Adalbert (mystic)
Encyclopedia
Adalbert was a Gaullic
preacher who lived in the 8th century. Adalbert claimed that an angel
had conferred miraculous powers on him at his birth and that another had brought him relic
s of great sanctity from all parts of the earth. He also claimed to be able to see the future and read people's thoughts, telling those who came to him that they had no need to confess, since he knew what they had done, and that their sins were forgiven.
Adalbert appeared in the district of Soissons
sometime in the 8th century and practised and preached a life of Apostolic poverty
. He was banned by the local bishop from preaching in churches, and preached in the countryside, in the open air and later in churches that his followers (he had acquired many of them) had built for him.
According to St Boniface, he erected crucifixes at fields and springs. According to the same saint, Aldebert had also claimed to have received a letter that Jesus Christ had given from heaven to Jerusalem, which Aldebert used in his own preachings.
He also used mystic prayers of his own composition to call on the names of angels that were not accepted by the church canon (Uriel, Raguel, Tubuel, Adinus, Tubuas, Sabaoc and Simiel), and which his detractors alleged were demons that he invoked (some of these angel names also had gnostic connections). One of his prayers invoked by name the angel Raguel
. His "miracles" gained him the awe of the people and he began to give away parings from his nails and locks of his hair as powerful amulet
s. He managed to get 'unlearned' (indoctri) bishops to consecrate him a bishop. He would erect crosses or build small chapels in the countryside and at springs and ordered public prayers to be said there. Adalbert also claimed to have a letter from Christ.
Adalbert gained many followers and Boniface had written to Rome asking for the Pope to help him "lead back into the right path the people of the Franks and the Gauls" and that Aldebert had seduced the multitudes. St Boniface appealed to the Pope for a synod, which was then granted in 744 a synod in Soissons, with the help of Carloman and Pepin. The synod, led by Boniface, decided to take Aldebert into custody. The Synod ordered the burning of the crosses that Aldebert had set up in the countryside. However Aldebert escaped and continued to preach. A German synod the following year, presided by Boniface and Carloman, excommunicated him along with an Irish preacher named Clement and many others.
This was still not effective, however, as they continued to preach. Pope Zachary
held another council in Rome in 745 to deal with Adalbert. Before the council was both Boniface's account and biography personally approved by Adalbert (neither Boniface nor Aldebert were actually present at the Council). Although the decisions of the northern councils that condemned him were upheld by the Roman council, they did not accede to Boniface's written wishes to have him excommunicated. The Council thought him to be a lunatic (as opposed to a charlatan) and decided he should be given a chance to repent, rather than be given excommunication (the Irish preacher's excommunication was upheld, however). The Synod ordered his writings (his approved biography, his prayer, and his supposed letter from Jesus) to be burned.
He was still active in 746; King Pepin sent an embassy to Rome to report that the heretics were still at large and still preaching. Pope Zachary, sent a letter to Boniface in 747 calling for a new council where both Boniface and Adalbert should attend, and that if the council found Adalert to be a heretic, that Adalbert should then be sent to him so that he could personally judge the case.
A century later, the Anonymous of Mainz wrote that Aldebert had been condemned and desposed at a Synod at Mainz (which may have been the council that Pope Zachary had called for), and that afterwards he was imprisoned for blasphemy
in the monastery of Fulda,. The same account reported that he later escaped and was killed by thieves, although he may have rather died in jail. He wrote an account of his own life, but only a fragment survives. St Boniface also wrote about him, and left the largest extant record of him.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
preacher who lived in the 8th century. Adalbert claimed that an angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
had conferred miraculous powers on him at his birth and that another had brought him relic
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
s of great sanctity from all parts of the earth. He also claimed to be able to see the future and read people's thoughts, telling those who came to him that they had no need to confess, since he knew what they had done, and that their sins were forgiven.
Adalbert appeared in the district of Soissons
Soissons
Soissons is a commune in the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France, located on the Aisne River, about northeast of Paris. It is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital of the Suessiones...
sometime in the 8th century and practised and preached a life of Apostolic poverty
Apostolic poverty
Apostolic poverty is a doctrine professed in the thirteenth century by the newly formed religious orders, known as the mendicant orders, in direct response to calls for reform in the Roman Catholic Church...
. He was banned by the local bishop from preaching in churches, and preached in the countryside, in the open air and later in churches that his followers (he had acquired many of them) had built for him.
According to St Boniface, he erected crucifixes at fields and springs. According to the same saint, Aldebert had also claimed to have received a letter that Jesus Christ had given from heaven to Jerusalem, which Aldebert used in his own preachings.
He also used mystic prayers of his own composition to call on the names of angels that were not accepted by the church canon (Uriel, Raguel, Tubuel, Adinus, Tubuas, Sabaoc and Simiel), and which his detractors alleged were demons that he invoked (some of these angel names also had gnostic connections). One of his prayers invoked by name the angel Raguel
Raguel (angel)
Raguel is one of the seven archangels mainly of the Judaic and Islamic traditions. His name's meaning is considered to be "Friend of God".Raguel is referred to as the archangel of justice, fairness and harmony...
. His "miracles" gained him the awe of the people and he began to give away parings from his nails and locks of his hair as powerful amulet
Amulet
An amulet, similar to a talisman , is any object intended to bring good luck or protection to its owner.Potential amulets include gems, especially engraved gems, statues, coins, drawings, pendants, rings, plants and animals; even words said in certain occasions—for example: vade retro satana—, to...
s. He managed to get 'unlearned' (indoctri) bishops to consecrate him a bishop. He would erect crosses or build small chapels in the countryside and at springs and ordered public prayers to be said there. Adalbert also claimed to have a letter from Christ.
Adalbert gained many followers and Boniface had written to Rome asking for the Pope to help him "lead back into the right path the people of the Franks and the Gauls" and that Aldebert had seduced the multitudes. St Boniface appealed to the Pope for a synod, which was then granted in 744 a synod in Soissons, with the help of Carloman and Pepin. The synod, led by Boniface, decided to take Aldebert into custody. The Synod ordered the burning of the crosses that Aldebert had set up in the countryside. However Aldebert escaped and continued to preach. A German synod the following year, presided by Boniface and Carloman, excommunicated him along with an Irish preacher named Clement and many others.
This was still not effective, however, as they continued to preach. Pope Zachary
Pope Zachary
Pope Saint Zachary was Pope of the Catholic Church from 741 to 752. A Greek from Calabria, he was the last pope of the Byzantine Papacy...
held another council in Rome in 745 to deal with Adalbert. Before the council was both Boniface's account and biography personally approved by Adalbert (neither Boniface nor Aldebert were actually present at the Council). Although the decisions of the northern councils that condemned him were upheld by the Roman council, they did not accede to Boniface's written wishes to have him excommunicated. The Council thought him to be a lunatic (as opposed to a charlatan) and decided he should be given a chance to repent, rather than be given excommunication (the Irish preacher's excommunication was upheld, however). The Synod ordered his writings (his approved biography, his prayer, and his supposed letter from Jesus) to be burned.
He was still active in 746; King Pepin sent an embassy to Rome to report that the heretics were still at large and still preaching. Pope Zachary, sent a letter to Boniface in 747 calling for a new council where both Boniface and Adalbert should attend, and that if the council found Adalert to be a heretic, that Adalbert should then be sent to him so that he could personally judge the case.
A century later, the Anonymous of Mainz wrote that Aldebert had been condemned and desposed at a Synod at Mainz (which may have been the council that Pope Zachary had called for), and that afterwards he was imprisoned for blasphemy
Blasphemy
Blasphemy is irreverence towards religious or holy persons or things. Some countries have laws to punish blasphemy, while others have laws to give recourse to those who are offended by blasphemy...
in the monastery of Fulda,. The same account reported that he later escaped and was killed by thieves, although he may have rather died in jail. He wrote an account of his own life, but only a fragment survives. St Boniface also wrote about him, and left the largest extant record of him.