St. Wendelin Herding Sheep Ceramic Tile

Except for the occasional wolf attack, sheepherding was considered a job safe enough for children, adolescent girls, and old or infirm men in the Middle Ages. It was not a suitable job for a young, able-bodied man… or a Scottish crown prince. + According to his legendary biography, St. Wendelin (c. 554-c. 617) was the eldest son of King Forchado and Queen Irelina of Scotland, educated by the local bishop, and primed to succeed his father on the throne. Instead, teen-aged Wendelin ran away from home. For love of Christ, he went on pilgrimage never to return to his native land. His wanderings allegedly took Wendelin to many holy sites throughout Europe, including the Vatican in Rome where he had an audience with Pope Benedict I who commended him on his chosen lifestyle. Wendelin eventually settled in the wild forests of Germany near Westrich where he lived an ascetic life as a hermit. Out begging for his daily bread one day in Trier (Treves), he was rebuked by a shady nobleman for laziness as he was deemed fit for work. Chastened, St. Wendelin took a job as the man’s swineherd then cowman and finally shepherd. Wendelin’s “career path” was influenced by two factors: the burgeoning of the herds in his care and the degree of troublesomeness of the animals to him. Wendel really just wanted to pray. Pigs were antsy, cows required milking, but sheep were very docile and required little supervision especially when their herder had a well-trained sheep dog. Fortunately, his employer indulged him. And sheepherding allowed Wendelin the time and peace and quiet he desired for prayer even when the flocks grew and thrived. In later life, St. Wendelin, his reputation for piety and wisdom being well known in the district, was elected abbot of the Benedictine Abbey of Tholey. It was only years later, on his deathbed that his royal lineage was revealed so that his surviving family members could be informed of his passing. + Here, a youthful St. Wendelin is dressed in work clothes with a shepherd's bag slung from his shoulder and a beat-up hat clutched to his chest. He is leaning on a spade. According to tradition, where he left it (or a shepherd’s crook or staff in some accounts) standing, a healing spring sprang up. The site is still a pilgrimage destination. + St. Wendelin is patron of country folk, shepherds, fields, livestock, and Trier, Germany. + Feast: October 21 or October 22 (Diocese of Trier) + Image Credit: Antique colored wood engraving of St. Wendelin, c. 1850-1870 (later mid-19th century), originally published by Braun and Schneider, Munich, Germany, from the designer’s private collection of religious ephemera.