Saint Peter Armegol is the model of trust. Even if immersed in deep mud, where our feet find no solid ground, we have to trust in Our Lady.
Newsroom (28/04/2022 10:03, Gaudium Press) Saint Peter Armengol was born in Catalonia in 1238, the son of the noble Arnau Armengol Rocafort. His parents were very close to the King of Aragon, the sovereign of that Iberian region, and attended court freely.
Pedro received a thorough education, but as he grew older, his morals and piety declined. He fell in with bad company and strayed from the paths of goodness.
In vain, his parents did everything possible to keep him on the right path. Pedro was so disqualified that he abandoned his father’s house, fell in with bandits and shameless people, and lost his way completely.
In time, he became the head of a gang of highway robbers. A dangerous thief, murderer and fugitive, if the royal police caught up with him, he would certainly be killed.
Stunning stroke of grace
It happened, however, that one day, while he was wandering in the bush with his companions in crime, he heard in the distance a clarion call, typical of people from the Court. Imagining the precious spoils that this entourage would provide him, Pedro decides to attack it with his gang.
As soon as the two groups meet, Peter went in search of the head of the detachment and is about to strike him a blow when he… realizes that it is his own father.
As if struck by a bolt of lightning, the bandit remains motionless, holding his sword arm in the air. He, and not his father, had received the fatal blow. A blow of divine grace. Surely, at that instant, someone, somewhere, must have been praying to Our Lady for him?
Confused and ashamed, Peter had true contrition for the sins committed. Like the prodigal son in the Gospel, he threw himself at his father’s feet and asked for forgiveness. He ended up being graced by the King, leaving forever the circle of evildoers among whom he had lived.
Then, in all humility, he sought out a Mercedarian religious, to whom he confessed his crimes and exposed the remorse that tortured his soul.
In the Order of Our Lady of Mercy
Peter then asked, out of mercy, to be admitted as a Mercenary. The friars decided to accept him, recognizing his deep and sincere repentance.
It was the mission of the Mercedarians to work for the liberation of the captives who lived under the yoke of the infidels. In fact, in order to fulfill their heroic mission, the Mercedarian friars not only risked living in Mohammedan territory, but they made a wonderful vow: for love of souls, they offered themselves as hostages to be exchanged for Catholic captives who were among the Moors.
This was precisely the form of heroism embraced by Peter Armengol. Heeding the voice of obedience, Friar Peter spent a number of years in North Africa in a risky existence.
As he prepared to return to Spain, he learned that 137 young, enslaved Christians were found in the homes of their masters, exposed to depravity and the risk of losing their faith.
With religious zeal, Friar Peter sought out the Moors and negotiated the release of those captives. The infidels demanded a lot of money. Such a large sum could only come from Spain, which would further prolong the dangerous enslavement of the young Catholics.
Without hesitation, Friar Peter offered himself as a hostage in their place, until the sum needed for the ransom was sent to him from Spain. The Moors agreed, but imposed the following condition:
We give them a deadline to go to Spain, collect the money and send it to us. During this time you stay here at our disposal. If the money does not arrive by the 10th, we will hang you.
Hanging on the gallows, without losing confidence in Our Lady
In its unfathomable designs, Providence wanted to put the former highwayman to the test. The time stipulated by the Mohammedans had run out. Furious, they carried out their threat: they hanged Friar Armengol and, believing him already dead, left him hanging by a rope.
A short time later, a ship arrives with the ransom money. Navigational problems had caused the delay.
“Where is Friar Armengol?” asked the emissaries. The Moorish chief’s answer was terrifying:
“You are late. He is on the scaffold, hanged three days ago, as I promised.” Outraged by the cruelty of the infidel, the friars wanted to see the body of their brother in the habit.
When they arrived at the gallows, a great surprise: Friar Peter, still on the gallows, was alive, although pale as a corpse. (He would keep this cadaverous pallor on his face all his life: and on his neck, clearly visible, the mark of the rope).
Our Lady performed the miracle of keeping him alive for several days, hanging from the tree.
“The Virgin Mary, Mother of God and ours, asked her most holy Son to preserve my life, and having obtained this favor, the same Sovereign Queen held me up with her most holy hands, so that the weight of my body would not drown me in the rope I was suspended on”.
Peter Armengol returned to Spain and retired to the poor convent of Our Lady of the Meadows, in the archbishopric of Taragona, where his life was a continuous series of heroic virtues and family conversations with the Queen of Angels, to whom, grateful for the said favor, he professed so much affection, that no more reverent devotion or more filial tenderness seemed possible.
Oppressed by a serious illness, knowing that the hour of his death was approaching, he received with fervor the last Sacraments and delivered his spirit into the hands of the Creator on April 27, 1277.
Admirable model of trust
Saint Peter Armengol is one of the most beautiful examples of trust in the unfathomable protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Hanging from the gallows which should have killed him, he survived thanks to the miracle obtained by the Patroness of his Order, and while the rope tightened around his neck, he always maintained the admirable calm of one who knew he was the object of that maternal and merciful help.
This is how we should be in the difficulties of our lives, following the example of St. Peter Armengol: no matter how big the problems are, even if we are like a hanged man hanging in the air, facing the most impossible obstacles or the most terrible pains, let us never doubt the help of Our Lady. Let us put all our confidence in Her, in calm and peace of mind, knowing that the Blessed Virgin will solve everything.
Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira
Compiled by Camille Mittermeier