Bavo of Ghent
Bavo | |
|---|---|
| File:Geertgen Sint-Bavo.jpg Saint Bavo with falcon and sword, by Geertgen tot Sint Jans, late 15th century | |
| Born | Allowin 622 Hesbaye, Kingdom of the Franks |
| Died | 653 Ghent, Kingdom of the Franks |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Canonized | Pre-Congregation |
| Feast | October 1 |
| Attributes | Greaves, other military or aristocratic garb, falcon, sword |
| Patronage | Ghent, Diocese of Ghent, Haarlem, Lauwe |
Saint Bavo of Ghent (also known as Bavon, Allowin, Bavonius,[1] Baaf; AD 622–659) is a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox saint. He exchanged a dissolute lifestyle for that of a missionary under the guidance of Saint Amand.
Vita
[edit | edit source]Bavo was born near Liège, to a Frankish noble family that gave him the name Allowin.[2] A wild young aristocrat of the Brabant area, he contracted a beneficial marriage, and had a daughter.
As a soldier he led an undisciplined and disorderly life. Shortly after the death of his wife, Bavo decided to reform after hearing a sermon preached by Saint Amand (c. 584 – 679) on the emptiness of material things.[1] On returning to his house he distributed his wealth to the poor, and then received the tonsure from Amand.[3]
For some time thereafter, Bavo joined Amand in the latter's missionary travels throughout France and Flanders. On one occasion, Bavo met a man whom he had sold into slavery years before. Wishing to atone for his earlier deed, Bavo had the man lead him by a chain to the town jail. Bavo built an abbey on his grounds and became a monk. He distributed his belongings to the poor and lived as a recluse, first in a hollow tree and later in a cell in the forest by the abbey.
His relics were housed at the abbey in Ghent[4] (in present-day Belgium).
Veneration
[edit | edit source]Bavo is the patron saint of Ghent, Zellik, and Lauwe in Belgium, and Haarlem[5] in the Netherlands. His feast in the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church is October 1.
He is most often shown in Christian art as a knight with a sword and falcon. The most popular scene is the moment of his conversion, which has many stories attached to it. Because he is so often shown with a falcon, he came to be considered the patron saint of falconry. In medieval Ghent, taxes were paid on Bavo's feast day, and it is for this reason he is often shown holding a purse or money bag.
According to Rodulfus Glaber, the city of Bamberg is named after him, with Bamberg meaning "Mount of Bavo".
Legacy
[edit | edit source]Several churches are dedicated to him, including:
- Saint Bavo Cathedral, in Ghent[6]
- Sint-Bavokerk and Cathedral of Saint Bavo, both in Haarlem
- Sint-Bavokerk in Heemstede, Lauwe, and Zellik
- Saint Bavo Church and School, in Mishawaka, Indiana[7]
- Sint-Bavokerk (Wilrijk) in Wilrijk
Additionally, the football club VVSB is named after him.
His picture is also part of the coat of arms of the Antwerp suburb Wilrijk. Rembrandt painted a Saint Bavo, dated between 1662 and 1665.[8]
Images
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Saint Bavo by Hieronymous Bosch, with both attributes, the purse and falcon, ca.1498-1504, detail from The Last Judgment (Bosch triptych)
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Saint Bavo, ca. 1460. North Netherlandish. Limestone with traces of polychromy. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.
References
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- ^ Monks of Ramsgate. “Bavo”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 24 August 2012
- ^ Saint-Bavo's Cathedral - Ghent Archived February 19, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
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- Attwater, Donald and Catherine Rachel John. The Penguin Dictionary of Saints. 3rd edition. New York: Penguin Books, 1993. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value)..
External links
[edit | edit source]
- (in Italian) San Bavone di Gand
- Latin Saints of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Rome
- Acta S. Bavonis alias Alloini confessoris, Gandavensium patroni
- St. Bavo at the Christian Iconography website.
- Vita Bavonis Confessoris Gandavensis (Life of Bavo, Confessor of Ghent, in Latin) in Monumenta Germaniae Historica
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