Gerlach and Meerssen

Gerlach at some point came into conflict with the monks of Meerssen. The residence of Meerssen, located near Houthem, had once been part of the dowry of the German king's daughter Gerberga (913-984). After the death of her husband, Giselbert II, Gerberga married King Louis IV of France. In the French royal city of Reims, she became acquainted with the Benedictine monks, whom she convinced to settle in Meerssen. To this end, she donated her residence in Meerssen to the Benedictines of Reims. Ecclesiastical permission soon followed. In 1136 Bishop Albero of Liege gave permission to Abbot Odo of Remigius Abbey in Reims to found a kind of rural chapter headed by a provost in Meerssen, a community of clergy called canons. This apparently did not please them, and they were shortly thereafter replaced from Reims by monks. In 1147 the bishop of Liege gave the provost the right to appoint parish priests to the churches of the provostship in Meerssen, Klimmen and Hulsberg and to draw tithes (=church taxes) there. 

Just a stone's throw from Gerlach's sanctuary in Houthem, a second religious centre arose in the Land of Valkenburg. When the French monks became acquainted with Gerlach, they were amazed by his way of life. Many believers visited Gerlach and gave him donations. This did not conform to the monks' ideas about pastoral care and the destination of the income from it in the area assigned to the provostship, which included Houthem. Gerlach, however, lived as a hermit according to his own vocation and ideals. He did not want to submit to the authority of the provost of Meerssen. 

The Meerssen monks then vilified Gerlach talking to the Bishop of Liege. As a result of the complaints, he was forced to intervene. At first he was in favour of the provostship, but in the end he still decided in favour of Gerlach. His shrine was withdrawn from the authority of Meerssen's deaconery and placed under the care of the abbot and regular canons of Rolduc. Gerlach received permission for Holy Masses in a chapel near the oak tree, where he lived as a hermit until his death. His impending death led to a final conflict with the monks of Meerssen. These refused to administer the Last Sacrament to him. After all, he was no longer under their authority. However, Gerlach trusted in God and, according to legend, shortly before his death in 1164, was served by St. Servaas himself. 

Above: the dying Gerlach is handed the viaticum by St. Servaas and the three crosses belonging to the contents of the reliquary (double-armed Jerusalem cross and two pilgrim's crosses).