September 2nd, St. Ingrid of Sweden

St.Ingrid

Welcome to the saint of the day. Today, 2nd of September; the Church celebrates the feast of St. Ingrid of Sweden, the founder, of the Dominican order for women at Skänninge  in, 1272.

Ingrid was the daughter of Elof, a nobleman from East Goth-land. She belonged to the elite of the Swedish nobility.  She was connected to Bridget of Sweden, who had a profound admiration for Ingrid.

Ingrid had a short married life with a nobleman called Sir Sigge. After being widowed, Ingrid and her sister Kristina became a part of a circle of virtuous females around the Dominican monk Petrus de Dacia in Skänninge. In one of his letters, Petrus de Dacia has left a account of the ascetic life style and mystical revelations of one of his, spiritual daughters, in this circle of women; she is probably Ingrid.

In 1272, this circle of women created an informal convent under the leadership of Ingrid by adopting the habit of the Dominican Order, and following its rules. Ingrid made pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela, Jerusalem and Rome. After the death of her sister, Ingrid applied for her convent to be given formal recognition. She reached this goal in 1281, one year prior to her death.

The life in the cloister, deepened, Ingrid’s relationship with the divine even deeper. Throughout St. Ingrid's life she was known for her saintliness and soon after her death, in 1282 in Skänninge, Sweden of natural causes, people around started accepting her as a saint.

A flow of pilgrims started her convent. She was, however, not formally recognized by the Pope as such. When her relative, Bridget, was formally recognized by the Pope in 1391, it caused a need to have Ingrid recognized as a saint as well. At the Council of Constance, an application was made for her canonization. In 1499, Pope Alexander VI agreed to a Translation of relic, which took place in her convent in 1507.

The Reformation had a detrimental effect on the cause of Ingrid’s Canonization. Her Monastery was raised to the ground and the relics stolen. Her cause of canonization came to an abrupt end. A pious nun, who lived a life of contemplation in her monastery, certainly cannot do any heroic deeds. However, historians of monasticism rate her as one of the great pillars of the church who in the Middle Ages, opened up portals of contemplation and mysticism to women.