Saint William of Maleval (10 February): Butler's Lives of the Saints

About this sermon

On February 10, the Church commemorates St. William of Maleval, one of the most severe and awe-inspiring penitents in Christian history. According to Fr. Alban Butler’s Lives of the Saints, St. William was likely a former soldier whose early life was marked by disorder and sin. Struck with deep compunction, he abandoned the world entirely and embraced a life of radical penance, solitude, fasting, prayer, and manual labor. After pilgrimages to Rome and Jerusalem, and failed attempts at reforming lax monasteries, St. William withdrew into a terrifying wilderness known as Maleval, living first in a cave with wild beasts as his only companions. There he treated himself, by his own words, as “the most infamous of criminals,” embracing extreme mortification and humility until his holy death in 1157. From his example arose the Hermits of St. William, later known as the Guillelmites, whose severe way of life spread throughout Italy, France, Flanders, and Germany, and was eventually moderated under the Rule of St. Benedict. This reading is taken directly from Butler’s Lives of the Saints and is ideal for: Daily saint meditation Catholic masculinity and penance Traditional Catholic spirituality Lenten reflection Monastic and hermit spirituality 🕯️ May the example of St. William of Maleval inspire us to hatred of sin, love of penance, and perseverance in prayer. 0:00 Introduction – Butler’s Lives of the Saints 0:20 St. William’s early life and military past 0:39 Conversion and deep compunction 0:49 Pilgrimage to Rome and Jerusalem 1:09 Retreat into the Tuscan desert 1:14 Failed monastic leadership 1:39 The horror of Maleval’s solitude 1:56 Life in the cave with wild beasts 2:16 Companion Albert joins St. William 2:29 Extreme humility and self-mortification 2:55 Prayer, contemplation, and manual labor 3:15 Miracles and prophecy 3:18 Final sacraments and holy death (1157) 3:43 Burial and the beginnings of an order 3:52 The Hermits of St. William (Guillelmites) 4:02 Mitigation under Pope Gregory IX 4:12 Union with the Augustinian Hermits 4:23 Later history of the order in France https://sensusfidelium.com/the-lives-of-the-fathers-martyrs-and-other-principal-saints/february/st-william-of-maleval/ Get Butler's Lives of the Saints here: https://loretopublications.idevaffiliate.com/idevaffiliate.php?id=102&url=1 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Support Catholic Businesses here - https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ Sensus Fidelium Press - https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ Sensus Fidelium Apps - https://sensusfidelium.tv/ Support Sensus Fidelium - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 🙏🏻PLEASE HELP OUR CHANNEL GROW 🙏🏻 ▶ 1. Become a Channel Patron: https://www.patreon.com/SensusFidelium ▶ 2. Visit the website https://www.sensusfidelium.com for Gueranger, Saint of the Day, Apologetics, Meditation by the Saints, Scripture Study and more. ▶ 3. Subscribe to Other Video Platforms 🔴 SpiritusTV - https://spiritustv.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 BitChute --- https://www.bitchute.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium/ 🔴 Rumble --- https://rumble.com/c/c-298311 🔴 My Catholic Tube - https://mycatholictube.com/videos/sensus-fidelium-channel/ 🔴 LBRY.tv --- https://lbry.tv/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 ODYSEE - https://odysee.com/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 UGETube - https://videos.utahgunexchange.com/@Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 BrandNewTube - https://brandnewtube.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 GabTV - https://tv.gab.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 GloriaTV - https://gloria.tv/Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 Brighteon - https://www.brighteon.com/channels/sensusfidelium ▶ 4. Paypal, Bitcoin, Anedot, Stripe, Square & PO Box donations - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ ▶ 5. YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 Please "Like" our videos so that Youtube shares it to others by clicking the "Like" thumbs-up under the video = 👍🏻 ▶ 6. Please share this video 📲, and help others find Christ inside the Catholic Church! Please share this video on Facebook and Twitter using the share button. ▶ 7. Follow on Social Media: 🔴 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensusFidelium/ 🔴 Twitter: https://https://twitter.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 🔴 Parler: https://parler.com/profile/Sensusfidelium/posts 🔴 SP3RN: https://www.sp3rn.com/community/pages/14-sensus-fidelium 🔴 GAB: https://gab.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 Bastyon: https://bastyon.com/sensusfidelium 🔴 GETTR: https://gettr.com/user/sensus_fidelium 🔴 INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sensusfidelium/ 🔴 Telegram: https//t.me/RealSensusFidelium 🔴 Truth Social - @SensusFidelium ▶ 8. Follow on iTunes: 🔴 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sensus-fidelium-catholic-podcast/id1477010758 #StWilliamOfMaleval #LivesOfTheSaints #CatholicSaints #CatholicSpirituality #TraditionalCatholic #CatholicAudiobook #SaintOfTheDay #February10 #HermitSaint #Pen