Petrus Nolascus
Petrus Nolascus , also Sankt Peter von Nolascus or Peter von Nolasco , (* around 1182 or 1189 in (uncertain) Mas-Saintes-Puelles , Carcassonne , Castelnaudary or Barcelona ; † December 25, 1249 or 1256 in Barcelona) was the founder of the Mercedarian Order and was later canonized .
Life
Petrus Nolascus came from a very wealthy knightly family . Already in his youth he was known for his piety and generosity . As a young knight he took part in the Albigensian Wars and then lived at the court of King James I of Aragon . Unsatisfied with life at court, he decided to go on a pilgrimage to the Marian shrine of Montserrat ; then he decided to devote himself to buying Christian prisoners out of Muslim slavery . So he traveled z. B. at your own expense and risk to Valencia (at that time the next big city in al-Andalus ), then even to Granada to buy Christian slaves free.
On the night of August 1st to 2nd, 1218 he had an apparition of Mary , which asked him to found a merciful order to ransom the prisoners. He then conferred with King James I of Aragón and his closest adviser, Raimund von Peñafort . He drafted a statute based on the Augustine rule for an order of knights , which should be composed of lay knights and priests. On August 10, 1218, the "Ordo Beatae Mariae Virginis de Mercede pro Redemptione Captivorum" ( Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy for the ransom of prisoners ) in the presence of the ten-year-old Aragonese King James I , the Bishop of Barcelona , Bishop Berenguer de Palou II. , the Cathedral Chapter and the People in the Cathedral of Barcelona . The order was founded in 1230 by Pope Gregory IX. solemnly approved , and Petrus Nolascus was its superior general until 1249 .
Petrus Nolascus not only freed Christians enslaved by the Muslims on the Iberian Peninsula , but also expanded his field of activity to the Mediterranean islands and North Africa . Personally, he is said to have ransomed around 900 slaves alone until his death on Christmas Day in 1249 (or 1256).
Festivals
On September 30, 1628 Petrus Nolascus (* around 1202 in Portello, Spain; † August 31, 1240 in Cardona, Spain) was beatified together with Raimund Nonnatus , his companion and designated successor. Pope Alexander VII raised him to the dignity of saint on June 15, 1655 and ordered his admission to the Missal and the Breviary . Since 1936 his feast has been celebrated on January 28th (previously on January 31st), in the "Novus Ordo Missae" his feast day is March 13th, but the feast day of January 28th was retained in many local calendars. Sometimes December 25th, the day of his death, is cited as a day of remembrance, but this is liturgically impossible as this day would always be covered by Christmas. Petrus Nolascus also initiated the introduction of the feast “ Maria de mercede ” ( Our Lady of Mercy ) which was held by Pope Innocent XII. for the whole Church on September 24th.
presentation
The saint is depicted in the white Mercedarians' costume ( gown and scapular ) with the red cross on the chest, often with a chain (slave or galley) and a Mercedarian flag (with a red cross), or with freed slaves, or with one big bell on which the Virgin Mary is depicted. He is the patron saint of prisoners.
See also
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Nolascus, Peter |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Nolascus, Saint Peter of; Nolasco, Peter von |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Founder of the Mercedarian Order and saint |
| DATE OF BIRTH | around 1182 or 1189 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | unsure: Mas-Saintes-Puelles , Carcassonne , Castelnaudary or Barcelona |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 25, 1249 or 1256 |
| Place of death | Barcelona |