Saint Meinrad
Meinrad was a Ninth Century monk known for his hospitality to strangers. His health prevented him from caring for all of the strangers that sought out his kindnesses, however, and he eventually moved to an isolated quarters near Lake Zurich in what is now Switzerland.
After
Meinrad had lived in that lonely place for 26 years, serving the Lord in
fasts and by abstinence from all worldly things, two men made their way to
his cell in order to kill him. They came to the village on the shore of Lake
Zurich, asked where lay the path that led to his cell, and had it pointed
out to them. a
The killers -- Richard from the nation of the Alamanni and Peter of the nation of the Raetians--e arrived at the hermitage while Meinrad was in prayer. Meinrad sensed that his slayers were at hand. He lingered a while in prayer as his killers watched him through a kind of chink in the wall.
He met Richard and Peter, offering them words of greeting.
"O friends, why did you come so late? Why didn't you hurry and come and hear my humble Mass so that I could pray to our common Lord on your behalf? But even now go in, ask God and his saints to be gentle with you, and afterwards return to me, so that I may share for the love God whatever blessing I can offer you that he bestows. And so finish the work that you have come to do." So they went into the oratory, not intent on what he had urged them to do, but rather on the evil they had come to commit, and they came back to him quickly.
Meinrad gave them his tunic and cuculla, and added as well bread and drink, saying: "Take these things from my hands; indeed, once you finish what you have come to do, you can take for yourselves whatever you want of these things here. For I know that you have come to kill me. But one favor I beg of you. After you have ended the course of my present life, place these candles which you see and which I made for this very purpose, one burning at my head and one at my feet. Then afterwards quickly leave this place, lest those who are used to visit me come upon you and force you to pay the penalty of your crime."
At that point Richard seized Meinrad and locked his little body fast in his arms, weakened as it was by fasting. And with an oath, he ordered his companion to club the monk. Peter disabled Meinrad by beating him on his sides and legs, while Meinrad raised his hands to God.
"We haven't got all day; hit him in the head and finish him off. Hurry up, or I'll do it myself," Richard said.
He took up the club and landed a blow on Meinrad's head with all his might. Meinrad sank to the ground half dead. And they flung themselves on him and strangled him.
Church writings claim Meinrad's soul then went forth, and in the very last gasp of breath, an odor of such sweetness came out and filled the whole cell, as if perfumes of all aromas had been strewn around and were sending out their fragrance. Then the thieves stripped him of the clothing he was wearing, carried Meinrad to the bed where he used to rest, and put him in it. They put a cloak underneath him, and a blanket over him; and, as Meinrad had asked when alive, they took the candles, placed one at his head, and ran with the other to the chapel to get a light from the flame that burned constantly in the oratory. Coming back to the little body of the dead man, they found the unlit candle that they had put there burning brightly. And all at once, such a great fear entered them that they did not dare to touch any of the things related to the service of the altar. So taking up the clothing and some bed coverings, they fled.
Now there were some ravens who used to come regularly to Meinrad when he was alive and take what was offered from his hands. And as if wishing to avenge the dead man, the ravens followed the thieves while they were fleeing from the hermitage, and filled the woods with loud cawing. And flying as close to the murderers' heads as they could, they published the crime that had been committed. Not long afterwards, the two were arrested and their crime discovered. As punishment, they were burned alive.
(based on the "Vita S. Meginrati," edited by O. Holder-Egger, Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores v. 15, pt. 1, pp. 444-448).
In 1854, monks from the Abbey of Einsiedeln in Switzerland arrived in southern Indiana where they established the Saint Meinrad Archabbey.
Today
there are about 135 Benedictine monks at the Archabbey's School of Theology.
Among its graduates is Father Leo Hayes, currently chaplain at Menard
Correctional Center and a parish priest south of Steeleville.
Saint Meinrad also operates Abbey Press, a printer and publisher of religious and spiritual gifts, cards and books sold in the U.S. and 25 other English-speaking countries.
The Archabbey also contains a 25-room guest house and is the site of retreats throughout the year.
The centerpiece is the Archabbey Church, constructed over seven years from 1900-07.
On the facade
are statues of the Virgin Mary, St. Benedict (whose Rule Benedictine
outlines the lifestyles of monks and nuns) and St. Scholastica, St. Benedict's
twin sister. The statues were carved from Tennessee marble by German sculptor
Herbert Jogerst.
The monks and area townspeople built the church using sandstone quarried on the Archabbey property at Monte Cassino and hauled in mule-drawn wagons. The blocks of stone, some three-foot thick, were cut out by hand.
Renovations give the church its current Romanesque design, with 82 choir stalls, also known as church stairs for the monks to use.
The wall of the apse is dominated by the Christus, a painting of Christ holding the Book of Life. It was completed in 1843 by Gregory de Wit, a Belgian monk visiting St. Meinrad. He also painted murals in the Memorial Lobby honoring St. Benedict, St. Meinrad and the Archabbey's history.
The organ in front of the Christus contains 3,844 pipes.
Most of the church's stained glass windows were made in Munich, Germany, and installed in 1908. The window pictured shows the death of St. Meinrad, but there is also a series of windows containing corresponding panels. The top portion of those windows depict the Beatitudes, illustrated with an incident from the life of a Benedictine saint. The lower portion contains a corresponding scene from the Old Testament.
The church has three shrines. Next to the St. Meinrad stained glass window is the Shrine of Our Lady of Einsiedeln, patroness of the church. The statue of the "Black Madonna" was a gift from St. Meinrad's mother abbey in Switzerland.
The shrine to St. Meinrad contains hand-painted episodes of the monk's life.
The Shrine of All Saints houses the Archabbey's collection of saints' relics and a list of all deceased St. Meinrad monks.
The Archabbey also includes a library featuring over 150,000 volumes, 500 periodicals and many rare books. Most months, the library hosts an art or cultural exhibit.
Tours are free, although it is worth the donation for the 25-minute audio-cassette tour.
The Archabbey can be reached by exiting Exit 63 ((eastbound) or 72 (westbound) off I-64 between Evansville, Ind., and Louisville, Ky.