BL. IDA OF BOULOGNE - 13 APRIL

 

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN APRIL

Saints celebrated on the 13th of April

Prayer to the Angels and the Saints

Heavenly Father, in praising Your Angels and Saints we praise Your glory, for by honouring them we honour You, their Creator. Their splendour shows us Your greatness, which infinitely surpasses that of all creation.

In Your loving providence, You saw fit to send Your Angels to watch over us. Grant that we may always be under their protection and one day enjoy their company in heaven.

Heavenly Father, You are glorified in Your Saints, for their glory is the crowning of Your gifts. You provide an example for us by their lives on earth, You give us their friendship by our communion with them, You grant us strength and protection through their prayer for the Church, and You spur us on to victory over evil and the prize of eternal glory by this great company of witnesses.

Grant that we who aspire to take part in their joy may be filled with the Spirit that blessed their lives, so that, after sharing their faith on earth, we may also experience their peace in heaven. Amen.

BLESSED IDA OF BOULOGNE 

Blessed Ida (Ida of  Boulogne, Ida of Lorraine) was born around the year 1040. 

She was of noble ancestry: the daughter of Godfrey III, Duke of Lower Lorraine and his wife Doda. A pious girl, she married Eustace II, Count of Boulogne. They had three sons:

HER FAMILY

Eustace III, the next Count of Boulogne; Godfrey of Bouillon, first ruler of Kingdom of Jerusalem; Baldwin, second ruler of Kingdom of Jerusalem; a daughter, Ida of Boulogne, who was married first to Herman von Malsen and second to Conon, Count of Montaigu.

MOTHERHOOD

Ida shunned the use of a wet-nurse in raising her children. Instead, she breast-fed them to ensure that they were not contaminated by the wet-nurse's morals, i.e. her lax mode of living. When her sons went on the First Crusade, Ida contributed heavily to their expenses.

HER MONASTERIES

Ida was always religiously and charitably active, but the death of her husband provided her wealth and the freedom to use it for her projects. She founded the following monasteries: Saint-Wulmer in Boulogne-sur-Mer, Our Lady of the Chapel, Calais, Saint-Bertin, Abbey of Cappelle, and Abbey of Le Wast.

ST ANSELM'S LETTERS TO IDA

She maintained a correspondence with Anselm of Canterbury. Some of Anselm's letters to Ida have survived. She became ever more involved in church life. However, current scholarship feels that she did not actually become a Benedictine Nun, but that she was a "Secular Oblate of the Benedictine Order". 

HER HOLY DEATH

Bl. Ida died on April 13, 1113, which is the date she is honoured. Traditionally, her burial place has been ascribed to the monastery of Le Wast. Her remains were moved in 1669 to Paris and again in 1808 to Bayeux. Her life story was written by a contemporary monk of the monastery of Le Wast. She is venerated in Bayeux. 

PRAYER:

Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that the venerable feast of the blessed Ida may increase our devotion and promote our salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(Information from Wikipedia -

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ida_of_Lorraine)