Johann Fart

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Johann Fart OSB , often also Johann Fart von Deidesheim (* around 1420 in Deidesheim , then Principality of Speyer , now Rhineland-Palatinate ; † June 1, 1491 Abbey of Laach ) was a Catholic priest , Benedictine and abbot of Laach Abbey, now Maria Laach . He was a major reformer of monastic life.

Live and act

Early activity

Nothing more is known about the early life of the Palatinate . He came from Deidesheim, which was politically and religiously part of the Principality of Speyer and was of non-aristocratic origin, as the Krufter Schöffenbuch expressly stated. Possibly through the Speyer prince-bishop Raban von Helmstatt († 1439), who also became Trier's elector in 1430, Johann Fart came to the Carthusian Monastery of Trier at a young age , with whom he remained connected throughout his life. From there he evidently brought with him his dedicated piety, his pronounced devotion to Mary and his appreciation for the particularly cultivated rosary prayers , which several contemporary sources highlight in him.

Around 1450 Fart became a Benedictine and entered the Trier monastery of St. Maria ad martyres ; for a long time he was the cellarer there . This convention joined the Bursfeld Reform Congregation on June 11, 1455 . Fart is listed by name as a conventual of the Trier monastery. The reform based on the principles of the Devotio moderna was sustainably promoted by the Archbishop of Trier, Johann II of Baden (1456–1503). In 1470, he also sponsored Johann Fart as abbot of the Benedictine monastery of Laach, which was under his spiritual control, in order to be able to carry out the reform there.

Abbot in Laach

The Laacher Abbey Church
Historical photo of the monastery

Already the Laacher predecessor abbot Johannes Reuber, who died in January 1470 , tried to introduce the Bursfeld reform with the support of Adam Villicus, the abbot of St. Martin from Trier in Cologne , but failed. The Archbishop of Trier recommended the reformists in Laach to elect Johann Fart as abbot. The other monks had left the convent and Fart was elected the 21st Abbot of Laach that same year. The opponents of reform outside the monastery wanted the almost 21-year-old provost Count Ruprecht von Virneburg from Prüm , who was Ruprecht of the Palatinate , the then Archbishop of Cologne, as sovereign of Laach, immediately confirmed or invested, as a weak abbot his own Influence there strengthened. His brother, Elector Friedrich I of the Palatinate , warned him urgently that Virneburg was "completely unsuitable" and had fled his own monastery before the threatening reform, furthermore suffered from a physical handicap and had not yet reached the canonical age of 21 years . The Archbishop of Trier, as the clerical lord of the monastery, insisted on Fart's legitimately chosen election, which he confirmed on March 14, 1470 and appealed to Rome, where Pope Sixtus IV did the same. However, the arrival of the papal confirmation lasted until 1472. Some sources also indicate the year 1469 for Fart's election and his episcopal confirmation.

In the meantime, the reform opponents had moved back to the Laach monastery and there were renewed disputes. The reformers were ultimately forcibly expelled from the monastery and called the Bishop of Trier for help. This commissioned his bailiff Georg von der Leyen to reinstate the rightful abbot in his rights and to disempower the revolting. The bailiff and the citizens of Mayen broke into the barricaded monastery on August 20, 1474 and ended the rule of the reform opponents. These now had to leave the convention for good and were not allowed to return. The day was celebrated as a monastery holiday until the abbey of Laach was abolished in 1802.

Now Johann Fart could finally begin the reform of the monastery. A short time later, on September 1st of that year, Laach was accepted into the Reform Congregation at the Bursfeld annual chapter on St. Michael in Hildesheim . The renovation of the monastery made noticeable progress very soon. Fart himself carried the reform forward with great zeal. In addition to his spiritual activity, he also devoted himself to writing. His biographer Johannes Butzbach calls him in his work “Auctarium” a “man who is well versed in the holy scriptures and who studies diligently” and goes on to say that “this best father” , at the request of his confreres, who knew him as a zealous admirer of Mary, had a very pious and holy Mary's prayer book written. The learned prior Jakob von Vreden (1440–1511) - who spoke fluent Latin than German - was one of his most energetic collaborators. The Laach monastery finally reached such a spiritual height that many German monasteries asked for monks there to be sent to support their reforms; for example the convents of Trier , Würzburg , Tholey , Mettlach , Deutz , Siegburg and Schönau . In Far's home diocese of Speyer, a Laach Benedictine was appointed prior of the Limburg monastery .

Fart worked actively in the circle of the Bursfeld Reform Congregation. He attended the general chapters between 1477 and 1482, and 1485; In 1486 he acted as co-president there, in 1487 and 1489 as definitor .

As early as February 1490, Johann Fart was described as sick. He resigned from his position as abbot on May 27, 1491 and died on June 1 of that year. He was buried on the south side of the chapter room facing the cloister , under a square stone with a carved inscription. The tombstone and grave are lost today (2011). The abbey's book of the dead records him under June 1st as “Venerable Father and Mr. John of Dediszheym, first abbot of this monastery after the reform” . Johannes Butzbach writes that Fart died “of a completely devotional spirit and a reputation for holiness” . He also mentions the monk Rutger Sycamber , “the outstanding rhyming smith” from the Höningen monastery , in Fart's Palatinate homeland, who dedicated a three-part poem to him.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bertram Resmini: "The Archdiocese of Trier" , 1993, page 373, ISBN 3110136570
  2. ↑ To the St. Alban Charterhouse in Trier, later moved to Konz
  3. ↑ Elke-Ursel Hammer: "Monastic reform between person and institution" , Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2001, ISBN 3525353006 , pages 150 and 151
  4. ↑ Elke-Ursel Hammer: "Monastic reform between person and institution" , Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2001, ISBN 3525353006 Excerpt from the source, about the processes in the election of Johann Fart
  5. ↑ Bertram Resmini: "The Archdiocese of Trier" , 1993, page 373, ISBN 3110136570 ; Extract from the biographical source on Jakob von Vreden
  6. ↑ Andreas Beriger: "Windesheimer monastery culture around 1500. Vita, work and life of Rutger Sycamber" , Max Niemeyer Verlag, Tübingen 2004. ISBN 3-484-36596-X ; Online review of the book, with details on Rutger Sicamber
personal data
SURNAME Fart, Johann
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Johann Fart von Deidesheim; Fart, Johannes
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Benedictine abbot in Laach
DATE OF BIRTH around 1420
PLACE OF BIRTH Deidesheim
DATE OF DEATH June 1, 1491
Place of death Laach Abbey