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Icons of St. Walburga the
Myrrh-Streaming, Abbess of Heidenheim in Germany
Feast: Mar. 1
Daughter
of St. Richard of Wessex and Winna (sister of St. Boniface, apostle of
Germany), St. Walburga was the sister of Sts. Winebald and Willibald.
Brought up by the abbess of Wimborne in England, Walburga was sent to
Germany with St. Lioba by Abbess Tetta of Wimborne in 748. When their
ship foundered at sea, the prayers of Sister Walburga rescued the lives
of everyone, and till this day she, along with St. Nicholas, is a
patron of sailors. She passed through Antwerp on her way to Germany,
and to this day is the patroness of the city. In fact, the use of the
Church of Antwerp was to celebrate her feast four times a year. She was
soon appointed abbess of Heidenheim. Her gentleness, silence, learning,
and humility rendered her beloved unto all. Sept. 21, 870, her relics
were solemnly translated. Since 893 until the present, her incorrupt
relics give off a sweet rosy dew or myrrh, especially from the breast,
near her heart. O Holy Mother Walburga, pray to God for us!
Top
Icon: by an anonymous hand, available from Come And See Icons. The
shepherd's crook style of crozier may be an historical anachronism,
since in
the period when St. Walburga flourished the tau-crozier, similar to a
Byzantine abbess' staff, was used prevalently in the Western lands.
Final Icon: at St. Spyridon
Serbian Orthodox Skyte in Geilnau, Germany. By the hand of
Alexander Stolyarov.
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