Saint Ermin of Lobbes (died 737, in

Lobbes Lobbes (; ) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 Lobbes had a total population of 5,499. The total area is 32.08 km2 which gives a population density of 171 inhabitants per km2. The m ...

, Hainaut,

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

) was the second abbot of

Lobbes Abbey Lobbes Abbey () was a Benedictine monastery in the municipality of Lobbes, Hainaut, Belgium. The abbey played an important role in the religious, political and religious life of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, especially around the year 1000. The ...

Life and legend

Originally from the region of Laon, he studied at the

Cathedral School Cathedral schools began in the Early Middle Ages as centers of advanced education, some of them ultimately evolving into medieval universities. Throughout the Middle Ages and beyond, they were complemented by the monastic schools. Some of these ...

Laon Laon () is a city in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. History Early history The Ancient Diocese of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held s ...

(France) and was ordained as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

by the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

, Madalgaire. After entering the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

of Lobbes, he became a disciple of Saint Ursmar. After nomination by Ursmar, he was elected as his successor as the head of the abbey, founded by Saint Landelin. He had a reputation for wisdom and sanctity. His biographer, abbot Anson of Lobbes (+800), stated that he also had a gift for

prophecy In religion, mythology, and fiction, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain di ...

. He died in Lobbes in 737, and is interred in a

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (: sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a coffin, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek language, Greek wikt:σάρξ, σάρξ ...

in the

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

of Saint Ursmar's Church in Lobbes. He was succeeded as abbot by Theodwin.

Feast day

Saint Ermin (Latin: ''Erminus'') is celebrated locally as a Christian saint. His

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does n ...

is on 25 April.

Bibliography

* A ''Vita Ermini'' was written by Abbot Anson of Lobbes between 750 and 768. This biography was published in the ''

Acta Sanctorum ''Acta Sanctorum'' (''Acts of the Saints'') is an encyclopedic text in 68 folio volumes of documents examining the lives of Christian saints, in essence a critical hagiography, organised by the saints' feast days. The project was conceived and ...

'' by the

Bollandist The Bollandist Society (; ) is an association of scholars, philologists, and historians (originally all Jesuits, but now including non-Jesuits) who since the early seventeenth century have studied hagiography and the cult of the saints in Christia ...

s (April, vol. III).

External links

* A. Dimier
''L'Abbaye de Vauclair et le Prieuré Saint-Erme''
on the site of the Federation of Historical and Archeological Societies of Aisne.

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ermin of Lobbes 737 deaths Belgian Roman Catholic saints Year of birth unknown Abbots of Lobbes 8th-century Christian abbots