Saint Bertulf
Abbot
Born in Germania in the 7th century, Bertulphe converted and joined Saint Omer in Thérouanne. Having become abbot at Renty thanks to the generosity of Wambert, he distinguished himself by his charity towards the poor. His relics, moved several times to flee the Normans, were finally burned by the Huguenots in 1578.
Guided reading
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SAINT BERTULPHE, ABBOT (705).
Origins and conversion
Born a pagan in Germania in the 7th century, Bertulphe settled in Thérouanne where he converted to Christianity under the influence of Saint Omer.
Bertulphe Bertulphe Abbot of Germanic origin, founder of the monastery of Renty. , born i n German Germanie Birthplace of the saint. ia to pagan parents in the 7th century, left his homeland while still young and came to Thérou Thérouanne Episcopal see of Saint Folquin. anne. There he enlisted under the banners of Christ and was subsequently admitted into the Order of cl erics by S saint Omer Famous predecessor of Folquin at Thérouanne. ai nt Omer Wambert Donor of the Renty estate. . Wambert, a man as remarkable for his piety as for his wealth, having ceded to him the property of Re Renti Site of the monastery's foundation and its first burial place. nti in Artois, Bertulphe gathered religious men there whom he led more by the example of his virtues than by authority and domination. He was very generous in the distribution of alms to the poor; he procured the salvation of everyone with ingenious solicitude, until the day he rendered his soul to God through a holy death. His body, buried at Renti and preserved in that place for two hundred years, was transferred to Boulogne in the 1 0th cent Boulogne Place of transfer for relics to escape the Normans. ury for fear of the Normans. These holy relics were subsequently transferred to Harlebec k, a town Harlebeck Town in Flanders where the relics were transferred. of
Monastic foundation at Renty
Thanks to the donation of Wambert, Bertulphe founded a religious community at Renty in Artois, which he led with humility and charity.
Flanders, on the Lys, then a t Blandinbe Blandinberg The final place where the relics were kept before their destruction. rg, a monastery which was later the abbey of Saint-Pierre de Gand. — T he Huguen Huguenots Group that ransacked Die and destroyed the saint's relics in 1567. ots burned them in 1578 along with those of eight other saints: an ancient historian observes that the heretics "took care not to let the reliquaries, which were of gold and silver, go to waste."
Translations and fate of the relics
After his death, his body was moved from Renty to Boulogne, Harlebeck, and then Ghent to flee the Normans, before being destroyed by the Huguenots in 1578.
He is depicted with a purse at his belt, occupied with giving alms, and every year, on the day of his feast, one thousand loaves of bread are distributed to the poor in the c hurch Benti Site of the monastery's foundation and its first burial place. of Saint-Vaast de Benti.
Iconography and local traditions
Represented giving alms, his memory is honored by an annual distribution of bread to the poor at the church of Saint-Vaast.
Proper of Arras and Legendary of Marinie.
Sources
The life of the saint is documented in the Proper of Arras and the Legendary of Marinie.
Proper of Arras and Legendary of Marinie.
Annexes & related entities
Structured data for exploration: events, miracles, quotes, places, attributes, patronages, and important entities cited in the text.
Key Events
- Departure from Germania to Thérouanne
- Admission into the Order of Clerics by Saint Omer
- Receipt of the Renti property by Wambert
- Foundation and leadership of a religious community in Renti
- Translation of relics to Boulogne in the 10th century due to the Normans
- Transfer of relics to Harelbeke then to Blandinberg
- Destruction of relics by the Huguenots in 1578
Quotes
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took care not to let the reliquaries, which were of gold and silver, be lost
an ancient historian cited in the text