Sainte Odile pris pour nous

LE MONT SAINTE-ODILE

Sur le Mont Sainte-Odile (altitude 763 mètres) appelé autrefois Hohenbourg, on garde le tombeau de Sainte Odile, patronne de l'Alsace. Le Pèlerinage est des plus fréquentés.
Etichon (ou Adalric), duc d’Alsace sous Dagobert II, attend son premier enfant. Il espère avoir un fils. Ce fût une grande déception, une fille chétive et aveugle naquît. Etichon ordonne qu’on la tue. Béreswinde, sa femme, confie l’enfant à une nourrice qui, en cachette, l'emmènera à Palma (Baume-les-Dames) en Bourgogne. Elle resta à Balma un certain temps, puis Odile fut reconduite chez son frère Hugues.
A l’âge de 12 ans, l’enfant est baptisée par l’Evêque Ehrhard de Ratisbonne. A cet instant là , elle recouvrit la vue et on lui donna comme nom Odile, c’est-à-dire fille de lumière où soleil de Dieu.
Odile habita chez les religieuses de Palma. Aldaric ne voulait pas revoir sa fille. A la mort de son fils préféré il voulut marier sa fille Odile qui voulait devenir religieuse. Elle s'enfuit, poursuivie par l'armée de son père. Elle passa le Rhin et alors que son père allait la rattraper, elle pria et un rocher de la Forêt Noire s'ouvrit pour qu'elle puisse si cacher. Voyant cela son père donna à Odile le Honenbourg et toutes ses dépendances pour qu'elle fonde un monastère.
Le tombeau de Sainte Odile.

Un monastère fut bâti, du temps de Sainte Odile (VIIe siècle) sur l'Hohenbourg. C'est là que mourut Sainte Odile ; elle fut enterrée dans la chapelle de Saint Jean-Baptiste, qui porte aujourd'hui le nom de la Sainte. Sa fête fut, dès lors, célébrée, chaque année, à la date du 13 décembre, comme en font foi les calendriers liturgiques du IXe et Xe siècle. En 773, Charlemagne vint prier à Sainte Odile. Le culte de la Sainte reçut un nouvel éclat, à la suite de la visite à son tombeau, du Pape Léon IX, qui, déjà comme Évêque de Toul, avait consacré la chapelle en 1045. Le tombeau fut ouvert pour la première fois en 1354, en présence de l'Empereur Charles IV. Le corps de la Sainte fut trouvé entier. On en détacha la partie antérieure du bras droit que l'empereur fit déposer dans la cathédrale de Prague. A la révolution française en 1795, le tombeau fût sauvé, même si le sarcophage perdit son revêtement de marbre.

Le monastère du XIV^e au XIX^e siècle.
L'abbaye fondée par Sainte Odile fut détruite par un incendie qui, en 1546, dévora tous les bâtiments, à l'exception du tombeau. Les religieuses durent se disperser. Mais en 1607, le Cardinal de Lorraine fit reconstruire le monastère et les pèlerins recommencèrent à gravir la sainte montagne, que gardaient alors des religieux prémontrés. En 1681, un nouvel incendie ruina encore une fois tous les édifices ; ils furent restaurés en 1692 et les religieuses y rentrèrent.
Le tombeau de Sainte Odile fut ouvert en 1840 et ses reliques déposées dans une grande et belle châsse, pour être placées dans la chapelle qui porte le nom de la Sainte. Cette translation eut lieu le 7 juillet 1841.
En 1789, le couvent est vendu. L'évêché de Strasbourg le rachète en 1853 et le rétablit à sa vocation monacale.
On peut également voir les tombeaux de ses parents, Adalric et Bererswinde.

Sainte Odile est évoquée spécialement pour les guérisons des yeux, des maux de tête. Elle est représentée en vêtements d'abbesse, avec un livre ouvert sur lequel sont posés deux yeux.

Patron Saint of the Eyes

"DRAW US, ODILIA, TO HEALING IN CHRIST
Novena in honor of Saint Odilia First Day All powerful Father, you alone are Holy; without you nothing is good. I come before you, trusting in your love for me and praying to you through the intercession of St. Odilia, Virgin and Martyr. I ask you to help me become the person you have called me to be. I ask this with the same trust that inspired St. Odilia to leave her home in order to follow Christ more closely. Father, increase my confidence in your love for me, and, if it be your will, grant my special request. I ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Second Day Lord, Our God, for the glory of your name, you gave St. Odilia the courage to give her life in martyrdom as a witness to Christ. Through her intercession to help me to know your will and give me the courage to do it, so that I may be true to Christ until my death. If it be your will for me, grant my special prayer and let me come one day to live with Christ in glory, with St. Odilia and all the saints. I ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Third Day Father, I ask through the intercession of St. Odilia, that I may grow stronger as a Christian. Help me to see myself as a pilgrim in this world, a person called to respect and love all, a sinner who has been saved by you. I ask you, Father, to grant my special petition, if it be your will, and to give me a greater love for your Son, Jesus Christ so that I may no longer live for myself, but may only strive to please you in all I do. I ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Fourth Day Merciful Father, I have failed in my life because of my weakness. As a sinner, I come before you to ask your forgiveness. I ask through the intercession of St. Odilia and all your holy people, to be restored anew to your love. Give me holiness of soul and body, and bring me into your divine life. May I obtain these favors, as well as my special prayer, if that be your will for me, through the merits of Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Fifth Day Father, source of salvation for all people, I praise you that through the intercession of St. Odilia, the patroness of the eyes, so many people have been strengthened in the faith that made her so loyal to Christ, your Son. Through her prayers, many have been cured of blindness and other ailments of the eyes. I ask, Father, that you let me become a sign of your love for all people, and, if it be your will for me, that my special request be granted. I ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Sixth Day God and Father of all gifts, I praise you, the source of all I am and have. I thank you for your kindness, and especially for the gifts many have received through the help of St. Odilia. Through her intercession, may you be my strength in adversity, my health in weakness, my comfort in sorrow. I know, Father, that you will never forget me and my plea. Because of this, I know that you, Father, will give me the strength to give myself in greater service to you and my neighbor. I ask for all of these things, and my special prayer, if that be your will for me, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Seventh Day Ever-living God, hear the prayers of all who recall the example of St. Odilia. She sacrificed all she had to you. Guide me on my way; help me grow in my imitation of St. Odilia, so that I can keep my soul free from all defilement, and so that I can become ever more the temple of your spirit. Grant that I may one day live with you and all the saints in heaven. I ask you to grant this, and my special request, if this be your will for me, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Eight Day Lord God, Almighty Father, May I follow the witness of St. Odilia, who chose to follow the Cross, the Sign through which you have given all life and hope. I ask you, Father, to awaken in my life a desire to follow Jesus and to choose the Cross as my sign of strength in sorrow, of joy in tribulation, of life through death. I ask that you grant this, and my special petition if that be your will for me, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us. Ninth Day O god of love, your Son has shown us the way of accepting your will. Hear my prayers, through the intercession of St. Odilia, the patroness of the Order of the Holy Cross. May all who suffer pain, illness or disease realize that they are chosen to be saints, and may they come to know that they are joined in Christ in suffering for the salvation of the world. I ask you to give me the grace of imitating Christ and St. Odilia and to resign myself to your will for me. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN. Our Father....Hail Mary....St. Odilia, pray for us.
The Litany of St. Odilia For Private Recital Only. Lord have mercy on us. Christ have mercy on us. Lord have mercy on us. Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us. God, the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us. God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us. God the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us. Holy Trinity, One God, have mercy on us. Holy Mary, Pray for us. St. Odilia, excellent companion of St. Ursula, Pray for us. St. Odilia, wonderful Virgin and Martyr, Pray for us. St. Odilia, privileged spouse of Jesus, Pray for us. St. Odilia, who out of love for Jesus, left thy country, Pray for us. St. Odilia, who after the example of Jesus, courageously carried thy cross, Pray for us. St. Odilia, who preferred death to the loss of virginal purity, Pray for us. St. Odilia, faithful to God even in torment, Pray for us. St. Odilia, who died a Martyr's death, Pray for us. St. Odilia, protector of the order of the Holy Cross, Pray for us. St. Odilia, whose name is glorified by miracles, Pray for us. St. Odilia, patroness of the eyes, Pray for us. St. Odilia, powerful intercessor with God, Pray for us. St. Odilia, our help and hope in all our needs, Pray for us. OUR FATHER Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy Will be done, on earth, as it is in Heave. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. HAIL MARY Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death. Amen. Heavenly Father, we come to Thee trusting in Thy mercy. May we be heard through the merits of Thy son, our Savior Jesus Christ, and through the intercession of the blessed Virgin Mary and the Virgin Martyr St. Odilia. Give us what is best for now and forever. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Father in Heaven, Thou hast shown us Thy kindness by giving Saint Odilia to us as the protectress of the order of the Holy Cross and patroness of the blind and afflicted. We humbly ask to be protected, through her intercession, from the darkness of ignorance and sin and to be cured of blindness and other sickness. Through Him Who is the source of all healing and life, Jesus Christ. Our Lord and Savior. Amen.
Short History of St. Odilia, Virgin and Abbess PATRON OF THE EYES Odelia was born into nobility in Obernheim in the Alsace region of France. Her father, Lord Adalrie, upon discovering that this newborn daughter was blind, order that she be put to death. Fortunately, Odelia's mother, Lady Bereswinda, negotiated with her husband to let Odelia live, but the agreement was that Odelia be sent off in secret never to return home. Lady Bereswinda found a peasant whom she trusted to be Odelia's foster mother, but contrary to the agreement, told this woman the truth. The peasant woman took Odelia to Baume-les-Dames and sent Odelia to the local convent when she reached 12 years of age. At the convent, she was baptized by the Bishop of Ratisbon, Saint Erhard. When Saint Erhard touched Odelia's eyes with the baptismal chrism, her eyesight was miraculously given to her. Fully aware of the truth of Odelia's past, the bishop immediately set off to give her father a first hand account of the event. The news spread faster than Saint Erhard could travel and upon discovering what had happened, Hugh, Odelia's brother, began preparations for the joyous return. Upon discovering the news and upon learning of Hugh's plans, Lord Adalrie flew into a fit of rage and struck Hugh, killing him. For only a short time (just long enough for Odelia to be accepted back into the family), the Lord was remorseful over his treatment of Odelia and Hugh; however, he soon returned to his old ways. Odelia fled from home when she discovered that her father had, against her wishes, planned to marry her off to a wealthy German baron. Her father did not relent and tracked Odelia down. Upon finding her, his plans to put her to death were once again changed, no one knows why. Odelia convinced her father that her only spouse was her Lord Jesus. To be finally rid of her, Odelia was given her release and a home in Alsace. Odelia promptly turned this castle into an abbey where there were many reports of conversions and miraculous healings.