Saint Lutgardis
Saint Lutgardis (also Lutgard of Aywières; born June 6, 1182 AD in Sint-Truiden, Belgium; died June 16, 1246 AD in Aywières, Belgium) was a Flemish Cistercian mystic and one of the most significant women mystics of the medieval period. She is famous for the mystical exchange of hearts with Christ (translatio cordis), for her stigmata, for her eleven-year voluntary blindness offered as penance for the conversion of sinners, and for her three complete fasts (seven-year fasts on bread and water). She is the patron of Flanders. Her feast day is June 16.
Stored in Cargo: Saint Lutgardis
| Saint Lutgardis | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | June 16 |
| Profession | Cistercian nun; mystic; stigmatist; penitent faster |
| Rel. Affiliation | Catholic Church; Cistercian Order; Flemish mystical tradition; patron of Flanders; exchange of hearts with Christ; stigmatist |
| Patronage | Flanders; Belgium; the blind; those doing penance for others; mystics; Cistercian Order; those with physical ailments accepted in union with Christ |
| Attributes | Cistercian white habit; heart (the exchange of hearts with Christ); wounds on hands (stigmata); veil (blindness); bread and water (her fasts); flame (the burning love of Christ within her) |
| Birthplace | Sint-Truiden (St. Trond), Limburg, Belgium |
| Death Place | Aywières (Abbey of Aywières), Nijvel, Walloon Brabant, Belgium |
| Cause of Death | Natural death; died June 16, 1246, at the Cistercian Abbey of Aywières; she had been blind for eleven years and had completed her third seven-year fast; she died serenely, surrounded by her sisters |
| Primary Shrine | No surviving shrine at the original Aywières location (abbey destroyed); venerated in the broader Belgian Cistercian tradition; Sint-Truiden and Aywières honor her memory |
| Liturgical Class | Optional Memorial (Roman Rite); June 16; feast in Belgium and in the Cistercian tradition |
| Historic Class | Not in universal 1962 calendar; observed in Belgium |
Biography
Lutgardis was born on June 6, 1182, in Sint-Truiden in Belgium. She was placed in the Benedictine Priory of Saint Catherine in Sint-Truiden without religious vocation, for practical family reasons. While there, she underwent a radical conversion experience: Christ appeared to her, showed her his wounds, and made a mystical exchange of hearts with her.
She threw herself into contemplative life, received the stigmata (wounds on her hands corresponding to Christ's), and eventually became prioress of the community. She transferred to the Cistercian Order in 1206, moving to a house at Borgloon, and in 1216 transferred again to the Cistercian Abbey of Aywières in French-speaking Brabant — accepting the language barrier as an additional penance.
At Aywières she undertook three successive seven-year fasts and accepted eleven years of voluntary blindness for the conversion of sinners. She died on June 16, 1246.
Her Life was written shortly after her death by Thomas of Cantimpré, a Dominican hagiographer who had known her personally.
Significant locations
Legend
Birth location: Sint-Truiden (St. Trond), Limburg, Belgium
Death location: Aywières (Abbey of Aywières), Nijvel, Walloon Brabant, Belgium
Notable location:
Notable location:
Notable location:
Notable location:
Notable location:
Dynamic content
Parishes
No parishes dedicated to Lutgardis have been added to the database yet.
Media
No media found for this saint.
Shrines
Dynamic shrines
No results
No shrines where this saint is the primary saint.
Feast day
June 16
Veneration
Saint Lutgardis is the patron of Flanders and one of the greatest Flemish mystics of the medieval period. She is venerated in the Cistercian tradition and throughout Belgium. Her feast is June 16.
Prayers
Authored
There are prayers authored by this saint in prayers list yet.
Intercessory
There are no prayers asking for this saint's intercession in prayers list yet.