Sainte Ermenilde
Abbesse (7ème s.)
Reine de Mercie (Grande-Bretagne), veuve du roi
Wulfehere, abbesse d'Ely.
Sainte Ermenilda
Abbesse d’Ely dans le Cambridgeshire
Fête le 13 février
OSB
† 703
Autres graphies : Ermenilda, Erminilda ou Ermengild d’Ely
Fille de sainte Sexburge et d’Ercombert de Kent, elle était la femme de
Wulfhere, roi de Mercie, et la mère de sainte Werburge. Sexburge et Ermenilda
furent l’une après l’autre abbesse d’Ely dans le Cambridgeshire ; Sexburge
avait elle-même succédé à ce poste à sainte Etheldrède, sa sœur.
SOURCE : http://www.martyretsaint.com/ermenilda/
Ermengild of Ely, OSB,
Widow (AC)
(also known as Ermenilda, Erminilda)
Died 703. The daughter of King Erconbert and Saint Sexburga, Erminilda was
herself a queen, for she married Wulfhere, King of Mercia, and used her
powerful influence to remove the remaining pockets of idolatry in a land which
had been the last stronghold of Anglo-Saxon paganism. By her virtuous example
and unwearied kindness she won the hearts of her subjects; she had great pity
on all in distress, and throughout her life she bore her witness as a Christian
queen.
Like her mother
before her, the saintly Sexburga, the widowed Queen of Kent and abbess of
Minster in Sheppey, she desired to be wholly devoted to God. On Wulfhere's
death Erminilda joined her mother and succeeded her as abbess when her mother
moved to Ely.
Later, Erminilda,
too, migrated to the abbey of Ely, which was the center of a flourishing
community, had the unusual distinction of having as its first abbesses a
succession of three queens; for, before Sexburga, her sister, Queen Ethelreda
had held the office. Erminilda was the mother of Saint Werburga, and so this
royal succession of Christian witness was carried into the fourth generation.
In a primitive age
these noble and saintly women by their selfless and devoted lives set before
their people a high example of Christian service, and their gracious and
ennobling influence had a far-reaching effect upon the period in which they
lived. They are counted among the saints of England and take their place among
the most faithful and distinguished followers of our Lord (Benedictines,
Encyclopedia, Gill).
SOURCE
: http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0213.shtml
Also known as
- Ermengild
- Ermenhild
- Erminilda
Profile
SOURCE :
http://catholicsaints.info/saint-ermenilda-of-ely/
Ermengild of Ely
Eormenhilde,
Hermynhild) (d. c.700), queen of Mercia, abbess of Ely. She was the daughter of
Erconbert, king of Kent, and of his wife *Sexburga, who was sister of
*Etheldreda. Ermengild married Wulfhere, king of Mercia (657–74) and son of
Penda. She converted her husband and bore him two children, Coenred, king of
Mercia 704–9, and *Werburga. After Wulfhere’s death she became a nun at
Minster-in-Sheppey, founded by her mother Sexburga. When the latter resigned
this abbacy and went to Ely, Ermengild succeeded her at Minster; when Sexburga
died at Ely twenty years later, Ermengild became Ely’s third royal abbess in
succession. Nothing is known of her rule there, not even the day of her death.
Her daughter Werburga succeeded her as abbess of Ely. Ermengild’s cult was
extensive, but several pre-Conquest calendars wrongly describe her as a virgin.
Propers for Ermengild of Ely - Abbess
O GOD, by whose grace the blessed Ermengild enkindled with the fire of thy
love, became a burning and a shining light in thy Church: Grant that we may be
inflamed with the same spirit of discipline and love, and ever walk before thee
as children of light; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Epistle - Philippians 3:7-15.
The Gospel - St. Luke 12:22-37.
Reference and Resources:
Farmer, David Hugh (2004-07-22). The Oxford Dictionary of Saints (Oxford
Paperback Reference) (p. 176). OUP Oxford. Kindle Edition.
SOURCE :
http://ohioanglican.blogspot.ca/2014/02/ermengild-of-ely.html St.
Ermengild, Widow
Posted on February 13, 2013 by Kawsa Ni Maria
Ermengild came from a royal family. Her father was
Erconbert, King of Kent, and her mother was Queen Sexburga, who is also on the
roll of Saints.
Ermengild married King Wulfhere of Mercia, a pagan.
She brought her husband into the Faith and through her zeal and piety
influenced him to spread Christianity in his dominions. She also bore him two
children – St. Werburga, who entered the religious life, and Coenrad, who
became King of Mercia (704-709) and later a monk at Rome.
Upon the death of her husband, Ermengild became a nun
in an abbey at Minster-in-Sheppey, founded and ruled by Sexburga. She then
replaced her mother as abbess when the latter went on to the abbey of Ely to
succeed Sexburga’s sister St. Ethelreda who had founded it. After a few years
Ermengild also retired to Ely, where her daughter Welburga was a nun. When
Sexburga died, Ermengild became the third successive royal abbess of Ely.
Little is known of her death, which occurred on February 13, 703.
Reflection
A woman of royalty and wealth, St. Ermengild
nonetheless spurned the trappings of royalty in order to follow Christ more
closely. Her life exemplifies the Gospel suggestion to sell what one has, give
to the poor, and follow Christ. Her example remains appropriate in modern
times.
Prayer
Lord God, Your servant St. Ermengild clearly chose
Your love over that of this world’s goods. Grant that we may follow You on the
narrow road to detachment. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.
SOURCE : https://vitaesanctorum.wordpress.com/2013/02/13/st-ermengild-widow/
