| Albert the Great by Sr. M. Albert Hughes, O.P.
5 Busy About Many Things |
  Autumn 1987 Vol. 39 Supplement |
TO the modern mind Albert's appointment as legate to preach the crusade in German-speaking countries may seem something of an anticlimax, and as defeating the whole purpose of his withdrawal from the episcopal office. But to Pope Urban IV, who appointed him, this probably appeared the most vital and responsible task which could have been given to him. In the year 1230 Jerusalem had fallen to the Saracens, Ascalon followed the same year, Gaza and Tiberias in 1244; and to the Christians of the Middle Ages the possession of the Holy Land by the infidel was one of the greatest conceivable calamities.
Kings thought it worth while to leave their realms and oftentimes to risk the loss of none-too-secure thrones in an effort to win back the Sepulchre of Our Lord. Religious orders were founded for the explicit purpose of waging war in the Holy Land, and soldiers innumerable of both high and low station flocked to Palestine, considering that death in so holy a cause would be equivalent to martyrdom and a sure pledge of salvation. But the custodianship of the Holy Places was not the only aspect of the war against the infidel. The followers of the Prophet were avowedly bent on the total destruction of Christian Europe, and at the time of which we write their objective seemed to be within sight of attainment. Spain, all North Africa, and Palestine were in their hands, the Christian Empire at Constantinople had fallen, and from Prussia to the Carpathians they menaced the eastern frontier of Europe.
Urban IV, formerly Patriarch of Jerusalem and papal legate in the Holy Land, appreciated more vividly than anyone the magnitude of the danger which threatened Europe, Christianity, and the whole of Western civilization. The raising of a new crusade was the focal point of all the activities of his pontificate. Men and money were needed; the crusade must be preached before it could be fought. The pope's choice fell on the two mendicant orders still in the full flower of their early popularity and success to undertake this mission -- the Friars Minor and Friars Preachers. On 13th February 1263, Albert received his commission from the pope to preach the crusade in all German-speaking countries with full powers as papal legate, Berthold of Regensburg of the Friars Minor being given him as companion.
Their task was to obtain men to fight and the money to finance the campaign. The latter was obtained partly in the form of alms, to the giving of which indulgences were attached. This was possibly the ongin of the practice of selling indulgences. But funds were also raised by the commutation of the vows of those who in a moment of fervor or danger had promised to take the Cross and go to the Holy Land, but who in calmer moments found themselves unable or unwilling to undertake the journey. The Preachers had power to dispense them from their vows, but a certain sum of money, proportionate to their means, was to be given towards the crusade fund. For over a year Albert journeyed throughout Germany in the exercise of this office at the same time acting as papal legate in matters not concerned with the crusade, giving proof of his ever watchful solicitude for religious orders, especially those of women. The 25th August 1264 is the last time we find him signing himself as Praedicator Crucis, for on 2nd October Urban IV died, and the saint's mission automatically came to an end.
The new Pontiff, Clement IV, elected on 5th February 1265, had not the same interest in the crusade as his predecessor. But had his ardor been equally great, the divisions among the European princes made any combination against even a common enemy manifestly out of the question. Albert was somewhere in the south of Germany when the news of the pope's death reached him, and he went at once to Würzburg where his brother Henry was probably prior and where Ulrich von Strassburg, his favorite pupil, was living. Here he was able to enjoy a well-earned rest to recuperate after the labors of the previous eighteen months.
When Albert was thus able to retire from his public labors he was already an elderly man. If the earlier date which is given for his birth is correct, he was 70, if the later one, he was nearly 60. In either case he must have hoped that his public life was ended and that he would be able to spend the remainder of his days in prayer and study in the quiet and retirement of his cloister. His wish was partly fulfilled. From 1260 to 1268 he lived in the priories of Würzburg and Strassburg; from 1269 to 1280 he passed his declining years in his beloved convent at Cologne. A good many of his writings probably date from this period. Yet his cloistral quiet was by no means undisturbed, and he seems to have fulfilled a programme of public appearances which might well have fully occupied a younger but less active man. As one of his biographers, Rudolph of Nymegen, writes,
When he was restored to his old and much loved mode of life, he began at once to write books and to instruct the ignorant, living in an observance of the Rule which was all the more perfect according as he had advanced higher in the ranks of the priesthood and the mastership. Yet he never ceased from wearisome visits to monasteries, but rather willingly undertook long journeys for the glory of God, whenever it seemed necessary that by his presence and his counsels he should reanimate new foundations which had by chance fallen into difficulty and danger through lack of fervor.Besides this devotion to the interests of the religious, his external activities during these last years may be classed under those of arbitrator, peacemaker, and bishop.
Albert's interest in religious women, especially those of his own order, probably dates back to the days when he was provincial of Germany. The first certain recorded date of his relations with them is 1255, when as provincial he professed the first sisters in Paradise Convent near Soest, founded in 1253. According to the chroniclers it was much earlier, however, in 1237, that he was commissioned to deal with the vocation of Iolanda, the daughter of the Count of Vianden, who had fled to the monastery of Marienthal only to be dragged away by her relatives. As has already been stated, the saint decided that she should be allowed to follow her vocation.
It was while he was bishop that Albert ordered Brother Ranieri to inquire into and write an account of the reputed extraordinary graces granted to the famous monastery of Unterlinden near Colmar. Presumably his contact with the monastery continued, for in 1269 we find him consecrating the church there and also in the same year the convent church at Katharinenthal near Diessenhofen. In 1263 he granted an indulgence in favor of the Dominican sisters of St. Catherine in Augsburg; and in 1264 he wrote to the sisters at Basle granting a similar favor. In 1265 we find it recorded that he witnessed a deed of mortgage between a certain Luitpold von Nortenberg and the Dominican nuns at Rathenburg. In 1268, he he granted an indulgence to the Dominican nuns of Strassburg. In 1277 he was again at Soest, and in his will he remembered two Dominican convents -- Schwäsbischgmünd where, according to tradition, his sister was a nun, and that of St. Catherine at Augsburg which, on the strength of the legacy, seems to have thought that it too might claim to have had one of his sisters as an inmate.
These dates, through definite, are comparatively few, for the chronology of the saint's life is for the most part uncertain. But they do point to a close connection with, and affection for, the enclosed Dominican nuns, one which endured throughout his long life. Sayings attributed to the saint are still treasured in the archives of various convents; in one place one is inscribed over the doorway of the church together with a carving of Albert. Some of his sayings have been handed down to us -- or, perhaps more accurately, these traditional sayings have been attributed to him:
An egg given during life for the love of God is more profitable for eternity than a cathedral full of gold given after death.It is not being too imaginative to picture him as one might do a priest of our own day, visiting a convent, interviewing the nuns individually and collectively, hearing confessions, preaching, presiding at professions and clothings, always a welcome guest and himself always only too happy to spend a few days with his sisters, realizing how much of the success of the preaching and teaching of the brethren depends on their prayers and on the sanctity of their lives. It was not only the religious of his own order who enjoyed his protection and friendship. His relations with more than one Cistercian convent are on record, likewise with the White Sisters of St. Mary Magdalen, with Augustinian Canonesses and with the convent of St. Ursula in Cologne. This last seems to have been on especially friendly terms with the saint, and some time during 1263, while he was preaching the crusade, he received from Elizabeth the Abbess the gift of the bodies of 300 martyrs, of which he sent two, the relics of Candida and Florina, to the Dominicans in Freiburg and the rest to the priory in Cologne.To forgive those who have injured us in our body, our reputations, and our goods, is more advantageous to us than to cross the seas to venerate the sepulchre of Our Lord.
A man receives God spiritually in the soul, just as the priest receives him corporally at the altar, so often as for love of him he abstains from a fault, be it only a word or an idle glance.
The Office of St. Albert contains several references to his mission as peacemaker. Of the comparatively few details of his life which are known, many are concerned with his activities in this direction. It is a striking testimony to his character and virtue that he should have been accepted as mediator by the opposing parties in numerous disputes of various kinds, and should not only have effected an agreement where others had failed, but should have done so apparently without ever making an enemy of the losing party. In the Bull of canonization Pope Pius XI wrote,
... in his lifetime [Albert] labored strenuously for peace between princes and peoples and individual men. His power and authority as arbiter and peacemaker were derived from his holiness and learning, which men respected and esteemed; they reverenced, too, his innate dignity of person, which was further ennobled by his priestly character. He presented a living image of his Master, whom Scripture calls the Prince of Peace.It would take too long to give in detail or even to mention the numerous feuds out of which the saint brought peace. The first on record is that between Conrad von Hochstaden, the Prince-Archbishop -- and much more Prince than Archbishop -- of Cologne and the citizens, which had led to war and murder and evils of every sort. Albert was called in and drew up a settlement on Holy Saturday 1252, and the agreement was confirmed by the Holy See. The peace was an uneasy one, however; neither side kept its promises and in 1258 Albert was a member, probably the president, of a commission which drew up a second settlement. Full peace was not even now restored, and Albert intervened again and apparently with success in 1260. A short time afterwards Conrad died. The new archbishop, Englebert of Falkenburg, was as warlike as had been his predecessor, and very soon the war between bishop and flock, between ruler and citizens, was renewed and in 1267 the archbishop became the prisoner of a powerful noble, Wilhelm von Julich.
In 1270 or 1271 the saint returned to his beloved Cologne to spend there his declining years, "being received with honor and affection by all, religious and secular, young and old, lowly and mighty." (1) He returned not simply by choice, but as a result of a letter from the Master of the Order who told him that his return was sought and desired by the citizens, who were in dire straits since the city had been placed under an interdict in punishment for the archbishop's imprisonment. The Master spoke of the incomparable prestige enjoined by the saint and recalled the former occasion on which he had restored peace to the city. Thus Albert's return was in the nature of a solemn peace mission enjoined upon him by the highest authority in the order.
He first interviewed Englebert, talked him into a humbler frame of mind, and made him promise to indulge in no reprisals on his captor and the citizens. Then he negotiated with the citizens whom he induced to recognize the archbishop as their ruler and to promise to respect all his rights. The treaty was signed in April 1271, and four arbiters, Albert among them, were appointed to settle any future disputes which might arise. Englebert was released from his captivity, but the interdict was not raised until after his death in 1274. Yet peace had been firmly established and, as one writer expressed it, "arms were laid aside, souls grew calm in the serenity of peace, and the great city was able to enter upon the heyday of its prosperity in the field of studies, commerce, and civil institutions under the protecting shadow of the saint." One is reminded of the interventions of another Dominican saint, Catherine of Siena, in the political affairs of her day, although her measures did not often produce such lasting fruit as did Albert's.
"A model of prudence and justice to all," is how Pope Pius XI described Albert. The recognition of these qualities by those in authority is perhaps the reason for the saint's successful mediation in a matter of a different nature -- the election of Rudolph of Hapsburg as King of the Romans, i.e. Holy Roman Emperor. The reign of Frederick II had been the culmination of a century's strife between pope and emperor which had thrown the whole of Europe into turmoil. But on his death, succession to the dignity was disputed, and ultimately Rudolph of Hapsburg, of a different family, received the votes of the Electors. But when the Council of Lyons met in 1271 he had not been recognized by the Holy See. Albert pleaded his cause so successfully that the necessary recognition was accorded by Gregory X and a new era opened in the relation between pope and emperor.
Rupert was pious, devoted to the Dominican Order and an intimate friend of the saint, to whom he several times entrusted official missions. An example of his character had been given on the occasion of his election when, having no scepter to offer to those who came to do him homage, he seized a crucifix, kissed it himself, and then held it out to the princes saying, "This is the scepter under which I intend to rule." As the pope declared, "It may be confidently affirmed that Albert was acting for the good of both ecclesiastical and civil society" when he pleaded Rudolph's cause before the Council.
The pope also refers to his prudence in management and his skill in civil business, which may account for his being called upon in 1259 to settle a trade dispute between Cologne and Utrecht. And it speaks well for his strict sense of fair play that although he was known to be devoted to his "beloved Cologne," the citizens of Utrecht could none the less consider him an impartial judge. Of the numerous lesser disputes which he was called upon to adjudicate many concerned religious houses and questions of revenues, emoluments, patronage or the like which were challenged by seculars, On one or two occasions his judgment was resisted by the losing party, and Albert resorted to the weapon of excommunication, but in the main his decisions were accepted by all concerned. One cannot but believe that it was not only his "prudence, justice, strength of purpose, and sense of fair play," but also his own character and personality, which made him so successful a mediator and peacemaker. For "although his office and dignity entitled him to deep respect it was not his way to overawe, but to show, himself a father, always inspiring confidence, never fear."
The third class of external activities to which the indefatigable saint devoted the energies of his last years were those which fell to his lot as bishop. For even after resigning the see of Regensburg, he retained the episcopal dignity, and as Pope Pius XI said in his Bull, "In many dioceses, too, he was always ready to perform pontifical and episcopal functions, to undertake long and difficult journeys in the interests of religion." Thus we find frequent records of his consecrating churches and altars, granting indulgences in favor of convents and monasteries, granting dispensations, and at times imposing ecclesiastical penalties on wrongdoers. Cologne, Strassburg, Freiburg, Basle, Nymegen, Utrecht, Maestricht, Louvain, Mülhausen, Regensburg, and Unterlinden are only a few of the towns which he visited on these journeys, which embraced the whole of Germany even though they were performed on foot by a man who was nearing the close of a long life.
One of the most consoling of these episcopal functions must have been the ordination which, by invitation of Blessed John of Vercelli, the Master of the Order, he held in the Dominican church of Strassburg on, 7th April 1269, when he conferred holy orders on one hundred and fifty priests and four hundred other clerics. He was probably about seventy-six at this time; he was certainly over sixty.
Another ceremony which must have given great joy to the aging saint was his laying of the foundation stone, in 1271, of the new choir for the Dominican church in Cologne, which he erected at his own expense out of the revenues which he had been allowed to retain after his resignation from the see of Regensburg. The church, which he had probably designed as the architect, was not completed until after his death, and in his will he directed that whatever plate, precious metals, and jewels he possessed should be sold to provide funds for the building. But he had the joy of seeing it in use during his life, and he was buried there in the choir among his brethren whom he had always loved so tenderly.
In 1277 he consecrated an altar in Cologne Cathedral, and in 1279 he solemnly translated the relics of St. Cordula, one of the companions of St. Ursula, to the chapel of the Knights of St. John, as a result of a vision which had been received by one of the brethren of that order. His last recorded public function was the consecration of the choir of the church in Xanten on 8th September of the same year. He died on 15th November 1280. Two other outstanding events which occurred during these last years may suitably be mentioned here since they belong to his active life. The first is his attendance at the Council of Lyons in 1274. There, besides effecting the recognition of Rudolph of Hapsburg as Emperor, he did a good deal by his eloquence and the weight of his erudition and prudence to bring about the reconciliation with the Greeks. This, unfortunately, was not of long duration. His exposition of the theology of the Procession of the Holy Spirit in his written works is very full and profound, so that he was well equipped to speak as one having authority on the vexed question of the Filioque. The second event was his journey to Paris in 1277 to defend Thomas Aquinas against those who were endeavoring to procure the condemnation of his teaching. Nearly ten years earlier in 1268 he had refused the invitation of the Master to go to Paris to teach, but now, when certainly well over seventy, and probably over eighty, even his increased age was insufficient to deter him from going to the defense of his beloved pupil. The success which crowned his effort was full repayment for all his trouble.
Albert provides the spectacle, unequalled perhaps in any other saint, of one who combined in his person the fullness of both the active and contemplative lives. His external activities alone would have seemed sufficient occupation for one man and yet, as we shall see, beside these lay a prodigious output of books on every conceivable subject and behind them both an intense life of prayer and contemplation. Throughout a long apostolic life he was like Martha, "busy about many things," but about a year before his death his mighty frame succumbed at length to the inroads of senile decay. His physical strength left him and his enfeebled brain being no longer an adequate instrument of expression for his mighty intellect, he was -- to put it brutally -- in his dotage. His memory left him -- tradition has it that this occurred while he was teaching, and that such a sudden defection had been foretold by our blessed Lady both as a portent of his approaching death and as a proof of the supernatural character of his learning. One of his biographers, Henry of Hereford, gives a touching picture of the saint at this 'latter hour":
Every day Albert visited the place set apart for his grave reciting the suffrages as for one already deceased. Often retiring into the garden as into some distance place, as if to study, he would daily sing many times, with plenteous sighs and tears, a hymn in praise of our blessed Lady. He was worn out by his many labors and old age, and already subject to fits of absentmindedness and ramblings, when one day the Archbishop Siegfried called at the Convent and desired to speak with him. He knocked at the door of his cell but Albert replied from within, "This is not Albert, he is no longer here." At these words the Bishop burst into tears, and said "Indeed, it is no longer he."Yet through all the days of his Martha-like activity, the saint had ever remained with Mary at the feet of the Lord, hearing his Word; he had ever been in possession of "the one thing necessary" which when his bodily strength failed was not taken away from him. His power to pray remained when the power to write and to teach failed him. In matters spiritual his mind retained its clarity, albeit a child-like simplicity. And a tender abandonment into the arms of God where he peacefully awaited the end showed what his soul had ever been despite the heights to which he had risen. "As one already separated from earth he lived only for God," writes another biographer, "turndng all his thoughts and desires towards the heavenly homeland. He now broke off all relations with those who lived in the tumult of the world." Life was now a chain and earth a prison, and he escaped from them both on 15th November 1280, when, surrounded by his brethren, he died peacefully in an armchair in his cell. The good and faithful servant had entered into the joy of his Lord. His last words were those from Psalm 47: "As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of our God."
1. It was in his last year at the studium in Cologne, according to tradition, that Albert would have known and influenced Eckhart of Hockheim, the future "Meister" Eckhart, fountainhead of late medieval mysticism, who arrived there at that time to begin his theological studies. (Ed. note.)
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