SAINT LEOBARDUS, RECLUSE

SAINT LEOBARDUS, RECLUSE - 18 JANUARY

Saints celebrated on the 18th of January

SAINT LEOBARDUS, RECLUSE

A page of one of Fortunatus Hueber's
Saints' books,
"Stammenbuch..." (1693)

Saint Leobardus (Leobaldus, Leopardus, Leonardus; French: St-Léobard or Liébard) was a recluse in the monastery of Saint Martin (the so-called "greater monastery" (Majus monasterium - French: Marmoutier), 2000 paces from Tours, in Auvergne.

Born to respectable parents, Leobardus learned well and already knew all the Psalms by heart as a child. His parents wanted him to marry to ensure that their estate got passed on to grandchildren. They chose a potential daughter-in-law, but before any marriage could take place, both parents died suddenly and, after an unpleasant encounter at night with a relation who was so drunk that he did not recognise Leobardus, the latter decided to leave the world altogether in order to serve God in solitude.

At daybreak he set out to visit the tomb of Saint Martin of Tours to pray. After staying there a few days, he crossed the Loire (Liger) and locked himself in a rocky cell near Marmoutier, which had only recently been abandoned by a hermit named Alaric, who had retired into even deeper solitude.

With constant fasting, watching, praying and reading, he still combined the copying of holy books. After a few years, he took in disciples who began to live in cells around him. After spending 22 years in his cell, he saw his death approaching.

Therefore he called for his spiritual director, Bishop Gregory of Tours, who gave him the holy Provision for the journey to eternity. On this occasion Leobardus predicted that he would die before Easter. In fact, as he had wished, he died all alone, with the help of angels. Bishop Gregory of Tours wrote later that Leobardus passed away on a Sunday, on January 18 of the year 582 or rather, as Bollandus* thinks, of the year 588, while Butler* (I. 396) and others state February 15 or 22, 593 as the date of his death.

God glorified his servant not only while he was alive, but also after death through many miracles. His body was buried in his cell, in a tomb he had dug out of the rock himself. The Roman Martyrology* mentions his name, as well as his miraculous mortification and humility on January 18.

(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints, Volume 3, Augsburg, 1869, pp. 756-57)

*A hagiography source used by the authors

Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints - Sources and Abbreviations

PRAYER:

Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that the venerable feast of Saint Leobardus 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.

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