Saint Ansfrid of Utrecht

Also known as

Ansfridus of Utrecht
Ansfried of Utrecht

Memorial

3 May

Profile

Count of Brabant. Married, and father of one daughter; after the girl's birth, Ansfrid and his wife, Hilsondis, lived as brother and sister. Courtier and knight in the service of Holy Roman Emperor Otto III and Saint Henry II. After many years of this life he realized a call to religious life, and in 974 he gave up his life as a soldier. In 992 he founded a convent at Thorn, Nederlands, which his wife and daughter entered; his daughter eventually became abbess. He founded a Benedictine monastery at Heiligenberg, Germany, and planned to enter it as a monk, but in 994, in the face of local opposition, he was named bishop of Utrecht, Nederlands by Otto. Late in life his eyesight began to fail, and by 1006 he was blind; though he kept the title of bishop, he was finally able to retire to the Heiligenberg abbey where he spent his remaining days as a prayerful monk. There is a single church dedicated to Saint Ansfrid; it is located in Amersfoort, Nederlands.

Born

c.940 in the Brabant region

Died

3 May 1010 in Amersfoort, Nederlands of natural causes

Additional Information

Catholic Online
For All The Saints, by Katherine Rabenstein
Geolocatie.nl - dutch
Kirken i Norge - norwegian
Saint Ansfrid Church, Amersfoort, Nederlands, by Father Roderick Vonhögen
Saint of the Day, by Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira
Wikipedia - dutch
The Book of Saints, by the Monks of Ramsgate
Our Sunday Visitor's Encyclopedia of Saints, by Matthew Brunson

Translate

español | français | deutsch | italiano | português

Readings

Until today I have combatted for temporal glory in the defense of the poor, widows and orphans. Henceforth I place myself under the protection of the Virgin Mary and I will fight unceasingly for the conquest of souls, the glory of God and my own salvation.

- Saint Ansfrid as he gave up his arms for the religious life

---

Saints Index SQPN Contact Author