St. Poppo, Abbot of Stavelo (25 January): Butler's Lives of the Saints

About this sermon

On January 25, the Church commemorates St Poppo of Stavelot, a great Benedictine abbot, monastic reformer, and saint of the 11th century, as recorded in The Lives of the Saints by Father Alban Butler. Born in Flanders in 978, St Poppo was raised by a deeply virtuous mother who later died a nun at Verdun. Though he first served as a soldier, he soon discovered that prayer, meditation, and heavenly contemplation were far sweeter than worldly pleasures. Renouncing military life, he undertook penitential pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome, returning with precious relics for the Church. Clothed in the monastic habit, St Poppo became renowned for his holiness, discipline, and zeal for reform. He was appointed Abbot of multiple monasteries, including Stavelot and Malmedy, where he restored strict monastic observance, corrected scandals, and renewed Benedictine life throughout the region. St Poppo even influenced Emperor St Henry, persuading him to abolish cruel public combats. He died holy and revered on January 25, 1048, at the age of 70. Though debates surrounded his formal canonization, his veneration as a saint was firmly established, and his relics were enshrined in 1624. This reading preserves the traditional Catholic hagiography found in Butler’s classic work and offers spiritual nourishment for those seeking the examples of the saints. 🔔 Subscribe for daily Lives of the Saints readings ✝️ Preserving Catholic tradition, history, and devotion 00:00 Introduction – Lives of the Saints 00:20 Birth and upbringing of St Poppo (Flanders, 978) 00:34 Military life and love of prayer 00:53 Renunciation of the world 00:55 Pilgrimage to Jerusalem and relics 01:10 Pilgrimage to Rome 01:14 Entry into monastic life 01:27 Appointment as abbot and reformer 01:41 Influence on Emperor St Henry 01:54 Abbot of Stavelot and Malmedy 02:11 Restoration of monastic discipline 02:16 Death of St Poppo (1048) 02:22 Final sacraments and burial 02:36 Enshrinement of relics (1624) 02:43 Debate over canonization 02:56 Veneration at Stavelot https://sensusfidelium.com/the-lives-of-the-fathers-martyrs-and-other-principal-saints/january/st-poppo-abbot-of-stavelo/ 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 #StPoppo #LivesOfTheSaints #CatholicSaints #SaintOfTheDay #January25 #Benedictine #CatholicTradition #CatholicHistory #AlbanButler #MonasticLife #Hagiography