Saint Gilbert of Sempringham | |
|---|---|
 Seal of the master of Sempringham, depicting St Gilbert | |
| Born | ca. 1085 Sempringham, Lincolnshire,Kingdom of England |
| Died | 4 February 1189 Sempringham, Lincolnshire, Kingdom of England (Aged 104 or 105) |
| Venerated in | Catholic Church,Church of England |
| Canonized | 1202, Rome byPope Innocent III |
| Feast | 4 February |
| Attributes | cross portate[1] |
Gilbert of Sempringham (c. 1085 – 4 February 1189)[2] was anEnglish Catholic who founded theGilbertine Order. He was the only medievalEnglishman to found aconventual order, mainly because theCîteaux Abbey declined his request to assist him in organising a group ofnuns living withlay brothers and sisters.[3] He founded adouble monastery ofcanons regular and nuns in spite of such a foundation being contrary to canonical practice.
Gilbert was born atSempringham, nearBourne in Lincolnshire, the son of Jocelin, anAnglo-Normanlord of the manor, and an unnamed Anglo-Saxon mother. He had a brother, Roger, and a sister, Agnes.
Unusually for that period, his father actively prevented his son from becoming a knight, instead sending him to France, probably theUniversity of Paris but possibly underAnselm of Laon, to study theology. Some physical deformity may have made him unfit for military service, making an ecclesiastical career the best option. When he returned in 1120 he became a clerk in the household ofRobert Bloet,Bishop of Lincoln, started a school for boys and girls (the existing primary school atPointon is still named after him) and was ordained by Robert's successor,Alexander.[4] Offered thearchdeaconry of Lincoln, he refused, saying that he knew no surer way to perdition.
In the period 1115[5]-1123[6] he was given both the vacant churches of Sempringham andWest Torrington, nearWragby, by his father, Jocelin. In 1129 he became the Vicar of both St Andrew's,Sempringham and St Mary's,West Torrington having been instituted by Robert Bloet, Bishop of Lincoln.[5]
"Gilbert was a lover of truth and justice, chastity and sobriety, and a diligent cultivator of the other virtues: wherefore he was revered and praised by all and obtained their favour and regard. Even Jocelin now rejoiced in the goodness of his son, he began to cherish him with fatherly affection, and ministered to his needs out of his own riches. Gilbert would be in his late twenties when his father presented him to the vacant churches of Sempringham and West Torrington, which he had built on his own demesne 'in the custom of his country' "[7][5]
When his father died in 1130, Gilbert becamelord of the manor of Sempringham and West Torrington. In 1131 he founded theGilbertine Order, and with the help of Alexander constructed at Sempringham a dwelling and cloister for nuns, at the north of the church of St Andrew.[4] Eventually he had a chain of twenty-six convents,monasteries andmissions. A custom developed in the houses of the order called "the plate of the Lord Jesus", whereby the best portions of the dinner were put on a special plate and shared with the poor.[8] In 1148 he approached theCistercians for help. They refused because he included women in his order. The male part of the order consisted ofCanons Regular.
In 1165 Gilbert was charged with having aidedThomas Becket when Thomas fled from KingHenry II after the council of Northampton, but he was eventually found innocent.[4] In 1174 some of his lay brothers revolted, but he received the backing ofPope Alexander III. Gilbert resigned his office late in life because of blindness and died at Sempringham in about 1190, at the claimed age of 106.[7]
The only religious order of English origin founded during the Middle Ages, it thrived until thedissolution of the monasteries under KingHenry VIII.[8]
Gilbert wascanonised in 1202 byPope Innocent III. His liturgicalfeast day is on4 February,commemorating his death, as it remains also in theChurch of England (commemoration).[9] According to the order ofHubert Walter, the bishops of England celebrated his feast, and his name was added to the wall of the church of theFour Crowned Martyrs. His Order did not outlast theEnglish Reformation, however; and despite being influenced byContinental models, it did not maintain a foothold in Europe.[10] There are, however, at least three primary schools in England named after him: inPointon,Stamford, Lincolnshire andWinton, Greater Manchester.[11]
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