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Jun 25 – S William Abbot
Description
Sources Used Today:
- "The Net of Preaching" — From Trinity Sunday to the Assumption
- "This Is a Great Pain for Us" (FSSPX.news)
- "Victims of Divine Justice" (SSPX Sermons)
- The Spiritual Life — Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (Angelus Press)
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Saint William, Abbot, is remembered as a man who discovered that the deepest adventures are often the ones that lead us away from the world and closer to God. He was born around the year 1085 in Vercelli, Italy, into a noble family. Like many young men of his time, William dreamed of making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. While still in his twenties, he set out on foot, hoping to visit the places made holy by the life of Christ.
The journey, however, did not unfold as he expected.
As William traveled through southern Italy, he encountered hardships that made it impossible to continue safely to Jerusalem. Rather than seeing this as a failure, he gradually came to realize that God had another pilgrimage in mind. Instead of traveling to the Holy Land, William would spend the rest of his life helping others find the road to heaven.
Seeking solitude, he withdrew to the rugged mountains near Avellino. There, on the heights of Monte Vergine, he embraced the life of a hermit, dedicating himself to prayer, fasting, and contemplation. Before long, people began seeking him out. They came looking for advice, prayer, and spiritual direction, and some asked if they could remain with him.
William had hoped for solitude.
Instead, God gave him a monastery.
Around him grew the Abbey of Monte Vergine, which became one of the great centers of Benedictine life in southern Italy. William guided his monks with gentleness and common sense. He understood that t