Saint Anthelme de Chignin
Évêque de Belley (+ 1178)
Anthelme était né au château de Chignin en Savoie non loin de Chambéry et préféra la solitude de la prière avec le Christ à la vie mondaine et chasseresse des grands seigneurs. Il fut moine de Portes, puis de la Grande Chartreuse. Il reconstruisit la Grande-Chartreuse qu'une avalanche avait détruite et en devint le septième prieur. Ce fut lui qui fonda les premières chartreuses pour les femmes désireuses de mener une vie érémitique. Comme il avait dû punir deux de ses moines qui le méritaient, ceux-ci firent appel au pape Alexandre III, qui d'abord les soutint. Pour que règne la paix, saint Anthelme donna sa démission et rentra joyeusement dans le rang. Mais son bonheur dura peu. Le pape, mieux informé, revint sur sa décision, et pour comble, le nomma évêque de Belley. Il s'était pareillement brouillé avec l'empereur Frédéric Barberousse pour avoir refusé Victor IV, un antipape de fabrication impériale. Là encore la modestie d'Anthelme fut contrariée: l'empereur se réconcilia avec lui et l'éleva, lui et ses successeurs, à la dignité de prince du Saint Empire romain germanique. Il tenta en vain de servir de médiateur entre saint Thomas Beckett et le roi Henri II d'Angleterre.
43e évêque sur la liste épiscopale du diocèse de Belley-Ars: Saint Anthelme (1163-1178)
"La grande figure du XIIe siècle dans l’Ain est Saint Anthelme; Chartreux lui-même, il devient évêque de Belley de 1163 à 1178. Il lutte contre les abus et défend le peuple opprimé par le comte de Savoie. Entre le XIII siècle et le XVI siècle, villes et villages édifient leurs églises paroissiales, d’abord en style roman, puis gothique. Il nous reste, dans l’Ain, quelques beaux témoignages de l’ardeur et du talent de ces artisans et artistes, mis au service de la gloire de Dieu." (Diocèse de Belley-Ars - 2000 ans de vie chrétienne)
À Belley, en 1178, saint Anthelme, évêque. D’abord moine de la Grande Chartreuse, il reconstruisit les bâtiments ruinés par une avalanche; prieur, il convoqua un chapitre général; contraint par le pape d’accepter l’évêché de Belley, il mit un zèle infatigable et une intrépide fermeté à corriger les mœurs du clergé et des nobles.
Martyrologe romain
Nous recevons l’esprit d’amour qui vient en aide à notre faiblesse afin que nous chantions la joie d’être aimés de Dieu et de l’aimer. Le reste importe peu de ce que pensent de nous les hommes si nous restons fidèles à l’amour que Dieu nous demande de vivre et de transmettre.
Lectionnaire d’Emmaüs
Saint Anthelme
Saint Anthelme vit le jour au château
de Chignin, vers l’an 1106, fils d’Hardouin gentilhomme de Savoie, de
l’ancienne maison de Migain et d’une dame d’une naissance également illustre.
Ces parents très pieux lui donnèrent une éducation
très Chrétienne.
Devant une telle dévotion envers la religion, les
Évêques de Belley et de Genève se disputèrent le jeune Anthelme afin de
l’attacher à leur église et de le mettre au premier rang de leur chapitre.
Devant un tel engouement religieux, le choix
d’Anthelme se porta vers Belley où il fut nommé sacristain, employé
chargé de l’entretien de l’église et des objets de culte, principale dignité de
la Cathédrale.
Devant tant d’honneurs et de revenus, que sa position
lui apportait en plus de son riche patrimoine, il sut rester simple.
Beaucoup de personnes venaient le solliciter mais il
était plus enclin à venir en aide aux pauvres.
De ce fait sa maison devient vite une maison
d’hospitalité où les misérables trouvaient constamment de quoi soulager leurs
besoins.
Sa vie de dévotion lui laissa quelques désillusions.
Le monde ne lui paraissait plus digne de ses regards.
A force de méditation, il prend la résolution de
renoncer au monde et à tout ce qu’il avait aimé.
Il avait 25 ans, lorsqu’il se mit à visiter les
Monastères voisins principalement ceux des Chartreux.
A force de visiter ces Monastères, il se sentit de
plus en plus proche d’eux. Il rentra dans les Ordres vers 1135 par
l’entremise de Bernard de Portes, Évêque de Belley, de l’Ordre des
Chartreux.
En 1137, il reçut l’habit de Chartreux et confia
à ses amis, le soin de distribuer ses biens aux pauvres.
Quelque temps après, un éboulement de neige,
entraînant dans sa chute des rochers, détruisit presque en entier les cellules
de la Grande Chartreuse et vit périr six Religieux.
Hugues II, alors Évêque de Grenoble, demanda à
Anthelme de venir relever ces ruines et réparer un tel désastre.
Arrivé sur place il n’est nullement déconcerté par les
lieux isolés et hostiles, bien au contraire.
Résigné aux ordres de ses supérieurs, il fut
établi procureur de la Grande Chartreuse en 1138.
Il s’acquitta de ses pénibles fonctions avec prudence,
mais cela ne l’empêchât pas de suivre les règles de la Communauté.
Il s’employait à multiplier les activités manuelles
car l’oisiveté était considérée comme source de beaucoup de vices.
Dès les travaux manuels finis il rentrât dans sa
cellule et c’était là dans le silence et la méditation, qu’il puisait les
forces nécessaires pour triompher de toutes les difficultés et de tous les
ennuis qu’il rencontrait dans le gouvernement des affaires temporelles.
Il se chargeait si bien de sa tâche, qu’à l’âge de 33
ans il fut jugé digne d’en occuper la première charge.
Hugues 1er, alors Prieur de la Grande Chartreuse se
démit volontairement de sa charge, pour se consacrer à la Contemplation.
Il désirait être remplacé par Anthelme. Quelques uns
le trouvèrent sévère, mais tous se félicitèrent de l’avoir comme supérieur.
On disait de lui qu’il était l’œil de l’aveugle, le
bras de l’infirme et le pied du boiteux. Il s’évertua à suivre les traces de
ses prédécesseurs.
Sous son prieural, les Chartreuses se multiplièrent en
France et à l’étranger.
Il unifia aussi ces dernières qui étaient
indépendantes les unes des autres et soumises aux Évêques des diocèses.
Il fit le premier chapitre de l’Ordre des Chartreux en
rassemblant tout les Prieurs de chaque Chartreuse.
Il fut reconnu par chacun d’eux comme Grand
Prieur. Grâce à lui, l’Ordre acquit une grande réputation. Il fit reconstruire
la Grande Chartreuse et la fit prospérer.
Quand le siège épiscopal de Grenoble vint à être
libre, l’élection du nouveau prélat donna lieu à des divisions au sein du
diocèse.
Les Chartreux crurent devoir intervenir, sans doute
parce que l’Évêque défunt était lui même Chartreux.
Mais certains disciples Chartreux ennemis de la sévère
discipline d’Anthelme, portèrent l’affaire devant le Pape Eugène III.
Ils voulaient discréditer Anthelme. Son innocence fut
reconnue et lui donna un surcroît d’autorité.
Après 12 ans, à la tête de la Grande Chartreuse il se
retirât de ce rôle au bénéfice de Bazile de Bourgogne pour retourner
au rang de simple Prieur.
Il fut souvent appelé par Bazile afin de l’éclairer de
ses conseils.
Quelques années après, Dom Bernard de Varin,
Prieur de Portes désirant se retirer, supplia vivement Anthelme de le remplacer.
Ce dernier ne put rien lui refuser, car c’était lui
qui lui avait donné l’envie de rentrer dans les Ordres, de plus Anthelme était
à l’origine de cette Chartreuse.
Il prit ses fonctions en 1153 et régenta celle-ci avec
autant de rigueur que celle qu’il eut pour la Grande Chartreuse.
Au bout de deux ans, il se retira de son rôle de
Prieur de Portes pour revenir simple Prieur à la Grande Chartreuse.
A la mort du Pape Adrien IV en 1159, les
Cardinaux, le clergé et le peuple portèrent Roland, chancelier de l’église
Romaine, au poste de Pape.
Il fut proclamé sous le nom d’Alexandre III, le 7
Septembre 1159.
Lors de son intronisation au titre de Pontife, il se
vit retirer la Chappe écarlate, signe de l’investiture pontificale, par Octavien.
Ce dernier n’avait eu que deux votes de Cardinaux,
soutenus par l’Empereur Frédéric Barberousse.
Alexandre III avait combattu les ambitions de ce
dernier soutenant les intérêts du Pape. Cette élection provoqua un schisme.
En 1161, un Concile est convoqué à Toulouse. Les Rois
de France et d’Angleterre, plus de cent Évêques, un grand nombre de Seigneurs
des deux nations, plusieurs Cardinaux se déclarèrent pour Alexandre III et
excommunièrent Octavien.
L’Ordre des Chartreux exerçait une grande influence
dans l’église.
Anthelme, aidé de Geofroy, Abbé de l’Abbaye de Hautecombe
écrivit aux Abbés indécis pour leur expliquer la légitimité de l’élection
d’Alexandre III. Sur cet entre fait, ce dernier fut remis sur le trône
pontifical et le schisme prit fin.
A la mort de Ponce III, prélat de l’église
de Belley en 1162, le peuple se tournât vers le Pape Alexandre III afin que ce
dernier désigne son remplaçant.
Le Pape écrivit à Anthelme, lui ordonnant de se
charger de l’église de Belley et manda au Prieur de la Grande Chartreuse
de le forcer à prendre ce poste.
Devant une telle charge, il prit la fuite et
fut recherché par les Chartreux qui l’amenèrent peiner à Belley. Ils lui
exposèrent l’Ordre du Pape en lui montrant ses lettres ainsi que le
commandement du Prieur, mais Anthelme refusa.
Il lui fut proposé un choix : obéir au Pape ou
aller le trouver à Rome pour lui signifier son refus.
Flatté de cette espérance, il se mit en chemin. Le
Pape le reçut avec honneur, Anthelme lui demanda grâce et le pria de ne pas le
contraindre.
Le Pape réussit à le convaincre et le sacra
solennellement de sa main en 1163.
A son départ de Rome, Anthelme était devenu Évêque. Il
fut accueillit à Belley avec acclamations et grande joie.
Dans son palais épiscopal il vivait à l’identique que
dans sa cellule de la Grande Chartreuse. Malgré ses déboires avec l’Empereur
Frédéric Barberousse, Anthelme sut s’attirer ses faveurs mais n’en tira aucune
gloire ou profit personnel, mais plus au profit de son église.
Il remit de l’ordre dans son diocèse, créa des écoles
et parcourut son diocèse laissant des traces de sa charité et de sa sainteté.
En 1169, le Pape Alexandre III l’envoya en
Angleterre afin de mettre fin au long débat qui divisait Henri
II et Thomas de Cantorbéry.
Ce dernier savait combien la médiation d’Anthelme
avait été heureuse pour l’église et Thomas sollicita le Pape pour designer
Anthelme, pour conduire cette affaire délicate. Il ne put la conduire car
Thomas fut assassiné dans son palais.
Le 24 mars 1175, Anthelme reçut de l’Empereur
Barberousse le titre de "Prince du St Empire".
Il l’investit de la souveraineté de la ville de
Belley et de ses dépendances. Ces privilèges lui valurent des différents
avec le Comte de Savoie Humbert III.
A la fin de sa vie il refusa de rédiger son testament
car un Religieux ne possédait rien.
Sur son lit de mort tout le monde le pleurait, pendant
qu’il Bénissait.
Il mourut le 26 Juin 1178 alors âgé de 72 ans,
après avoir passé 30 ans dans un cloître et 15 ans dans l’épiscopat. Sa mort
fut longuement pleurée.
Il fut enseveli en habit de Chartreux paré de la
mitre, de la croix pectorale, de l’anneau et du bâton pastoral et enterré
à l’Abbaye de Hautecombe où le Roi Charles-Albert de Savoie fit
restaurer son mausolée qui avait été détruit durant la Révolution.
Peinture murale, église Notre-Dame de Myans, Savoie
Also known as
Anthelm de Chignin
Anthelme….
Anthelmus….
Profile
Born to the nobility. Priest. Provost of
a cathedral chapter.
He got caught up in Church politics,
and sought ecclesiastical positions to increase his power and authority rather
than ability to serve. A visit to the Carthusians at
Portes changed his view of his vocation, and he felt drawn to the monastic life.
At age thirty, Anthelm renounced his offices, and retired to the Carthusian monastery.
Within two years he was prior of
the mother house at Grande
Chartreuse; the monastery flourished
and increased in both numbers and holiness. During the Schism of 1158 he
supported Pope Alexander
II, earning him the enmity of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. Bishop of Belley, France;
he was so beloved that the town was briefly known as Anthelmopolis.
Several years later, Anthelm retired to solitude at Portes. Within months he
was asked to serve as prior of
the community there. Two years later Anthelm retired to Grande
Chartreuse, but was recalled to help mend a schism between King Henry
II and Thomas a
Becket in England.
Born
1105 at
Savoy
Additional Information
Book
of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Alban
Butler
Roman
Martyrology, 1914 edition
Saints
of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
books
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
other sites in english
Nobility
and Analogous Traditional Elites
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sitios en español
Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
sites en français
fonti in italiano
MLA Citation
“Saint Anthelm of Belley“. CatholicSaints.Info.
29 June 2020. Web. 26 June 2021.
<https://catholicsaints.info/saint-anthelm-of-belley/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-anthelm-of-belley/
.jpg)
Statue
de Saint-Anthelme dans l'église Saint-Pierre de Rossillon
Anthelm(us) of Belley, O.
Cart. B (RM)
Born near Chambéry,
Savoy, France, 1107; died June 26, 1178. Bishop Anthelm of Belley was a
nobleman born in the castle of Chignin. He became a priest early in life, but
after visiting the tranquil Carthusian monastery of Portes, decided to become a
monk and joined the Carthusians about 1137.
He eventually was elected
as the 7th abbot of the Grande Chartreuse in 1139. Anthelm was responsible for
guiding the Carthusians to evolve into a religious order separate from the
Benedictine. Charter houses had previously been separate and independent,
subject only to local bishops. Not only did he revitalize the order, he also
restored the physical facilities of the Charterhouse.
He summoned the first
general chapter, and Grande Chartreuse became the motherhouse. Anthelm
commissioned Blessed John the Spaniard to draw up a constitution for a
community of women who wished to live under Carthusian rule.
He resigned his abbacy in
1152 to live as a hermit but was made prior of Portes. During this time
(1154-56) he ordered the bounty that had accumulated as a result of the
monastery's prosperity to be distributed to those in need.
He returned to Grande
Chartreuse, still wishing to live a solitary life, but then he actively entered
the conflict over the nomination of Pope Alexander III, whom he supported,
against Emperor Frederick Barbarossa's choice, Victor IV. With the Cistercian
abbot Geoffrey, Anthelm galvanized support for Pope Alexander III, who then
nominated him to the see of Belley in 1163.
There he set out to
reform the clergy, a particular concern being that of celibacy, because some
priests practiced while being openly married. He also punished evil-doers. So
much did Anthelm endear himself to the people that, after his death, the city
was renamed Athelmopolis.
When Count Humbert III of
Maurienne violated the Church's jurisdiction over the clergy by imprisoning a
priest, Anthelm sent a clergyman to handle the matter. After the priest was
killed in a scuffle to rearrest him, Anthelm excommunicated the count. The pope
invalidated the ban, but Anthelm would not relent and returned to Portes in
protest. Relations between the pope and Anthelm remained open, however. He was
asked by the pope to go to England to try to bring about a reconciliation
between King Henry II and Saint Thomas a Becket, but unfortunately was unable
to travel.
Anthelm established a
community for women solitaries. To the end of his life, his heart was in his
beloved Charterhouse, which he visited on every possible occasion.
The good bishop spent his
last years tending to the lepers and the poor. He was distributing food in a
famine when he was felled by fever. As Anthelm lay dying, he was visited by
Humbert who sought his forgiveness. Miracles are said to have occurred at his
tomb, one being that, as he was lowered into the tomb, a lamp lit only for
great festivals kindled spontaneously (Benedictines, Delaney, White).
In art, Saint Anthelm,
with a miter at his feet, is a Carthusian with a lamp over him lit by a
celestial hand. At times Saint Peter may point out to him the place in the
Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or there may be a nobleman under his
feet (Roeder).
Saint Anthelm of Belley, Bishop
by Editor Staff
June 26
Today is the feast day of Saint Anthelm of
Belley. Ora pro nobis.
Saint Anthelm of Belley was born near
Chambéry, in Savoy, France in 1107. He would later receive an
ecclesiastical benefice in the area of Belley. When he was thirty years old, he
resigned from this position to become a Carthusian monk at Portes. Only two
years after joining the order, he was made the prior of the Grande Chartreuse,
the motherhouse of his order.
He was an effective administrator. While under his
direction, the community increased in numbers. He restored and improved the
buildings, including constructing a defensive wall and an aqueduct. The rules
of the order were standardized, and changed to allow women the opportunity to
enter the order in their own houses. He also brought the other houses of the
order into closer alignment with the motherhouse. The monks under his direction
included Hugh of Lincoln, who expressed great fondness for Anthelm.
Anthelm continued in his office almost constantly for
twenty-four years, barring a period of a few years when he was a hermit. After
that period, in 1152, Anthelm returned to the Grand Chartreuse, and helped
defend the sitting Pope Alexander III against the antipope Victor IV. Alexander
III appointed Anthelm bishop of Belley in 1163. In that position, he is said to
have been fearless and uncompromising, working to reform the clergy and
regulate the affairs of the diocese. One example of his fearlessness occurred
in 1175, when Anthelm excommunicated Count Humbert of Maurienne for having
taken one priest captive and murdering another priest who had tried to free
him. Humbert appealed his excommunication to Pope Alexander III, who reversed
Humbert’s excommunication. Anthelm, who believed that Humbert was not penitent
for his misconduct, withdrew from his diocese in protest.
Pope Alexander then commissioned Anthelm to travel to
England to try to reconcile Henry II of England and Thomas Becket. Anthelm’s
health was such that he was unable to take the journey. Anthelm returned to
Belley to help care for the poor and the lepers of the area.
Anthelm died at Belley in 1178. On his deathbed, he
received Humbert, and recognized that at that time Humbert truly had repented
of his earlier acts. In liturgical art, Saint Anthelm is depicted with a
lamp lit by a divine hand.
SOURCE : https://www.reginamag.com/saint-anthelm-belley/
Église Saint-Anthelme de Conand, Ain
Église Saint-Anthelme de Conand, Ain
Église Saint-Anthelme de Conand, Ain
Article
ANTHELMUS (Saint) Bishop (June 26) (12th century) A
native of Savoy who, after being Provost of a Cathedral Chapter, entered the
Carthusian Order and became Prior of the Grande Chartreuse. During the Schism
of 1159 he defended the rights of Pope Alexander II against the Anti-Pope
Octavian, and thereby incurred the enmity of the German Emperor, Frederick
Barbarossa. The Pope consecrated him Bishop of Belley, and sent him to England
as his legate at the time of the dispute between King Henry II and Saint Thomas
A’Becket. There he rendered important services to the Church and to the
country. Saint Anthelmus died dining the famine which devastated a large part
of France in the year 1178.
MLA Citation
Monks of Ramsgate. “Anthelmus”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 21 July 2012.
Web. 26 June 2021. <http://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-anthelmus/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-anthelmus/
St. Anthelm of
Belley
(1107 – 1178) Prior of the Carthusian Grand
Chartreuse and bishop of Belley.
He was born near Chambéry in 1107. He would later
receive an ecclesiastical benefice in the area of Belley. When he was thirty
years old, he resigned from this position to become a Carthusian monk at
Portes. Only two years after joining the order, he was made the prior of the
Grande Chartreuse, the motherhouse of his order, which had recently incurred
substantial damage.
He was an effective administrator there. While under
his direction, the community increased in numbers and fervency. He restored and
improved the buildings, including constructing a defensive wall and an
aqueduct. The rules of the order were standardized, and changed to allow women
the opportunity to enter the order in their own houses. He also brought the
other houses of the order into closer alignment with the motherhouse. The monks
under his direction included Hugh of Lincoln, who expressed great fondness for
Anthelm.
Anthelm continued
in his office almost constantly for twenty-four years, barring a period of a
few years when he was a hermit. After that period, in
1152, Anthelm returned to the Grand Chartreuse, and helped defend the sitting
Pope Alexander III against the antipope Victor IV. Alexander III appointed
Anthelm bishop of Belley in 1163. In that position, he is said to have been
fearless and uncompromising, working to reform the clergy and regulate the
affairs of the diocese. One example of his fearlessness occurred in 1175, when
Anthelm excommunicated Count Humbert of Maurienne for having taken one priest
captive and murdering another priest who had tried to free him. Humbert
appealed his excommunication to Pope Alexander III, who reversed Humbert’s
excommunication. Anthelm, who believed that Humbert was not penitent for his
misconduct, withdrew from his diocese in protest.
Pope Alexander then commissioned Anthelm to travel to
England to try to reconcile Henry II of England and Thomas Becket. Anthelm’s
health was such that he was unable to take the journey. Anthelm returned to
Belley to help care for the poor and the lepers of the area.
Anthelm died at Belley in 1178. On his deathbed, he received Humbert, and recognized
that at that time Humbert truly had repented of his earlier acts.
Nobility.org Editorial comment: —
While called to practice all virtues–as every Christian–fortitude nevertheless stands out as a salient virtue of the nobility. It is fortitude that leads a noble to unhesitantly risk his life for principle, a worthy cause, for God and country.
In his exercise of the office of bishop, St. Anthelm practiced this fortitude when confronting the erring Count Humbert of Maurienne.
His example is especially needed today, when our bishops are divided between
those willing to confront political leaders who advocate laws or carry out
actions that gravely violate the natural moral law, and those who are silent
about the misdeeds of these leaders and opt for compromise and surrender.
SOURCE : https://nobility.org/2014/06/26/anthelm-bishop-of-belley/
.JPG)
Vue
de la tour du clos Saint-Anthelme, dans les vignobles de Chignin près
de
Chambéry, en Savoie.. https://www.fondation-patrimoine.org/les-projets/chapelle-saint-anthelme-a-chignin
Sant' Antelmo di Chignin Monaco
e vescovo di Belley
Chignin (Francia), 1107 -
Belley (Francia), 26 giugno 1178
Nacque nel 1107 nel
Castello di Chignin, in Savoia. Segretario prima della chiesa di Ginevra, poi
del vescovo di Belley, da questo fu ordinato sacerdote. Affascinato dalla vita
certosina nel 1136 prese l'abito di San Bruno nel monastero di Portes. Alla
Grande Chartreuse, terminato il noviziato, fu nominato procuratore ed
amministratore dei beni. Nel 1139 ne divenne il settimo priore. Nel 1142 nel
capitolo generale gli otto priori della Certosa stabilirono che il priore della
«Grande Certosa» fosse anche il Generale dell'Ordine. Antelmo divenne il primo
generale dei Certosini. Nel 1152 Bernardo di Varey, fondatore di Portes,
ottenne che Antelmo fosse designato a succedergli. Nel 1163 divenne vescovo di
Belley. Nel 1175 il Barbarossa gli conferì la sovranità su Belley e dintorni,
creandolo principe del Sacro Romano Impero. Morì il 26 giugno 1178. (Avvenire)
Emblema: Bastone
pastorale, Libro, Flagello
Martirologio Romano: A
Belley in Savoia, sant’Antelmo, vescovo, che, da monaco, ricostruì l’edificio
della Grande Certosa distrutto da una abbondante nevicata; divenuto poi priore,
convocò il Capitolo generale e, elevato alla sede episcopale, rifulse
nell’opera di correzione dei costumi di chierici e nobili svolta con
instancabile impegno e intrepida fermezza.
Sant’Antelmo di Chignin,
Vescovo di Belley, rappresenta una delle più importanti figure del movimento
certosino.
Nacque nel 1107, da
nobile famiglia, nel Castello di Chignin, in Savoia, a dodici chilometri da
Chambéry.
Sin da giovane preferì la
solitudine della preghiera alla vita mondana e dissipatrice dei grandi signori.
Segretario prima della
chiesa di Ginevra, poi del vescovo di Belley, da quest’ultimo fu ordinato
sacerdote.
Si recava molto spesso a
Portes, dove un suo parente era certosino. La conoscenza della vita monastica
cambiò radicalmente l’esistenza di Antelmo, che nel 1136 prese l’abito di San
Bruno nel monastero di Portes.
La sua fama di valente
amministratore lo portò alla Grande Chartreuse, dove, terminato il noviziato,
fu nominato procuratore ed amministratore dei beni. La Grande Chartreuse, che
nel 1132 era stata gravemente danneggiata da una valanga, attraversava allora
un periodo molto difficile. Antelmo si occupò con tutte le sue energie della
ricostruzione materiale e morale della comunità, di cui nel 1139, alle
dimissioni di Ugo I, divenne il settimo priore. Dopo aver riedificata la
“Grande Certosa” e fatto costruire un acquedotto, A. si adoperò a ricondurre in
suoi monaci al rispetto della primitiva semplicità della Regola e, nello stesso
tempo, tentò di rendere più stretti i legami tra le varie case dell’Ordine. Nel
1142, infatti, nel capitolo generale gli otto priori della Certosa, allora
esistenti, stabilirono che il priore della “Grande Certosa” fosse anche il
Generale dell’Ordine, cui tutti dovessero obbedienza: fin da allora infatti i
vari priori erano sottoposti solo al vescovo della loro diocesi. La fama di
Antelio, divenuto primo generale dei Certosini, crebbe enormemente ed attirò
alla Grande Chartreuse molti nobili che desideravano seguirne l’esempio.
Nel 1149, quando un
monaco di Portes fu eletto vescovo di Grenoble, sorsero degli aspri conflitti
ed alcuni certosini uscirono dal monastero per sostenere le loro ragioni di
fronte ai tribunali. Antelmo, fortemente amareggiato da questa grave
infrazione, dopo che papa Eugenio III compose la vertenza, impose ai certosini
una penitenza: ma il Papa reintegrò i monaci nell’Ordine senza alcuna formalità.
Per questo Antelmo, pur non opponendosi alle decisioni del Papa, diede le
dimissioni, che tuttavia ritirò momentaneamente a seguito di un intervento di
San Bernardo, per farle poi accettare di nuovo nel 1151 e ritirarsi a vita
contemplativa.
Nel 1152, però, Bernardo
di Varey, fondatore di Portes, ottenne che Antelmo fosse designato a
succedergli e questi, pur mantenendo la sua carica solo per breve tempo, con la
sua grande carità si guadagnò l’appellativo di “padre dei poveri”. Per questo
Antelio nelle immagini che ci sono pervenute, viene effigiato nell’atto di
accogliere gente di ogni età, aiutandola moralmente e materialmente nei suoi
bisogni, con sullo sfondo la sua Certosa, di cui ebbe sempre nostalgia e che
andava spesso a visitare.
Quando nel 1159 la
cristianità fu divisa in due parti che sostenevano, l’una Alessandro III, papa
legittimamente eletto, e l’altra l’antipapa Vittore IV, designato da Federico
Barbarossa, Antelmo si schierò dalla parte di Alessandro e gli portò il
sostegno della Francia, della Spagna e dell’Inghilterra.
Molto probabilmente, in
ringraziamento di questa azione, il Papa obbligò Antelmo ad accettare la carica
di vescovo di Belley, alla quale era stato eletto all’unanimità il 7 settembre
1163. La consacrazione avvenne nella cattedrale di Bourges.
Anche nell’esercizio del
suo ministero Antelmo conservò intatti quei caratteri di grande umiltà e
carità, che lo avevano reso famoso e si guadagnò tanto l’affetto del popolo che
la città di Belley, dopo la sua morte, fu chiamata per un certo tempo
Antelmopoli.
Nello stesso tempo, per
la sua sagacia fu scelto dal papa per una delicata missione in Inghilterra: il
tentativo di riconciliazione tra Enrico II e San Tommaso Becket.
Tuttavia il Barbarossa
impedì la partenza di Antelmo, forse per vendicarsi della posizione ostile da
questi avuta nei confronti di Vittore IV.
In seguito però
l’imperatore mutò condotta nei riguardi di Antelmo e nel 1175 gli conferì la
sovranità su Belley e dintorni, creandolo inoltre principe del Sacro Romano
Impero.
Il titolo di principe di
Belley procurò ad Antelmo non poche difficoltà, che amareggiarono gli ultimi
anni della sua vita.
Umberto III, conte di
Maurienne, non si rassegnò a perdere i diritti su Belley ed iniziò una politica
di provocazione nei confronti di Antelmo, facendo dapprima arrestare, in
violazione del diritto di giurisdizione della Chiesa sul clero, e poi uccidere
un sacerdote.
Antelmo scomunicò il
conte, ma questi ottenne dal papa Alessandro III, cui era ricorso,
l’annullamento della scomunica.
Allora Antelmo,
indignato, si ritirò nella Grande Charteuse ma il popolo ed il clero ricorsero
al papa, che gli ordinò formalmente di riprendere il suo posto e, nel contempo,
ingiunse ad Umberto di fare penitenza.
Antelmo tornò quindi a
Belley, continuando tuttavia ad essere osteggiato da Umberto, che continuò a
tramare contro di lui giungendo perfino a progettare di assassinarlo.
Il 26 giugno 1178,
colpito da grave malattia, Antelmo morì, dopo aver ricevuto l’omaggio del Conte
di Mourienne, che al suo capezzale fece sincera ammenda dei suoi torti.
I funerali di Antelmo
furono veramente trionfali ed il suo culto si diffuse immediatamente.
Nel 1630 le sue spoglie
furono esumate e traslate in una cappella a lui dedicata.
Durante al Rivoluzione
Francese questa fu profanata, ma le reliquie di Antalmo non andarono disperse e
il 30 giugno 1829 il vescovo di Belley le depose in un bellissimo reliquiario,
che alla fine del secolo fu sostituito da un altro in bronzo offerto dalla
Grande Charteuse.
Nell’iconografia Antelmo
è rappresentato con una lampada accesa sopra il capo, mentre una mano dal cielo
tende un dito verso la fiamma. Ai suoi piedi è raffigurato il Conte Umberto e
Antelmo tiene in mano un libro perché, secondo la leggenda, egli ricevette da
San Pietro l’ordine di recitare l’Ufficio della Vergine.
Gli Acta Sanctorum
pubblicano una Vita di Antelmo, scritta da un autore coevo, ed il Martirologio
Romano celebra la sua festa il 26 giugno.
Autore: Mauro
Tordone
SOURCE : http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/90544
Voir aussi : http://www.avecmariepourjesus.net/t7912-le-saint-du-jour-26-juin-saint-anthelme-de-chignin
