Saint Salaberga

Full of gratitude towards the Lord, Salaberge, on the advice of Saint Walbert, abbot of Luxeuil, wished to establish a new mona Laon Location of Gelduin's first monastery. stery in Laon. Bishop Attole gave his consent; and, on an agreed day, he went to meet her accompanied by his clergy and all the people: he received her while singing hymns and psalms. An ancient painting representing this solemn entry of Salaberge and her community can still be seen today in the cathedral of Laon.

Salaberge used a portion of her patrimony to build a vast monastery. It counted up to seven churches. The first and principal one was under the invocation of the Blessed Virgin; the second was dedicated to Saint Michael and all the angels; the third, to Saint John the Baptist and all the patriarchs and prophets; the fourth, to Saint Peter and all the Apostles; the fifth was built in honor of the Holy Cross; the sixth had as its patron Saint Epvre, bishop of Toul; the seventh, finally, was under the invocation of Saint Mary Magdalene. One of these last three, built at the entrance of the house, was probably intended for religious men, who, under the guidance of the priest Itaie, lived separated from the nuns. In this monastery, three hundred girls, succeeding one another day and night, sang the praises of the Lord without interruption: this is what was called Laus perennis Laus perennis Perpetual praise organized by Columbanus at Luxeuil. .

Saint Odile Sainte Odile Aunt and mentor of Saint Attala, founder of Hohenbourg. and her husba nd Saint Bo saint Bodon Husband of Saint Odile, who became Bishop of Toul. do (Leudvinus-Bodo) renounced the world, distributed their goods to the poor and to religious houses, and came to Laon to place themselves under the guidance of Saint Salaberge. Bodo remained there only a short time, having soon after been chosen to be Bishop of Toul. Saint Salaberge was always a model of virtue for her daughters. Charity, prudence, and a great trust in God guided her in the governance of her community. She knew how to combine a modest cheerfulness with recollection and the tenderest piety. This is what made her particularly cherished by her sisters and made her company very agreeable to all the people who had any dealings with her. Taciturnity and sadness have nothing in common with true devotion. The Bishop of Soissons, Saint Ansery, sometimes visited the holy abbess and consoled her in her sorrows. He appeared to her after his death and showed her the place that the just Appraiser of merits had reserved for her in heaven.

But before calling her to eternal rewards, the Lord wished to perfect her virtue by exercising her in patience. For two whole years, He tested her with cruel illnesses that did not leave her a moment of calm or rest. This state of continuous suffering did not cause her to diminish any of her austerities, vigils, or prayers. Finally, feeling that the moment of her death was near, she called all her sisters around her bed, recommended to them fidelity to the rule, silence, and recollection, as well as the greatest charity toward one another. With the consent of all her sisters, she gave them her daughter Anstrude, aged twenty, as abbess, and passed to a better life in the year of Jesus Christ 654. She was buried in her abbey, w Anstrude Abbess of Laon in the 7th century, daughter of Saint Salaberga. here her body was preserved in a reliquary of copper and silver, along with that of Saint Anstrude, one of her daughters. The monastery of Saint Salaberge has undergone many vicissitudes since her death.

The troubles that followed that of Saint Anstrude, and even more the abuse by which several queens of the second race of our kings, such as Otgive, wife of Charles the Simple, and Gerberge, wife of Louis d'Outre-Mer, appropriated the possession of the abbey; finally, the misfortunes experienced by the city of Laon at the beginning of the 12th century, caused this important house to decline significantly. The disorder appeared irremediable; and Barthélemy, Bishop of Laon, supported by the authority of the Pope and the King, obliged the nuns to withdraw to Crandelain, in a dependency of the house; he then called in their place Benedictine monks who, amidst many vicissitudes, possessed this ancient monastery, which then took the name of Saint-Jean Saint-Jean de Laon Monastery founded by Salaberga and directed by Anstrude. d e Laon. The Congregation of S La congrégation de Saint-Maur Religious order that produced a major edition of the works of Jerome. aint-Maur was introduced there in 1648; in the last century, it had opened public courses there and maintained a college for the instruction of youth.

Acta Sanctorum; Dom Lelong; Notes provided by M. Lequeux, Vicar General of Paris; History of the Diocese of Toul and that of Nancy, by Abbé Guillaume.