Saint Claude
Archbishop
(607-699)
Saint Claude
The
province of Eastern Burgundy has received great luster from this
glorious Saint. He was born at Salins in the early seventh century, and
was recognized from his youth as having a lively mind, a solid judgment
and great docility. He read with devotion the sacred books, the lives of
the Martyrs and holy Confessors, and the sermons of the Doctors of the
Church, all of which were then far more frequently found in the hands of
the faithful. He spent many hours praying in the church and attended
Mass daily; he was careful to avoid any places which could be a danger
for his faith, and took pleasure in frequenting pious persons who could
give solid nourishment to his soul.
At
the age of 20 he became a member of the cathedral chapter of Besançon,
where he remained for twelve years, following the examples of the
archbishop, Saint Donatian. Afterwards he retired to the monastery of
Condat or Saint Oyend, where he became Abbot at the age of 37, in 644;
and under his government many Saints were formed.
He
had become both the model and the oracle of the clergy of Besançon
when, upon the death of Archbishop Gervase in the year 685, he was named
as his successor. Fearing the obligations of that charge, he fled to a
retreat, but was discovered and compelled to accept the burden. During
seven years he acquitted himself of the pastoral functions with the zeal
and vigilance of an apostle. It was said that his sermons had so great a
force that they tore vice out of the hearts of the most hardened.
When
he was eighty-six years of age, he retired once more to the monastery
of Saint Oyend, of which he had always retained the title of Abbot, and
where he then remained in authority as its head for several more years.
Such was the sanctity of his life and his zeal in conducting his monks
in the paths of evangelical perfection, that he was compared to the
great abbots of Egypt, Saint Anthony and Saint Pachomius, and his
monastery, to those of ancient Egypt. Manual labor, silence, prayer,
reading of pious books, especially the Holy Bible; fasting, watching,
humility, obedience, poverty, mortification, and the close union of
their hearts with God made up the whole occupation of these fervent
servants of God. These virtues were the rich patrimony which Saint
Claude left to his disciples.
Saint Claude died in 699 at the age of ninety-two, and his body was found intact in the 12th century.
Since then pilgrimages and miracles have abounded at his tomb, placed
in the monastery where he died, which afterwards bore his name. His
feast has been celebrated since the end of the 15th century.
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