Elzéar de Sabran

See also: Sabran

Elzéar († v. 1323) Third order of Saint-François. Honore the September 27th.

Elzearius (help of Hebrew God). Resulting from one of the most famous families of Provence, he was the son of Ermangaud de Sabran and Laudune of Alba, known as the good countess of Roquemartine. He was born with the castle of Roubians, close to Cabrières Acute, in Luberon.La legend tells that by preoccupation with a mortification, he refused the milk of his nurse Friday.

With died of his/her father, Elzéar became the heir to his loads and seigniories of which the county of Ariano. It went with his Delphine wife to Naples, at the court of king Robert, who made him make, since 1312, his first weapons. In company of Hugues of the Beams, count de Soletto, the new count d' Ariano, took the command of the troops guelfes. Two the noble provençaux ones had the role of going to attack the army of Henri IV of Luxembourg, at the time of its calata on Rome, where the leader of Gibelins wished being crowned emperor of the Saint Worsens Romain Germanique.

Elzéar de Sabran in practice passed all its life of good works of penitence and the Christian virtues. He often visited the hospitals, looked after the patients, distributed abundant alms to the poor, and, in the middle of the exercises of its charity, he did not neglect any the duties which he had to fill towards his vassal.

In 1323, it was charged to negotiate in Paris the second marriage of Charles of Calabria, the heir to the county of Provence and the kingdom of Naples, with Marie de Valois. It was during this embassy that he died on September 27th. It was buried in the church of the franciscains of the town of Apt.

By twice its canonization was requested from Avignon, the first near Jean XXII does not succeed. Not only Elzéar was suspected by Sovereign pontiff of being sensitive to the theses deviating of the franciscains (spiritual, fraticelles, etc) but Raymond de Bot, the bishop of Apt, which presented its dossier was not very enthusiastic. He explained why Elzéar " lived during twenty-seven years in the same layer with its wife, while keeping her integrity, so much so that the sublime character of this virtue appears more astonishing than imitable".

The second was made in 1351 pennies the pontificate of Clément VI. Bertrand de Meissonier, bishop of Apt, made it present by his colleague, Georges Clariani, bishop of Sénez and by Guirau VII of Simiane, husband of Delphine de Sabran, small-niece of Elzéar and goddaughter of his wife. Elzéar was canonized on April 15th, 1369, in the Basilique Saint-Pierre of Rome, by the pope Urbain V who was his godson.

Delphine de Sabran (born from Sign), his wife, joined all its good works and lived holily like him. She is named in the martyrologist Franciscain, and is honoured on September 26th.

Its relic is preserved with that of his wife in the church of Ansouis.

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