Nicholas of Flüe

Retired in the Ranft gorge, Nicholas of Flüe had a chapel built where a priest, paid from his own resources, celebrated Mass so that he could attend every day. Contemporary sources report a near-total fast during the last nineteen years of his life: he is said to have lived on nothing but the Eucharist, a fact verified by ecclesiastical envoys, even if the reliability of this testimony remains debated. His reputation for wisdom attracted pilgrims, common people, and political figures who came to seek his counsel. His most famous intervention took place during the Diet of Stans in December 1481, when a serious conflict pitted rural cantons against urban cantons over the admission of Fribourg and Solothurn into the Confederation. Consulted by the parish priest Heimo Amgrund, who conveyed his message to the delegates, Nicholas of Flüe helped resolve the crisis in a few hours: the compromise known as the Stanser Verkommnis avoided civil war and preserved the unity of the Confederation. It is for this reason that he has become a tutelary figure of Swiss peace.

The spiritual journey of Nicholas of Flüe is characterized by radical stripping away and a life of intense prayer. His renunciation of family, public office, and material goods reflects a search for God pushed to the extreme of detachment. Tradition attributes to him a prayer of total surrender, still recited today in the chapels dedicated to him: 'My Lord and my God, take from me everything that prevents me from coming to you. My Lord and my God, give me everything that leads me to you. My Lord and my God, take me from myself and give me entirely to you.' He is also credited with mystical experiences, including a vision of a radiant face which he meditated upon at length and which was transcribed in the form of a meditation image, the 'divine wheel' preserved at Sachseln. During his lifetime, his reputation for holiness already extended beyond the borders of the cantons: people came to consult him as a man of God, a justice of the peace, and a spiritual advisor, which prepared the way for continuous veneration after his death.

The veneration of Nicholas of Flüe developed very early after his death, but his official recognition spanned nearly three centuries. After several steps, Pope Innocent X authorized the liturgical cult in 1649, initially limited to the parish church of Sachseln. The beatification itself was confirmed on March 8, 1669, by Pope Clement IX, and the authorization for the cult was subsequently extended by Clement X in 1671. The cause concluded much later: two healings were recognized as miraculous in 1944, those of two women from Solothurn, Ida Jeker, healed on June 26, 1937, and Bertha Schürmann, healed on May 18, 1939. Pope Pius XII granted a dispensation for the third required miracle, then proceeded to the solemn canonization of Nicholas of Flüe on May 15, 1947, in Rome. His liturgical feast is celebrated on March 21, the day of his death, in the universal calendar, and on September 25 in Switzerland and Germany.

Nicholas of Flüe occupies a unique place in Swiss identity: invoked by Catholics and Protestants alike, he has become a symbol of national unity beyond confessional divides. His figure was particularly invoked during the two world wars, when he was prayed to as the protector of Switzerland and a messenger of peace. Recognized as the principal patron saint of the Confederation, he is also venerated as the patron of the Pontifical Swiss Guard. His canonization in 1947 extended his influence beyond Swiss borders. The places linked to his life remain active centers of pilgrimage: the church of Sachseln, which preserves his relics, as well as his birthplace at Flüeli, the Ranft gorge, his hermit's cell, and the neighboring chapels. His prayer of surrender to God, translated into numerous languages, and the meditative image of the "wheel" continue to nourish devotion. A married couple and father who became a mystic, Bruder Klaus is today presented as an inspiring figure for both lay life and contemplative life.