Ludger ( la, Ludgerus; also Lüdiger or Liudger) (born at
Zuilen
Zuilen is a district in the Northwest section of the Dutch city of Utrecht.
Zuilen is bordered by the train line and the river Vecht, the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal, the street Marnixlaan, and the city borders at the north. The neighborhood Eli ...
near
Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...
742; died 26 March 809 at
Billerbeck
Billerbeck ( Westphalian: ''Billerbiëk'') is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.
Geography
Neighbor towns/cities
Billerbeck has boundaries to Rosendahl, Laer, Altenberge, Havixbeck, Nottuln and Coes ...
) was a
missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
among the
Frisians and
Saxons
The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic
*
*
*
*
peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...
, founder of
Werden Abbey
Werden Abbey (german: Kloster Werden) was a Benedictine monastery in Essen-Werden (Germany), situated on the Ruhr.
The foundation of the abbey
Near Essen Saint Ludger founded a monastery in 799 and became its first abbot. The little church ...
and the first
Bishop of Münster in
Westphalia
Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants.
The territory of the regio ...
. He has been called the "Apostle of Saxony".
[Monks of Ramsgate. “Ludger”. ''Book of Saints'', 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 9 November 2014]
/ref>
Early life to ordination
Ludger's parents, Thiadgrim and Liafburg, were wealthy Christian Frisians of noble descent. In 753 Ludger saw the great Apostle of Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, Boniface
Boniface, OSB ( la, Bonifatius; 675 – 5 June 754) was an English Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations o ...
, which, together with the subsequent martyrdom of the saint, made a deep impression on him. At his own request he was sent to the Utrecht Cathedral School (''Martinsstift''), founded by Gregory of Utrecht in 756 or 757, and made good progress. In 767 Gregory, who did not wish to receive episcopal consecration himself, sent Alubert, who had come from England to assist him in his missionary work, to York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
to be consecrated bishop. Ludger accompanied him to be ordained into the diaconate
A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...
(as he duly was, by Ethelbert of York) and to study under Alcuin
Alcuin of York (; la, Flaccus Albinus Alcuinus; 735 – 19 May 804) – also called Ealhwine, Alhwin, or Alchoin – was a scholar, clergyman, poet, and teacher from York, Northumbria. He was born around 735 and became the student o ...
, but after a year he returned to Utrecht. Some time later he was granted an opportunity to continue his studies at York, when he developed a friendship with Alcuin which lasted throughout life.[Mershman, Francis. "St. Ludger." The Catholic Encyclopedia]
Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 24 January 2020
In 772 friction arose between the Anglo-Saxons
The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
and the Frisians, and Ludger - for the sake of his personal safety - left for home, taking with him a number of valuable books. He remained in the ''Martinsstift'' until the death of Gregory in 775, in honour of whose memory he wrote the biography ''Vita Gregorii''.[ He was then sent to Deventer to restore the chapel destroyed by the pagan Saxons and to find the ]relics
In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tang ...
of Lebuinus
Lebuinus (also known as ''Lebuin'', ''Lebwin'' or ''Liafwin ') is the Apostle of the Frisians and patron of Deventer (born in England of Anglo-Saxon parents, date unknown; died at Deventer c. 775).
Life
Lebuinus was a monk in Wilfrid's monastery ...
, who had worked there as missionary, built the chapel, and died there in c. 775. Ludger succeeded, and returned to teach in the ''Martinsstift'', after which he and others were sent north to destroy pagan places of worship west of the Lauwers Zee
Lauwersmeer () is a man-made lake in the north of the Netherlands, on the border of the provinces of Groningen (province), Groningen and Friesland. The lake was formed on 23 May 1969, when the Levee, dike between the bay called Lauwers Sea and the ...
.[
]
The Netherlands
After Ludger had been ordained at Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
on 7 July 777, the missions of '' Ostergau'' (or ''Ostracha'', i.e., East Frisia) were committed to his charge, of which missions Dokkum
Dokkum is a Dutch fortified city in the municipality of Noardeast-Fryslân in the province of Friesland. It has 12,669 inhabitants (February 8, 2020). The fortifications of Dokkum are well preserved and are known as the ''bolwerken'' (bulwarks). ...
, the place of the martyrdom of Boniface, was made the centre. Every autumn however he came back to Utrecht to teach at the cathedral school. He worked in this way for about seven years, until Widukind
Widukind, also known as Wittekind, was a leader of the Saxons and the chief opponent of the Frankish king Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars from 777 to 785. Charlemagne ultimately prevailed, organized Saxony as a Frankish province, massacred th ...
in 784 persuaded the Frisians to drive out the missionaries, burn the churches, and return to the pagan gods.[
Ludger escaped with his disciples, and in 785 visited ]Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, where he was well received by Pope Adrian I
Pope Adrian I ( la, Hadrianus I; died 25 December 795) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 1 February 772 to his death. He was the son of Theodore, a Roman nobleman.
Adrian and his predecessors had to contend with periodic ...
, who gave him much advice and special faculties. From Rome he went to Monte Cassino, where he lived according to the Rule of Saint Benedict, but did not bind himself by vows.[Duffy, Patrick/ "St Ludger of Münster (742-809)", Catholic Ireland, March 26, 2012]
/ref> The news of Widukind's submission, and the arrival of Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...
at Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first ho ...
in 787, put an end to Ludger's peaceful retirement. He was appointed missionary to five districts east of the river Lauwers
The Lauwers () is a river in the Netherlands. It forms part of the border between the provinces of Friesland and Groningen. From the 730s to Widukind's defeat in 785, it was part of the border of the Frankish Empire.
The former Lauwerszee and ...
, around the estuaries of the Hunze, the Fivel
The Fivel was a historical river in the province of Groningen in the Netherlands. It received its water from peat bogs around Kolham and Slochteren, flowed past , and , and meandered north of Winneweer. The Fivel debouched into a wide estuary of t ...
, and the Ems, which were still occupied almost entirely by pagans. He began his work armed with characteristic energy and faith in God, and had a significant advantage in that he knew the language and habits of the people, and put this knowledge to good use in achieving their conversion.
He worked in many places: the island of Bant, long since sunk beneath the sea, is mentioned as the scene of his apostolic work. He visited Heligoland
Heligoland (; german: Helgoland, ; Heligolandic Frisian: , , Mooring Frisian: , da, Helgoland) is a small archipelago in the North Sea. A part of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein since 1890, the islands were historically possessions ...
(''Fossitesland''), where Willibrord
Willibrord (; 658 – 7 November AD 739) was an Anglo-Saxon missionary and saint, known as the "Apostle to the Frisians" in the modern Netherlands. He became the first bishop of Utrecht and died at Echternach, Luxembourg.
Early life
His fath ...
had preached, where he destroyed the remains of paganism and built a Christian church. The well, formerly sacred to the pagan gods, he re-dedicated as his baptismal font. On his return he met the blind bard Bernlef, last of the Frisian skalds, cured his blindness, and made him a devout Christian.[
]
Westphalia and Saxony
In 793 Charlemagne wished to make Ludger Bishop of Trier, but he declined, while declaring himself willing to undertake the evangelization of the Saxons. Charlemagne accepted the offer, and north-western Saxony was thus added to Ludger's missionary field. The monastery of St. Ludger's Abbey
St. Ludger's Abbey (german: Kloster St. Ludgeri) was a former monastery of the Benedictine Order in Helmstedt, Lower Saxony, founded by Saint Ludger around 800. Until it was secularised in 1802 it was an Imperial Abbey, with sovereignty over the ...
at Helmstedt was founded as part of his missionary activity in this part of Germany. To meet necessary expenses the income of the Abbey of Leuze, in the present Belgian
Belgian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to, Belgium
* Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent
* Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German
*Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...
province of Hainaut, was given him, and he was told to pick his fellow-workers from the members of that abbey.
As ''Mimigernaford'' (also ''Mimigardeford'' or ''Miningarvard'') had been designated the centre of the new district, Ludger built a monastery for canons regular there, from which the place took the name of Münster
Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state di ...
. Here he lived with his monks according to the rule of Saint Chrodegang
Chrodegang ( la, Chrodogangus; german: Chrodegang, Hruotgang;Spellings of his name in (Latin) primary sources are extremely varied: Chrodegangus, Grodegandus, Grodegangus, Grodogangus, Chrodogandus, Krodegandus, Chrodegrangus, Chrotgangus, Ruotga ...
of Metz
Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...
,[ which in 789 had been made obligatory in the ]Frankish
Frankish may refer to:
* Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture
** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages
* Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany
* East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...
territories. He also built a chapel on the left bank of the Aa in honour of the Blessed Virgin, as well as the churches of Billerbeck, Coesfeld, Hersfeld, Nottuln
Nottuln (; Low German: ''Notteln'') is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Geography
Nottuln is situated in the Baumberge, approx. 20 km west of Münster.
Neighbouring municipalities ...
and others. Near the church of Nottuln he built a home for his sister, Gerburgis, who had consecrated herself to God. Many other women soon joined her, and so originated the first convent
A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...
in Westphalia (c. 803). Better known among his foundations, however, is the abbey at Werden
Werden is a southern borough of the city of Essen in Germany. It belongs to the city district ''IX Werden/Kettwig/Bredeney'' and has 9,998 inhabitants as of June 30, 2006. The borough occupies a space of and is situated at a median height of .
_ ...
, Shea, John Dawson Gilmary. “Saint Ludger, Bishop”. ''Pictorial Lives of the Saints'', 1889. CatholicSaints.Info. 6 February 2014
/ref> founded (after an abortive attempt to establish a religious house at Wichmond on the Erft
The Erft () is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It flows through the foothills of the Eifel, and joins the Lower Rhine (left tributary). Its origin is near Nettersheim, and its mouth in Neuss-Grimlinghausen south of the Josef Cardina ...
) in c. 800 and consecrated in 804, on ground which Ludger himself had acquired, in fulfilment of his desire, formed since his stay at Monte Cassino, to found a Benedictine house.
Later life
Alcuin recommended him to Charlemagne, who had Hildebold, Archbishop of Cologne, consecrate Ludger as bishop of Munster on 30 March 805. Ludger's principal concern was to have a good and efficient clergy. To a great extent he educated his students personally, and generally took some of them on his missionary tours. He also founded the monastery of Helmstad, afterwards called Ludger-Clooster, or Ludger's Cloister, in the duchy of Brunswick.[Butler, Alban. "St. Ludger, Bishop of Munster", ''Lives of the Saints'']
/ref>
It was said of him that his peaceful methods were far more effective in promoting Christianity than the aggressive tactics of Charlemagne. He was criticised during his life for spending money on alms that should have gone towards the ornamentation of his churches. He suffered thereby, but was able to convince Charlemagne that this was no fault.[
]
Death and relics
On Passion Sunday
Passion Sunday is the fifth Sunday of Lent, marking the beginning of Passiontide. In 1969, the Roman Catholic Church removed Passiontide from the liturgical year of the Novus Ordo, but it is still observed in the Extraordinary Form, the Persona ...
809, Ludger heard Mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...
at Coesfeld early in the morning and preached, then went to Billerbeck, where at 9:00 he again preached, and said his last Mass. That evening he died peacefully in the company of his followers, at the age of sixty-six.[
A dispute arose between Münster and Werden for the possession of his remains. His brother Hildegrim was appealed to, and after consultation with the ]emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...
, decided in favour of Werden, where the relics still remain. Portions have, however, since been brought to Münster and Billerbeck.
Veneration
The successive ''Vitae'', beginning with the serious contemporary biographical work of Altfrid
Saint Altfrid (or Altfrid of Hildesheim) (died 15 August 874) was a leading figure in Germany in the ninth century. A Benedictine monk, he became Bishop of Hildesheim, and founded Essen Abbey. He was also a close royal adviser to the East Frankis ...
and passing through the ''Vita Secunda'' and ''Vita Tertia'' to the ''Libellus Monasteriensis de miraculis sancti Liudgeri'' (''The Little Book of Münster on the Miracles of Saint Ludger'') of c. 1170, demonstrate the growth of the legend. Votive practice in Münster seems to have focused on a very large and elaborate cross containing a number of relics of the saint. The cult seems to have remained mostly local, and largely to have faded in the later Middle Ages. He is the patron saint of Werden, East Frisia, and Deventer.[ “Saint Ludger”. New Catholic Dictionary. CatholicSaints.Info. 11 August 2018]
/ref>
Ludger is represented either as a bishop holding a church and a book[ or as standing between two geese (occasionally described as swans). His feast day is celebrated on 26 March.
]
References
Sources
This article includes some information from the German Wikipedia
(mostly in German):
* Börsting, Heinrich, Borger, Hugo, Elbern, Victor H.: ''Sankt Liudger 809-1959. Gedenkschrift zum 1150. Todestage des Heiligen'', Essen-Werden 1959
* Börsting, Heinrich and Schröder, Alois (eds): ''Liudger und sein Erbe'', 2 vols (= Westfalia Sacra, Bd.1-2), Münster 1948-1950
* Boser: ''Am Grabe des hl. Ludger'' (Münster, 1908).
* Buhlmann, Michael: ''Liudger an der Ruhr'', in: Ich verkünde euch Christus. St. Liudger, Zeuge des Glaubens 742-809 998
Year 998 ( CMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Spring – Otto III retakes Rome and restores power in the papal city. Crescenti ...
pp 22–42
* Buhlmann, Michael: ''Liudger und Karl der Große'', in: Ich verkünde euch Christus. St. Liudger, Zeuge des Glaubens 742-809 001 001, O01, or OO1 may refer to:
*1 (number), a number, a numeral
*001, fictional British agent, see 00 Agent
*001, former emergency telephone number for the Norwegian fire brigade (until 1986)
*AM-RB 001, the code-name for the Aston Martin Valkyrie ...
pp 5–48
* Buhlmann, Michael: ''Liudger in den Münsteraner Chroniken des Mittelalters und der frühen Neuzeit'', in: Ich verkünde euch Christus. St. Liudger, Zeuge des Glaubens 742-809 002 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to:
Fiction
*002, fictional British 00 Agent
*''002 Operazione Luna'',
*1965 Italian film
*Zero Two, a ''Darling in the Franxx'' character
Airports
*0O2, Baker Airport
*O02, Nervino Airport
Astronomy
*1996 ...
pp 76–100
* Buhlmann, Michael: ''Liudger und sein bischöfliches Wirken in der Zeit. Sächsischer Missionsbezirk und Münsteraner Bistum Liudgers in der Kirchenorganisation des karolingischen Frankenreichs'', in: Seid Zeugen des Glaubens 005
''005'' is a 1981 arcade game by Sega. They advertised it as the first of their RasterScan Convert-a-Game series, designed so that it could be changed into another game in minutes "at a substantial savings". It is one of the first examples of a ...
pp 55–89
* Diekamp, Wilhelm (ed): ''Die Vitae sancti Liudgeri (= Die Geschichtsquellen des Bistums Münster, Bd.4)'', Münster 1881
* Ficker, Julius (ed): ''Die Münsterischen Chroniken des Mittelalters (= Die Geschichtsquellen des Bistums Münster, Bd.1)'', Münster 1859
* Freise, Eckhard: ''Vom vorchristlichen Mimigernaford zum "honestum monasterium" Liudgers'', in: Geschichte der Stadt Münster, ed F-J Jakobi, Bd.1: Von den Anfängen bis zum Ende des Fürstbistums, Münster, 3rd ed, 1994, pp 1–51
* Freise, Eckhard (ed): ''Liudger'', in: Lexikon des Mittelalters, vol 5, Sp.2038
* Gerchow, Jan (ed): ''Das Jahrtausend der Mönche. KlosterWelt - Werden 799-1803'' (exhibition catalogue), Essen-Köln 1999
* Kaus, Eberhard: ''Zu den Liudger-Viten des 9. Jahrhunderts'', Westfälische Zeitung, 142 (1992), pp 9–55
* Levison, W: ''England and the Continent in the Eighth Century'' (1946)
* Löwe, Heinz: ''Liudger als Zeitkritiker'', in: HJb 74 (1955), pp 79–91
* Pingsmann: ''Der hl. Ludgerus'' (Freiburg, 1879)
* Revue Bénédictine, III, 107; VII, 412
* Schrade, H: ''Die vita des hl Liudger und ihre Bilder'' (1960)
* Senger, Basilius (ed): ''Liudger in seiner Zeit. Altfrid über Liudger. Liudgers Erinnerungen'', Münster, 4th ed, 1986
* Stadler: Heiligenlexikon
* Stühlmeyer, Barbara: ''Das Liudgeroffizium des Benediktinerklosters Essen Werden (Transkription und Analyse)''. In: ''Die Gesänge der Hildegard von Bingen. Eine musikologische, theologische und kulturhistorische Untersuchung''. Phil.Diss., Hildesheim: Olms, 2003, .
* Barbara Stühlmeyer: ''Liudger, ein Friese, der die Welt verändert''. In: ''Karfunkel. Zeitschrift für erlebbare Geschichte'', 61, 2005, S. 107-110, ISSN 0944-2677.
* Stühlmeyer, Ludger: ''Handschriften im Vergleich: Das Ludgerusoffizium des 12. Jh. in der Abtei Gerleve''. In: ''Curia sonans. Die Musikgeschichte der Stadt Hof. Eine Studie zur Kultur Oberfrankens. Von der Gründung des Bistums Bamberg bis zur Gegenwart''. Phil.Diss., Bamberg: Bayerische Verlagsanstalt, Heinrichs-Verlag 2010, .
External links
*
*
Dossier about Ludger at kirchensite.de
*
* Neustadt am Main – Gestern und Heute
''Die fränkische Missionierung ab 500''
{{Authority control
740s births
809 deaths
Bishops in the Carolingian Empire
Medieval German saints
Dutch saints
Christian missionaries in Europe
Clergy from Utrecht (city)
Roman Catholic bishops of Münster
Saints from the Carolingian Empire
History of East Frisia
8th-century Latin writers
8th-century Frankish writers
9th-century Latin writers