Norbertus van Couwerven (died 9 September 1661) was the 43rd

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

St. Michael's Abbey, Antwerp St Michael's Abbey in Antwerp was a Premonstratensian abbey founded in 1124 by Norbert of Xanten and laid waste during the French Revolutionary Wars. In 1807 a semaphore station was installed in the tower of the church. The buildings were demolis ...

Life

Van Couwerven was born in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

towards the end of the 16th century. Aug. Vander Meersch, "Couwerven (Norbert van)", ''

Biographie Nationale de Belgique The ''Biographie nationale de Belgique'' ( French; "National Biography of Belgium") is a biographical dictionary of Belgium. It was published by the Royal Academy of Belgium in 44 volumes between 1866 and 1986. A continuation series, entitled the ' ...

''
vol. 4
(Brussels, 1873), 453-455. After completing his education at the Jesuit college in Antwerp, he entered the

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

order and was sent to study at Leuven University. After graduation and ordination, he became a noted preacher in Antwerp, where in 1652 he was named abbot of St Michael's in succession to

Johannes Chrysostomus vander Sterre Johannes Chrysostomus vander Sterre (1591–1652), sometimes Jean Chrysostome Van der Sterre or Joannes Chrysostomus Stella, was an ecclesiastical writer and abbot of St. Michael's Abbey, Antwerp. Life Vander Sterre was born in 's-Hertogenbosch on ...

. In 1654, he had a silver reliquary made for relics of

St Norbert St. Norbert (french: Saint-Norbert) is a bilingual (French and English) neighbourhood and the southernmost suburb of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. While outside the Perimeter Highway (the orbital road that surrounds most of Winnipeg), it is ...

that had come into the abbey's possession, and in 1655 he commissioned a replacement for the abbey's great bell, and had a new 31-bell

carillon A carillon ( , ) is a pitched percussion instrument that is played with a keyboard and consists of at least 23 cast-bronze bells. The bells are hung in fixed suspension and tuned in chromatic order so that they can be sounded harmoniou ...

cast for the abbey church. On 31 July 1656, he preached a sermon in honour of Jesuit founder

Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola, Society of Jesus, S.J. (born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; eu, Ignazio Loiolakoa; es, Ignacio de Loyola; la, Ignatius de Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Spain, Spanish Catholic ...

.''Sermoonen ter eeren van den h. Ignatius, fondateur van de Societeyt Jesu, ghepredickt in de kercke van het professie huys tot Antwerpen op den XXXI Julii M.D.C.LVI.'' (Antwerp,

Balthasar Moretus Balthasar Moretus or Balthasar I Moretus (23 July 1574 – 6 July 1641) was a Flemish printer and head of the Plantin Press, Officina Plantiniana, the printing company established by his grandfather Christophe Plantin in Antwerp in 1555. He was the ...

, 1656) According to his epitaph, he died on 9 September 1661. He was buried at the foot of the main altar in the abbey church.

Writings

* ''Observationes in universum stagyriticam philosophiam'' * ''Velitationes nonnullae Theologicae'' * ''Concionimi Tomi tres'' (a collection of sermons) * ''Sermoonen ter eeren van den h. Ignatius, fondateur van de Societeyt Jesu, ghepredickt in de kercke van het professie huys tot Antwerpen op den XXXI Julii M.D.C.LVI.'' (Antwerp,

, 1656)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Couwerven, Norbert van 16th-century births 1661 deaths 17th-century Christian clergy Flemish abbots Premonstratensians Clergy from Antwerp