Saint Odile of Hohenbourg

Only one thing was missing from Adalric's happiness. He had no children, and this misfortune afflicted him deeply; for all the advantages he enjoyed seemed of little consequence to him if he could not pass them on to an heir of his name and fortune. On this occasion, Berswinde joined her prayers to those of her husband, and their ardent vows, their fasts, and their alms finally drew down upon them the blessings of heaven. Berswinde ceased to be barren, and the duke's subjects, sharing in his happiness, awaited with anxiety the birth of Adalric's heir.

This long-desired day finally arrived. But it arrived too soon for Adalric's peace of mind, says a historian; he had flattered himself that he would have a son, and God gave him only a daughter, and a blind daughter (657). Then the duke's joy turned into deep sadness, and his hope into despair; the paternal love he had conceived for this unborn child degenerated into a fury that would be difficult to understand in a man so virtuous, had his virtue not had something bizarre and irregular about it.

Adalric exhaled his grief in bitter complaints, regarding the birth of this child as a curse from God upon his family. But Berswinde, however afflicted she was by her daughter's misfortune, was even more so by Adalric's words. She strove to calm him by reminding him that God had showered them with blessings until this day, and that they must still bless Him for having given them this child, who might perhaps serve to manifest His works and His power.

These gentle words did not succeed in appeasing Adalric's anger. He repeated that if the birth of his daughter were to become known, the honor of his race would be obscured. So weak is the virtue of man! An unforeseen disgrace disconcerts and strikes it down even in those where it seemed best established. Finally, Berswinde obtained from her husband that their daughter would be secretly transported to an unknown place, where she would be raised far from the eyes of her parents. By sparing the life of this child, Adalric believed he was fulfilling what the duty of nature required of him, and by removing her from his presence, satisfying what the honor of his house seemed to demand. In order to hide the mystery of this unfortunate birth, the rumor was spread that the duchess had suffered a miscarriage.

Berswinde then remembered a woman who had once been attached to her service, and who was then living in Scherwiller, two leagues from Schœnestein. She believed she could count on the loyalty of this stranger, whom she had showered with her favors, and having had her brought to her, she placed her daughter in her hands. "Watch over this child," she said to her, "raise her secretly as if she were your own daughter, and may the Lord Jesus and the Virgin Mary protect her, as well as you, every day!" The nurse took the child to her home, and took care to hide her birth from the inhabitants of the region.

Adalric was unaware of the place where his daughter had been taken; for, so as not to irritate him, they carefully avoided speaking of her in his presence. It had been almost a year since the young princess had been mysteriously entrusted to her nurse, when the rumor spread in the province that a little blind girl was being carefully raised in Scherwiller whose parents were unknown, but whose noble air and the care with which she was surrounded sufficiently indicated that she belonged to a great family. Some even observed that the nurse had once been in the service of Berswinde, and that the child's age corresponded perfectly to the time when it had been published that the duchess had suffered a miscarriage.

The nurse informed Berswinde of all these rumors, and the latter, fearing that these noises might reach Adalric's ears, resolved to make a new sacrifice so as not to irritate him further. She ordered the nurse to transport her daughter to the monastery of Baume-les-Dames, in the county of Burgundy, where she coul monastère de Baume-les-Dames Monastery in Burgundy where Odile was raised. d continue to raise her. This place seemed more suitable than any other to serve as a refuge for the young princess, because the distance would protect her from searches, and, moreover, the abbess of Baume was the aunt of the Duchess Berswinde.

The young exile was received there with joy, and the abbess surrounded her with all the care that can make up for a mother's tenderness. Adalric's daughter grew in age and wisdom in the bosom of this adoptive family. Her soul opened only to know God and to love virtue. She showed, moreover, a great sweetness of character and an astonishing ease in retaining what she was taught, so that, by the age of five, she was perfectly instructed in the principal duties of a Christian. Deprived of bodily light, she received in abundance that light from above, which enlightens every man coming into the world.

We do not know the name by which Adalric's daughter was known at that time; for, having reached the age of twelve, she had not yet had the happiness of receiving baptism. This was perhaps a remnant of the custom followed in the 6th century, where the baptism of children was deferred until they had reached the age of reason. Be that as it may, God seemed to have destined this young girl to enter the path of the elect through a miraculous door, by restoring to her the sight of the body at the same time as that of the soul. At that time, the bl Erhard Bishop of Regensburg who baptized Odile. essed Erhard was Bishop of Regensburg, in Bavaria. One day, he had a vision in which God told him to go immediately to the monastery of Baume. "There you will find," the voice from on high told him, "a young servant of the Lord. She has been blind from birth. You will baptize her, you will give her the name Odile, and at the moment of her baptism, her eyes will open to the light." Saint Erhard departed without delay, and instead of taking the direct route, headed toward the Vosges. His intention was to first visit the abbey of Moyenmoutier, where h is broth Hidulphe Bishop of Trier and intimate friend of Saint Deodatus. er Hidulph had retired after voluntarily leaving the episcopal see of Trier. Hidulph, who was leading an angelic life in these places, was charmed to see Erhard again, and when he learned the purpose of his journey, he wished to accompany him to the monastery of Baume. The two Saints found Adalric's daughter perfectly instructed in all the dogmas of the religion.

Saint Erhard began the ceremony. According to the custom of the time, he plunged the young blind girl into the sacred waters, and Saint Hidulph having raised her up, Erhard performed the anointings of the holy chrism on her eyes, saying:

"In the name of Jesus Christ, be henceforth enlightened with the eyes of the body and the eyes of the soul." Everyone was awaiting the prodigy: it was not in vain; heaven obeyed the voice of the holy man. Saint Erhard bestowed upon the new Christian the name Odile, that is to say, daughter of light, or God is your sun; a glorious name that Jesus Christ himself had indicated, and which was to constantly remind Adalric's daughter of the benefit with which she had been favored by heaven. The spectators of this scene, struck with joy and astonishment, blessed the Lord who had just manifested his mercy and his power.

Then the holy bishop blessed a veil, which he placed on Odile's head, and presented her with some holy relics, announcing to her that God still reserved wonderful graces for her, if she showed herself faithful to the favors with which he had showered her on this day. Before leaving, he blessed the young neophyte, recommended her to the abbess of Baume and to the nuns who had watched over her childhood, and left with his brother Hidulph. Adalric could not fail to learn with joy of the miracle that God had accomplished in favor of his daughter, and as the abbey of Moyenmoutier, where Hidulph resided, was only a short distance from Hohenbourg, Erhard charged his brother to communicate such pleasant news to the duke, which was to inspire in him more favorable feelings toward Odile. Hidulph went to Duke Adalric, told him all the details of his daughter's baptism, and awakened in his heart that paternal affection that evil passions can never entirely stifle. Adalric was enchanted by Saint Hidulph's account, and to show his gratitude, he gave his monastery of Moyenmoutier the land of Feldkirch, which this abbey possessed until the last century. "However," says the historian of the Saint, "he did not call Odile back home, either because he feared that the presence of this miraculous daughter would be for him a continual reproach for the harshness he had shown her, or because he believed it would be better to leave her still at Baume, with her aunt, so that she might be strengthened in virtue."

Odile therefore remained at Baume, where she continued to show herself always pious, always diligent in study and work. The examples of virtue with which she was surrounded were not lost on her, and despite her youth, the ardor of her zeal, the fervor of her devotion, and the maturity of her spirit raised her to the rank of the most distinguished nuns of the monastery. Although she had not yet made her profession, she scrupulously observed all the prescriptions of the rule and fulfilled, like the others, all the tasks assigned to her.

During this time, her father's house had been filled with the blessings of heaven. God had given Adalric four sons and a second daughter, who was named Roswinde. The eldest of the young princes was called Etichon or Etton, the second Adelbert, the third Hugh, and the las t Bata Hugues Brother of Odile who interceded for her return. chon. They were the ornament of their house, the glory of Alsace, and the root of the illustrious families who reigned over Austria, Lorraine, the Baden region, and other lands. Among all these noble children, Hugh seemed to distinguish himself from the others by his eminent qualities. He was a well-formed prince, full of wit, heart, and generosity, and above all of that confidence which early youth, supported by budding merit, usually inspires in people who know themselves and who feel what they are.

Odile heard his merit praised, and loved him, without ever having seen him, with a lively affection. She wrote him letters full of tenderness, which she entrusted to a pilgrim. The young Hugh, touched by this mark of attachment, replied to his sister in terms of the most sincere friendship. Odile, charmed by her brother's sentiments, resolved to employ him as an intercessor with Adalric. She therefore begged him to soften her father's mind and to arrange her return to the castle of Hohenbourg. His commission was delicate. But Hugh, whose heart was good, easily believed that the duke would be sensitive to his daughter's approach. One day, he praised in his presence the qualities of mind and body that were admired in Odile, and ended by conjuring Adalric to recall her to his house, of which she was to be the most beautiful ornament.

The duke replied laconically that he had motives for leaving her at Baume for a while longer, and his son did not dare to insist. But, persuaded that his sister's presence would be enough to dispel all obstacles, he secretly had a chariot and horses prepared, which he sent to her, writing that she could return to Hohenbourg. Odile, persuaded that her father consented to her return, immediately bade farewell to the abbess and the nuns of Baume, promising them to return soon to devote herself with them to the service of God. She left, a little anxious and wavering between fear and hope. But prayer sustained her on the road, and, after having crossed two provinces, she arrived happily at the foot of the mountain where Adalric had rebuilt the ruins of the castle of Hohenbourg.

At that very moment, the duke was walking in the countryside, conversing familiarly with his son. Suddenly he noticed a group advancing toward the mountain and asked what it was. Hugh, informed of his sister's return, replied that it was Odile returning to the paternal home. "Who has been bold enough," cried Adalric, "to recall her without my permission?" The young Hugh, then realizing that he had counted too much on his father's tenderness, replied trembling: "It is I who sent for her to return. Forgive my temerity and the affection I felt for a sister. If I have deserved your anger, punish me alone, for Odile is not guilty." The duke, carried away by a first movement of anger, struck the young man roughly. But his wrath subsided, and when Odile, having arrived at the summit of the mountain, came to throw herself at his feet and kiss his hands, nature regained its empire, and the duke, having embraced her, presented her to her brothers who welcomed her with joy. Soon the Duchess Berswinde, warned of her daughter's return, ran to meet her and kissed with respect her eyes, which God had so miraculously opened to the light of day.

Odile, having returned to the castle of Hohenbourg, went to the foot of the altars to thank God for having brought her back to her family. Her life at her father's court was always a model of edification. Her piety and gentleness charmed all those who surrounded her, and her parents, touched by her obedience, felt their affection for her grow from day to day. Her father alone seemed to bear her less affection than his other children. He did not want to admit her to his table and had her meals served in a secluded part of the castle. One day, however, he met her in the courtyard and said to her, in a tone more affectionate than usual: "Where are you going, my daughter?" — "Lord," replied Odile, "I am taking a little food to some poor sick people." The gentleness of her words and her modest air deeply moved the duke. He repented of his coldness toward such a lovable child and said to her: "Do not be afflicted, my daughter; if you have lived poorly until now, it will not be so in the future." From then on, he showed her extreme kindness in all circumstances. Odile, far from taking advantage of it, only showed herself more gentle and more devoted to good works. Her examples had the most salutary influence on her family, and her sister Roswinde resolved to follow in her footsteps by renouncing, like her, the vanities of the world, to relieve the poor and carry the cross of Jesus Christ.

Adalric then thought of marrying Odile to some powerful lord among his friends. But she had many other thoughts. The tumultuous life of the courts wearied her, and she thought of returning to the solitude of Baume. Adalric, to whom she made her intention known, opposed it, and despite her entreaties and tears, she could not obtain her father's permission. Odile was deeply distressed by this obstacle. She wrote a touching letter to her aunt and the nuns of Baume to express her sorrow. The abbess felt Odile's absence keenly, and, to keep a more tangible memory of her, she carefully and with the greatest respect kept a violet veil, woven with silk and gold threads, which the Saint had worked with her own hands, and which was venerated in the abbey of Baume until the last century.

Odile was therefore obliged to remain at Hohenbourg against her will. The fame of her eminent qualities soon attracted the most distinguished people there. A Duke of Germany, enchanted by her merit, asked Adalric for her hand. The Duke and Duchess saw in this alliance a brilliant future for their daughter. They gave their consent; but when they asked for Odile's, she replied, with as much firmness as respect, that she did not wish to have any spouse other than Jesus Christ, to whom she had vowed her heart. A few days later, fearing the measures that were to be taken to constrain her freedom, she fled secretly, disguised in the habit of a beggar. Her plan was first to go to Baume; but, having reflected that they would not fail to look for her in that direction, she crossed the Rhine in a boat, and resolved to seek an unknown solitude, where she could live far from the world (679).

When it was discovered at the castle of Hohenbourg that Odile had disappeared, the Duke ordered his sons to set out in search of her immediately. He himself headed towards the Rhine, and took the road to Freiburg im Breisgau. It was precisely the one his daughter was following; h owever, despite all Fribourg en Brisgau Place where Odile hides to escape a forced marriage. his searches, Adalric could not discover her, and she remained hidden for several months in Freiburg or the surrounding area. Adalric, afflicted by her absence, had it published throughout his states that he solemnly pledged, if Odile returned to Hohenbourg, to grant her full freedom to embrace the way of life she desired.

This edict came to Odile's knowledge. She gave thanks to God for it, and consented to return to Hohenbourg (680). The Duke proved faithful to his promise, and when his daughter had made known to him the desire she had to establish in Alsace a community of virgins consecrated to God, he willingly welcomed this proposal and wished to contribute generously to this work. Immediately, he ceded to Odile the very castle of Hohenbourg with all its dependencies, and this ancient fortress, transformed by Adalric into a pleasure house, was destined to become, in the hands of the Saint, an asylum open to elite souls who wished to flee the contact of the world.

It was between the years 680 and 690 that the work necessary to adapt the house of Hohenbourg to its new purpose was carried out. The Duke provided liberally for all the expenses and often presided over the work himself. When the buildings were completed, Odile took possession of them at the head of a community of one hundred and thirty nuns who belonged to the best families in the country, and who had renounced, like her, all the hopes of the world to come to Hohenbourg to place themselves under the guidance of a mistress so skilled in the science of salvation.

This community, so prosperous from its birth, cast a great radiance over the province. The holiness of the abbess and the fervor of the nuns made the solitude of Hohenbourg regarded as the asylum of the purest virtue. Saint Odile, animated by the spirit of God, was not content to teach the maxims of the spiritual life through her words; she excited her daughters by her examples, which are always the best, shortest, and most effective way to instruct. Duke Adalric, witness to this regularity, expressed his joy through new benefactions. He established a perpetual foundation for one hundred young women of quality who wished to dedicate themselves to the service of God in the monastery of Hohenbourg. He added fourteen benefices for the priests charged with religious service. A magnificent foundation later engaged Emperor Frederick Barbarossa to grant the title of Princesses of the Holy Empire to the abbesses of this rich monastery.

The two chapels that Duke Adalric had built at Hohenbourg were insufficient for the needs of the new community. Odile obtained from her father all the resources necessary to build a beautiful and spacious church, which was consecrated under the title of Our Lady (690). An oratory, also dedicated to the Virgin, was attached to this church. It is in this sanctuary that Odile loved to withdraw to recollect herself in prayer and satisfy her devotion toward the Mother of God. A few steps from the oratory of the Virgin, she also had another chapel built, under the invocation of the Holy Cross, to honor, through a special devotion, the sacred wood upon which the mystery of redemption was accomplished. Finally, she raised a third oratory to Saint John the Baptist, whom she had honored particularly since the day she had recovered her sight through baptism. The contemporary historian of the Saint recounts that this last chapel was miraculously consecrated by Saint Peter, who appeared there to the eyes of Odile, surrounded by a troop of angels, and this marvelous dedication was celebrated each year under the name of the Consecration of the Angels (696). This miraculous chapel was later called the Chapel of Saint Odile, because it is there that the Saint was interred and honored until recent times by the faithful, who came in crowds to offer their prayers and vows there.

It is thus that Odile sanctified this solitude of Hohenbourg. She wanted everything there to recall the thought of heaven. As she also had a special devotion to the Holy Trinity, to recall this august mystery in a tangible way, she planted three linden trees with her own hand near the monastery. Two of these secular trees, which still existed in 1681, were then destroyed by the fire that devoured the monastery.

In the midst of the holy works practiced at Hohenbourg, one important thing was missing for the pious community. The pious daughters gathered in this place practiced regularity there, less by an explicit commitment than by emulation and fervor; in a word, they did not yet have a monastic rule. When Odile had put the finishing touches to the material edifices, she thought of giving her community precise regulations, and of reducing to laws what had been done until then by imitation and by a spirit of piety. For this, she assembled all her daughters to take their advice, and asked them what kind of life they preferred to embrace. All replied that the most austere life seemed to them the most perfect, and that their dearest wish was to walk in the footsteps of their abbess, by following by obligation the narrow path they had followed voluntarily until then. This life was hard, for Odile nourished herself only on barley bread and vegetables; she drank only water, except on feast days; she spent part of the nights in prayer and took barely a few hours of rest; she had no other bed than a bear skin, and finally granted her body only what was absolutely necessary to sustain her existence.

The zeal she had for the sanctification of souls led her to undertake a new work. The sanctuaries of Hohenbourg were visited by a great number of pilgrims. But those who were infirm could only with difficulty reach the monastery, situated at the summit of the mountain. Odile, seconded by the pious liberality of her mother, Berswinde, had a hospital and a church dedicated to Saint Nicholas built for these unfortunates at the foot of the mountain. Despite the difficulty of the paths, she visited these poor people every day, served them with affection, and distributed alms to them with her own hands.

The nuns of Hohenbourg admired the generous devotion of their abbess. Charmed by her examples, they wanted to have a share in her good works, and begged her to allow some of them to accompany her in this salutary exercise of charity. Odile consented, and, considering that her community, having become very numerous, found itself cramped on the mountain, she resolved to choose those of her nuns who were suited for the service of the poor, and to transport them to her new establishment, while maintaining them under her direction. She therefore had a new church built for them, vast and sumptuous, and the new community took the name of Nieder-Münster.

The nuns changed their dwelling without changing their customs or their abbess. The two houses were like two great trees that appear separated on the outside, and which nevertheless have the same root and the same principl Nieder-Münster Monastery and hospital founded by Odile at the foot of the Hohenbourg. e of life. Odile, bore the name of Chapel of Tears; a sixth, finally, suspended on the slope of a rock, was called the Hanging Chapel, or also the Chapel of the Angels, to whom it was dedicated. It seemed, says the historian, that the blessed Odile wanted to change all of Hohenbourg into chapels or rather into stations. Saint Odile continued to govern them with as much success as wisdom: she was found sometimes in one, sometimes in the other; most often in the one where there was the most to work and the most to suffer. But the house where she went most willingly was the hospital of Saint Nicholas: it was there like her garden of delights, where she relaxed each day, as much as the conduct of two numerous communities permitted her. The air one breathed there, infected as it was, seemed sweet to her. Her pious daughters imitated her with emulation, and made, like her, a happy experience of the happiness one tastes when one deigns to lower oneself to console the poor and the miserable.

However, Duke Adalric and his wife Berswinde were already quite advanced in age. Attracted by their daughter's virtues, they resolved to dedicate their final days to prayer, and let Odile know that they wished to retire near her, until the moment it pleased God to call them to Him. Odile received this message with joy. She knew all the faith and piety that resided in her parents' hearts. Duchess Berswinde had always been distinguished by a spotless virtue, and if, at times, the Duke had given way to outbursts of temper, he had long since learned to silence this passion, and public voice loudly proclaimed his piety and justice. Adalric therefore went to Hohenbourg with Berswinde. He lived there for a few months in the practice of good works, and soon died there, in sentiments of the most vivid piety, in the arms of his daughter (around the year 700). The pious Berswinde followed him to the grave shortly after.

Odile, after the death of her parents, lived for many more years in the practice of the most sublime virtues. One day, a leper appeared at the monastery gate to ask for alms. His body gave off a foul odor, and no one dared to approach him. Odile, informed of his presence, came herself to serve him food. But, despite her heroic courage, she recoiled at first at the repulsive sight of this wretch. Then, overcoming this first movement of nature, she threw herself on the neck of the unfortunate man and embraced him with a generosity that made the witnesses of this spectacle shudder. Her charity growing through this victory over herself, she served him food with pious affection, and, raising her eyes to heaven, she repeated in a voice broken by sobs these charitable words: "Lord, either grant him health or grant him patience." Her prayer was soon answered; the leper's leprosy disappeared, and those who were present praised God, who had glorified the charity of His servant.

Odile continued to visit the hospital of Nieder-Münster, located at the foot of the mountain, every day; but her continual fatigue, combined with her advanced age, had singularly weakened her strength. Her charity was still as ardent as ever, and a contemporary author recounts that God rewarded her with an astonishing miracle. "One day," he says, "as the Saint was returning alone to Hohenbourg, she met a poor man lying on the path, dying of thirst and fatigue. Unable to run fast enough to seek help for this unfortunate man, she placed all her trust in God, and, remembering what Moses had done in the past, she struck the nearby rock with her staff. A fountain immediately gushed forth, whose salutary water restored life to the dying man." Such is the account that was repeated in the region a few years after her death, and the miraculous fountain, still visited today by a large number of pilgrims, is famous throughout the country for the healings attributed to the virtue of its waters. Protestants themselves, as well as Catholics, have preserved for these places the traditional respect of their ancestors.

The poor were Odile's privileged friends. She wanted them to always be shown compassionate charity, and she had expressly forbidden ever refusing them alms. She often served them with her own hands, and it was always with the most Christian tenderness. This charity of the abbess sustained the fervor of her nuns, who devoted themselves, following her example, to the care of the poor in the hospital of Nieder-Münster.

Thus lived this holy community, in the midst of which Odile remained until a very advanced age, full of merits and virtues. Her name was blessed throughout Alsace, and the faithful flocked to Hohenbourg to admire her devotion and listen to her words like those of an apostle. When she saw her end approaching, she gathered all her daughters in the chapel of Saint John the Baptist, which she had made her private oratory. "Do not be alarmed," she told them, "by what I am about to announce to you; I feel that the hour of my death is approaching, and I hope that my soul will soon fly from the prison of my body to go and enjoy the freedom of the children of God." Then she revealed to each of them the faults to correct, the dangers to fear, and recommended that they remain above all faithful to the holy practices that had until then kept them in fervor. Odile, then noticing her nieces, Eugénie, Gundeline, and Attale, who were shedding torrents of tears, said to them: "My dear daughters, your tears will not prolong my days; the hour has come, it will soon be time to leave. Go only to the oratory of the Virgin to recite the Psalter and ask for me the grace of a good death." They went to pray, and when they returned to Odile, they found her plunged into such a deep ecstasy that, believing her dead, they gave themselves over to tears once again. But the Saint soon awoke as if from a deep sleep, and told them that God had transported her, in the company of Saint Lucy, whose feast was being celebrated that day (December 13th), to give her a foretaste of the ineffable goods of heaven. As she ardently desired to receive the holy Viaticum, the historians of her life recount that, to satisfy her holy impatience, heaven wished to perform a new miracle. An angel surrounded by light descended beside her, in the presence of the whole assembly, and respectfully presented to her a chalice containing the body and precious blood of Jesus Christ. When Odile had taken holy communion, the angel disappeared, and the sacred vessel remained in her hands as a testimony of the extraordinary favor she had received from heaven.

Odile addressed a final farewell to her holy daughters, and her eyes, which a miracle had once opened, closed gently to the light on the thirteenth day of December. The Saint was poorly laid out on the bear skin that served as her bed, and her chaste body, exhausted by fasts and austerities, remained exposed for eight days in the church, spreading an odor of sanctity that perfumed the entire monastery. They paid her the last duties with all possible solemnity, and her venerated relics were deposited in a tomb that she had had prepared herself in the chapel of Saint John the Baptist, later called the chapel of Saint Odile.

She is represented: 1° with an open book on which are two eyes; 2° praying before an altar for the soul of her father. The latter is sometimes led out of the flames by an angel; or else a ray from heaven makes it known to the Saint that her prayers are answered.

## CULT AND RELICS. — MONUMENTS.

Immediately after the death of Odile, the inhabitants of the country came in crowds to venerate the tomb of the holy abbess of Hohenbourg. Alsace, of which she had been the ornament, chose her as its patroness, and the mountain of Hohenbourg lost its ancient name to bear that of the mountain of Saint Odile, by which it is now designated. Placed between the Vosges and Alsace, it dominates a vast expanse, where the eye discovers twenty towns and more than three hundred villages, separated by plains, forests, fertile vineyards, and meadows intersected by streams, in the center of which the Rhine rolls its majestic waters. A shaded path leads to the summit of this mountain, where the venerated memory of Saint Odile has been preserved so vividly from the 7th century to our days.

The tomb of Saint Odile was opened for the first time in 1354, in the presence of Emperor Charles IV . This pri Charles IV Emperor who attended the opening of the tomb in 1354. nce, attracted by the gathering of the people who went there, also had the devotion to go there himself. The body of the Saint was found intact, and the anterior part of the right arm was detached to be given to the emperor. This precious relic was deposited in the cathedral church of Prague, where it is still honored today. The tomb of the holy abbess was closed again in the presence of the emperor and the bishop of Strasbourg, John of Liechtenstein. At the request of the nuns, they had an act of this first recognition drawn up, and forbade, under the most severe penalties, the opening of this precious tomb henceforth.

In the 14th and 15th centuries, the Great Companies, the Armagnacs, and the Burgundians successively invaded Alsace, sacked Hohenbourg, and dispersed its nuns. In the midst of these devastations, the tomb of Saint Odile nevertheless escaped destruction, and when the storm had dissipated, the nuns gathered again around this sacred asylum and raised the ruins of their monastery. But the glory of the abbey seemed eclipsed. Fervor weakened there, and, in 1546, an accident caused a terrible fire, which devoured all the buildings.

This time, however, God still saved the tomb of his servant, and the Premonstratensian religious, established half a league fro m the monastery, did religieux Prémontrés Religious hospital order where Aldric requested to serve. not abandon this sacred monument. All the revenues of the abbeys of Hohenbourg and Nieder-Münster were annexed to the domain of the bishop of Strasbourg, and an annual pension was assigned for the maintenance of two Premonstratensian canons on the holy mountain (1569). However, the monastery remained buried under its ruins until it was restored (1607) through the care of Cardinal Charles of Lorraine and Archduke Leopold. From then on, pilgrimages to Mont Sainte-Odile began again with new fervor. But this prosperity was short-lived. In 1622, the heretics invaded Alsace, under the leadership of Count Mansfeld and the Duke of Brunswick, and the monastery of Hohenbourg was given to the flames. When the enemies had withdrawn, François Bornius, parish priest of Obershahrim, sent a deputation to the mountain to examine the ruins of the abbey. The envoys, saddened by the spectacle they had before their eyes, nevertheless had the consolation of finding the tomb of Saint Odile. One could notice the traces of the blows that the soldiers had dealt it; but it was still intact and had not been opened.

However, the Premonstratensian canons, who had left Mont Sainte-Odile at the time of the invasion, soon returned. The church was rebuilt and consecrated in 1630 through the care of Count Paul de Aldringen, suffragan of the diocese, who strove to restore the cult of Saint Odile to honor.

The Premonstratensians remained the faithful guardians of the tomb of Saint Odile. By dint of courage and perseverance, they were able to collect some alms to adorn the altars and chapels of the holy mountain. Thanks to their efforts, devotion to Saint Odile recovered its former popularity, pilgrims flocked there from the whole province, and, in 1655, several princes and bishops attended the solemn procession that took place for the opening of the Jubilee. This devotion only increased in the following years. But the sanctuary of Saint Odile seemed reserved for incessant trials. In 1681, all the buildings on the holy mountain were again devoured by flames, with the exception of the chapels of the Angels and of the Tears, which their elevation on the summit of a rock preserved from the fire. In this misfortune, however, the religious did not lose courage. Reduced to the most extreme necessity, they continued to watch over the tomb of the holy patroness of Alsace, and saw the church of Hohenbourg rise once again from its ruins, which was completed in 1692 and consecrated in 1696 under the invocation of the Blessed Virgin.

It is thus that this monastery, whose memories were so dear to the Alsatians, emerged for the fifth time from its ruins. Despite countless calamities and cruel invasions, the tomb of Saint Odile has almost never remained without faithful guardians. It has been piously visited in all times by the inhabitants of the country, among whom devotion to Saint Odile is like a family tradition. Pilgrims went there singing pious hymns, which they interrupted to prostrate themselves at the foot of the crosses staggered on the slope of the mountain. They visited all the chapels with devotion, but particularly that of the Tears, so called, it was said, because Saint Odile had obtained there, through her prayers, the deliverance of her father, condemned for some time to the expiations of purgatory. When the pilgrims stayed on the mountain, they spent the night in the church or in the chapels, and sang sacred hymns there in the vernacular. The Protestants themselves took part in these pious exercises, and several found graces of conversion on the holy mountain.

The monastery of Hohenbourg was inhabited by nuns until the time of the French Revolution. In 1790, the National Assembly having suppressed monastic vows, the convent of Sainte-Odile was evacuated. But the tomb of the holy patroness of Alsace still existed on the mountain. This was enough for the piety of the people to be attracted to these places, even in the midst of the worst days. Calmer times succeeded the revolutionary storms, and the piety of the Alsatians for their glorious patroness has taken on a new momentum. The church that currently stands on Mont Sainte-Odile dates back to the year 1692. It is beautiful and solid, and next to the choir are the two ancient chapels of the Cross and of Saint Odile. Near there was the former dwelling of the nuns. Since the Revolution, these monuments have passed into the hands of several owners. A few years ago, the church was returned to worship.

In 1840, the tomb of Saint Odile was opened in the presence of the clergy and several doctors. The following year, her relics were deposited in a large and beautiful shrine, to be exposed to the veneration of the faithful on the very altar of the chapel that bears her name. This translation took place on July 7, 1841. A multitude of the faithful, having come from Alsace, Lorraine, and the Grand Duchy of Baden, had gathered that day on the holy mountain. The old church of Saint Odile was adorned with fir branches and garlands, and its statue crowned with flowers. The relics of the Saint were provisionally deposited in the conventual house, and, on the shrine that contained them, one could see the statue of the Saint, lying on rich cushions, holding an office book in her hand, having the abbatial crosier at her side, and dressed in the costume in which she is represented in ancient monuments. At nine o'clock in the morning, the procession, composed of eighty priests, led by the parish priest of Obershubaim, left the chapel of Saint Odile to go and fetch the holy relics. They were carried by six priests, and as they passed, the crowd bowed respectfully, joining their hands and shedding tears of joy. The shrine was deposited in the church, amidst solemn chants. It remained exposed there for eight days to the veneration of the faithful, and up to fifteen hundred were counted in one day, who came to pay their homage to the august patroness of Alsace.

It is thus that God has been pleased to glorify the holy daughter of Adalric until the present times. Despite revolutions and disasters, her relics have remained on the mountain that Odile had perfumed with her virtues, and her name is one of those that peoples bless eternally. It is inscribed in the martyrologies of the Church, and the diocese of Besançon has faithfully kept the cult of this holy daughter, whose monastery of Baume preserved the venerated memory until the end. Her feast is celebrated in the Bisontine breviary under the semi-double rite on December 14 (transferred from the 13th).

Taken from the Saints of Franche-Comté, by the professors of the Saint-François-Xavier college of Besançon. — Cf. Saints of Alsace, by Abbé Hunchier; History of Saint Odile, by Viscount Marie-Théodore de Bussierre.