Gottfried of Admont

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Gottfried von Admont was abbot of Admont Monastery from 1138 to 1165, monastery reformer, preacher and "monastic theologian".

Life

Gottfried, allegedly from the noble family of those von Vemmingen, was the son of an Irimbert and a Hazecha. Both persons are attested in necrologies from monasteries of the Admont monastery reform , it is assumed that the Gottfried family had Swabian origins. Gottfried was still at the time of Abbot Theogers (1088–1119) monk in St. Georgen and rose to prior there. After a supposed interlude as abbot in Weingarten Monastery , he succeeded Wolfhold (1115–1137) in 1138 after Wolfhold's death in Admont . He became the second important reform abbot of the monastery.

For the first time, Gottfried is attested as Admont monastery director in a document dated March 22, 1139, with the date of April 13, 1139 his monastic community received a protection and confirmation privilege from Pope Innocent II (1130–1143). The donations of goods made under Gottfried to the Admonter monk community also prove the success of the spiritual community, which was also effective externally. Its economic basis was thus further enlarged and also the legal security z. B. required by papal privileges.

In 1142 Gottfried fell seriously ill. The (true?) Story of Princess Sophia, daughter of the Hungarian King Bela II (1131–1141), who was engaged to the son of the German King Konrad III , belongs to the beginning of the 1140s . (1138–1152), Heinrich († 1150), waited in Admont and finally entered the Admont convent.

In 1147, Gottfried's abbot Eberhard von Biburg (1133–1147) was elected Archbishop of Salzburg (1147–1164), probably with massive support . Gottfried's influence in the archdiocese must have been considerable, Eberhard I. a. in September 1152 in Admont, the archbishop's visitation was due to the catastrophic fire that had struck the monastery on the night of March 10th, 1152. The buildings of the monks as well as those of the nuns and last but not least the church were affected, but the rebuilding of what had been destroyed began very quickly. The presence of Gottfried at the Salzburg diocesan synod of 1153, his frequent testimony in archbishop's documents, prove that the Admont abbot continued activities outside Admont even after the monastery fire.

Of course, this included the Admont monastery reform, which Gottfried had further promoted; thirteen monks from Admont are said to have become abbots of reforming monasteries during his abbathe. In the Alexandrian papal schism (1159–1177), Gottfried was on the side of Pope Alexander III in the retinue of the Salzburg archbishop . (1159–1181), the Salzburg ecclesiastical province in particular was affected by the disputes over the “right” Pope.

On June 25, 1165, Gottfried von Admont, the most influential high medieval abbot of the Admont Monastery in many respects, died.

Act

The Admont abbot was also the "father and teacher" of his monks (and the Admont nuns). A large number of sermons written in Latin are attributed to Gottfried, which are still contained in several manuscripts in the Admont Abbey Library. T was created in collaboration with his brother Irimbert von Admont . The sermons are divided into homilies on Sundays and holidays as well as sermons on topics from the Old Testament . This fits in with the exegetical writings of Gottfried on the biblical patriarch Jacob, the prophet Isaiah and the prophet Daniel. The Admont monastery director achieved a certain fame for his erudition. The Liber contra duas haereses by the theologian and church reformer Gerhoch (* 1092 / 93–1169), provost of the canons of Reichersberg am Inn, is dedicated to the "monastic theologian" Gottfried. The Admont abbot is also mentioned in the famous "Dialogue between a Cistercian and a Cluniac monk about the different observance of the [monastic] order": The Cistercian, the former Benedictine Idung von Prüfing (before 1144, before 1155), names the " Abbot Gottfried von Admont ”a“ man of learned holiness and great honesty ”, who replies to the Cluniac that“ the same abbot has a reputation for great generosity and popularity ”.

expenditure

  • Venerabilis Godefridi abbatis Admontensis opera omnia . Edited by Bernard Pez (= Patrologiae cursus completus sive bibliotheca universalis, integra, uniformis, commoda, oeconomica, omnium ss.patrum, doctorum scriptorumque ecclesiasticorum. Series Latina 174), Paris 1854. Reprint of Brepols 1997, ISBN 978-2-503-11742- 3

literature

predecessor Office successor
Wolfhold Abbot of Admont Abbey
1138–1165 		Liutold
personal data
SURNAME Gottfried of Admont
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Abbot of the Admont Monastery (1138–1165)
DATE OF BIRTH 11th century or 12th century
DATE OF DEATH June 25, 1165