Saint Romedius

Saint Romedius ( it, San Romedio; was a son of the Tyrolese count of Thaur in the Inn valley near Innsbruck). Though the son of a nobleman, as a young man he withdrew to a rock cave in order to meditate. After the death of his parents, he gave away all of his possessions and established himself in the Val di Non (german: Nonstal) in Trentino.

History

Romedius was the son and heir of the wealthy Count of Thaur, the lord of a castle near Innsbruck and owner of salt pans in the valley of the River Inn. After a pilgrimage to Rome, Romedius gave all his possessions to the Church, withdrawing into a hermitage in some grottoes in the Val di Non. he was accompanied by two companions, Abraham and David. Although the legend says that Romedius died c. 4th century, the existence of the hermit, a member of an aristocratic Bavarian family, can be dated to the first decades of the 11th century, about the same time as the development of his cultus.

Legend

Romedius is often depicted alongside or astride a bear. According to his hagiography he wanted to visit the friend of his youth, St. Vigilius, Bishop of Trento (who died in 405), but his horse was torn to pieces by a wild bear. Romedius, however, had the bear bridled by his disciple David (Davide). The bear became docile and carried Romedius on its back to Trento.Tondo, Lorenzo. "Papillon the bear: how the 'escape genius' sparked a national debate in Italy", Trento'', October 5, 2020
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A similar tale is told of Saint Psalmodius and of Lucanus of Sabiona. The tamed bear is a motif also of Saint Corbinian, bishop of Freising.

Veneration

Upon Romedius' death, his body was laid to rest in a small tomb above his cave in the mountains, a site that was soon visited by pilgrims. The Sanctuary of San Romedio grew from the little church that was built to venerate him to a popular pilgrimage shrine. The ''Santuario di San Romedio'' is across the lake from Cles at the head of the Val di Non, above the village of Sanzeno. The sanctuary where Romedio lived with his bear companion is a complex of several churches, from the Romanesque period to the 20th century beyond a gateway in the forested slopes. Votive offerings of crutches line the walls of the narrow stone stairwell up to the highest chapel, said to mark the site of the saint's retreat.

His local cult, which consolidated itself in the course of the 11th century, was officially recognized in the twelfth by the Bishop of Trento. In 1795, permission was given to read masses in his name in the diocese of Brixen, which at that time included the Northern Tyrol. His cult remains popular in Trentino, Bavaria, and the Tyrol.

Romedius' Bear

In remembrance of this legend, in 1958 Italian Senator G. G. Gallarati Scotti, honorary member of the committee for the foundation of the World Wildlife Fund in Italy, purchased Charlie, a bear intended to be killed, and donated it to the Sanctuary of San Romedio, in the Valle di Non.

Today, the Province of Trentino protects the last brown bears of the Alps in the Adamello-Brenta National Park, and, near the Sanctuary, takes care of young bears born in captivity in Trentino.

In the work known as ''Illustrissimi'', a collection of letters written by Pope John Paul I when he was Patriarch of Venice, Romedius' bear is one of the "recipients" of the letters.

References

The Legend of San Romedio
''(with children's drawings)''
Annegret and Peter Kokschal, 2002. ''Die Heiligen für Jeden Tag''
(Leipzig) (pdf file)

San Romedio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Romedius
Year of birth unknown
4th-century deaths
People from Innsbruck-Land District
Austrian Roman Catholic saints