Landelin of Crespin

Venerable Landelin of Crespin was a saint of the seventh century, who died around 686 in what is now Belgium, honoured in the Orthodox and the Catholic Church. He is remembered on 15 June.

He was born to a noble family at Vaux near Bapaume, in 623-625, and was educated in learning and piety under the care of Saint Aubert, bishop of Cambrai. Through the seduction and example of certain relatives, whose flatteries indulged his passions, he insensibly began to walk in the broad way of the world, and from a life of pleasure and diversions fell at length into great disorders and even became a brigand, leader of a band of robbers under the name Maurosus. The sudden death of one of his companions caused him to reconsider his path, and he turned back to Christianity. Bishop Aubert placed him in an austere monastery to do penance for some years; after three pilgrimages to Rome he resolved to become a monk. Later Aubert ordained him deacon, and, at thirty years of age, priest, and appointed him to preach to the people.

But Landelin begged leave to retire in solitude to Laubach, now called Lobbes, a desert place on the banks of the Sambre. Several persons resorted to him and imitated his manner of life, living at first in separate cells, and gave rise to the great abbey of Lobbes, about the year 654. When he had laid the foundation of this house, Landelin left his disciple, Saint Ursmar, to finish the building and made him the first abbot; he founded it, about 650, to make amends to the area which he had formerly injured. He also founded Crespin Abbey and is credited with the foundation of Aulne Abbey. Once the number of monks had increased and the future of the community was assured, Landelin resigned as abbot in order to dedicate himself to austerities. He died in 686, at Crespin. An Italian scholar, Paolo Serra, has linked to him a seventh-⁠century Merovingian carved belt buckle, called the Landelinus buckle.