Odilia

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Statue of St. Odilia on the monastery church of Mount Odile

Saint Odilia (also Odilie , Odile or Ottilie , * around 660 in Alsace or Burgundy ; † 720 in the Niedermünster monastery near Odilienberg ) was an abbess and is venerated as the patron saint of Alsace and the eyesight . The name Odilia is a subsidiary form of Ottilie and comes from Old High German, "ot" means something like genetic material or property.

St. Odilia, stained glass around 1500
Sepulchral chapel on Mount St. Odile
Depiction in the Ottilien Chapel in Horb
Basilica of St. Wiro, St. Plechelmus and St. Otgerus in Sint Odiliënberg, Netherlands

Legend

Their legend is mainly based on a biography that originated in the 10th century. According to this story, Odilia was born on the Hohenburg ( Obernai municipality ; German Oberehnheim). She was the daughter of Duke Eticho (also Athich, Attich, Adalrich or Adalricus) and his wife Bersinda (also called Bethsvinda or Bereswinde) and was born blind . For this reason her father wanted to have her killed; the mother saved her by placing the child in a convent. It is probably the monastery of Baume-les-Dames, east of Besançon . When she was baptized by Erhard von Regensburg at the age of twelve , she gained sight. She returned to her parents, but had to flee from her father again and hide in a cave. Depending on the source, this cave is either in Arlesheim (south of Basel) or in the Musbachtal near Freiburg im Breisgau . In both places, veneration can be ascertained until at least the 15th century. She later reconciled with her father, who gave her a property on the Hohenburg in Alsace - the later Mount Odile (French: Mont Ste.-Odile) - where she founded a monastery in 690. She died around 720 in the Niedermünster monastery, which she also founded at the foot of the Odilienberg. Her grave is on the Odilienberg. Mount Odile is the most important place of pilgrimage in Alsace; the source there is considered to be helpful for eye disorders.

Historical biography

Historically attested is the gift of Klosters Hohenburg by Duke Eticho to his daughter Odilia. However, her place of birth is questionable (according to the legend on Mount Odile near Obernai), as her father was not attested as a Duke of Alsace before 673 , but had possessions near Dijon . The stay in the monastery of Baume-les-Dames during her childhood / youth and the baptism by Erhard von Regensburg seem credible.

Adoration

The Protestant, Roman Catholic and Orthodox Remembrance Day of St. Odilia is December 13th .

Odile monument in front of the Saardom in Dillingen / Saar by Lothar Meßner, 1981, basalt and bronze, statue: 2.65 m

She is especially venerated in the following places:

Ottilia prayer

Statue of St. Odilia in Avolsheim .
Let us pray!
O God, you light of the peoples,
You have finished with St. Ottilia
Glorified miracles and the
Born blind in the Holy Sacrament
given the sight of baptism.
We now ask you confidently:
Give us at her intercession
the health of the body and
the soul so that we are here
in this life with the eyes
of our body in creation
the traces of your wisdom and love
can see and one day
in the other life yourself
to look uncovered without end.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen!

See also

literature

Web links

Commons : St. Odilia  - collection of images, videos and audio files
Wikisource: St. Ottilien near Freiburg  - Sources and full texts

References and comments

  1. ^ Franz Nowacki: Pilgrimage Church of St. Ottilien near Freiburg in Breisgau . Freiburg, Herder, 1970
  2. ↑ Baltzer, Georg: Historical notes on the city of Saarlouis and its immediate surroundings, Part II, Trier 1865, p. 132.
personal data
SURNAME Odilia
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ottilie; Odile; Ottilia
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Saints
DATE OF BIRTH around 660
PLACE OF BIRTH Alsace or Burgundy
DATE OF DEATH 720
Place of death Niedermünster