A nobleman from Lunel born in the 13th century, Gérard renounced his titles to live as a hermit at the Pont du Gard with his brother Effrenaud. Setting out on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, he died of exhaustion in Italy near Fermo. His cult, marked by miracles of healing, was introduced to France in the 19th century.
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SAINT GÉRARD OR GÈRE, OF LUNEL (1298).
Origins and noble family
Gerard was born in Lunel around 1275 into an illustrious family of Languedoc, son of the lord of Castelnaud and a baroness of Lunel.
*Jan civitas Lunel Lunel Birthplace of the saint in Languedoc. ium* *Laudon repende debitum,* *Nonam tibi per Gerium* *Deus paravit gloriam.* *Lunel, worthily praise the Lord who gives you a* *new glory through Gerard.*
Prose of the Saint.
Gerard was born i n Lun Lunel Birthplace of the saint in Languedoc. el, a small town in the former diocese of Maguelone, the seat of which was transferred to Montpellier in the year 1536 by Pope Paul III. This town is situated between Nîmes and Montpellier, four leagues from each. The precise year of Gerard's birth is unknown; nevertheless, we conclude from certain facts that have some relation to our Saint that he must have been born around the year 1274 or 1275. He was the son of Gerard Amicy, lord of Castelnaud, of the house of Sabran, one of the oldest in Languedoc, which enjoyed the highest dignities at the court of the counts of Toulouse; his mother, Thérèse Raymond, was the daughter of Raymond Gausselin, baron of Lunel. We see, in the *History of Languedoc*, how illustrious and pious these two families were. Gerard had a brother nam ed Effren Effrenaud Brother of Gérard and pilgrimage companion. aud, of whom we shall have occasion to speak, because he was his faithful companion in the practice of Christian virtues and in his penance.
Early Vocation and Hermetic Life
From childhood, he joined the Confraternity of Saint Francis before retiring as a hermit at the Pont du Gard with his brother Effrenaud.
Raised piously, Gerard took, from the age of five, the habit of penance in the Confraternity of Saint Francis, recently founded in Lunel. He did not remain long in this city. Gerard, his father, ceded half of the barony of Lunel, his mother's inheritance, to Philip the Fair, King of France, in order to place at the disposal of this prince the neighboring port of Aigues-Mortes for the expedition he was planning to make beyond the seas and particularly to the Holy Places; and he retired with his two sons, Gerard and Effrenaud, to the county of Rochefort, on the Rhône, which the king had given him in exchange for the barony of Lunel. Soon the two pious young men made a vow of pilgrimage to the threshold of the Apostles and to the manger of Our Lord. But they wished to prepare for it through the exercise of the hermetic life. To this end, they left the paternal manor and went t o the Pont d pont du Gard Site of the eremitic life of Gerard. u Gard, where they established themselves in cells near one another and where they lived as hermits. The holy life they led was soon known throughout the surrounding country. This was a motive for them to hasten their departure, because they feared the praises of men. They therefore set out for Rome with the firm intention of continuing their pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Already, after having visited the tomb of the holy Apostles, they had set out to go to Ancona, where they were to embark. As they were traveling on foot in the manner of pilgrims, the fatigue caused Gerard a great headache; despite this, he wanted to continue; but the illness worsened, and the two pilgrims were forced to stop at Colombaro, near Monte-Santo, in the diocese of Fermo, in a Monte-Santo Primary burial and worship site in Italy. miserable cottage. Gerard died there alone, while his brother had gone out into the surroundings to seek help. The peasants of the place miraculously knew of his death, and they began to honor him as a Saint. On his tomb was built a chapel which still exists today. The cult of the blessed Gerard became, from year to year, more famous, because of the help that his intercession provided to the people, mainly for headaches. Benedict XIV approved this cult at Monte-Santo in 1742; Pius VI extended it to the e ntire dioc Benoît XIV Pope who beatified Jerome Emiliani. ese of Fermo. However, this cult was still unknown in France when priests exiled in Italy for the faith, during the Revolution, discovered it and made it known. Finally, Charles-Thomas Thibaut, Bishop of Montpellier, introduced it into his diocese with the authorization of Pope Pius IX.
Pilgrimage to Rome and passing
En route to the Holy Land, Gerard dies of exhaustion and illness in Colombaro, near Fermo in Italy.
Ancient paintings which, according to experts, date from around 1300, depict Saint Gerard at the age of twenty to twenty-five.
Development of the cult in Italy
His tomb became a place of miracles, particularly for headaches and epilepsy, with papal recognition in the 18th century.
Effrenaud Effrenaud Brother of Gérard and pilgrimage companion. continued his journey to Palestine: he died holily, on the return trip, on the island of Rhodes.
In Italy, Saint Gerard is invoked especially against epilepsy: for this, the sick are dressed in a light green devotional habit. The very existence of this devotional habit and of the
Confraternity, for which it was specially created in 1735, sufficiently shows the importance of the cult of Saint Gerard in the diocese of Fermo.
Recognition in France and relics
The cult was introduced in Montpellier in the 19th century thanks to exiled priests and the gift of a bone by the Bishop of Fermo.
His Excellency the Bishop of Fermo ceded to the parish of Lunel, in 1838, one of the only two bones of Saint Gerard that still exist: the bone ceded belonged to a canon of Monte-Santo who used it successfully to bless epileptics. It would have been difficult to detach anything from the bone that remains in the collegiate church of Monte-Santo. The population would have opposed it, even at the cost of an armed struggle. The first feast in honor of Saint Gerard was solemnized with great pomp in the diocese of Montpellier on June 8, 1837. On this occasion, a medal was struck where the Saint is represented at the Pont du G ard in the h pont du Gard Site of the eremitic life of Gerard. abit of a hermit, kneeling in meditation; at his feet were placed the emblems of his greatness, the coat of arms of Lunel, the arms of his family, the baron's crown, his sword, his spurs; the serpent that miraculously fed him at the Pont du Gard was also represented. The characteristic of the serpent requires an explanation: during his stay in one of the piers of the Pont du Gard, the Saint was surprised by a flood that lasted several days. He would have died of hunger if God had not sent an eel to bring him bread. To the eel, one could add the bear that came to his aid in the middle of a thicket and helped him find his way. The event took place between the moment of his landing in Italy and his arrival in Rome.
Documentary Sources
The information is based on the Proper of Montpellier and biographies published in 1838.
Proper of Montpellier and Lives of the Saint, published in 1838.
Annexes & related entities
Structured data for exploration: events, miracles, quotes, places, attributes, patronages, and important entities cited in the text.
Key Events
- Born in Lunel around 1274-1275
- Took the habit at age 5 in the Confraternity of Saint Francis
- Eremitic retreat at the Pont du Gard with his brother Effrenaud
- Pilgrimage to Rome and the Holy Land
- Died of illness in Colombaro during the journey
Miracles
- Fed by an eel bringing bread during a flood at the Pont du Gard
- Guided by a bear in a thicket in Italy
- Miraculous healings of headaches and epilepsy at his tomb
Quotes
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Jan civitas Lunelium / Laudon repende debitum / Nonam tibi per Gerium / Deus paravit gloriam.
Prose of the Saint