Saint Mommolin of Constance

Although they had no other desire than to serve God in the silence and obscurity of the cloister, Mommolin and his companions, betrayed by their reputation for piety and the brilliance of their talents, were called to t he court of Clotaire II King of Neustria and later sole King of the Franks, protector of Columbanus after his exile. Clotaire II. At the time they departed from Luxeuil, it had been about two years since Saint Walbert had succeeded Saint Eustace, who had already entered the eternal tabernacles (May 2, 665).

The first time Mommolin appeared before Clotaire, he gave a memorable example of Christian humility. The prince having asked him for the name of his ancestors, the Saint, whose birth was very illustrious, remained silent, fearing that this admission might suggest feelings of pride to him. This modesty only gave new luster to his merit, and Clotaire soon appointed him head of the Palatine school and chancellor of the kingdom. In these two offices, which were the two most important at court, Mommolin used his credit for the glory of religion and the Church, and for the happiness of the State. He exerted a salutary influence on the minds of the great. His advice, and above all the example of his virtues, awakened in the hearts of several noble lords feelings of contrition and penance.

However, God destined Mommolin for functions no less worthy of his charity and zeal. Omer, his for mer Omer Famous predecessor of Folquin at Thérouanne. fellow student at Luxeuil, having become Bishop of Thérouanne (Pas-de-Calais), needed virtuous and active co-workers to raise this long-vacant church from its ruins. Saint Fuscian and Saint Victoric, and later, Saint Victricius, Bishop of Rouen, had cleared this part of the Father of the family's field; but the briars and thorns had reappeared there. The absence of pastors had brought back, along with the barbarity of customs, the guilty practices of idolatry. Having appealed to the priestly devotion of Mommolin, Bertin, and Ebertram, Omer easily obtained their departure from the court to come and assist him in his work of reparation.

The new apostles worked for the conversion of these peoples with incomparable faith, zeal, and ardor. They did not limit themselves to announcing the kingdom of heaven to them; they sought to merit their entry into it through their prayers and the austerity of their penances. "From the dawn of the day until its decline," says the author of the Life of our Saint, "they preached the Gospel and gave charitable care to the sick. At night, they took a few short moments of rest on ashes and haircloth." Thus, their ministry was blessed: their labors, united with those of Omer, soon brought this people back under the yoke of the faith.

Upon the arrival of our missionaries in his diocese, Omer had established them on a hill, still called today the Motte of Saint-Mommolin. After eight years spent in this first residence, the great number of religious whom their virtues had attracted there prompted them to found a more substantial establishment elsewhere. They therefore withdrew to a domain that the Bishop of Thérouanne had received from the hands of a rich and powerful pagan lord, recently converted to Christianity with his entire family. This domain, situated on the banks of the Aa and n amed S Sithiû Former name of the monastery of Saint-Omer. ithiû, was a sort of island in the middle of a vast marsh, which could hardly be approached except by skiff. It is said that, for the choice of this location, Mommolin and his companions had resolved to rely on the will of God. With this in view, the three monks boarded a small boat and let it drift at the mercy of the waters while they recited or sang psalms. The boat landed, it is said, at the moment when Bertin was pronouncing these words of the Prophet-King: Hæc requies mea in sæculum sæculi: hic habitabo quoniam elegi eam. They had arrived at the island of Sithiû.

There rose a new monastery which first received the name of the Prince of the Apostles and was placed by Omer under the direction of Mommolin. The Saint became for the religious there an accomplished model of the most austere virtues. Zealous to inspire in them the love of poverty, he reserved for the relief of the unfortunate the goods that the rich founder of Sithiû had placed at his disposal. As for him, after long fasts, he took for his only nourishment water and barley bread soaked in the tears of penance. He did not limit himself to satisfying the hunger of the indigent; he showed himself to be their consoler, their friend, and, if they were sick, their physician. When an infirm person appeared before him, he would kneel and pray to the Lord to grant him at the same time the healing of the soul and that of the body; then he would care for him with his own hands and often restored his health. To the life of a religious, Mommolin continued to join the apostolic life, often leaving his monastery to go and evangelize the peoples.

The Lord soon gave him the opportunity to make his zeal, virtues, and experience serve the salvation of souls even more effectively. The Church of Noyon had just lost Saint Eligius, one of its most glorious bishops (663). The dying Pontiff had beseeched God for a holy pastor for his Church: he deserved to be heard. By a benevolent disposition of Providence, Mommolin was called, with a unanim ous voic Mommolin Monk of Luxeuil, abbot of Sithiû, and later bishop of Noyon in the 7th century. e, to gather the inheritance of this admirable bishop.

In vain did the humility of the holy abbot of Sithiu oppose obstacles to the desires of the clergy and the people: he had to resign himself to bowing his shoulders under the burden that God imposed upon him. The Church of Noyon found, in the new bishop, the charity and zeal of Saint Eligius. "He was seen," says an author, "constantly occupied with sowing in hearts the divine word of Jesus Christ, with ransoming captives, and with assisting widows and orphans. His solicitude for the sufferings of the soul and the body was constant and unalterable." These words recall and summarize the entire life of Saint Eligius. It is because Mommolin always had his eyes fixed on this accomplished model, whose every trait he sought to reproduce in himself. Wishing to share with the people his veneration for his illustrious predecessor, Mommolin raised from the earth his precious remains, which corruption had not yet reached, and transferred them solemnly into the cathedral of Noyon.

Mommolin watched with equal solicitude over all parts of his vast diocese. He placed at the head of the monasteries men of proven virtue, and of a character energetic enough to maintain discipline there. He called to his side Ebertram, his former fellow student Ebertram Companion of Mommolin, later abbot of Saint-Quentin. and cooperator, and entrusted him with the monastery of Saint-Quentin in Vermandois. Several times he went to Tournai, where, in concert with Saint Amand, the apostle of saint Amand Spiritual advisor to Gertrude. northern France, he succeeded in extirpating the last roots of idolatry. The Saint was meek and humble of heart; however, says an author of his Life, "the imposing majesty of his figure struck terror into the souls of impenitent sinners, heretics, and infidels." He never used flattery toward the great. When courtiers came to visit him in Noyon, he exhorted them vividly to preserve themselves from the corruption of the century. Often he said to them, with Saint John the Evangelist: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. The world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."

The death of Mommolin was as holy as his life had been edifying. In his final moments, he addressed these touching words to the faithful Christians who surrounded his bed: "I know, my beloved children, that my death is near. May I find the divine Master as propitious as my desire to see Him is ardent! After my last breath, may my body receive a modest burial outside the city, awaiting the day of the glorious resurrection. As for you, if you love me, think often of the severe justice of the sovereign Judge. Fear that He may surprise you in sin."

Having uttered these words, the Blessed one received with tender devotion the body and blood of Jesus Christ, who was a few moments later his eternal reward.

Thus died, after twenty-six years of episcopate (685), the worthy successor of Saint Eloi, the virtuous Pontiff who, during his lifetime, received the beautiful title of apostolic man. Despite his prohibition, his funeral was held with great solemnity. His venerated remains were buried in the church of Saint-Georges, which later bore the name of the holy Apostles, and finally that of Sainte-Godeberthe. Later, they were transferred to the cathedral of Noyon, where they are still venerated today. During the Revolution, these precious relics were saved by the zeal of a pious faithful précieuses reliques Remains of the saint preserved at the Cathedral of Noyon. named Eustache, who buried them in the courtyard of the cathedral cloister. The cult of the Blessed one dates back at least to the 10th century. His feast was once a day of obligation throughout the diocese of Noyon.

He is represented holding an open book in his hand. — "This could well," says Father Cahier on this subject, "be only a general attribute of the episcopate, but I suspect another cause. This Saint is invoked in Flanders for children who stutter or are slow to speak, and the reason for this is perhaps originally in the kind of onomatopoeia that his name contains as an expression of stuttering. This being the case, this open book would be a kind of test presented to the little clients to judge their pronunciation.

Vie des Saints du diocèse de Beauvois, by Abbé Sabatier.