hildegard_english_final

The Sites
The canonization of Hildegard of Bingen is a
significant development for the Universal Church. I
am delighted that this outstanding person, who is
already held in high esteem in our country, has now
received further recognition. The Abbey of St
Hildegard at Eibingen has become an important
place of pilgrimage and a Hildegard Centre in
Germany. I am grateful that the veneration of St
Hildegard in the Benedictine Order, at the Abbey of
St Hildegard and in the dioceses of Mainz, Trier and
Limburg bears such abundant fruit.
Robert Zollitsch
Archbishop em. of Freiburg
Disibodenberg
Hildegard began her life at Disibodenberg
on 1 November 1112. The women in the
hermitage followed a strict monastic life
according to the Rule of Saint Benedict.
Hildegard received a well-founded, broad monastic education
from her mentor, Jutta of Sponheim: She learned to read, write
and sing, acquired comprehensive knowledge of the Scriptures,
but also closely studied nature, in particular herbs and plants.
At Disibodenberg she wrote her first book, Liber Scivias. In
1147/48 Pope Eugene III was residing at Trier and heard about
Hildegard. He had her visionary gift examined by a commission
and confirmed it.
In a letter he bade her continue with her writing. For Hildegard
this was endorsement, encouragement and stimulation. For
those around her it was definitive proof that the Magistra of
Disibodenberg really was “God’s trumpet”. While all of this was
happening, Hildegard also pursued her intention of founding her
own monastery.
Rupertsberg
Hildegard purchases land at
Rupertsberg near Bingen and with her
nuns built a monastery based on her
own concept. They relocated between
1147 and 1151. A charter in the name of Henry, archbishop of
Mainz, dated 1 May 1152, documents the consecration of the
church. There was a dispute with the abbot of Disibodenberg
concerning Rupertsberg’s independence and its possessions.
Hildegard made use of her good connections and received deeds
which largely safeguard her monastery’s independence. In 1632
Rupertsberg was destroyed during the Thirty Years’ War.
Eibingen
Hildegard’s fame drew many to seek admission at
Rupertsberg. Soon the monastery was too small.
She bought a vacated monastery at Eibingen. It
was rededicated in 1165. Hildegard also became
abbess of this second monastery and crossed the
Rhine twice a week to visit the sisters at Eibingen.
In 1802, as a result of the Secularization, the monastery was
dissolved; all its possessions were lost. In 1831 the monastic
church became the parish church of Eibingen.
New Foundation of the Abbey of St Hildegard
In 1904, after a four years of building, 14 nuns of the
Abbey of St Gabriel in Prague move into the newly
built monastery high above the Rhine. The
monastery is raised to the full status of an abbey
and endowed with all rights and privileges of
Hildegard’s former monasteries. It is exempt
from local episcopal authority and is placed
directly under the jurisdiction of the Holy See.
The community of the Abbey of St Hildegard
regards the study of and care for Hildegard’s
legacy as its pre-eminent concern, passing it
on to contemporaries as a timelessly relevant
message.