Bertrand de Garriga, Bl.
BERTRAND DE GARRIGA, BL.
Early Dominican; b. southern France, c. 1172; d. Toulouse, after 1230. An early follower and friend of St. dominic, he joined the dominicans at Toulouse in 1215. On Dominic's frequent journeys, Bertrand, if not taken as a companion, was left in charge of the brethren. He was an eyewitness to many of Dominic's miracles, which he kept secret in obedience to the saint's wishes, and revealed only at the insistence of jordan of saxony. In 1217, Bertrand was sent to Paris; he returned to Toulouse in the following year as prior of St. Romanus, where he remained until his death. He became provincial of Provence, 1221. He was described as prayerful, humble, and austere. Many miracles were performed at his tomb, and 23 years after death his body was reported to be intact. Leo XIII approved his cult in 1881.
Feast: Sept. 6.
Bibliography: i. taurisano, Catalogus hagiographicus ordinis praedicatorum (Rome 1918) 9. b. altaner, Der hl. Dominikus (Breslau 1922). a. touron, The First Disciples of Saint Dominic, ed. and tr. v. f. o'daniel (Washington 1928). v. de wilde, Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques, ed. a. baudrillart (Paris 1912–) 8:1060–61. g. gieraths, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, ed. j. hofer and k. rahner, 10 v. (2d, new ed. Freiburg 1957–65) 2:272.
[l. m. schier]