Hi, I’m Lize Kergonan, today I’ll tell you the rest of the life of Saint Brieuc.
In the previous video, we left Brieuc after his installation at the Champ du Rouvre, with his cousin King Riwal. I said that I would tell you why one or more wolves are often depicted at Brieuc’s feet.
One evening, when he was already over eighty years old, he returned with some of his brothers to the Champ du Rouvre. As his legs no longer allowed him to walk, he was carried in a cart drawn by oxen. They advanced joyfully singing psalms, and the voices of the monks alternated with that of Brieuc.
Suddenly the singing stops. Brieuc repeats his verse, no response, and he sees all the monks fleeing into the darkness of the forest. He is alone, he looks around and he sees glowing eyes, open jaws ready to tear him apart.
Wolves ! He climbs down with difficulty from his cart and advances towards the wolves, a cane in one hand, the other hand raised towards the wolves. They look at him, and kneel. Night has fallen, the monks return and marvel. It is too late to continue on their way. They settle down to sleep, the wolves surround them, warm them and protect them.
In the early morning, a band of warriors arriving from Britain, survivors of an army defeated by the Saxons, landed on the shore of Armorica and sought refuge in the forest. Their leader, Conan, enters the clearing where the monks are sleeping and discovers the scene : an old man, with a white beard, and wolves who look at him like a dog looks at its master.
Conan and his company were pagans. Faced with this prodigy, they realize that the God of Brieuc is stronger than all of theirs combined ! They kneel behind the wolves, and Conan shouts : «We want the same god as you. You must baptize us. » Then, Brieuc signals to the wolves that they can retire in peace, he leads Conan and his troop to the Champ du Rouvre and makes them fast for seven days. During this time, he teaches them the Word of Our Lord. On the eighth day he baptized them. I don’t know why, every time I use the expression «he makes them fast », it reminds me of my grandmother who put snails to fast in a large mesh box, feeding them with flour until that they make completely white droppings, then prepare them with garlic butter ! Life had taken its course at the Champ du Rouvre. The political situation was gradually becoming more complicated : Brieuc had arrived with the monks on the coasts of Armorica after the fall of the Roman Empire.
So the Roman troops were no longer there to defend the coasts. Everything had to be built : clearing the forest, cultivating fields, clearing meadows, building a monastery. The indigenous population was rarefied, they spoke related langages, the integration of the migrants went smoothly. And the administrative method imported from Britain did not require a strong central power. Local chiefs, assisted by the religious authority of abbots, managed their territories with sufficient firmness for the smooth running of the kingdoms. Trained by his master, Germain d’Auxerre, who had been a senior official in several provinces of the Empire and, having become a bishop, had proven himself a great defender of the Roman Church, Brieuc devoted his energy to reconciling Gallo-Roman virtues with Celtic traditions.
However, warnings were becoming clear : the Franks were seeking to appropriate Armorica.
A little historical pedagogy ? ☺
After the fall of the Empire, the part of Gaul located between the Loire and the Somme, was ruled by Syagrius, considered as the successor to the Romans. The Breton chiefs of Armorica maintained good relations with him. But the Franks were eyeing his possessions.
From 481 the conflict became clearer between Clovis and Syagrius. In 486, at the battle of Soisson, Clovis was victorious. He declared himself master of the kingdom. And at the same time, he considered that Armorica was also subject to him. Which did not suit the Bretons ! In 497, after a long war, tensions calmed down, a treaty with the Armorican cities stipulated that they recognized the supremacy of the Franks, that they will fight under the orders of the Frank leader but will not pay tribute.
It was getting late… Clovis had converted to Christianity, but political strategies took precedence over the faith as Brieuc wanted to live it, abbots-bishops were now required to obey orders from Rome. Although a disciple of Germain, Brieuc remained a Breton, and did not intend to let himself be led by a Frank converted by calculation. The Celtic abbots had fought valiantly to convince the pagans to adopt a religion of light, they had just as valiantly supported and advised the leaders of their people, now the bishop of Tours and the king of the Franks were arguing with them for liturgical details … Over time, they had perhaps integrated too many pagan festivals and practices, but what harm did it do to God if young women rubbed their bellies against menhirs to conceive little Christians ? Perhaps they had succeeded too well, some wanted to use the confidence they inspired in the people to direct them in the direction that suited the Franks. Furthermore, the older he got, the more Brieuc had doubts about Pelagius’ heresy. The intransigence of Saint Paul and Saint Augustine seemed to him beyond measure. Could one really devote an infant to eternal flames if he died before baptism ? He had seen and been amazed by the innocence of the little ones, wasn’t it pure wickedness to condemn them ? By ideology ! For centuries and centuries ! He was afraid of losing faith in Jesus Christ, God of love and charity… He was over ninety years old, it was better to leave this existence before becoming a heretic himself ☺. His cousin, friend and king, Riwal died. Brieuc calmed his passage as he joined the Creator, and warned the community of monks that his own death was approaching. To enhance your tourist trips, I still have to tell you the dream of one of the monks. I have already told you about the chapel of Notre-Dame de la Fontaine in the town of Saint-Brieuc. In the oratory which is dedicated to Brieuc the large glass roof evokes the vision of the monk Marcan during his sleep. He saw him climbing a mystical ladder toward heaven while the angels of the Lord escorted him, singing his praises. And I couldn’t finish without mentioning the relics ! You will find some in the cathedral. Of course, the holy skeleton had been moved and scattered during the Viking raids on the coasts. However, a bishop of Saint-Brieuc decided to ask for a few ones from the abbey of Saint-Serge near Angers. Which was negotiated. On “their” return to the cathedral, it is said that the bearers of the shrine containing the precious remains felt movements which they interpreted as the joy felt by the old carcass at returning home ! I admit that the idea of the old skeleton wriggling like fresh roaches on the shoulders of these pious people rejoices me every time. Ah, but here is Saint Anne ! Brieuc. – Anna, my darling, come and sit in the sun next to me.
Anna. – Ah, Brieuc, how are you, old friend ?
Brieuc. – As you see, a little slow but in good shape. And you ?
Anna. – Well, I started a Tro-Breizh. I have already seen Pol and Tugdual.
Brieuc. – So ?
Anna. – Feeling good ! Tell me, my Brieuc, I wanted to talk to you, you need to explain something to me.
Brieuc. – Of course ! My pleasure.
What is this ? Anna. – Pelagianism !
Brieuc. – (he bursts out laughing) Ah, yes ! Directly theology.
Anna. – Well, I really like theology. With a glass of cider !
Brieuc. – I don’t think I have any cider, but I have a good little… church wine.
Anna. – Are you serious ?
Brieuc. – As long as it is not consecrated during mass, it is just wine.
Anna. – Then, I can do with a little drink, before you tell me about Pelagius. (Brieuc gets up with difficulty and goes to get two glasses of wine.
Anna watches him move and laughs gently.) Fortunately you no longer need to climb the ladder to the heavens !
Brieuc. – (he hands her a glass and sits down slowly) To our health… eternal !
(They toast and giggle like young pupils. Anna takes a long pipe out of her backpack, lights it and smokes.)
Anna. – I’m listening to you. I’ve been hearing about heresy for such a long time, I’d like to know.
Brieuc. – All right. Pelagius was a monk born in Britain, around 350. Long before me. At that time, the dogma was not yet fixed. Some Christians, for example, refuted the Holy Trinity, they affirmed that only God was eternal. If one accepted that God the Father had created Jesus and the Holy Spirit, Jesus had not always existed. Accordingly, one was eternal, the other was not. And therefore Jesus Christ was not of the same substance as the Father. It was Arianism, the Christianity of the German barbarians. This doctrine was declared heretical by the Council of Nicaea.
Anna. – All right. It’s interesting. But practically, in real life, I don’t really see what difference it makes.
Brieuc. – So, precisely : Pelagius was interested in morality, the freedom of the human being, free will in relation to divine Grace. Could Man achieve salvation if he behaved well ? When he arrived in Rome, he was struck by the lax morals of Christians : inevitably, if one followed the writings of Saint Paul of Tarsus to the letter, either one received Grace and was saved, or one did not received it and was condemned, regardless of one’s actions, good or bad. So, the Romans said to themselves : “we might as well have fun since it doesn’t make any difference !” »
Anna. – Stands to reason !
Brieuc. – Pelagius reacted by asserting that obviously someone who behaved badly would not achieve salvation and that it was everyone’s responsibility to choose the meaning of their life ; the Grace of God was an additional gift, a facilitator of choice !
Anna. – So what ?
Brieuc. – Well, that called into question the rôle of the Church : if one could do without baptism and the sacraments to achieve salvation, one could also do without bishops and all the clergy. Saint Augustine of Hippo violently opposed Pelagius’ ideas. He brought out the concept of Original Sin. He was the one who invented the expression. Adam, by eating the forbidden fruit (implying, by committing the sin of the flesh) had committed a fault which had made him mortal and had repercussions on all his descendants. Only Christian baptism could erase this original stain. “Not at all,” Pelagius retorted, Adam had been created mortal from the start, sin or no sin, forbidden fruit or not, he would have died anyway. And his fault had only punished him. His descendants had no need for baptism to cleanse an alleged tendency toward evil, and there was no urgency to baptize infants. Pelagius affirmed that human beings had every ability to do good, they just had to want it.
Anna. – Yeah ! If it were that simple… And you, what do you think ?
Brieuc. – Well, more than fifteen centuries in the state of relics have tempered my point of view. I think like you that it’s not that simple. Pelagius had an austere morality without compassion for human weaknesses and Augustine pushed his reasoning on divine Grace so far that he defended a doctrine of predestination which left humans no freedom. Which caused him to be disavowed by the Church.
Anna. – You don’t find that worrying ?
Brieuc. – What ?
Anna. – Well, when precisely is it decreed that a holy Father of the Church begins to have a bat in the belfry ?
Brieuc. – How stupid you are, my poor Anna, I can’t believe you’ve been made a saint !
Anna. – Not only saint : I am officially Mother of the Mother of God ! Grandmother of God, it’s slamming ! ☺ Well, thank you my Brieuc, thank you for the theology and the glass of wine. Glad to have chatted with you.
Brieuc. – Where are you going ?
Anna. – Visit the cathedral of Saint-Malo. Pokoù !
Brieuc. – Kisses, Nanne ! Kenavo a distro.
That’s all for today. Next time, I will tell you about the life of Saint Malo.
See you soon ! Kenavo !
Laisser un commentaire