Allusion
is made to that ancient
church, having become ruinous, in a charter
ofOthoI.
church, having become ruinous, in a charter
ofOthoI.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v9
Dr.
Lanigan justly observes :
" thus ad Set Petrutn, for or to the Church of Rome ; a S. Petro, from or by the said Church ; ad S. Martinum to the Church of Tours; andwhatwasverycommonamongst ourselves, ad S. Patricium, a S. Patrilio, to or by the See of Armagh. "—" Ecclesias- tical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, i. , sect, ii. , n. II.
68 "
See J. Clement's Antiquites de la
Ville et du Siege episcopal de Toul," 1702, 8vo.
66
in Ireland, at an early period, for it is asserted
Such appears to have been the tradition
42
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAIJSITS.
l
Septemi
known to the Romans as Belgica prima, and their chief city was Toul. 6^ To this Ptolemy has added another, which he names Nasion. ? The Leuci occupied the southern part of the present Department of the Meuse, the
greater part of the Meurthe Department, and the Vosges Department, in France. 7l Before the time of our saint, Toul had been a city of some
2
importance,' and it was surrounded with walls for defence. During the
Middle Ages, the Dukes of Lotharingia, or Lorraine, ruled over that territory, between the Meuse and Moselle ; and ecclesiastically the See of Toul was undertheMetropolitanCityofTriers,orTreves. FromRome,St. Mansuetus was sent to Toul, having been invested with the episcopal character, and he was appointed its first pastor. This took place, not before the middle of the fourth century,73 or perhaps even later. In his history of the Gallic Church, Bosquet remarks? * that Mansuet must not be confounded with a Bishop of the Armorican Britons bearing a like name, and who was present at the first Council of Tours. 7 5 The people to whom St. Maunsuy had been sent were then addicted to idolatry, and involved in the darkness of pagan superstition. It is said, that they had a king named Leon, who was an idolater, and a man of barbarous manners. '6 When their first missionary entered Toul, and began to announce the truths of the Gospel, he found the magistrates and chiefs of the people indisposed to hear his preaching. This conduct influenced greatly the opposition and indifference of the humbler classes, so that for some time his doctrine and teaching were disregarded.
The holy missionary built for his dwelling in the woods an humble cabin of twigs interwoven ;77 and, in that he lived, devoted to the exercises of prayer and meditation. While there, numbers resorted to him. Having received instruction, they renounced idolatrous worship, and embraced the true religion. Even, the governor's wife, having heard so many rumours about the strange missionary, desired to learn more about his race, the doctrines he taught, and the places whence he came ; but, it was only during the absence of her pagan husband, she could venture, through her domestics, to arrange foraprivateinterviewwiththeholyman. Whenhehadexpoundedtoher, the chief mysteries of the Christian religion, and the truths of Divine Faith, that lady believed in his doctrine and teaching, but still deferred her profes-
69 It is situated on the River Moselle, about the middle of the fourth century. To
surrounded by a chain of hills covered with
vineyards. See Gazetteer of the World, vol.
xiii. , p. 141.
omitotherarguments, heendeavoursto prove this from the recorded succession of the bishops of Toul : thus, 1. S. Mansuet, or
70 In the Second Book of his ; 2, S. Anion Geography, Mansuy
Alchas
on account of the similarity of name to the Latin Nanceium, it is thought by many to
have represented the present City of Nancy in Lorraine. See " Recueil des Ilistoriens ues Gaules et de la France," par Dora Martin Bouquet, Pretre et Religious Benedictin de la Congregation de Saint Maur, tome i. ,
7, S. Apre, or Evre, vers l'an 500, &c.
'' Ilistoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lor- raine," tome i. , col. xxxiii.
7* See '* Eccleste Gallicanse Historiamm," T. C. Evangelis in Callus inque ad datam a Constantino Imperatore ecclesioe pacem, lib. i. , cap. xx.
et Civile de Lorraine," tome i. , Dissertation sur les Premier! Evesques de l'Eglise de Toul, col. xxvii.
p. 77, n. (i). 71 "
See Ilistoire de Jules C£sar," par
Napoleon III. , Empereur, tome ii. , liv. iii. , This
chap, ii. , p. 22, n. 3.
72 See Bataille's "Notice historique surla
Ville de Toul et ses Antiquites," with plates, 1 84 1, 8vo.
7i In a Dissertation sur les
Toul, prefixed to the first volume of his History of Lorraine, Calmet maintains, that Mansuetus was sent bom Rome to Toul,
held a. d. 461.
? 6 See Calmet's " Ilistoire Ecclesiastique
Ev&jtus
propc meenia civitatis exiguie habitations sil. i
de
7? The Vita Prolixior " states,
S. Celsin ; 5, S. Auspice, vers ban 450; 6, S. Ours, or Urse, sous (Jlovis, vers Tan 4S8—;
? 5 was
rectptorium pneparavit," lib. i. , cap. i. , n. 6, p. 640.
; 3, S.
; 4,
boy, on being restored to life, and alter
8o See Les Petits Bollandistes, "Vies des e
in the water for three
lying daysandthreenights,
Saints,"tomex. ,iii JourdeSeptembre,p. 432
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
43
sion of faith, lest it should cause some trouble between herself and husband. 78
However, when he happened to be absent on public business, the missionary was encouraged to visit her house, and still afford her the satisfaction of
learning those messages of salvation he was so well qualified to convey.
It happened on a certain day, observed as a local festival, and while un-
peopleofToulwerebentonenjoyment,theonlysonoftheirgovernorfell by accident from the city ramparts into the Moselle, which flowed beneath. The river was very deep at that place. Public rejoicings were at once dis- continued, and in common with his parents, the inhabitants shared their sorrowonaccountoftheyouthwhohadbeendrowned. Everyeffortwas madetorecoverthedeadbody. Invainwerethepagangodsinvokedfor that purpose. However, during the night, the governor's wife had a dream, in which she saw St. Mansuy, who promised to restore her son, if she would become a convert to Christianity. On awaking, she related that vision to her husband. Thereupon, he sent a message to the saint, and promised, if his son's corpse were recovered through means of the stranger, that he would receive baptism, and influence all his people to embrace the doctrines of the foreign missionary. Our saint then went to that spot, where the boy had fallen into the river, and betook himself to prayer. Soon the body arose to the surface, and it was drawn up on the river bank. Then addressing the
:
governor, Mansuy said " Behold the corpse of your son, and if you are
resolved to observe the promise made to me, the goodness of God is great,
andyoushallobtainfromHimastillmoresignalfavour. " Immediatelythe
governor and all who were present declared, that if the boy were brought to life, they would abandon the worship of false gods, and embrace the Christian religion. Then the bishop fell on his knees and implored the Divine Majesty, while some of his newly converted disciples imitated his example. Their fervent prayers were rewarded by signs of life coming to re-invigorate the body, which was cold and stiff when recovered from the water. Never- theless, at a word from the minister of Jesus Christ, the boy arose to life, and cast himself into the arms of his overjoyed parents. This miraculous restora- tion filled all who were present with transports of delight and admiration. 79 The governor and his family, with all his people, conformed to Christianity, and thenceforth St. as their 80
CHAPTER II.
THE VIRTUES AND MIRACULOUS GIFTS OF ST. MANSUETUS—HE BUILDS VARIOUS CHURCHES AND ORDAINS MANY PRIESTS—HIS DEATH—VENERATION OF THE PEOPLE AT TOUL FOR HIS MEMORY— PILGRIMAGES TO HIS SHRINE, WHERE SEVERAL MIRACLES ARE WROUGHT—DESTRUCTION OF HIS CHURCH AND THE CHARITABLE FOUNDATIONS AT TOUL BY THE VANDALS—RESTORATIONS BY THE BISHOPS GAUZLIN AND GERARD.
We are told, that St. Maunsey's character was distinguished for an admixture
of firmness in episcopal administration, with clemency and piety combined in a remarkable degree, while he spent days and nights in prayer. He was ever attentive to the wants of his flock, and those, who came to visit him with
recognised Mansuy pastor.
78 See Dom Augustin Calmet's " Histoire
Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," tome i. Dissertation sur les Premiers Evesques de l'Eglise de Toul, col. xxviii.
79 In the Vita Prolixior it is stated, that the
related what he had seen, before bis resusci-
tation, regarding those torments prepared for the wicked in hell, and to which his parents and himself should be consigned, unless they became Christians. —Lib. i. , cap. ii. , num. 16.
44 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [Septemukk
hearts bowed down, left him with consolation even in their miseries, so mild and gentle were his admonitions. His miraculous gifts of healing the sick caused him to be regarded as the true physician of his people. Soon was idolatry extirpated from the land : and then, he deemed it necessary to raise temples in honour of the true and living God. From very ancient acts of his, that have now perished, we are told by the writer of his longer life, how, within the walls of Toul, he built two churches. One of these was dedicated to the Blessed
Stephen,
Virgin Mary 2 the other was dedicated to St.
1 the
and to St.
he raised an 6 which was dedicated to oratory,
primitive Both of these lay on the southern side of the city. * In those churches,5 he zealously and profitably exercised the episcopal functions each day j but, he desired moments of retreat for spiritual exercises, and these occupied a great part of
Martyr;
the 3 John Baptist.
the Near his night.
dwelling,
St. Peter, for whom he entertained a special veneration. There, in retirement,
he communed with God in prayer ; and moreover, in it, he frequently preached to the faithful, who flocked to hear his instructions. In fine, the influence of St. Mansuy was so great, that he succeeded in rooting out the practices of paganism, and the worship of idols from the city, and from all its surrounding territory. Numbers of persons he brought within the pale of Christ's Church. 7 He likewise ordained a great number of priests and deacons for the work of the ministry.
The Church of St. Stephen became the Cathedral of Toul, but during the lapse of time it fell into decay, when St. Gerard, a pious successor of St. Mansuy in the See, rebuilt it from the foundations. 8 The illustrious Abbot,
10
St. Bernard,? assisted at its dedication by Pope Eugenius III.
vicissitudes, it was deemed necessary to erect a more modern structure. The present fine Cathedral of St. Stephen, in Toul, was designed and built in the fifteenth century. Its portal and western front, the conception of Jacquemin de Commercy, in 1447, are greatly admired. The ornate facade is 227 feet in height, and twin towers give it a most imposing effect. 11 It is a triapsal church, with short transepts, and having no triforium. 12 This edifice has
CHAPTKR ii. — ! His festival occurs on the 26th of December.
2
The writer of the Vita Prolixior adds, "ubidicituradFontes. " Itwassocalled apparently, because it had been set apart a? an ancient baptistery.
24th June. Calmet's "Histoire
Preuves de l'Hisloire de Lorraine. Historia
Episcopoium Tullensium, cap. xi. ,—col. 93.
5 The of these churches
position during
read "
:
s His feast is held on the of
col.
9 His feast occurs on the 20th of
4 See Dom
Augustin
Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," tome i.
the las—t century within the cloister of the
canons is shown on a map of Toul, in the
work already quoted. See tome i. Also, in 1353, published a Synodal decree, l>y
Dissertation sur les premiers Evesques de -e de Toul, col. xxviii.
which the Abbot of St. Mansuy was to a-sist on the left of the Bishop, who faced the choir before the grand altar in the Cathedral, See ibid. ^ tome ii. , liv. xxvi. , num. exxxvi. , col. 633, and num. exxxvii. , col. 634.
" At present the city contains about 7,000 inhabitants. See Elisee Reclus' " Nouvelle Geographie Universelle, tome ii. , liv. ii„ chap, xv. , sect, iv. , pp. 837, 838.
" See Balthasar's " Notice de- historique
6
Father Limpen supposes the local tradi-
tion may well be credited, that St. Mansuy
built a church to St. Peter, in the northern
suburb of Toul, and that he had been there
interred.
Allusion is made to that ancient
church, having become ruinous, in a charter
ofOthoI. , A. D. 965,andoneofSt. Gerard,
a. i>. 982. "
In the History of the Bishops of Toul we
scriptivesurlaCathedraledeToul,"l848,8vo.
After various
multitudines fidelium in Christ! fide
colligens, ad consortium priemisit Augelo- rum," cap. xiii. . col. 94.
8 See Dom Augustin Calmct's "Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine,'' tome i. Preuves, &c. Historia Episcoporum
August. He was born A. D. 1091, and he died on the
20ih of August, A. D. 11 53.
10 See Dom Augustin Calmet's work, tome
liv. num. col. Bertrand ii. , xxi. , xxxiii. , 24.
de la Tour dAuvergne, who was nomi- nated Bishop of Toul by Pope Innocent VI. ,
Tullensium, cap. xxxviii. ,
138.
September 3. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. \5
x peculiar features, but it is mainly in an architectural Gothic flamboyant style. 3
'J 'he history and a fine copper plate engraving of it are presented in the
learned work of
Calmer. 1*
From the latter, the
illustration has been
In a more recent local work, than that of Calmet, there are also views of St. Ste- phen s Cathedral. 16 The principal shrine in the Cathedral of Toul was shaped as a sort of tomb, coloured in vermillion, with a coffin-like cover- ing, about one metre in length, fifty centimetres in width, and seventy centimetres in height. This contained the relics of St. Mansuy and of fourteen other bishops of Toul, venerated as saints. Exteriorly, it was ornamented with red statues, separated from each other, and forming supposed representa-
tions of persons whose relics were deposited in the shrine. Those
images rested on pedes- tals, which were at the base of the shrine, and
wrote a for its book, having
title,
" De
Apostolicis Traditionibus,"
lib.
i. ,
Augustin
accompanying
Cathedral of Toul, France.
they reached to the height of its covering. At the respective ends of the
shrine's length were medallion-shaped glasses, through which the relics within could be seen. In various places throughout his diocese St. Maunsey built churches, so that the people might be enabled in them to adore and supplicate the Giver of all good gifts.
Were we to credit the
very
doubtful
of 1 ? our saint authority Dempster,
and which he tells us the people of Toul religiously preserve. This assertion,
however, is treated with merited disregard and contempt by Archbishop
18
Ussher, as are other groundless statements of the same writer relating to
Mansuetus.
He is thought to have lived for many years, zealously engaged in the prosecution of apostolic labours, and to have attained a great age, before his
13 See A. Hugo's " France PiMoresque," ome ii. , p. 246.
14 See y Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile
Notice sur la Cathedrale," avec 14 lithogra-
phies et 2 plans, two volumes, published in
Toul, 1841, 8vo.
"
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis
de Lorraine," tome 15
17
iii.
It has been drawn on the wood and en-
Scotorum," tomus ii. , lib. xii. , num. 838, p. 448.
graved by Gregor Grey.
18 " Britannicarum See
16 See Ad.
de Toul et de ces Eveques," suivies d'une
Ecciesiarum Anti- quitates," cap. xvi. , p. 392.
Thiery's
" Histoire de la Ville
15 copied.
46 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [Srptbmbrr 3.
term of life had expired. '^ His virtues and merits, added to his labours and austerities, had thus purified his soul for heaven. When his term on earth
closed his years of exile, it seems probable, he had been long estranged from social intercourse with those, that were early known to him in his native land. 20
Those writers, who have supposed St. Maunsey a disciple of St. Peter, place 21
his death in the early part of the second century. But, as we have already seen, that was long before the period of his birth. He died on the 3rd of
September, and about the year 375, according to most accounts. His people were greatly afflicted when they knew of his demise, and manifested their
respect and love while celebrating his funeral obsequies. The body of St. Mansuy was buried in that oratory of St. Peter, which he is said to have
22 built.
His memory has been highly revered at Toul, from the time of his death
to the present day. His immediate successor in that See was Amon,a3 also
distinguished for great virtues and miraculous gifts. He was interred, likewise, in the ancient Church of St. Peter ; and from those early times, the faithful were accustomed to revere both prelates, and to resort for succour to them in their various infirmities. Among those pious pilgrims to their tombs were persons of the highest distinction—even kings and princes—who arrived with the poor, and who manifested their trusting confidence in, and devout reverence for, those holy patrons ; thus affording examples of religious observance and veneration towards the saints, during the Ages of Faith. a< Even hospitals were erected in Toul for the reception of poor pilgrims, who flocked thither to be healed. Those houses of hospitality, likewise, were
endowed and maintained. 25 others, who are said to have Among
liberally
visited Toul for the purpose of praying in the oratory of St. Mansuetus, was
St. Martin,26 the holy Bishop of Tours,2? who is supposed to have had
19 In the History of the Bishops of Toul, **
more ancient date, declares, that miracles had been wrought there ; but, that in his day, for want of writers, or through the ravages of the barbarians, several interesting records
had perished.
26 St. Gregory of Tours places his birth in
the year 316, or before Easter in 317, during the eleventh year of Constantine the Great's He became of Tours about
:
Cumque jam Dei athleta
it is thus stated
electu. s plenus esset dierum, et provedre rctatis carnis onere de-
posito iii. nonarnm Septembrium spiritum urlo reddidit, &c. "—Calmet's " Histoire
Kcclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," tome i. , cap. xiii. , col. 94.
70 To him be the
might applied poet's reign. Bishop
lines :—
" Before him from the earth have passed
Friends, kinsmen, comrades, true and
brave
And well he knows—he nears, at last,
the year 375. He is said to have attained
the eighty-fourth year, and to have departed this life on the 8th of November, a. d. 400. His chief feast, however, is kept on the nth of that month. St. Sulpicius Severus has written his life in elegant Latin, and eight years after the death of his illustrious master, he wrote three dialogues to supply previous omissions. The Chronology of St. Martin's Life is very intricate. See " Memoires de Trevoux," ad annum 1765, pp. 1238, 1239.
of St.
However, when the Emperor Charles V. , in 1552, had taken Metz, Toul and Verdun from the French, the old Church of St. Maunsey was destroyed, and that stone was removed to the cloister of St. Gengulph's Collegiate Church in Toul. Long afterwards, that stone might be seen bearing an inscrip
;
His place of rest a foreign grave verses, byT. D. Sullivan, p. 85.
! " —"Green Leaves. " A volume of Irish
21
Thus Ussher records his demise under the year of Christ 105, in these words : " Mansuetus Ilibernus, primus Tullensium
anno ministeri—i sui
Kpiscopus, " (jaadragesimo
mortem obiisse dicitur. " Britannicarum
Kcclesiarum Antiquitates," Index Chronolo
gicus, p. 508.
"Seethe Pita ProKxiort VSx i. ,cap. iii. ,
num. 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, pp. 642, 643.
23 His feast is celebrated at Toul, on the
23rd of October.
34 See the Vita Brevior, sect. 5, 6, and
f'ita Prolixior, lib. i. , cap. iv. , sect. 25, 26. 25 Adso, who quotes from documents ot
2? In the church of the
Abbey Maunsey at Toul had long been preserved a stone, on which St. Martin is said to have knelt, when he came thither as a pilgrim.
September 3. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
•17
28
frequent pious colloquies with St. Maximinus, Bishop of Triers or
Treves.
From an early period, the Irish Scots, who had a great veneration for
their compatriot, St. Maunsey, were accustomed to frequent his church and
to offer their devotions at his shrine. Among those were to be found many
poor pilgrims, who were obliged to lodge in the hospice, while waiting some favours through the saint's intercession. One case in particular is related by Adso, regarding a poor Irishman and his wife, who while there had a pig stolen from them, which they needed for their common support. Their prayersforitsrecoverywereofferedtoSt. Maunseyinhischurch. ^ Thelost animal is stated to have been miraculously restored to them, but in a fashion too legendary to merit credence^
1
Years had passed away after the death of St. Maunsey, and the Vandals^ having taken possession of Toul, subjected his church to their devastations. In the commencement of the fifth century, witli other German tribes, they had crossed the Rhine, and spread like a torrent over Gaul, which had then experienced the benefits of Roman civilization. The flourishing city of Mentz was surprised and destroyed, while many thousand Christians were inhumanly massacred in the church. In like manner, Strasburg, Spiers,
Rheims, Tournay, Arras, and Amiens, experienced the oppression of the German invaders ; houses and churches were despoiled of their valuables ; while the clergy and laity were obliged to flee for their lives before the mercilessandrapaciousbarbarians. 32 Thecharitablefoundationsforpilgrims experienced also the natural results of wars that embroiled the people living in and around Toul. Wherefore,, those endowments were dissipated, and the
tion to the effect, it was the one on which St. Martin prayed at the tomb of St. Maunsey, when he visited Toul. In the beginning of the last century, that old church had not been repaired, and the Benedictines, who were in possession of the site, having con- verted the former refectory into a chapel, also celebrated the Divine Office in it. There, likewise, according to the two Bene- dictines of the Congregation of St. Maur, the body of St. Maunsey had been preserved. See Dom Augustin Calmet's " Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," in his Dissertation on the early Bishops of Toul, lib. v. , num. 21, and tome iii. , lib. xxxiii. , num. 66. Also, the Literary Itinerary of two Benedictines, part ii. , p. 130, published in
Paris, 1 7 17.
28 He was born at Monterre-Silly, in Foitou, towards the end of the third or the
been dead several years before St. Martin became Bishop of Tours.
29 The matter is thus related by Adso :
" Furantis autem personam cum nusquam
deprehenderet ; dampni sui non ferens dis- pendium, ad sacram sedem tendit, et effertis, ut Scotorum natura est, animis tumulo Sancti
se msestum injecit et plenum querimoniis, et ut rustici verbis eloquar ; O Sancte Dei,
Scottum, inquam, te Scottum et me, genti Scottigenae propitius miserere. Me eminus positum forte juvare debueras : ecce peregre constitutum quid aporiari pateris, quid rebus destitui permittis ? Redde, obsecro, quod perdidi : redde, quod fur impius forte jam absumit. Hsec et his similia multa prosequens pauper ille, tristis recipitur hospicio. "
30 Adso intimates, that such a popular story need not be trusted, nor does it merit his own approval, neither does it that of his editor, Father John Limpen. In Calmet's edition of Adso's Life of our Saint, the narrative above noticed is ended thus : "Vitseet actuum beati Mansueti pontificis
beginning of the fourth century. Upon the
death of St. Agritius, Bishop of Triers, he
was chosen successor, A. n. 332. He was one
of the most illustrious defenders of the
Catholic faith in the Council of Sardica, held
in 347. He died on a visit to his relations* rum," tomus i. , Septembris iii. Vita Pro- in Poitou, a. d. 349.
" thus ad Set Petrutn, for or to the Church of Rome ; a S. Petro, from or by the said Church ; ad S. Martinum to the Church of Tours; andwhatwasverycommonamongst ourselves, ad S. Patricium, a S. Patrilio, to or by the See of Armagh. "—" Ecclesias- tical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, i. , sect, ii. , n. II.
68 "
See J. Clement's Antiquites de la
Ville et du Siege episcopal de Toul," 1702, 8vo.
66
in Ireland, at an early period, for it is asserted
Such appears to have been the tradition
42
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAIJSITS.
l
Septemi
known to the Romans as Belgica prima, and their chief city was Toul. 6^ To this Ptolemy has added another, which he names Nasion. ? The Leuci occupied the southern part of the present Department of the Meuse, the
greater part of the Meurthe Department, and the Vosges Department, in France. 7l Before the time of our saint, Toul had been a city of some
2
importance,' and it was surrounded with walls for defence. During the
Middle Ages, the Dukes of Lotharingia, or Lorraine, ruled over that territory, between the Meuse and Moselle ; and ecclesiastically the See of Toul was undertheMetropolitanCityofTriers,orTreves. FromRome,St. Mansuetus was sent to Toul, having been invested with the episcopal character, and he was appointed its first pastor. This took place, not before the middle of the fourth century,73 or perhaps even later. In his history of the Gallic Church, Bosquet remarks? * that Mansuet must not be confounded with a Bishop of the Armorican Britons bearing a like name, and who was present at the first Council of Tours. 7 5 The people to whom St. Maunsuy had been sent were then addicted to idolatry, and involved in the darkness of pagan superstition. It is said, that they had a king named Leon, who was an idolater, and a man of barbarous manners. '6 When their first missionary entered Toul, and began to announce the truths of the Gospel, he found the magistrates and chiefs of the people indisposed to hear his preaching. This conduct influenced greatly the opposition and indifference of the humbler classes, so that for some time his doctrine and teaching were disregarded.
The holy missionary built for his dwelling in the woods an humble cabin of twigs interwoven ;77 and, in that he lived, devoted to the exercises of prayer and meditation. While there, numbers resorted to him. Having received instruction, they renounced idolatrous worship, and embraced the true religion. Even, the governor's wife, having heard so many rumours about the strange missionary, desired to learn more about his race, the doctrines he taught, and the places whence he came ; but, it was only during the absence of her pagan husband, she could venture, through her domestics, to arrange foraprivateinterviewwiththeholyman. Whenhehadexpoundedtoher, the chief mysteries of the Christian religion, and the truths of Divine Faith, that lady believed in his doctrine and teaching, but still deferred her profes-
69 It is situated on the River Moselle, about the middle of the fourth century. To
surrounded by a chain of hills covered with
vineyards. See Gazetteer of the World, vol.
xiii. , p. 141.
omitotherarguments, heendeavoursto prove this from the recorded succession of the bishops of Toul : thus, 1. S. Mansuet, or
70 In the Second Book of his ; 2, S. Anion Geography, Mansuy
Alchas
on account of the similarity of name to the Latin Nanceium, it is thought by many to
have represented the present City of Nancy in Lorraine. See " Recueil des Ilistoriens ues Gaules et de la France," par Dora Martin Bouquet, Pretre et Religious Benedictin de la Congregation de Saint Maur, tome i. ,
7, S. Apre, or Evre, vers l'an 500, &c.
'' Ilistoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lor- raine," tome i. , col. xxxiii.
7* See '* Eccleste Gallicanse Historiamm," T. C. Evangelis in Callus inque ad datam a Constantino Imperatore ecclesioe pacem, lib. i. , cap. xx.
et Civile de Lorraine," tome i. , Dissertation sur les Premier! Evesques de l'Eglise de Toul, col. xxvii.
p. 77, n. (i). 71 "
See Ilistoire de Jules C£sar," par
Napoleon III. , Empereur, tome ii. , liv. iii. , This
chap, ii. , p. 22, n. 3.
72 See Bataille's "Notice historique surla
Ville de Toul et ses Antiquites," with plates, 1 84 1, 8vo.
7i In a Dissertation sur les
Toul, prefixed to the first volume of his History of Lorraine, Calmet maintains, that Mansuetus was sent bom Rome to Toul,
held a. d. 461.
? 6 See Calmet's " Ilistoire Ecclesiastique
Ev&jtus
propc meenia civitatis exiguie habitations sil. i
de
7? The Vita Prolixior " states,
S. Celsin ; 5, S. Auspice, vers ban 450; 6, S. Ours, or Urse, sous (Jlovis, vers Tan 4S8—;
? 5 was
rectptorium pneparavit," lib. i. , cap. i. , n. 6, p. 640.
; 3, S.
; 4,
boy, on being restored to life, and alter
8o See Les Petits Bollandistes, "Vies des e
in the water for three
lying daysandthreenights,
Saints,"tomex. ,iii JourdeSeptembre,p. 432
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
43
sion of faith, lest it should cause some trouble between herself and husband. 78
However, when he happened to be absent on public business, the missionary was encouraged to visit her house, and still afford her the satisfaction of
learning those messages of salvation he was so well qualified to convey.
It happened on a certain day, observed as a local festival, and while un-
peopleofToulwerebentonenjoyment,theonlysonoftheirgovernorfell by accident from the city ramparts into the Moselle, which flowed beneath. The river was very deep at that place. Public rejoicings were at once dis- continued, and in common with his parents, the inhabitants shared their sorrowonaccountoftheyouthwhohadbeendrowned. Everyeffortwas madetorecoverthedeadbody. Invainwerethepagangodsinvokedfor that purpose. However, during the night, the governor's wife had a dream, in which she saw St. Mansuy, who promised to restore her son, if she would become a convert to Christianity. On awaking, she related that vision to her husband. Thereupon, he sent a message to the saint, and promised, if his son's corpse were recovered through means of the stranger, that he would receive baptism, and influence all his people to embrace the doctrines of the foreign missionary. Our saint then went to that spot, where the boy had fallen into the river, and betook himself to prayer. Soon the body arose to the surface, and it was drawn up on the river bank. Then addressing the
:
governor, Mansuy said " Behold the corpse of your son, and if you are
resolved to observe the promise made to me, the goodness of God is great,
andyoushallobtainfromHimastillmoresignalfavour. " Immediatelythe
governor and all who were present declared, that if the boy were brought to life, they would abandon the worship of false gods, and embrace the Christian religion. Then the bishop fell on his knees and implored the Divine Majesty, while some of his newly converted disciples imitated his example. Their fervent prayers were rewarded by signs of life coming to re-invigorate the body, which was cold and stiff when recovered from the water. Never- theless, at a word from the minister of Jesus Christ, the boy arose to life, and cast himself into the arms of his overjoyed parents. This miraculous restora- tion filled all who were present with transports of delight and admiration. 79 The governor and his family, with all his people, conformed to Christianity, and thenceforth St. as their 80
CHAPTER II.
THE VIRTUES AND MIRACULOUS GIFTS OF ST. MANSUETUS—HE BUILDS VARIOUS CHURCHES AND ORDAINS MANY PRIESTS—HIS DEATH—VENERATION OF THE PEOPLE AT TOUL FOR HIS MEMORY— PILGRIMAGES TO HIS SHRINE, WHERE SEVERAL MIRACLES ARE WROUGHT—DESTRUCTION OF HIS CHURCH AND THE CHARITABLE FOUNDATIONS AT TOUL BY THE VANDALS—RESTORATIONS BY THE BISHOPS GAUZLIN AND GERARD.
We are told, that St. Maunsey's character was distinguished for an admixture
of firmness in episcopal administration, with clemency and piety combined in a remarkable degree, while he spent days and nights in prayer. He was ever attentive to the wants of his flock, and those, who came to visit him with
recognised Mansuy pastor.
78 See Dom Augustin Calmet's " Histoire
Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," tome i. Dissertation sur les Premiers Evesques de l'Eglise de Toul, col. xxviii.
79 In the Vita Prolixior it is stated, that the
related what he had seen, before bis resusci-
tation, regarding those torments prepared for the wicked in hell, and to which his parents and himself should be consigned, unless they became Christians. —Lib. i. , cap. ii. , num. 16.
44 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [Septemukk
hearts bowed down, left him with consolation even in their miseries, so mild and gentle were his admonitions. His miraculous gifts of healing the sick caused him to be regarded as the true physician of his people. Soon was idolatry extirpated from the land : and then, he deemed it necessary to raise temples in honour of the true and living God. From very ancient acts of his, that have now perished, we are told by the writer of his longer life, how, within the walls of Toul, he built two churches. One of these was dedicated to the Blessed
Stephen,
Virgin Mary 2 the other was dedicated to St.
1 the
and to St.
he raised an 6 which was dedicated to oratory,
primitive Both of these lay on the southern side of the city. * In those churches,5 he zealously and profitably exercised the episcopal functions each day j but, he desired moments of retreat for spiritual exercises, and these occupied a great part of
Martyr;
the 3 John Baptist.
the Near his night.
dwelling,
St. Peter, for whom he entertained a special veneration. There, in retirement,
he communed with God in prayer ; and moreover, in it, he frequently preached to the faithful, who flocked to hear his instructions. In fine, the influence of St. Mansuy was so great, that he succeeded in rooting out the practices of paganism, and the worship of idols from the city, and from all its surrounding territory. Numbers of persons he brought within the pale of Christ's Church. 7 He likewise ordained a great number of priests and deacons for the work of the ministry.
The Church of St. Stephen became the Cathedral of Toul, but during the lapse of time it fell into decay, when St. Gerard, a pious successor of St. Mansuy in the See, rebuilt it from the foundations. 8 The illustrious Abbot,
10
St. Bernard,? assisted at its dedication by Pope Eugenius III.
vicissitudes, it was deemed necessary to erect a more modern structure. The present fine Cathedral of St. Stephen, in Toul, was designed and built in the fifteenth century. Its portal and western front, the conception of Jacquemin de Commercy, in 1447, are greatly admired. The ornate facade is 227 feet in height, and twin towers give it a most imposing effect. 11 It is a triapsal church, with short transepts, and having no triforium. 12 This edifice has
CHAPTKR ii. — ! His festival occurs on the 26th of December.
2
The writer of the Vita Prolixior adds, "ubidicituradFontes. " Itwassocalled apparently, because it had been set apart a? an ancient baptistery.
24th June. Calmet's "Histoire
Preuves de l'Hisloire de Lorraine. Historia
Episcopoium Tullensium, cap. xi. ,—col. 93.
5 The of these churches
position during
read "
:
s His feast is held on the of
col.
9 His feast occurs on the 20th of
4 See Dom
Augustin
Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," tome i.
the las—t century within the cloister of the
canons is shown on a map of Toul, in the
work already quoted. See tome i. Also, in 1353, published a Synodal decree, l>y
Dissertation sur les premiers Evesques de -e de Toul, col. xxviii.
which the Abbot of St. Mansuy was to a-sist on the left of the Bishop, who faced the choir before the grand altar in the Cathedral, See ibid. ^ tome ii. , liv. xxvi. , num. exxxvi. , col. 633, and num. exxxvii. , col. 634.
" At present the city contains about 7,000 inhabitants. See Elisee Reclus' " Nouvelle Geographie Universelle, tome ii. , liv. ii„ chap, xv. , sect, iv. , pp. 837, 838.
" See Balthasar's " Notice de- historique
6
Father Limpen supposes the local tradi-
tion may well be credited, that St. Mansuy
built a church to St. Peter, in the northern
suburb of Toul, and that he had been there
interred.
Allusion is made to that ancient
church, having become ruinous, in a charter
ofOthoI. , A. D. 965,andoneofSt. Gerard,
a. i>. 982. "
In the History of the Bishops of Toul we
scriptivesurlaCathedraledeToul,"l848,8vo.
After various
multitudines fidelium in Christ! fide
colligens, ad consortium priemisit Augelo- rum," cap. xiii. . col. 94.
8 See Dom Augustin Calmct's "Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine,'' tome i. Preuves, &c. Historia Episcoporum
August. He was born A. D. 1091, and he died on the
20ih of August, A. D. 11 53.
10 See Dom Augustin Calmet's work, tome
liv. num. col. Bertrand ii. , xxi. , xxxiii. , 24.
de la Tour dAuvergne, who was nomi- nated Bishop of Toul by Pope Innocent VI. ,
Tullensium, cap. xxxviii. ,
138.
September 3. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. \5
x peculiar features, but it is mainly in an architectural Gothic flamboyant style. 3
'J 'he history and a fine copper plate engraving of it are presented in the
learned work of
Calmer. 1*
From the latter, the
illustration has been
In a more recent local work, than that of Calmet, there are also views of St. Ste- phen s Cathedral. 16 The principal shrine in the Cathedral of Toul was shaped as a sort of tomb, coloured in vermillion, with a coffin-like cover- ing, about one metre in length, fifty centimetres in width, and seventy centimetres in height. This contained the relics of St. Mansuy and of fourteen other bishops of Toul, venerated as saints. Exteriorly, it was ornamented with red statues, separated from each other, and forming supposed representa-
tions of persons whose relics were deposited in the shrine. Those
images rested on pedes- tals, which were at the base of the shrine, and
wrote a for its book, having
title,
" De
Apostolicis Traditionibus,"
lib.
i. ,
Augustin
accompanying
Cathedral of Toul, France.
they reached to the height of its covering. At the respective ends of the
shrine's length were medallion-shaped glasses, through which the relics within could be seen. In various places throughout his diocese St. Maunsey built churches, so that the people might be enabled in them to adore and supplicate the Giver of all good gifts.
Were we to credit the
very
doubtful
of 1 ? our saint authority Dempster,
and which he tells us the people of Toul religiously preserve. This assertion,
however, is treated with merited disregard and contempt by Archbishop
18
Ussher, as are other groundless statements of the same writer relating to
Mansuetus.
He is thought to have lived for many years, zealously engaged in the prosecution of apostolic labours, and to have attained a great age, before his
13 See A. Hugo's " France PiMoresque," ome ii. , p. 246.
14 See y Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile
Notice sur la Cathedrale," avec 14 lithogra-
phies et 2 plans, two volumes, published in
Toul, 1841, 8vo.
"
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis
de Lorraine," tome 15
17
iii.
It has been drawn on the wood and en-
Scotorum," tomus ii. , lib. xii. , num. 838, p. 448.
graved by Gregor Grey.
18 " Britannicarum See
16 See Ad.
de Toul et de ces Eveques," suivies d'une
Ecciesiarum Anti- quitates," cap. xvi. , p. 392.
Thiery's
" Histoire de la Ville
15 copied.
46 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [Srptbmbrr 3.
term of life had expired. '^ His virtues and merits, added to his labours and austerities, had thus purified his soul for heaven. When his term on earth
closed his years of exile, it seems probable, he had been long estranged from social intercourse with those, that were early known to him in his native land. 20
Those writers, who have supposed St. Maunsey a disciple of St. Peter, place 21
his death in the early part of the second century. But, as we have already seen, that was long before the period of his birth. He died on the 3rd of
September, and about the year 375, according to most accounts. His people were greatly afflicted when they knew of his demise, and manifested their
respect and love while celebrating his funeral obsequies. The body of St. Mansuy was buried in that oratory of St. Peter, which he is said to have
22 built.
His memory has been highly revered at Toul, from the time of his death
to the present day. His immediate successor in that See was Amon,a3 also
distinguished for great virtues and miraculous gifts. He was interred, likewise, in the ancient Church of St. Peter ; and from those early times, the faithful were accustomed to revere both prelates, and to resort for succour to them in their various infirmities. Among those pious pilgrims to their tombs were persons of the highest distinction—even kings and princes—who arrived with the poor, and who manifested their trusting confidence in, and devout reverence for, those holy patrons ; thus affording examples of religious observance and veneration towards the saints, during the Ages of Faith. a< Even hospitals were erected in Toul for the reception of poor pilgrims, who flocked thither to be healed. Those houses of hospitality, likewise, were
endowed and maintained. 25 others, who are said to have Among
liberally
visited Toul for the purpose of praying in the oratory of St. Mansuetus, was
St. Martin,26 the holy Bishop of Tours,2? who is supposed to have had
19 In the History of the Bishops of Toul, **
more ancient date, declares, that miracles had been wrought there ; but, that in his day, for want of writers, or through the ravages of the barbarians, several interesting records
had perished.
26 St. Gregory of Tours places his birth in
the year 316, or before Easter in 317, during the eleventh year of Constantine the Great's He became of Tours about
:
Cumque jam Dei athleta
it is thus stated
electu. s plenus esset dierum, et provedre rctatis carnis onere de-
posito iii. nonarnm Septembrium spiritum urlo reddidit, &c. "—Calmet's " Histoire
Kcclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," tome i. , cap. xiii. , col. 94.
70 To him be the
might applied poet's reign. Bishop
lines :—
" Before him from the earth have passed
Friends, kinsmen, comrades, true and
brave
And well he knows—he nears, at last,
the year 375. He is said to have attained
the eighty-fourth year, and to have departed this life on the 8th of November, a. d. 400. His chief feast, however, is kept on the nth of that month. St. Sulpicius Severus has written his life in elegant Latin, and eight years after the death of his illustrious master, he wrote three dialogues to supply previous omissions. The Chronology of St. Martin's Life is very intricate. See " Memoires de Trevoux," ad annum 1765, pp. 1238, 1239.
of St.
However, when the Emperor Charles V. , in 1552, had taken Metz, Toul and Verdun from the French, the old Church of St. Maunsey was destroyed, and that stone was removed to the cloister of St. Gengulph's Collegiate Church in Toul. Long afterwards, that stone might be seen bearing an inscrip
;
His place of rest a foreign grave verses, byT. D. Sullivan, p. 85.
! " —"Green Leaves. " A volume of Irish
21
Thus Ussher records his demise under the year of Christ 105, in these words : " Mansuetus Ilibernus, primus Tullensium
anno ministeri—i sui
Kpiscopus, " (jaadragesimo
mortem obiisse dicitur. " Britannicarum
Kcclesiarum Antiquitates," Index Chronolo
gicus, p. 508.
"Seethe Pita ProKxiort VSx i. ,cap. iii. ,
num. 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, pp. 642, 643.
23 His feast is celebrated at Toul, on the
23rd of October.
34 See the Vita Brevior, sect. 5, 6, and
f'ita Prolixior, lib. i. , cap. iv. , sect. 25, 26. 25 Adso, who quotes from documents ot
2? In the church of the
Abbey Maunsey at Toul had long been preserved a stone, on which St. Martin is said to have knelt, when he came thither as a pilgrim.
September 3. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
•17
28
frequent pious colloquies with St. Maximinus, Bishop of Triers or
Treves.
From an early period, the Irish Scots, who had a great veneration for
their compatriot, St. Maunsey, were accustomed to frequent his church and
to offer their devotions at his shrine. Among those were to be found many
poor pilgrims, who were obliged to lodge in the hospice, while waiting some favours through the saint's intercession. One case in particular is related by Adso, regarding a poor Irishman and his wife, who while there had a pig stolen from them, which they needed for their common support. Their prayersforitsrecoverywereofferedtoSt. Maunseyinhischurch. ^ Thelost animal is stated to have been miraculously restored to them, but in a fashion too legendary to merit credence^
1
Years had passed away after the death of St. Maunsey, and the Vandals^ having taken possession of Toul, subjected his church to their devastations. In the commencement of the fifth century, witli other German tribes, they had crossed the Rhine, and spread like a torrent over Gaul, which had then experienced the benefits of Roman civilization. The flourishing city of Mentz was surprised and destroyed, while many thousand Christians were inhumanly massacred in the church. In like manner, Strasburg, Spiers,
Rheims, Tournay, Arras, and Amiens, experienced the oppression of the German invaders ; houses and churches were despoiled of their valuables ; while the clergy and laity were obliged to flee for their lives before the mercilessandrapaciousbarbarians. 32 Thecharitablefoundationsforpilgrims experienced also the natural results of wars that embroiled the people living in and around Toul. Wherefore,, those endowments were dissipated, and the
tion to the effect, it was the one on which St. Martin prayed at the tomb of St. Maunsey, when he visited Toul. In the beginning of the last century, that old church had not been repaired, and the Benedictines, who were in possession of the site, having con- verted the former refectory into a chapel, also celebrated the Divine Office in it. There, likewise, according to the two Bene- dictines of the Congregation of St. Maur, the body of St. Maunsey had been preserved. See Dom Augustin Calmet's " Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Lorraine," in his Dissertation on the early Bishops of Toul, lib. v. , num. 21, and tome iii. , lib. xxxiii. , num. 66. Also, the Literary Itinerary of two Benedictines, part ii. , p. 130, published in
Paris, 1 7 17.
28 He was born at Monterre-Silly, in Foitou, towards the end of the third or the
been dead several years before St. Martin became Bishop of Tours.
29 The matter is thus related by Adso :
" Furantis autem personam cum nusquam
deprehenderet ; dampni sui non ferens dis- pendium, ad sacram sedem tendit, et effertis, ut Scotorum natura est, animis tumulo Sancti
se msestum injecit et plenum querimoniis, et ut rustici verbis eloquar ; O Sancte Dei,
Scottum, inquam, te Scottum et me, genti Scottigenae propitius miserere. Me eminus positum forte juvare debueras : ecce peregre constitutum quid aporiari pateris, quid rebus destitui permittis ? Redde, obsecro, quod perdidi : redde, quod fur impius forte jam absumit. Hsec et his similia multa prosequens pauper ille, tristis recipitur hospicio. "
30 Adso intimates, that such a popular story need not be trusted, nor does it merit his own approval, neither does it that of his editor, Father John Limpen. In Calmet's edition of Adso's Life of our Saint, the narrative above noticed is ended thus : "Vitseet actuum beati Mansueti pontificis
beginning of the fourth century. Upon the
death of St. Agritius, Bishop of Triers, he
was chosen successor, A. n. 332. He was one
of the most illustrious defenders of the
Catholic faith in the Council of Sardica, held
in 347. He died on a visit to his relations* rum," tomus i. , Septembris iii. Vita Pro- in Poitou, a. d. 349.
