Saint Hymetius

Imetier

Summary

A monk of the Abbey of Condat in the 6th century, Hymetière retired as a hermit in the Jura on the banks of the Valouse to evangelize and clear the region. His cell became the nucleus of the village of Saint-Hymetière, where he died in the odor of sanctity. His cult, marked by numerous miracles, remains alive in Franche-Comté.

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SAINT HYMETIÈRE OR IMETIER, MONK OF CONDAT.

Mission 01 / 04

Formation and mission in the Jura

Hymetière trained at the Abbey of Condat before setting out to evangelize the remote regions of the Jura, founding a hermitage on the banks of the Valouse.

Saint Hymetière lived in the 6th century. He first sanctified himself a t the Abbey of C ondat through the practice of monastic virtues. Then, the desire to win souls still enslaved by superstition for Jesus Christ spurred him to carry the Gospel into some as yet unexplored region of the Jura. The monks were then the missionaries of Christian civilization. When they had accomplished the initial work of clearing in a country, and their establishment had taken on a secure existence, they would send some of their own to accomplish the same work in other places, by cultivating the land and instructing souls. Hymetière therefore went, a few leagues from Condat, to found a hermitage on the banks of the Valouse. This countr y, quit e pleasant, nevertheless contained poor and sterile soil. It was an additional merit for Hymetière to make life and fertility germinate there. He probably had with him a few companions of whom he was the leader, and little by little dwellings formed around his cell, and gave birth to the village that bears his name today.

Cult 02 / 04

Death and first signs of holiness

After his death, Hymetier is honored as a saint and his remains are deposited in a church which becomes the center of a vivid local memory.

Saint Hymetier died in this very place, and the eminent virtues he had practiced soon caused him to be honored as a Saint. His precious remains w ere deposited i n a chapel which was placed under his invocation, and transformed into a larger church the following century. The places he had inhabited are still full of his memory. One can see, below the site of the former priory, the fountain where he went to quench his thirst, and the naive faith of the faithful claims to see, on the banks of this spring, the imprint of the pious hermit's fingers.

Context 03 / 04

The Priory and Imperial Protections

The history of the priory is marked by imperial diplomas of Charles the Bald and property disputes between the churches of Mâcon.

The cell of Saint Hymetière is named, in the 9th century, in a diploma of Ch arles the Bald. A t that time, a priory of the Order of Saint Augustine occ upied the site of the Saint's humble hermitage. This priory depended on the church of Saint-Vincent of Mâcon , to which it had long paid an annual fee. Renand, a vassal of Guerrin I, Count of Mâcon, hav ing claimed ownership of it based on false titles, the emperor confirmed, by a diploma, the rights of the church of Saint-Vincent. This benefice was united, in the 13th century, to the chapter of Saint-Pierre of Mâcon. The relics of Saint Hymetière, who was held in great veneration in the region, were preciously kept there. Miracles attested to his powerful protection before God, and they became so numerous that the ecclesiastical authority ordered an inquiry to be made on this subject, according to the forms of law.

Legacy 04 / 04

Contemporary Veneration and Traditions

The cult is maintained in Franche-Comté through processions, the veneration of relics, and a particular devotion for the health of children.

The cult of Saint Hymetière has been perpetuated to this day in Franc he-Comté. His feast is still celebrated there on July 28 in the diocese of Besançon, and on July 30, under the double rite, in the proper of the diocese of Saint-Claude.

The parish of Saint-Hymetière is called the Great Parish, because in the 18th century it included several villages of which the holy religious was the patron. His rel ics, pre viously kept in two symmetrical shrines, rest today in a new carved oak reliquary, which has been placed on the altar erected in honor of the Saint.

The priory of Saint-Hymetière was destroyed in the wars of the 15th century; but the inhabitants have always faithfully preserved the memory of their patron, whom they still honor with filial confidence, and each year his relics are carried solemnly in procession on Whit Monday, and remain exposed for several days to the veneration of the faithful. The devotion to the relics of the patron saint still attracts, on those days, a large influx of strangers to Saint-Hymetière, and, according to an ancient custom, children of weak constitution are especially commended to him. Several ex-votos, which were once seen exposed in the church, attested to the signal favors that the faithful had obtained through the protection of the Saint.

Excerpt from the Life of the Saints of Franche-Comté.