Herman was born at Cologne around 1150. Already from his earliest childhood
he manifested a tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin. The Vita, written by
his prior, recounts that he went daily to pray in the church of St. Mary of
the Capitol in Cologne. One day he offered an apple before the statue of the
Virgin and Child. Mary bent down so that the Christ Child could reach it. Herman
was about twelve years old when he entered the Norbertine abbey of Steinfeld
in the Eifel (located in the diocese of Cologne at the time, currently in the
diocese of Aachen). He was sent to Mariëngaarde in Friesland for studies.
Even as a young man he liked to practice strict penance. After his return to
Steinfeld and his priestly ordination, he was appointed to serve in the sacristy
and refectory. In these manual labors he developed an extraordinary spiritual
life and received numerous mystical gifts. He received the surname “Joseph”
on account of a vision in which the Blessed Virgin accepted him as her betrothed.
His childlike piety and frequent ecstasies caused misunderstanding on the part
of the confreres, some of whom regarded him as a simpleton. Herman Joseph was
a model religious in the spirit of St. Augustine. He was humble and poor, and
showed himself patient and friendly to everyone – especially to those
who understood him the least. He was a model of obedience to his superiors and
was always ready to serve his confreres.
Herman Joseph wrote several hymns in honor of the Blessed Mother, St. Ursula
and her Companions, and a commentary on the “Song of Songs” (which
has since been lost) – all in a style full of feeling, which demonstrated
this deeply religious man’s genuine poetic talent. He is one of the first
who expressly honored the Sacred Heart of Jesus in a genuine mystical way based
totally on the Holy Scripture. He was also acclaimed for his dexterity in making
and repairing clocks. Herman Joseph was appointed spiritual director to the
Cistercian nuns with whom he had regular contact. The nuns so prized his spiritual
guidance that on one occasion they pretended that they needed their clock to
be fixed – just so they could bring him to their convent again. During
the final Lent of his life he was at the monastery of the Cistercian nuns in
Hoven, a few miles from Steinfeld, where he became gravely ill and died on the
Thursday after Easter, April 4, 1241.
His body was returned to Steinfeld in a solemn procession on the Tuesday after
Pentecost, several weeks after his death. It now rests in a raised tomb in the
middle of the church. His veneration began immediately after his death with
numerous miracles reported at his tomb. His prior wrote his Vita and devotion
to Herman Joseph continued to grow uninterruptedly. On January 22/March 8, 1728,
Pope Benedict XIII permitted his veneration and consecrated an altar in his
honor in the “Collegio San Norberto” at Rome. His cult, which was
alive for centuries, was formally recognized when Pope Pius XII gave Herman
Joseph the title “Saint” on August 11, 1958. St. Herman-Joseph is
venerated in the Rhine region and in the Norbertine Order as Patron of children
and of students.