.
Thus, Chrodegang served as ambassador to Pope Stephen III for Pepin, mayor of
the palace, and was very much involved in the coronation of Pepin as King of
the Franks, the first Carolingian king, in 751, and in Pepin's defense of the
papacy and Rome against the Lombards and his restoration of the exarchate of
Ravenna, which he had won from the Lombards, to the Holy See.
Chrodegang's support for the papacy was of inestimable value at a time when the
Lombards had managed to force the pope into exile. Chrodegang himself safely
brought the pope over the Alps, and Pepin the Short welcomed him to France.
This bishop is of importance because of his continuation of the work of Saint
Boniface of Crediton in reforming the Frankish Church. Chrodegang put into
effect many ecclesiastical reforms in his see. In particular, he sought to
raise the standard of the clergy by suitable education and by encouraging them,
when possible, to live a common life together. For such communities he drew up
a rule, based in part on that of Saint Benedict. This movement spread and was
widely influential as the canons regular movement.
He was active in founding and restoring churches and monasteries, including the
abbey of Gorze, Italy, in 748; introduced the Roman liturgy and Gregorian Chant
in his see; and established a choir school at Metz, which became famous all
over Europe. He also participated in several councils.
Pope Stephen II having
conferred on him archepiscopal rank, and having full support of King Pepin the
Short, he was able to get his reforms taken up in neighboring dioceses. Saint
Chrodegang, we are told, was a man of handsome appearance and generous
disposition, a ready writer in Latin and in his own tongue, a man whose
character and abilities eminently fitted him to carry on the work Saint
Boniface had begun (Attwater, Benedictines, Bentley, Delaney).
SOURCE : http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0306.shtml
06.08.16, Bertram, The
Chrodegang Rules
Bertram, Jerome. The
Chrodegang Rules: The Rules for the Common Life of the Secular Clergy from the
Eighth and Ninth Centuries. Critical Texts with Translations and Commentary.,
Church, Faith and Culture in the Medieval West. Aldershot and Burlington,
VT.: Ashgate, 2005. Pp. 304. $99.95. ISBN: 0-7546-5251-3.
Reviewed by: M. A. Claussen
claussenm@usfca.edu
Although he is almost
omnipresent in the middle years of the eighth century--so much so that James
McKinnon dubbed him "the ubiquitous Chrodegang" [1]--Chrodegang,
bishop of Metz from sometime in the 740s until his death in 766, had not
received the attention such an epithet might warrant, especially in the Anglophone
world. I would guess that most Carolingianists recognize him, as do those whose
interests lie in the development of early western music, but beyond a
French Festschrift from 1967, [2] and some important articles by
Josef Semmler, he has been more known than studied. [3] But all that has
changed in the last few years: we seem to be in the midst of a virtual
Chrodegangian Renaissance. Three monographs that have substantially focused on
Chrodegang have been published since 2003: Brigitte Langefeld's study of the
Anglo-Saxon versions of Chrodegang's rule for cathedral canons came out that
year; [4] my own book on Chrodegang's rule was published in early 2005; [5] and
now comes Jerome Bertram's editions, translations, and commentaries on not only
the Regula canonicorum , but also the Institutio canonicorum from
the 816 council of Aachen, and the so-called Longer (or Interpolated ) Rule ,
from the ninth or tenth century.
In the Forward, Bertram
sets out very clearly the reasons for his undertaking the task of translation.
After praising the idea of the religious common life, he states that "many
of the much-publicized problems among the isolated Catholic clergy could be
alleviated if a form of community life could be re-established." In other
words, the goal of the book--like that of Chrodegang's own rule--is essentially
pastoral. Bertram seeks to re-form the life of the clergy, by re- establishing
an old pattern of life, and thus, in many ways, the book is a polemic. This
fact must be borne in mind throughout the whole of the text.
Chapter One opens by
offering an interesting contrast between an 'Augustinian' and 'monastic' vision
of the common life of clerics: the adherent of the former believe that almost
all the clergy lived a style of life based on the Acts summaries until the time
of Constantine, and such a conversatio continued after the
establishment of the church, as one can find in texts from Eusebius of
Vercelli, Ambrose, and Augustine. On the other hand, the far more numerous
proponents of a 'monastic' interpretation of the clerical common life view it,
from its inception, as a sort of second-class monasticism. Bertram firmly
places Chrodegang in the first camp, and argues vigorously that, whatever some
of our sources say, he did not seek to 'monasticize' his clergy.[6] Bertram
offers then a short and sometimes very unreliable history of canons and clergy,
based, as far as I can tell, on some very old scholarship. For instance, he
does not seem to know Josef Semmler's article on the ubiquity of the common life
of clerics in northern Europe, even before the Carolingian period: instead
Bertram often perceives this as one of the distinctive Anglo-Saxon
contributions to the Middle Ages.[7] In fact, this is perhaps the greatest
problem in the book: while Bertram of course was not able to draw on books in
press as he was writing, he often relies on scholarship that is rather old or
very odd. For instance, his bibliography has more titles by Margaret Deanesly
than any other author, but he cites only one work by Semmler, one by J. M.
Wallace-Hadrill, one by David Ganz, and so forth. Likewise, when he delves into
the question of celibacy in the early church, the only work he cites (and only
in his bibliography) is a book recently published by San Francisco's very
partisan Ignatius Press. Thus, one should turn with only the greatest caution
to The Chrodegang Rules for context and general history.
The heart of the book is
in the presentations and translations of the three texts mentioned in the
title. Although the title itself promises "critical texts", Bertram
tells us that he "has provided the Latin according to the most accessible
editions": he offers the Rule of Chrodegang in the 1937 Pelt
edition; the Aachen Institutio canonicorum in the 1904 MGH
Werminghoff edition; and Longer Rule based on Cambridge Corpus
Christi College ms 191, edited by Napier for EETS in 1916, with some
emendations. With the publication of Langefeld's book, however, Napier has been
superseded, and her text should be consulted instead. Werminghoff based his
work on over seventy extant manuscripts, and his is still the best edition
available, but there are some problems with Pelt, who was himself a bishop of
Metz. For his own reform efforts, Pelt produced text of the Rule of
Chrodegang based on the 1889 edition of Wilhelm Schmitz. [8] But a couple
of years after Schmitz's text was published, a new, and more reliable,
manuscript containing the rule was discovered, and its publication offered a
variety of emendations. [9] Pelt took these changes and made the appropriate
adjustments to Schmitz's edition. But Pelt faced two problems. First, he did
not note, or even probably know, of all the variants between the two
manuscripts; and second, the manuscript upon which Schmitz based his edition is
mainly written in shorthand, which Pelt could not read. What we need is a new
edition of Chrodegang's rule based on all four extant manuscripts, and done by
someone who can read Tironian notes.
Chapter Two is concerned
with Chrodegang's rule. Bertram begins with a sort of historical introduction
to Chrodegang and mid-eighth century Francia, and then offers a commentary on
the rule itself. This is the material I know best, and it is in the historical
section that we see Bertram at his weakest: his scholarship is most dated, even
at the level of the basic facts, and he proffers as truths notions that had
been refuted fifty years ago. But once he turns his eyes to the rule, Bertram
can be most insightful. While our interpretations might differ, it is clear
that Bertram can be a most sensitive reader of texts, and, unlike others who
have deemed Chrodegang nothing more than a mediocre plagiarist, Bertram shows a
real appreciation for the bishop's originality. Moreover, he has a clear
understanding of the limits of Chrodegang's education and especially his
Latinity, which he will use to some effect in the next chapters.
The next chapter deals
with the legislation from Aachen in 816. Bertram states that the reform program
begun during the time of Pippin the Short continued throughout the reign of his
sons and grandson, but "always in close communication with the Pope, and
under considerable influence from England" (84). Although few would agree
with this statement any more, he does note that throughout the Carolingian period,
revivifying the clergy was seen as the key to enlivening the whole church.
Louis the Pious continued this work begun by his father and his father's
advisors, and called together a council to legislate for the life of both monks
and secular clergy. The result is the Institutio canonicorum .
Bertram notes that there is no evidence that the council fathers, although
writing rules for the lives of canons and priests, knew of the work of
Chrodegang, and he suggests that this is because of Chrodegang's sometimes
flawed Latin: it was simply too barbaric to be read! Whatever the case,
Chrodegang's work seems to have had no real influence on the imperial decrees
issued. The legislation consists of five parts: a prologue, two different
patristic catenae drawn mainly from Isidore, Gregory the Great, and 'Julianus'
Pomerius (with a little Augustine and Jerome), a florilegium drawn from
councilor pronouncements, and a regula canonicorum . Bertram presents
and translates the prologue and the rule, along with an appended letter from
Louis to some archbishops who did not attend the meeting, but omits the 113
chapters taken from earlier material. Although this decision is certainly
understandable, it is a shame: the patristic and conciliar dossier that makes
up the bulk of the legislation provided not only a justification for the rule
that followed, but would offer the reader a fine sense of what leading
ecclesiastics thought their priests ought to know. The Aachen regula
canonicorum is most interesting, and, as Bertram argues, it shows all the
signs of being written by committee (for instance, c. 114 seems to argue that
monks are 'better' than canons, while the next chapter comes to the exact
opposite conclusion). His suggestion of Benedict of Aniane as a potential
author seems more than plausible, though it would need to be argued more than
he does.
The final chapter
presents the oddest of the three texts, the so- called Regula longior .
This is a heavily interpolated rule based on that of Chrodegang, but also
including material drawn from the 816 Aachen council, and from other sources as
well. This text forms the basis of Langefeld's study, and her book should be
consulted instead of Bertram's: she presents a better edition, as well as a
more detailed commentary.
Bertram, as he promises,
delivers a pretty good text of all three works he examines. His translations
into English are generally accurate and fluid, and although one can always
quibble with some choices, he also has some lovely renditions which capture the
spirit, if not always the most literal sense, of the texts with which he is
working (for instance, "vultu rigidu" becomes
"sour-faced"!). Like so many translators, he does tend to fall into
the King James Version when he comes to biblical texts, but this seems a
relatively small fault, and probably more a matter of taste than anything else.
A greater problem, unfortunately, is the publisher's decision to present the
editions and the translations separately, rather than side by side, a decision
which makes cross-checking a toilsome experience. Despite this handicap,
however, the publication or translation of almost any early medieval text is a
cause to rejoice, and Bertram here has done our community a significant
service. Faculty members can send undergraduates (and even graduate students
who lack the time or the language skills to engage the Latin) working in early
medieval history to these texts (though, again I repeat, probably not all of
the accompanying commentary) for a good entree into the world of non- monastic
history. And for that Bertram is to be commended.
NOTES:
[1] James McKinnon, The
Advent Project: The Later-Seventh-Century Creation of the Roman Mass Proper (Berkeley,
2000), p. 75.
[2] Saint
Chrodegang: Communications presentes au colloque tenu a Metz (Metz, 1967).
[3] For instance, see
Josef Semmler, "Monche und Kanoniker im Frankenreich Pippins III und Karls
des Grossen," in Untersuchungen zu Kloster und Stift ,
Veroffentlichungen des Max-Planck-Instituts fur Geschichte 68, Studien zur
Germania Sacra 14 (Freiburg, 1980), pp. 78-111; and idem ,
"Chrodegang Bischof von Metz 747-766," in Friedrich Knopp, Die
Reichsabtei Lorsch: Festschrift zum Bedanken an die Stiftung der Reichsabtei
Lorsch 764 , (Darmstadt, 1973) 1. 229-45.
[4] Brigitte
Langefeld, The Old English Version of the Enlarged Rule of Chrodegang,
Edited together with the Latin Text and an English Translation , Munchener
Universitatsschriften 26 (Frankfurt am Main, 2003).
[5] M. A. Claussen, The
Reform of the Frankish Church: Chrodegang of Metz and the Regula canonicorum in
the Eighth Century (Cambridge, 2004).
[6] The usually reliable
Paul the Deacon writes that Chrodegang "united the clergy, and converted
the sacred space within the cathedral cloister to the image of a monastery; and
he instituted a rule [norma ] for them, of how they must serve God in
church," Paul the Deacon, Gesta episcoporum Mettensium , ed. G.
H. Pertz, MGH SS 2. 260-70 at p. 268.
[7] Josef Semmler,
"Mission und Pfarrorganisation in der rheinischen, Mosel- und
Maaslandischen Bistumern (5.-10. Jahrhundert)," in Christianizzazzione
ed organizzazione ecclesiastica delle campagne nell'alto medioevo: espansione e
resistenze , Settimane di Studio sull'alto medioevo 28 (Spoleto, 1982),
pp. 813-888.
[8] Wilhelm Schmitz,
ed., S. Chrodegangi Mettensis episcopi Regula canonicorum (Hanover,
1889), based on Leiden, Universiteitsbibliothek, Voss. lat. 94.
[9] This manuscript is
Bern, Burgerbibliothek lat. 289, and was published by Adalbert Ebner,
"Zur Regula canonicorum des hl. Chrodegang," Romische Quartalschrift
fur christliche Altertumskunde und Kirchengeschichte (1891): 82-88.
SOURCE : https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/tmr/article/view/16195/22313
San Crodegando di Metz Vescovo
Hesbaye, Belgio, 712 – 6
marzo 766
Nacque nel 712 a Hesbaye
(Brabante) da Sigrammo e Landrada, ambedue nobili. Ricevuta una solida
formazione benedettina a venticinque anni nel 737, venne nominato cancelliere
del regno d’Austrasia. Il 30 settembre 742 venne consacrato vescovo di Mets.
Promosse la diffusione del monachesimo benedettino, fondando diverse abbazie a
Gorze nel 748,Gengenbach 741e altre. Si preoccupò molto del clero secolare e
promulgò il “ parvum decretulum n piccolo codice con il quale tentò di
riportare il clero alla retta via. Si recò a Roma nel 753 dove ricevette il
pallio. Presiedette a numerosi concili provinciali di Vernuel nel 755,
Compiègne nel 757 e Attigny. Morì il 6 marzo 766. Le sue reliquie si conservano
nel monastero di S. Sinforiano a Metz.
Martirologio Romano: A
Metz in Austrasia, nell’odierna Francia, san Crodegango, vescovo, il quale
dispose che il clero vivesse come tra le mura di un chiostro sotto una
esemplare regola di vita e promosse notevolmente il canto liturgico.
Codregando nacque nel 712 ad Hesbaye, nei pressi di Liegi in Belgio, da una nobile famiglia. I suoi genitori, di origine franca, lo fecero studiare presso l’abbazia di Saint-Trond. Giovane di bell’aspetto, molto educato ed ottimo linguista, Carlo Martello notò le sue grandi abilità e lo nominò capo del corpo diplomatico e giuridico al suo servizio. Morto Carlo Martello, il suo successore Carlo Magno nel 742 lo nominò anche vescovo di Metz. Codregando era però ancora laico e dovette dunque ricevere le ordinazioni diaconale, presbiterale e la consacrazione episcopale. Egli conservò inoltre la carica politica e sfruttò il prestigio conseguito dall’esercizio dei due incarichi sfruttò a fin di bene tutta la sua influenza. Quale ambasciatore di Pipino presso il pontefice Stefano II, Codregando si ritrovò direttamente coinvolto con la sconfitta dei longobardi in Italia, il passaggio alla Chiesa dell’esarcato di Ravenna e di altri territori e la stessa incoronazione di Pipino, avvenuta nel 754.
Codregando operò una profonda riforma del clero, che versava in quel periodo in una profonda crisi morale. Deciso ad ntervenire nella difficile situazione, iniziò proprio dai preti della sua città: riunì dunque in alcune case tutti gli ecclesiastici e fissò per loro una regola di vita ispirata a quella di San Benedetto. Il codice che applicò a Metz si componeva di trentaquattro capitoli ed ogni giorno, alla presenza di tutta la comunità, se ne leggeva uno: da ciò tali incontri presero il nome di “capitolo”. Ben presto tale nome venne esteso alle persone che presenziavano alle letture, mentre tutti coloro che erano legati ai canoni vennero chiamati “canonici” e coloro i quali seguivano una regola presero a definirsi “regolari”.
Altre norme di vita comunitaria vennero inserite in seguito, riguardanti clausura, domicilio, studio, liturgia, abito e pasti, ed erano volte a fornire agli ecclesiastici un sostegno reciproco nel rimanere fedeli al voto di castità ed agli altri impegni propri del clero. La principale differenza dai frati stava nella possibilità di avere beni i loro proprietà, abitudine che comunque successivamente fu messa in discussione. La regola di Codregando fu poi adottata da altre diocesi ed infine estesa da Carlo Magno a tutti i sacerdoti, che furono così tenuti ad essere o monaci o canonici. Questa regola riscontrò successo anche all’estero e nel corso dei secoli tornò ripetutamente in auge, seppur non nella forma originaria.
Su iniziativa di Codregando a Metz si introdussero anche il rito ed il canto romano, il cui repertorio tornò a Roma arricchito dalle composizioni galllicane e da lì si diffuse in tutta Europa. Fu rinnovata la “schola cantorum” di Metz e la sua fama durò per secoli. Nell’805 Carlo Magno addirittura ordinò che tutti i maestri di canto dovessero formarsi a Metz. Il santo vescovo si distinse anche nella costruzione e nel restauro di chiese, monasteri ed istituti di carità. Alla sua morte, il 6 marzo 766, ricevette sepoltura presso l’abbazia di Gorze, che egli stesso aveva fondata ed amata più di ogni altra. La tradizione vuole che alcune sue reliquie siano conservate anche presso la chiesa di Saint-Symphorien di Metz.
Autore: Fabio Arduino
SOURCE : http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/44080
CRODEGANGO, vescovo di
Metz, santo
di Carlo
SILVA-TAROUCA
Enciclopedia Italiana
(1931)
CRODEGANGO
(Chrodegangus), vescovo di Metz, santo
Educato nella scuola
palatina, fu referendario nella cancelleria di Carlo Martello, che nel 742 lo
nominò vescovo di Metz. Fu con S. Bonifazio uno dei principali restauratori
della disciplina ecclesiastica nella monarchia dei Franchi. Nel 748 fondò il
monastero di Gorze (vicino a Metz). Nell'anno 764 mandò una colonia di monaci
di Gorze a Lorsch, nella diocesi di Worms, divenuta poi celebre per la sua
biblioteca, oggi in gran parte conservata tra i codici Palatini della
Biblioteca Vaticana. Per queste sue fondazioni C. ottenne nel 765 da papa Paolo
I preziose reliquie. Il grande monumento dell'attività riformatrice di C. è
la Regula canonicorum, con la quale introdusse la vita comune tra il clero
della sua cattedrale e divenne in certo senso il fondatore dei capitoli
medievali. Nel 753 C. con il duca Autchar condusse in Francia papa Stefano II,
viaggio che diede luogo al patto di Kiersy (754) e all'alleanza dei papi con i
re franchi. Durante il soggiorno in Francia Stefano II conferì a C. il pallio e
la dignità di arcivescovo, nel qual grado egli sottoscrisse per primo il
celebre patto di Attigny del 762. Morì nel 766 e fu sepolto a Gorze.
Fonte principale per
la storia di C. è la vita di Paolo Diacono nelle Gestu episcoporum
Metensium (Monumenta Germaniae historica, Scriptores, II, 260-270).
Il testo primitivo della Regula canonicorum rimase ignoto fino alla
pubblicazione di W. Schmitz (S. Chrodegangi regula canonicorum, Hannover
1889), il quale diede in facsimile l'intero codice Vossiano 94 di Leida, con la
regola scritta in note tironiane.
© Istituto della
Enciclopedia Italiana fondata da Giovanni Treccani - Riproduzione riservata
SOURCE : https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/crodegango-vescovo-di-metz-santo_(Enciclopedia-Italiana)/
Den hellige Chrodegang av
Metz (~712-766)
Minnedag:
6. mars
Foreldrene Sigram
(Sigrammus) og Landrada (Landrade) tilhørte begge den østfrankiske høyadelen.
Han hadde to brødre, hvorav den ene het Gundelandus. Vi kjenner ikke navnet til
den andre, men han var far til Ingorammus, svigersønn til keiser Ludvig I den fromme (Louis
le Débonnaire) (814-40). Chrodegang var ikke i slekt med det karolingiske
kongehuset, men hans familie giftet seg altså senere inn i det.
Noen hevder at Chrodegang
trolig fikk sin utdannelse i klosteret Saint-Trond/Sint-Truiden (Trudonopolis),
noe bollandistene avviser, ettersom ikke bare hans biograf Paulus diakonen er
fullstendig taus om dette, men også krøniken i Saint-Trond, som ellers nevner
mange mindre betydelige detaljer om ham. Det er mye mer trolig at han ble
oppdratt blant de adelige ynglingene ved hoffet til frankernes
hushovmester (major domus) og reelle hersker Karl Martell (716-41).
Han var en fremragende lingvist ved siden av at han var tiltrekkende og
veloppdragen, så Karl Martell så hans eksepsjonelle kvaliteter. Etter at han var
ferdig med utdannelsen, utnevnte hushovmesteren ham først til sekretær,
deretter til kansler (732) og til slutt i 737 til «statsminister» eller leder
for de diplomatiske og juridiske sekretærkorpsene i hans tjeneste. Men
Chrodegang fortsatte med å gå i hårskjorte og enkle klær, fastet og ba, og et
stort antall fattige mennesker var helt avhengige av hans veldedighet.
I sin innflytelsesrike
stilling arbeidet Chrodegang oppriktig for statens og Kirkens velferd. Han
opptrådte som ambassadør for Pipin til pave Stefan II (III) (752-57) og bidro
til å etablere frankisk styre i Italia etter bekjempelsen av langobardene under
kong Aistulf (749-56). Eksarkatet Ravenna, som Pipin hadde vunnet fra
langobardene, ga han tilbake til Den hellige Stol. Da pave Stefan søkte hjelp
fra frankerne og Pipin den Lille, var Chrodegang en av dem som hentet paven i
Roma og fulgte ham over Alpene, hvor han den 28. juli 754 kronet og salvet
Pipin og hans to sønner Karloman og den salige senere keiser Karl den store (768-814;
keiser fra 800) til konger over franker-riket og Bertha til dronning. Dette
skjedde i klosteret St. Denis ved Paris, hvor paven hadde tilbrakt vinteren
alvorlig syk. Merovingerne var formelt avsatt i Soissons i 752.
Andre direktiver når det
gjaldt klausur, residens, studier, liturgi, klær og måltider var alle ment å
bidra til å etablere en form for fellesliv, kvasimonastisk i karakter, for å
sikre gjensidig støtte for en strengere observans av kyskhet og andre dyder som
var høvelige for den klerikale stand. Kanniker skilte seg fra munker spesielt
på et punkt: de hadde rett til egen eiendom og egne inntekter, en skikk som
senere ble utfordret. Chrodegangs bevegelse spredte seg og ble svært
innflytelsesrik. Karl den Store bestemte at alle klerikere som levde i
fellesskap, skulle følge reglene til Benedikt eller Chrodegang. Hans regel
spredte seg til Tyskland, Italia og England. I 816 ble Chrodegangs regel
anerkjent på synoden i Aachen.
I 748 grunnla Chrodegang
klosteret i Gorze (Gorcia) sørvest for Metz, som var hans
yndlingsgrunnleggelse og ble et fremtredende reformkloster, delvis
sammenlignbart med Cluny. Reformene fra Gorze gikk ut fra dette klosteret på
900-tallet. De sto i motsetning til reformene fra Cluny, for deres mål var et
munkevesen under verdslig herredømme, befridd fra pavens innflytelse.
Chrodegang etablerte også klosteret St. Peter i sognet St. Stefan ved elven
Moselle. I 761 sendte han munker fra Gorze til klosteret Gengenbach i
Schwarzwald og i 764/65 sendte han fjorten munker til den nye grunnleggelsen
Laurisheim (senere Lorsch) i Odenwald, som var grunnlagt av grev Cancro
(Canthuir) og hans mor Williswanda (Willislinda). Der innsatte han sin bror
Gundeland som første abbed.
Etter en alvorlig sykdom
i 762 sørget Chrodegang for at kong Pipin innkalte en synode i kongepalasset i
Attigny (Palatium Attiniacum) for de geistliges sjelefrelse (pro
causa religionis ac salute animarum). Ved siden av kong Pipin deltok 22
biskoper, fem abbedbiskoper og sytten abbeder, blant dem Chrodegang, den
salige Meingold av Würzburg (754-69;
d. 794) og de hellige Lullus av Mainz (754-86)
og Willibald av Eichstätt (741-87).
Synoden opprettet et bønnebrorskap som ble kjent som Ligaen av Attigny eller
Bønneforbundet av Attigny. Formålet var gjensidig bønn for de avdøde:
Medlemmene av forbundet, altså de tilstedeværende biskoper, abbedbiskoper og
abbeder, forpliktet seg og sine etterfølgere til når et av medlemmene døde, å
minnes ham med hundre psalter og messer, hvorav tretti av dem skulle feires
personlig. Avtalen bygde på prinsippet om gjensidighet og var rettslig
bindende. I 765 ble Chrodegang formann for forbundet.
I 765 var Chrodegang i
Roma for å hente dyrebare helgenrelikvier fra Roma til sine grunnleggelser i
Austrasia. Til Gorze brakte han relikviene av den hellige Gorgonius og til
Laurisheim (Lorsch) relikviene av den hellige Nazarius. Relikviene
av den hellige Nabor brakte han
den 24. august 765 til Hilariacum eller Nova Cella, som deretter ble kalt
Saint-Nabor, og rundt klosteret oppsto den byen som i dag heter Saint-Avold i
departementet Moselle i regionen Lorraine. Ved alle disse høytidelige
translasjonene var det et enormt folkeoppbud, og valfartene kom helt fra
Vogesene.
På veien tilbake
tilbrakte han natten i det berømte klosteret St. Mauritius og overga sin
dyrebare last i munkenes varetekt. Men neste morgen nektet munkene å gi
relikviene av Gorgonius tilbake. Da søkte biskopen støtte fra kong Pipin, som
ga ham tillatelse til å hente dem tilbake med makt om nødvendig. Men ingen
trusler kunne formildne munkene. Til slutt grep biskop Chrodegang et brekkjern,
og for øynene på de forbausede munkene begynte han å bryte opp skrinet med den
hellige Mauritius’ relikvier
for å kompensere. Da ga munkene de stjålne relikviene tilbake til Chrodegang og
fikk Mauritius’ relikvier tilbake.
Chrodegang døde den 6.
mars 766 i Metz, ifølge sin biograf etter 23 år, fem måneder og fem dager som
biskop. Han ble gravlagt i det nærliggende benediktinerklosteret Gorze, som han
selv hadde grunnlagt. I dag finnes hans relikvier i kirken Saint-Symphorien i
Metz. Paulus diakonen skrev Chrodegangs biografi. Hans minnedag er dødsdagen 6.
mars, mens augustinerkannikene og kanonissene feirer ham den 3. oktober.
Kilder:
Attwater/John, Attwater/Cumming, Farmer, Bentley, Butler (III), Benedictines,
Delaney, Bunson, Schauber/Schindler, Gorys, snl.no, KIR, CE, Patron Saints
SQPN, Infocatho, Bautz, Heiligenlexikon, santiebeati.it, en.wikipedia.org,
zeno.org, augustiniancanons.org, heiligen-3s.nl, saarland-biografien.de -
Kompilasjon og oversettelse: p. Per Einar Odden
Opprettet: 3. juni 1998
SOURCE : https://www.katolsk.no/biografier/historisk/cmetz
Chrodegang (ook Chrodegand of Rodegang) van
Metz (ook van Gorze of St-Truiden), Frankrijk; 37e
bisschop; † 766.
Feest 6 maart.
Hij was verwant met Pepijn III en werd rond 712 geboren ergens in het Brabantse land, wellicht in of bij St-Truiden. Zijn ouders heetten Sigram en Landrada. Hij kreeg zijn opleiding in de abdij van St-Truiden. Nadien werd hij kanselier en vervolgens, in 737, eerste minister onder Karel Martel († 741). Aan het hof leidde hij een uiterst sober leven en had zorg voor weduwen en wezen. Na de dood van bisschop Sigebald († 741; feest 26 oktober), werd hij het jaar daarop benoemd tot zijn opvolger op de zetel van Metz. Maar Pepijn was juist zijn gestorven vader opgevolgd en wenste hem om zich heen te houden aan het hof. Chrodegang speelde het klaar om al zijn functies te combineren.
Hij wist een zeer delicate diplomatieke missie bij de Lombarden tot een goed einde te brengen. Daarbij zorgde hij ervoor dat paus Stefanus II († 757), die door de Lombarden in Rome in gijzeling werd gehouden, kon ontkomen en een tijdlang in het Frankische land een veilig heenkomen kon zoeken. Deze schonk hem uit dankbaarheid de titel van aartsbisschop en de volmacht om in heel Gallië bisschoppen te wijden.
Uiteindelijk keerde hij terug in zijn bisdom en zette zich meteen aan de nodige hervormingen onder de geestelijkheid. Hij schreef een regel voor geestelijken die als kanunniken samenwoonden in een communiteit. Om meer eenheid te krijgen in de liturgie introduceerde hij de Romeinse liturgie en de Latijnse gezangen in zijn bisdom, en daarmee in Noord-Europa. Hij stichtte de abdijen van St-Pierre te Metz, van Gorze (749) en van Lorsch (764).
In 765 was Chrodegang in Rome om relieken in ontvangst te nemen van de
heilige martelaren Gorgonius,
Nabor en Nazarius. Hij wilde ze respectievelijk aan de kloosters te Gorze,
St-Avold (welke naam een verbastering is van Nabor!) en Lorsch ten geschenke
geven. Op de terugweg overnachtte hij in het beroemde St-Mauritiusklooster van
Sankt-Moritz en gaf zijn kostbare schat aan de monniken in bewaring. Maar de
volgende morgen weigerden de monniken hem de relieken van Gorgonius terug te
geven. Daarop zocht de bisschop steun bij Pepijn en kreeg van hem toestemming
om ze desnoods met geweld op te eisen. Geen dreigement kon de monniken
vermurwen. Tenslotte greep de heilige bisschop naar een breekijzer en begon
voor de ogen van de verbijsterde monniken de reliekschrijn van Sint Mauritius
open te breken om zich met diens relieken schadeloos te stellen. Toen gaven de
monniken hun diefstal toe en Chrodegang kreeg zijn relieken terug.
[Bei.1983]
Na zijn dood op 6 maart
766 werd hij bijgezet in ‘zijn’ abdij van Gorze.
[000»Arnulfus-Metz:39; Bdt.1925; Bly.1986p:47; Bri.1953; Bvl.1987p:36-37;
Ggd.1911p:85; Gué.1880/3p:188; Ha1.1838p:365; Lin.1999; Pra.1988p:39; Rgf.1991;
S&S.1989p:108; Dries van den Akker s.j./2008.02.07]
© A. van den Akker
s.j. / A.W. Gerritsen
SOURCE : https://heiligen-3s.nl/heiligen/03/06/03-06-0766-chrodegang.php
Mohr Walter, « Saint
Chrodegang. Communications présentées au Colloque tenu à Metz à l'occasion du
douzième centenaire de sa mort. [compte-rendu] », Cahiers de Civilisation Médiévale Année
1969 12-48 pp.
437-438 : https://www.persee.fr/doc/ccmed_0007-9731_1969_num_12_48_1504_t1_0437_0000_2
