Øystein Erlendsson

St. Eystein, holding a model of Nidaros Cathedral

Øystein Erlendsson ( Norrøn : Eystein Erlendsson, Latin : Augustinus Nidrosiensis; * around 1120 - † January 26, 1188 ) was Archbishop of Nidaros from 1157 until his death in 1188.

Of all 27 archbishops who presided over Nidaros from 1153 to 1537, Øystein was the most striking and the only one to be venerated as a saint after his death. Erlendsson came from a wealthy Trønder family. His great-grandfather was the Icelandic Ulf Uspaksson, a good friend of Harald Hardråde . He had married Queen Torah's sister. Therefore Øystein could count himself to the relatives of the king. Eystein's father Erlend Himalde was the second cousin of King Magnus Barfot , and Øystein himself was the third cousin of Sigurd Jorsalfari and Inge Krogrygg's father Harald Gille , who played a special role at the beginning of the Norwegian civil war. In all likelihood he grew up in Børsa .

Bishop Simon instructed Øystein in Nidaros in the 1140s. Then he went to England, probably to Lincoln , and Paris to the Augustinian monastery of St. Victor. According to the pamphlet En tale mot biskopene , which was written around 1200, Øystein was initially Kapellan and treasurer of King Inge Krokrygg.

After Jon Birgisson had died, he was elected second Archbishop of Nidaros in 1158 by King Inge, without the latter having let anyone have a say (at least that's how it is described in the pamphlet En tale mot biskopene ) ( lit .: Storm) . He moved to Rome to get the pallium for his archbishopric. During his journey Pope Hadrian IV died on September 1st, 1159. On September 7th, 1159 his successor was Alexander III. elected. However, Emperor Barbarossa installed the antipope Viktor IV . Øystein decided in favor of Alexander and received the pallium from him in late autumn 1160.

Immediately after returning from Rome, he set in motion the expansion of the archbishop's court. He also sponsored the construction of the Nidaros Cathedral , which is still evidenced by an inscription in the Johanneskapelle in the south transept of the cathedral.

In 1164, probably on August 11th, he crowned Magnus Erlingsson , the 8-year-old son Erling Skakkes , in Bergen. It was the first coronation of a king in Scandinavia . The election surrender, which was drafted by Øystein, regulated the relationship between state and church. He and the papal legate, who was also present at the coronation, took the opportunity to weave an oath of allegiance to the Pope in the coronation oath. Of particular importance for the development of the state idea was the statement that King Magnus wanted to exercise his office as vassal of King Olav the Holy and as his deputy.

Øystein also renewed a now lost church code, the "Gullfjær", which was a revision of the old Christian law . There are still 12 decretals from Pope Alexander III. known on about 35 questions from the Archbishop. In the 1930s, the Canones Nidrosienses was found in London , also a church code from his time, behind which the archbishop was certainly behind. He is also considered to be the main founder of the Olav tradition with the script Passio et Miracula Beati Olavi . The book was written between 1160 and 1180, half a century before Snorris Olav's saga . Øystein was very concerned about the peace in the country, worked against blood revenge and against violence and, in the tradition of the Gregorian reform, he was concerned with strengthening celibacy, but also with works of mercy. He founded the first hospice for the sick in Nidaros. He also founded at least two Augustinian canons' monasteries, one in Konghelle and the Kastelle-Kloster on Göta-Elv, where he had worked as a young priest. The monastery was to be visited by the Æbelholt monastery in Denmark, whose abbot Wilhelm was his personal friend. The monastery was founded between 1161 and 1168, but no later than 1190. Øystein also participated in the establishment of the Elgeseter monastery in Nidaros around 1170–78. He was also certainly involved in the founding of the Augustinian monastery on Halsnøy by Erling Skakke, and the same is likely to apply to the Premonstratensian monastery (Olavs monastery) in Tønsberg. He also founded the first Cistercian monastery in Trøndelag, Munkeby near Levanger .

Øystein also had its own troop and many ships. According to the Sverres saga , he had more than 100 fully armed men under his command. Not only did he dispose of the fortune of the bishopric, but also an abundant inherited fortune of his own.

After Sverre Sigurdsson headed the Birkebeiner in 1177 and defeated Erling Skakke in 1179 and Magnus Erlingsson fled to Denmark, Øystein also had to leave the country. Between 1180 and 1183 he was in exile in England . Even before Magnus ' death (1184), after the Sverres saga, an agreement was reached between Øystein and King Sverre . But there are doubts as Øystein appointed the king's most contentious opponent, the Augustinian Eirik Ivarsson from Stavanger, to succeed him, who was elected archbishop in 1188 against the resistance of King Sverre.

After his death Erlendsson was venerated as a saint. As early as 1229 he was canonized by the provincial council in Nidaros, but never canonized by Rome . Rome set up 5 commissions in succession to prepare the canonization, but never came to a final result. An altar in the cathedral seems to have been dedicated to him, and his silver reliquary was confiscated and melted down during the Reformation in 1540 to pay off Danish debts. He is said to have produced 12 kg of silver. Nevertheless, in the shadow of St. Olav, he does not seem to have achieved a special position in popular piety. According to a document dated February 10, 2001 by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Order of the Sacraments , January 26th, his holiday, may be officially celebrated in the Trondheim Prelature. In the decree of September 30, 2002 of this congregation, this day was declared a “feast” and the diocese of Oslo and the Prelature of Tromsø were allowed to celebrate this day.

Two Catholic churches are dedicated to him. St. Eystein in Bodø and St. Eystein in Kristiansund .

literature

• Gustav Storm: En tale mot biskopene . Christiania 1885.

predecessor	Office	successor
Jon Birgisson	Archbishop of Nidaros 1157–1188	Eirik Ivarsson