Saint Irmina of Trier

Irmina was the ornament and delight of the court for her piety, modesty, gentleness, and rare prudence. Although the eldest daughter of a powerful monarch, she never sought to assert the prerogatives of her birth; on the contrary, she was seen fleeing large assemblies and all occasions where she might have been noticed: she avoided the gaze of men and appeared in public only when her parents ordered her to. Despite her efforts to hide from the world, she was nonetheless regarded as the model of Christian virgins, and a young French lord asked for her hand in marriage. Irmina had never felt any attraction to this state; but, submissive in all things to the will of her parents, she did not refuse, hoping to serve God with the same fervor as in her father's palace. She prepared in silence to adorn her heart more and more with every virtue, and thus to bring to her husband wisdom as the most precious of all dowries: everything was already being prepared, and everyone congratulated the happy young man who was to possess an inestimable treasure in his bride. But how different are the judgments of God from those of men! At the moment when the projected union was to be formed, news was brought to Dagobert of the death of his future son-in-law.

One saw on this occasion what empire religion exercised over the heart of Irmina. The whole court hastened around her to calm the grief that such overwhelming news must have caused her; but the young virgin showed a serene and tranquil brow, and made the most generous sacrifice to God, by resigning herself to the loss of a husband whose happiness she would have made. How many young people would have here accused heaven of too much rigor, for taking away from them a happiness that seemed assured! But Irmina submitted with true greatness of soul to the will of the Lord; she went further, for, after having thanked her God for having acted thus toward her, she formed the plan to have no other spouse than Jesus Christ.

From that moment she broke completely with the world and attached herself more than ever to the only delights that had religion as their principle. The Lord, who never allows Himself to be outdone in generosity, then made His servant the object of His sweetest complacencies. Dagobert, convinced of the sincerity of her resolution, permitted her to follow her vocation, and this young princess, who was the pride of her entire family and the general object of admiration, went to bury herself in the flower of her youth in a monastery: she thus won the most complete victory over an inconstant and perfidious world, whose infidelities she would sooner or later have had to experience and whose caprices she would have had to fear. Her fa Trèves Birthplace of the saint. ther gave her the ancient castle known as Horreum, located in T rier, where she found Règle de Saint-Benoît Religious order occupying the monastery of Honnecourt. ed a religious community, which she subjected to the Rule of Saint Benedict. The charter of donation that Dagobert issued for this house is from the year 675, which led some authors to believe that the monastery of Horren already existed before the Princess Irmine entered it, and that she is named its founder only because she made several beautiful donations to it.

Irmine's generous resolution made a deep impression on the minds of young Austrasian women, and several daughters of quality who had until then followed the vanities of the world made serious reflections and converted to God. Thus the pious princess became once again the instrument used by Providence to bring about the salvation of others. Irmine became the admiration of her community, just as she had been that of the court, through her angelic fervor, her modesty, her humility, and above all her entire submission to the Rule of the Order. She forgot in a short time the prerogatives of her birth, or if she thought of them, it was to use her influence to do good. Her community became more and more fervent and was soon one of the most regular in the kingdom, drawn in a way to virtue by the holiness of its abbess.

Irmina was happy in her monastery and thanked heaven for the graces it deigned to shower upon her community: but this happiness was to be crossed by trials, and the pious abbess saw, towards the end of the seventh century, a cruel disease ravage her house. Submissive in all things to the will of the Lord, she adored the decrees of Providence and addressed ardent prayers to heaven to obtain the cessation of this scourge. Several nuns had already succumbed, and nothing indicated that the disease would soon cease. Then the holy abbess redoubled her austerities, distributed abundant alms among the people, and spent entire nights in prayer. The Lord wished to give her community a signal mark of His protection through the intercession of Saint Willibrord, apostle of Frisia. Irmi saint Willibrod Apostle of the Frisians, he miraculously healed the community of Irmina. na prayed to this venerable servant of God to come to the monastery, and with that firm confidence in the words of Him who had once said to His disciples: 'You will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover their health,' she conjured him to give his blessing to her sick: the holy man yielded to this prayer, offered the holy sacrifice of the Mass for the suffering nuns, sprinkled them with holy water, and gave them some to drink; immediately they were all healed, and the malady disappeared entirely. In gratitude for such a striking benefit, the holy abbess made, in 698, a considerable gift to the venerable Willibrord of several rich estates, by means of which the Abbey of Echternach for the Order of Saint Benedict was founded four leagues from Trier. She likewise grant abbaye d'Echternach Abbey founded by Willibrord thanks to the donations of Irmina. ed him, in 699, the village of Bergen, which this abbey enjoyed until the moment of its suppression.

Throughout her life, Irmina kept the memory of the miracle that the Lord had just performed for her community, and spoke of it often with the expression of the deepest gratitude. Her life continued to be dedicated to God and to her neighbor: she always had her final end in mind, and she regarded as lost any moments in which she did not draw closer to the blessed eternity through the practice of some virtue. She always viewed herself as the servant of those whose conduct had been entrusted to her, and she was ready to make any sacrifice when it came to procuring their spiritual good. She never knew that imperious haughtiness which alienates minds and usually only extracts forced obedience. Her orders were more like prayers, and if she was sometimes obliged to make use of her authority, she did so only with secret reluctance and so as not to fail in her duty. She used the rights of her office only for the glory of God and the salvation of her neighbor. Her great austerities, her vigils, and her fasts had impaired her health, which had previously been so robust. Frequent infirmities announced to her that she would soon take the path of all flesh, and she rejoiced in the Lord to see this happy moment approaching. She then made her will, which breathes the most tender piety. The pious daughter was occupied only with God: she bequeathed great riches to her monastery, but with admirable generosity. After having thus put her temporal affairs in order, she announced to her nuns that she would soon be leaving them. This news cast consternation upon the community and spread mourning among her pious daughters: each one wept for a mother, a friend, a consoler. Irmina alone was not affected: she awaited the blow of death with resignation, well convinced that she would find grace before the Lord; she received the last sacraments with angelic fervor, and fell peacefully into the sleep of the just on December 24th. The year of her death is uncertain: most authors place it at the beginning of the eighth century. Her body was exposed for several days, then buried in the church of her monastery. The people rendered her public veneration almost immediately. Her relics were later transferred to the abbey church of Wissembourg Wissembourg Place of the saint's relic transfer. , where they were placed in a magnificent tomb.

Taken from the History of the Saints of Alsace, by Abbé Hunckler.