Statue of St. Hubert
Statue of St. Hubert. Made of bronze, patinated. Patron saint of hunters.
Young Hubert spent most of his time in the forests, where he constantly hunted, hunting being his passion. Some sources indicate that he led a free, even hulking life. This was the case until 695, when, hunting in the Ardennes Mountains, heedless of anything, on Good Friday itself he encountered a white stag with a radiant cross in its wreath. It was then that he was to hear the voice of the Creator warning him of his unrestrained passion and ordering him to go to Lambert – Bishop of Maastricht – Tongres.
It is said that during Hubert Hirsch’s (German for deer) religious vision of Hubertus’ instructions to treat animals with greater respect and compassion as God’s creatures of intrinsic value. For example, a hunter should, according to these instructions, shoot only when a humane, clean and quick kill is provided. In doing so, he should shoot only old deer. What’s more, one should never shoot at a female with young in order to make sure that the young deer will keep its mother, who will guide it to get food during the winter season. This is the legacy of Hubert to this day, which is still revered in complete hunter education courses in Germany and Austria.
Moved by the revelation, he did so. He went to the divine service of Bishop Lambert. He began his theological studies and missionary work in the Ardennes and Brabant. After the death of Bishop Lambert (d. c. 700), he received the episcopal sacrament at the hands of Pope Sergius.
Hubertus died peacefully in a place called Fura, located 30 miles from Liège, on May 30, 727 or 728. He was first buried in the collegiate church of St. Peter in Liège, but his bones were exhumed and transported to the Benedictine Abbey of Amdain in the Ardennes, in 825. The abbey became a pilgrimage destination until the coffin disappeared later, during the Reformation. Its feast day takes place every November 3.
The date of November 3, 743 is unusual. It was then that the transfer of Hubert’s body to the main altar of the temple where he rested was undertaken. It was then discovered that Hubert’s body was free from all decomposition, and the pleasant odor spreading through the crypt, instead of the fetor of course, served as proof. On the other hand, in 824 his remains were transferred to the church in Andange. It was after his name that the village was named Saint-Hubert (today’s Luxembourg).
