William of Maleval
| William of Maleval San Guillermo | |
|---|---|
|
Saint William in the Cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Laoag. | |
| Hermit | |
| Died |
10 February 1157 Maleval |
| Venerated in | Aglipayan Church |
| Beatified | 1202 |
| Canonized | 8 May 1202, Rome, Papal States by Pope Innocent III |
| Major shrine | Laoag City |
| Feast | 10 February |
| Attributes | cross; skull |
| Patronage | Laoag City; Ilocos Norte |
William of Maleval (or William the Great) (died 10 February 1157) was the founder of the Catholic congregation of Williamites, a branch of the Hermits of St. Augustine. He was beatified in 1202.
The account of his life, written by his disciple Albert, who lived with him during his last year at Maleval, has been lost. Written accounts of his life by Theodobald, or Thibault, given by the Bollandists, is unreliable because it has been interpolated with the lives of at least two other Williams.
After a number of chapters in which he is confused with St. William of Gellone, Duke of Aquitaine, we are told that he went to Rome, where he had an interview with pope Eugene III, who ordered him to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in penance for his sins. Though Theodobald's account of his interview with the pope does not carry conviction, the fact of this visit and his subsequent pilgrimage to Jerusalem is supported by excerpts from the older life, which are preserved by responsories and antiphons in his liturgical feast Office. He seems to have remained at Jerusalem for one or two years, not nine as Theodobald relates. About 1153 he returned to Italy and led a hermit's life in a wood near Pisa, then on Monte Pruno, and finally in 1155 in the desert valley of Stabulum Rodis, later known as Maleval, in the territory of Castiglione della Pescaia, Diocese of Grosseto, where he was joined by Albert.
Veneration
- Cathedral of Saint William the Hermit, San Fernando, La Union
- Saint William's Cathedral, Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, Philippines
- San Guillermo de Maleval Parish, Buting, Pasig City, Philippines
- Saint William's Parish, Talisay, Batangas, Philippines
- Saint William's Parish, Passi City, Iloilo, Philippines
Sources
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "article name needed". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton.