Bienheureux Eugène III
Pape (165 ème) de 1145 à 1153 (✝ 1153)
D'abord moine
cistercien à Clairvaux, puis au monastère des Saints Vincent et Anastase, à Tre
Fontane, aux portes de Rome, il fut élu pape à une époque de pleine évolution
politique. Il resta fidèle à son père spirituel, saint Bernard à qui il demanda de prêcher une croisade, qui
d'ailleurs échoua. Nous trouvons Eugène III à Paris en 1147, à Trèves, et dans
bien d'autres régions. Il intervient en Angleterre, réglemente l'Église
d'Irlande, met sur pied l'organisation ecclésiastique de la Suède et de la
Norvège, assure sa primauté devant l'empereur Frédéric Barberousse. Il vécut
pauvrement, plein de bienveillance et de justice. Théologien, il fit traduire
les homélies de saint Jean Chrysostome. Trois des cardinaux qu'il avait
nommés devinrent papes : Adrien IV, Alexandre III et Victor IV. Très tôt le
petit peuple romain le considéra comme un saint en raison de sa manière de
vivre et de concevoir le rôle de la Papauté.
Saint Bernard écrivit pour lui le Traité «de Consideratione», où sont évoqués les devoirs du pontife. Jean de Salisbury le décrit comme 'une âme pleine de délicatesse et d’autorité, de grandeur et d’humilité'.
"Le diocèse donne alors à l'Église un grand pape, Calixte II (1119-1124), originaire de Quingey. Les abbayes nouvelles, surtout cisterciennes, se multiplient: elles seront les principaux foyers de résistance au schisme de Frédéric Barberousse; saint Pierre de Tarentaise, défenseur de l'orthodoxie, mourra à Bellevaux en 1174, et le pape Eugène III, cistercien également, viendra en 1148 consacrer la cathédrale reconstruite sous le titre de saint Jean l'Évangéliste." (Histoire du diocèse de Besançon)
À Tivoli près de Rome, en 1153, le trépas du bienheureux Eugène III, pape. Disciple de saint Bernard et premier abbé du monastère cistercien des Saints Vincent et Anastase aux Eaux Salviennes (Saint-Paul aux Trois Fontaines), il fut élu au siège de Rome, alors que la ville était dans l’effervescence politique; il s’employa avec bonheur à défendre le peuple de la cité des incursions des infidèles et à améliorer la discipline ecclésiastique.
Martyrologe
romain
Eugène III (1145)
Bernardo Paganelli di Montemagno,
né à Pise, mort à Tivoli en 1153. Bienheureux.
Il
parvint à mettre sur pied la deuxième croisade, mais celle-ci échoua.
Eugène
III approuva le Souverain Ordre Militaire de Malte.
SOURCE : http://eglise.de.dieu.free.fr/liste_des_papes_11.htm
La Consécration de la Cathédrale Saint Étienne
de Châlons-en-Champagne (Marne) par le Pape Eugène III.
Panneau peint du XVe siècle. Restauré en
2001-2008. La scène avec les personnages est peinte sur un support constitué de 9 planches
de chêne verticales. Cet ensemble est placé sur une planche horizontale sur
laquelle est inscrit le texte.
EUGÈNE III,
BERNARDO PAGANELLI DI MONTEMAGNO (mort en 1153) pape (1145-1153)
BERNARDO PAGANELLI DI MONTEMAGNO (mort en 1153) pape (1145-1153)
Pape italien né près de Pise à une date
inconnue et mort le 8 juillet 1153 à Tivoli, non loin de Rome. Bernardo
Paganelli di Montemagno est un disciple de saint Bernard de Clairvau. Il est
abbé du monastère cistercien de Saint-Vincent-et-Saint-Anastase à Rome
(aujourd'hui l'abbaye
de Tre Fontane) lorsqu'il est élu pape le 15 février 1145, puis intronisé
le 18 février sous le nom d'Eugène III. L'élection inhabituelle d'un
ecclésiastique extérieur au conclave provoque
une émeute populaire à Rome, obligeant le nouveau pontife à fuir la cité. En
1144, comme tant d'autres en Europe occidentale, c'est avec consternation qu'il
apprend la chute du comté d'Édesse, capitale du premier royaume latin d'Orient
fondé par les croisés, tombé aux mains des Turcs. Profitant de l'état
d'anarchie qui règne à Rome, Arnaud
de Brescia, le réformateur extrémiste italien qui s'oppose depuis toujours
au pouvoir temporel de la papauté,
entre dans la ville et contraint le pape à s'exiler au début de 1146. Alors
qu'il est en France (1147), Eugène III presse le roi Louis VII le
Jeune de mener une croisade pour la libération d'Édesse, et invite saint Bernard
de Clairvaux à la prêcher. Cette deuxième croisade, impressionnante entre
toutes par son ampleur, se soldera pourtant par un échec retentissant.
Rentré en Italie en juin 1148, Eugène III
excommunie Arnaud de Brescia en juillet de la même année au motif que celui-ci
avait dénoncé le pape comme étant « un homme de sang » et fomenté la
révolte contre la papauté. Siégeant hors de Rome pendant la plus grande partie
de son pontificat à cause de l'hostilité du nouveau sénat restauré au Capitole,
Eugène III tient de nombreux conciles régionaux. En 1153, il signe le
traité de Constance avec Frédéric Ier Barberousse, successeur de Conrad III sur
le trône du Saint Empire romain germanique, fixant les conditions du
couronnement à Rome de celui-ci. Le pape mourra avant que Frédéric ait pu se
rendre en Italie. Il sera béatifié le 3 octobre 1872.
Universalis, « EUGÈNE III, BERNARDO
PAGANELLI DI MONTEMAGNO (mort en
1153) pape (1145-1153) », Encyclopædia
Universalis [en ligne], consulté le 13 juillet 2015.
URL : http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/eugene-iii-bernardo-paganelli-di-montemagno-pape/
Bienheureux Eugène III
Né à Pise, en Italie, Bernardo PAGANELLI était probablement
Prieur de Saint Zénon quand il rencontra Saint Bernard, en 1138. Devenu Moine à
Clairvaux, il en repartit à l’automne 1139 pour aller fonder en Italie. D’abord
implantée près de Farfa, la nouvelle Communauté, sur l’ordre d’Innocent II se
transféra le 25 octobre 1140 au Monastère des Saints Vincent et Anastase, à Tre
Fontane, aux portes de Rome.
Cinq ans plus tard, à la mort de Lucius II, Bernardo, qui depuis 1141
était Abbé de Tre Fontane, est élu Pape à l’unanimité sous le nom de Eugène
III, le 15 février 1145. Saint Bernard confie à ses correspondants ses
appréhensions devant ce choix d’une personne « inexperte et faible ».
Mais l’un d’eux répond : « le Seigneur daigna lui accorder sur le
champ de telles grâces, qu’il l’emporta sur nombre de ses prédécesseurs en
grandes actions et en réputation. »
Son pontificat fut troublé par des difficultés politiques chroniques,
notamment avec le Sénat de Rome, ce qui l’obligea souvent à résider hors de
Rome. Inquiet de la situation des lieux saints, il suscita la seconde croisade
et demanda à Saint Bernard de la prêcher (6 mars 1146).
Il entreprit en France en 1147-1148 un voyage qui lui permit de revoir
Saint Bernard, Clairvaux et Cîteaux, voyage marqué par les Conciles de Paris,
les synodes de Trèves et Reims, où furent examinées entre autres les positions
doctrinales de Gilbert de la Porrée et les visions d’Hildegarde de Bingen.
En décembre 1149, il retourne à Rome sous la protection de Roger
II de Sicile, mais il doit en repartir, car l’hostilité du Sénat romain reste vive.
Eugène commence alors à traiter avec Conrad III, puis avec son successeur,
Frédéric I Barberousse.
Eugène meurt à Tivoli le 8 juillet 1153.
Cistercien de cœur, Eugène faisait partie de ceux qui « désirent
rester aux pieds du Seigneur avec Marie, et qui se voient ramenés à nourrir les
foules et à servir avec Marthe » (Lettre 412 de St Bernard). Il garda
toujours la simplicité de vie et l’habit cistercien, et on sait que Saint
Bernard écrivit pour lui le Traité « de Consideratione », où
sont évoqués les devoirs du pontife. Jean de Salisbury le décrit comme
« une âme pleine de délicatesse et d’autorité, de grandeur et
d’humilité ».
Eugène a été enseveli dans la Basilique Saint-Pierre, près de l’autel de
la Vierge, dans le chœur des chanoines, là où fut aussi inhumé le Pape Grégoire
III. Mais sa dépouille n’est plus localisable aujourd’hui, ayant été jointe à
d’autres dans un « polyandre » (sépulture commune) qui regroupe les
restes des Saints, dans les Grottes vaticanes, mais auquel les fidèles n’ont
pas accès. Son épitaphe était la suivante :
Hic habet eugenius defunctus
carne sepulchrum, / quem pia cum christo vivere cura
facit. / Pisa virum genuit, quem claraevallis
alumnum / exhibuit, sacrae religionis opus. / Hinc ad
anastasii translatus martyris aedem / ex abbate pater summus in orbe
fuit. / Eripuit solemne iubar mundique decorem / iulius
octavam sole ferente diem : / conceptum sacrae referebant
virginis anni / centum bis seni mille quaterque decem.
« En ce sépulcre est déposé le corps mortel d’Eugène, que la
divine bonté fait vivre auprès du Christ. Pise a engendré l’homme et Clairvaux
le disciple dans la sainteté de la Vie Religieuse. Passé de ce lieu au
Monastère du Martyr Saint Anastase, d’Abbé, il devint Pontife universel. Au
mois de juillet, quand le soleil éveillait le huitième jour, il l’emporta,
phare de lumière et splendeur du monde, en l’année 1153 de la conception de la
Vierge ».
Déjà considéré comme Saint de son vivant, les miracles se multiplièrent
près de sa tombe tout de suite après sa mort. Pie IX le Béatifia en 1872.
(D’après Virgilio card. NOÈ, in : Le tombe e i
monumenti funebri dei papi nella Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano, Franco
Cosimo Panini Editore, Modena, 2000)
Saint Bernard de Clairvaux au
Pape Eugène III
Correspondance de Saint Bernard de Clairvaux au
Pape Eugène III, ancien Moine de Clairvaux, devenu Pape en 1145.
I – « Désormais je parle à mon maître, je n’ose plus vous appeler mon
fils, lui écrit Bernard. Celui qui me suivais a passé devant
moi…
L’Église exulte et glorifie le Seigneur de votre élection, mais au sein de l’Église la joie est plus grande encore dans cette communauté dont vous avez été l’enfant, dont vous avez sucé les mamelles. Quoi donc ? J’exulte moi aussi et pourtant je l’avoue j’ai peur. Ma joie est mêlée de crainte et de tremblements… Je vois la dignité où vous êtes élevé et de quelle hauteur maintenant vous pouvez tomber. »
L’Église exulte et glorifie le Seigneur de votre élection, mais au sein de l’Église la joie est plus grande encore dans cette communauté dont vous avez été l’enfant, dont vous avez sucé les mamelles. Quoi donc ? J’exulte moi aussi et pourtant je l’avoue j’ai peur. Ma joie est mêlée de crainte et de tremblements… Je vois la dignité où vous êtes élevé et de quelle hauteur maintenant vous pouvez tomber. »
II – « À voir la pompe qui t’entoure on te prendrait plutôt pour le
successeur de Constantin que pour le successeur de saint Pierre. Contemple-toi
d’un regard dénudé dans ta première nudité puisque tu es sorti nu des
entrailles de ta mère. Es-tu donc né coiffé de la tiare, brillant de joyaux,
chatoyant sous la soie, couronné de plumes ou constellé de métaux précieux ?
Éloigne tous ces ornements, dissipe-les comme les éphémères nuées du matin… Tu
ne verras plus alors qu’un homme nu, pauvre, malheureux, pitoyable, un homme né
de la femme et donc héritier du péché, destiné à une vie brève et donc dans la
crainte… »
III – « Qui t’a chargé de régler les héritages et de faire le partage
des propriétés ? Les affaires infimes et terrestres ont leurs juges naturels,
ce sont les princes et les rois de ce monde. Pourquoi empiéter dans le domaine
d’autrui ?… Et alors quand prierons-nous, quand enseignerons-nous les peuples,
quand édifierons-nous l’Église, quand méditerons-nous sur la loi ? Le palais
retentit chaque jour des lois de Justinien et non celles du Seigneur. Est-ce
juste ? »
IV – « Tu n’es pas le souverain des Évêques, mais l’un d’entre eux, le
frère de ceux qui aiment Dieu, le compagnon de ceux qui le craignent. Tu dois
être au milieu d’eux comme le modèle de la justice, le miroir de la sainteté…
l’ami de l’époux, le tuteur de l’épouse, la règle du clergé, le maître d’école
des ignorants, l’avocat des pauvres, l’espoir des malheureux. »
Saint Bernard de Clairvaux
Extrait du livre de Pierre Riché
DDB 2004, 108 pages, 11 €
pp 64-67
DDB 2004, 108 pages, 11 €
pp 64-67
Blessed Eugene III, OSB
Cist. Pope (RM)
Born at Montemagno, between Lucca and Pisa, Italy; died at Tivoli, July 8,
1153; cultus approved 1872. Pietro Paganelli became a canon at the Pisa
cathedral and an official in the ecclesiastical curia of Pisa. After meeting
Saint Bernard joined the Cistercians at Clairvaux in 1135, taking the name
Bernard. His namesake professed him. He became abbot of Saint Athanasius (then
Tre Fontane) in Rome and was unexpectedly elected pope on February 15, 1145,
taking the name Eugene.
Forced
to flee the city when he refused to recognize the sovereignty of the Roman
Senate and Arnold of Brescia, heading the opposition to his election, seized
temporal power, he was secretly consecrated at Farfa Abbey on February 18.
Eugene moved to Viterbo and then returned to Rome under a truce, which the
rebels immediately broke, pillaging churches and turning Saint Peter's into an
armory.
At the
invitation of King Louis VII, he went to France in 1147 and proclaimed the
Second Crusade, which ended in failure, despite the efforts of Saint Bernard,
who preached it, when the armies of King Louis VII and Emperor Conrad II of
Germany were defeated.
Eugene
held synods at Paris and Trier in 1147 and the following year at Rheims, where
he condemned Gilbert de la Porree, and at Cremona, where he excommunicated
Arnold and threatened to use force against the Roman rebels. Terms were
arranged and Eugene returned to Rome in 1149 but was again forced to leave the
following year.
He took
up residence at Tivoli, concluded the Treaty of Constance in 1153 with Emperor
Frederick I, guaranteeing the rights of the Church. Eugene labored throughout a
tumultuous pontificate to reunite the Eastern churches to Rome, to reform
clerical conduct and discipline, removed unworthy clergymen (among them the
archbishops of Mainz and York), fought the recurrence of Manichaeism, was known
for his courage and simplicity, and lived according to the spiritual counsels
of Saint Bernard, who wrote De consideratione for his guidance.
Saint
Antoninus fittingly called him "one of the greatest and one of the most
afflicted of popes" (Benedictines, Delaney).
SOURCE : http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0708.shtml
Pope Blessed Eugene III
Bernardo Pignatelli, born in the neighbourhood of Pisa, elected 15 Feb., 1145; d. at Tivoli, 8 July, 1153. On the very day that Pope Lucius II succumbed, either to illness or wounds, the Sacred College, foreseeing that the Roman populace would make a determined effort to force the new pontiff to abdicate his temporal power and swear allegiance to the Senatus Populusque Romanus, hastily buried the deceased pope in the Lateran and withdrew to the remote cloister of St. Cæsarius on the Appian Way. Here, for reasons unascertained, they sought a candidate outside their body, and unanimously chose the Cistercian monk, Bernard of Pisa, abbot of the monastery of Tre Fontane, on the site of St. Paul's martyrdom. He was enthroned as Eugene III without delay in St. John Lateran, and since residence in the rebellious city was impossible, the pope and his cardinals fled to the country. Their rendezvous was the monastery of Farfa, where Eugene received the episcopal consecration. The city of Viterbo, the hospitable refuge of so many of the afflicted medieval popes, opened its gates to welcome him; and thither he proceeded to await developments. Though powerless in face of the Roman mob, he was assured by embassies from all the European powers that he possessed the sympathy and affectionate homage of the entire Christian world.
Sources
Loughlin, James. "Pope Blessed Eugene III." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 5.
New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 12 Jul. 2015 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05599a.htm>.
SOURCE : http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05599a.htm
Blessed Pope Eugene III
Pope Blessed Eugene III
Bernardo Pignatelli, born in the neighbourhood of Pisa, elected 15 Feb., 1145; d. at Tivoli, 8 July, 1153. On the very day that Pope Lucius II succumbed, either to illness or wounds, the Sacred College, foreseeing that the Roman populace would make a determined effort to force the new pontiff to abdicate his temporal power and swear allegiance to the Senatus Populusque Romanus, hastily buried the deceased pope in the Lateran and withdrew to the remote cloister of St. Cæsarius on the Appian Way. Here, for reasons unascertained, they sought a candidate outside their body, and unanimously chose the Cistercian monk, Bernard of Pisa, abbot of the monastery of Tre Fontane, on the site of St. Paul's martyrdom. He was enthroned as Eugene III without delay in St. John Lateran, and since residence in the rebellious city was impossible, the pope and his cardinals fled to the country. Their rendezvous was the monastery of Farfa, where Eugene received the episcopal consecration. The city of Viterbo, the hospitable refuge of so many of the afflicted medieval popes, opened its gates to welcome him; and thither he proceeded to await developments. Though powerless in face of the Roman mob, he was assured by embassies from all the European powers that he possessed the sympathy and affectionate homage of the entire Christian world.
Concerning the parentage,
birth-place, and even the original name of Eugene,
each of his biographers has advanced a different opinion. All that can be affirmed
as certain is that he was of the
noble family of Pignatelli,
and whether he received the name of Bernardo in baptism or only upon entering religion,
must remain uncertain. He was educated in Pisa, and after his ordination was made a canon
of the cathedral. Later he held the office of vice-dominus or steward of the temporalities of the diocese. In 1130 he came under the magnetic influence of
St. Bernard of Clairvaux; five years later when the saint returned home from the Synod
of Pisa, the vice dominus accompanied
him as a novice. In course of time he was employed by his order on several
important affiars; and lastly was sent with a colony of monks to repeople the ancient Abbey of Farfa; but Innocent II placed them instead at the Tre Fontane.
St. Bernard
received the intelligence of the
elevation of his disciple with
astonishment and pleasure, and gave expression to his feelings in a paternal
letter addressed to the new pope, in which occurs the famous passage so often
quoted by reformers, true and false: "Who will
grant me to see, before I die, the Church of God as in the days of old when the Apostles
let down their nets for a draught, not of silver and gold, but of souls?" The saint,
moreover, proceeded to compose in his few moments of leisure that admirable
handbook for popes called "De Consideratione".
Whilst Eugene sojourned at Viterbo, Arnold of Brescia, who had been condemned by the Council
of 1139 to exile from Italy, ventured to return at the beginning of the
new pontificate and threw himself on the clemency of the pope. Believing in the sincerity of his repentance,
Eugene absolved
him and enjoined on him as penance
fasting and a visit to the tombs of the Apostles. If the veteran demagogue entered Rome in a penitential
mood, the sight of democracy
based on his own principles soon caused him to revert to his former self. He placed
himself at the head of the movement, and his incendiary philippics
against the bishops, cardinals, and even the ascetic
pontiff who treated him with
extreme lenity, worked his hearers into such fury that Rome resembled a city captured by barbarians. The
palaces of the cardinals and of such of the nobility as held
with the pope were razed to the ground; churches
and monasteries were pillaged; St.
Peter's church was turned into an arsenal; and pious pilgrims were plundered and maltreated.
But the storm was
too violent to last. Only an
idiot could fail to understand that medieval Rome without he pope had no means of subsistence. A strong party
was formed in Rome and the vicinity consisting of the
principal families and their adherents, in the interests of order
and the papacy, and the democrats were induced to listen to
words of moderation. A treaty was entered into with Eugene
by which the Senate was preserved but subject to the papal sovereignty and swearing
allegiance to the supreme pontiff. The senators were to be chosen
annually by popular election and
in a committee of their body the executive power was lodged. The pope and the senate should have separate courts,
and an appeal could be made from
the decisions of either court to the other. By virtue of this treaty Eugene
made a solemn entry into Rome a few days before Christmas, and was greeted by the fickle populace with
boundless enthusiasm. But the dual system of government proved unworkable. The Romans
demanded the destruction of Tivoli. This town had been faithful
to Eugene during the rebellion
of the Romans and merited
his protection. He therefore refused to permit it to be destroyed. The Romans
growing more and more turbulent, he retired to Castel S. Angelo,
thence to Viterbo, and finally crossed the Alps, early in 1146.
Problems lay before
the pope of vastly greater importance
than the maintenance of order in Rome. The Christian principalities in Palestine and Syria were threatened with extinction. The fall of Edessa (1144) had aroused consternation throughout
the West, and already from Viterbo Eugene
had addressed a stirring appeal
to the chivalry of Europe to hasten to the defence of the Holy Places. St.
Bernard was commissioned to preach the Second Crusade, and he acquitted himself of the
task with such success that within a couple of years two magnificent armies,
commanded by the King of the Romans
and the King of France, were on their way to Palestine.
That the Second Crusade was a wretched failure cannot be
ascribed to the saint or the pope; but it is one of those phenomena so
frequently met with in the history
of the papacy, that a pope who was made to subdue a handful of rebellious
subjects could hurl all Europe against the Saracens. Eugene
spent three busy and fruitful years in France, intent
on the propagation of the Faith,
the correction of errors and abuses, and the maintenance of discipline.
He sent Cardinal Breakspear (afterwards Adrian IV) as legate to Scandinavia; he entered into relations
with the Orientals with a view
to reunion; he proceeded with vigour against the nascent Manichean heresies. In several synods (Paris, 1147, Trier, 1148), notably in the
great Synod of Reims (1148), canons
were enacted regarding the dress and conduct of the clergy. To ensure the strict execution
of these canons, the bishops who should neglect to enforce them were
threatened with suspension. Eugene
was inexorable in punishing the unworthy. He deposed
the metropolitans of York
and Mainz, and he for a cause
which St. Bernard thought not
sufficiently grave, he withdrew the pallium from the Archbishop of Reims. But if the saintly
pontiff could at times be
severe, this was not his natural
disposition.
"Never",
wrote Ven. Peter of Cluny
to St. Bernard, "have I
found a truer friend, a sincerer brother, a purer father. His ear is ever ready
to hear, his tongue is swift and mighty to advise. Nor does he comport himself
as one's superior, but rather as an equal or an inferior… I have never made him
a request which he has not either granted, or so refused that I could not
reasonably complain." On the occasion of a visit which he paid to Clairvaux,
his former companions discovered to their joy that "he who externally shone in the pontifical
robes remained in his heart an observant monk".
The prolonged
sojourn of the pope in France was of great advantage to the French
Church in many ways and enhanced
the prestige of the papacy. Eugene
also encouraged the new intellectual movement to which Peter Lombard had given a strong impulse. With the aid of Cardinal Pullus, his chancellor, who had established the University of Oxford on a lasting basis, he reduced the schools of theology and philosophy
to better form. He encouraged Gratian
in his herculean task of arranging the Decretals, and we owe to him various useful regulations
bearing on academic degrees. In the spring of 1148, the pope returned by easy stages to Italy. On 7 July, he met the Italian bishops at Cremona, promulgated the canons
of Reims for Italy, and solemnly
excommunicated Arnold of Brescia, who still reigned over the Roman
mob. Eugene, having brought with
him considerable financial aid, began to gather his vassals and advanced to Viterbo and thence to Tusculum.
Here he was visited by King Louis
of France, whom he reconciled to his queen, Eleanor.
With the assistance of Roger of Sicily, he forced his way into Rome (1149), and celebrated Christmas in the Lateran.
His stay was not of long duration. During the next three years the Roman
court wandered in exile through the Campagna while both sides looked for the
intervention of Conrad of Germany, offering
him the imperial crown. Aroused
by the earnest exhortations of St. Bernard,
Conrad finally decided to
descend into Italy and put an end to the anarchy in Rome. Death overtook him in the midst of his
preparations on 15 Feb., 1152, leaving the task to his more energetic nephew, Frederick Barbarossa. The envoys of Eugene
having concluded with Frederick
at Constance, in the spring of 1153, a treaty
favourable to the interests of the Church and the empire, the more moderate of the Romans,
seeing that the days of democracy
were numbered, joined with the nobles in putting down the Arnoldists,
and the pontiff was enabled to
spend his concluding days in peace.
Eugene is said to
have gained the affection of the people by his affability and generosity. He
died at Tivoli, whither he had gone to avoid the summer
heats, and was buried in front
of the high altar in St.
Peters, Rome. St. Bernard
followed him to the grave (20 Aug.). "The unassuming but astute pupil of St.
Bernard", says Gregorovius, "had always continued
to wear the coarse habit of Clairvaux
beneath the purple; the stoic virtues
of monasticism accompanied him
through his stormy career, and invested him with that power of passive
resistance which has always remained the most effectual weapon of the popes." St. Antoninus pronounces Eugene III "one of
the greatest and most afflicted of the popes". Pius IX by a decreed
of 28 Dec., 1872, approved the cult which from time immemorial the Pisans have rendered to their countryman, and ordered
him to be honoured with Mass and Office ritu duplici
on the anniversary of his
death.
Sources
For
the earlier lives by BOSO, JOHN OF SALISBURY, BERNHARD GUIDONIS, and AMALRICUS
AUGERII see MURATORI, SS. Rer. Ital., III, 439 sqq. Cf. Lib. Pont., ed DUCHESNE, II, 386; HEFELE, Conciliengesch.,
v, 494; his letters are in P.L., CLXXX, 1009 sqq. (JAFFÉ, II,
20 sqq.). See also SAINATI, Vita de beato Eugenio III (Monza,
1874); Annal. Bolland. (1891), X, 455; and histories of the
city of Rome by VON REUMONT and GREGOROVIUS.
Transcription. This article was transcribed for
New Advent by WGKofron. With thanks to Fr. John Hilkert, Akron, Ohio.
Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil Obstat. May 1, 1909. Remy Lafort, Censor. Imprimatur. +John M.
Farley, Archbishop of New York.
SOURCE : http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05599a.htm
Blessed Pope Eugene III
Also known as
- Peter dei Paganelli di Montemagno
- Bernard of Pisa
- Bernardo Pignatelli
Profile
Prominent Cistercian
monk. Friend of Saint
Bernard of Clairvaux. Abbot
of the monastery of Tre Fontaine. Elected pope unanimously on day of his predecessor’s funeral; the cardinals
wanted a quick election to prevent the interference of secular authorities.
Promoted the disastrous Second Crusade. In 1146, the agitation of Arnold of Brescia and the republicans drove
the pope from Rome. While in exile from 1146 to 1149 and again from 1150 to 1152, Eugene worked to reform clerical discipline.
Born
Papal Ascension
SOURCE : http://catholicsaints.info/blessed-pope-eugene-iii/
After the death of Lucius the cardinals withdrew to
the Monastery of St. Caesarius where, protected by Frangipani swords, they
could elect a pope in peace. The election was speedy and surprising.
Quickly the cardinals chose, not one of their own
number, but Bernard, the Cistercian abbot of St. Anastasius. He took the name
Eugene III. Bernard Paganelli was born in Pisa. He was a canon of the cathedral
there and a high official when he met St. Bernard. This meant a radical change.
He resigned his high offices to follow St. Bernard, that spiritual pied piper,
into a Cistercian monastery. When Innocent II asked St. Bernard to send
Cistercians to Rome, it was Bernard Paganelli who led the monks to St.
Anastasius. There he attracted many vocations and the monastery was flourishing
when Bernard was elected pope.
Eugene was a man of real holiness, humble, kindly,
and cheerful. If he was severe, he was severe on principle as when he deposed
the archbishops of Mainz and York. He accomplished much for the church. He
might have done more if he had not been so troubled by the perennial Roman
problem. Eugene had to go to Farfa to be consecrated in peace. But soon, tired
of the excesses of Jordan, the Patrician, the Romans welcomed the Pope back and
agreed to a compromise. The office of Patrician was abolished. The senate was
to remain but to acknowledge the lordship of the Pope. This did not work well
and soon the disgusted Pope once more left the city. The fall of Edessa. a
bastion of the crusader kingdom, had alarmed Europe. Eugene proclaimed the
second crusade. St. Bernard preached it. Louis VII of France and Emperor Conrad
III were its leaders. Weak leaders they proved to be. The Germans were cut up
in Asia Minor, the French butchered in a mountain defile. Louis and Conrad
reached Jerusalem indeed, but rather as pilgrims than war leaders. The crusade
which had begun in hope ended in disillusionment. So keenly did Eugene feel
this that he left France.
The Pope was active in promoting the spiritual
welfare of the church. He received an embassy from the Catholic Armenians and
sent those good people a letter of instruction. He arranged discussions with
the Greeks. He held a council at Rheims at which the Trinitarian vagaries of
Gilbert de la Porree were condemned. On the other hand the pope approved of the
visions of the holy mystic Hildegarde. Though he had actually been guardian of
France during the crusade, Eugene could not control his own city. Arnold of
Brescia, whom the pope had once pardoned, was now the idol of the factious
Romans. Diplomacy and a show of force enabled Eugene to enter Rome once more in
1149, but he had so hard a time keeping order that he appealed to Conrad to
come down and settle matters. The Emperor died before he could do so. His
nephew and successor agreed to come into Italy. He was to come many times and
the popes would not be pleased. Conrad's successor was Frederick Barbarossa.
Blessed Eugene died at Tivoli July 8, 1153. He was buried in St. Peter's with
great marks of veneration.
Excerpted from "Popes Through the Ages" by Joseph Brusher, S.J.
SOURCE : http://www.stsmarthaandmary.org/popes/Eugene%20III.htm
Entrò nell'ordine cistercense e, eletto papa, si prefisse di restaurare l'autorità pontificia minacciata da Arnaldo da Brescia, di difendere la Chiesa contro la minaccia dei Turchi, di riformare la Chiesa e la curia romana. Egli stesso diede esempio di una spiritualità in cui l'austerità della vita monastica si conciliava con la carica di pontefice.
Eugenio III resse la Chiesa otto anni e cinque mesi (1145 1153) in un periodo assai difficile. Dopo l'elezione dovette fuggire nottetempo da Roma per farsi incoronare, il 18 febbraio nel monastero di Farfa, sottraendosi così alle intimidazioni del popolo che, sobillato da agitatori come Arnaldo da Brescia, reclamava per Roma le libere istituzioni comunali con elezione diretta dei senatori. Invitato da S. Bernardo, si prese a cuore la riforma della Chiesa e della curia romana; si adoperò per la difesa della cristianità contro la minaccia dei Turchi, promuovendo una crociata; presiedette a quattro concili (Parigi, Treviri, Reims e Cremona), promosse gli studi ecclesiastici, difese l'ortodossia, ed egli stesso seppe conciliare l'austerità della vita monastica con le esigenze della dignità papale.
Alla sua morte, avvenuta a Tivoli l'8 luglio 1153, il card. Ugo, vescovo di Ostia, così scriveva: "Immacolato emigrò dalla carne sua a Cristo".
Autore: Piero Bargellini
Beato Eugenio III Papa
XII secolo - m. 1153
(Papa dal
18/02/1145 al 08/07/1153)
Entrò nell'ordine cistercense e, eletto papa, si prefisse di restaurare l'autorità pontificia minacciata da Arnaldo da Brescia, di difendere la Chiesa contro la minaccia dei Turchi, di riformare la Chiesa e la curia romana. Egli stesso diede esempio di una spiritualità in cui l'austerità della vita monastica si conciliava con la carica di pontefice.
Etimologia: Eugenio = ben nato, di nobile stirpe, dal greco
Martirologio Romano: A Tivoli nel Lazio, transito del beato Eugenio III,
papa, che fu diletto discepolo di san Bernardo; dopo aver retto da abate il
monastero dei Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio alle Acque Salvie, eletto alla sede di
Roma, si adoperò con impegno per difendere il popolo cristiano dell’Urbe dalle
insidie dell’eresia e rinnovare la disciplina ecclesiastica.
S. Bernardo così scriveva ai cardinali dopo l'elezione Eugenio III,
monaco del suo Ordine: "La sua tenera verecondia è avvezza più al ritiro
alla quiete che alla trattazione delle cose esteriori ed è da temere che non
sappia compiere gli uffici del suo apostolato con la necessaria autorità".
Il timore
che il mite pontefice (Pier Bernardo, nato da nobile famiglia a Montemagno,
presso Pisa, e entrato nell'ordine cistercense dopo l'incontro con S. Bernardo
nel 1138) non fosse all'altezza della situazione era condivisa da molti. Ma il
Signore - scrive il card. Bosone, suo contemporaneo e biografo - gli concesse
tale scienza e facondia, tale liberalità e forza nell'amministrazione della
giustizia che superò in attività e fama molti suoi antecessori.
Eugenio III resse la Chiesa otto anni e cinque mesi (1145 1153) in un periodo assai difficile. Dopo l'elezione dovette fuggire nottetempo da Roma per farsi incoronare, il 18 febbraio nel monastero di Farfa, sottraendosi così alle intimidazioni del popolo che, sobillato da agitatori come Arnaldo da Brescia, reclamava per Roma le libere istituzioni comunali con elezione diretta dei senatori. Invitato da S. Bernardo, si prese a cuore la riforma della Chiesa e della curia romana; si adoperò per la difesa della cristianità contro la minaccia dei Turchi, promuovendo una crociata; presiedette a quattro concili (Parigi, Treviri, Reims e Cremona), promosse gli studi ecclesiastici, difese l'ortodossia, ed egli stesso seppe conciliare l'austerità della vita monastica con le esigenze della dignità papale.
Alla sua morte, avvenuta a Tivoli l'8 luglio 1153, il card. Ugo, vescovo di Ostia, così scriveva: "Immacolato emigrò dalla carne sua a Cristo".
Autore: Piero Bargellini
