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Knights of saint lazarus3/9/2024 The Knights of Saint Lazarus went back to Europe around 1290, after Islam finally forced the Christians from Palestine and northern Africa. ![]() It was probably at some time in the thirteenth century that the Order became a military institution, and it seems to have been favored particularly by Pope Clement IV, though there is a curious dearth of historical documentation regarding its early activities. Their heraldic symbol was an eight-pointed cross similar to the Cross of Malta but tinctured deep green (vert). As long as the Crusaders were able to maintain themselves in Palestine, the Knights of Saint Lazarus devoted their efforts to aiding the victims of leprosy. In the mid-thirteenth century, the Order of Saint Lazarus was formally recognised as a military and hospitaller order by a Papal Bull which confirmed to it the religious rule of Saint Augustine. The first Grand Master known to us is a certain Hugues de Saint Paul, circa 1155. One of the earliest surviving documents relating to the Order is the approval by King Louis VII of France, a few years later, of a feudal transfer to it. In these early years, the Order's Grand Master was usually a leper, as were many of the brothers. The St Lazarus Charitable Trust is the organisation which distributes the bulk of the money raised by members of the Grand Priory for charitable projects, particularly those related to leprosy.Įwsecretary (Contact us )to make a donation to our work in the fight against leprosy.A hospital for lepers had been established in Palestine sometime before 1100, perhaps around the same time as the Hospital of Saint John (circa 1070), and by 1148, a hospitaller brotherhood had appeared in the Holy Land named after Saint Lazarus, the Patron of Lepers. The Christian foundation of the Order requires members to pray for its work and those it supports. The scope of this work is wide enough to accommodate the time, talents and financial means of each and every member. This involves the provision of services, funds, medicines, equipment, clothing and other necessities. In addition to this a Commandery may choose to support a local charity, such as a hospice or one benefitting children or the aged, or occasionally make a donation to an international charity with which its members may have a specific link.Įach member is asked to participate actively, according to their ability, in the Hospitaller work for the sick, the disabled, the elderly, the dying and all who are in need. ![]() The World Health Organisation currently estimates that there are fifteen million sufferers today, of whom only three and a half million are receiving any form of treatment. Today the Order is still heavily involved with the relief of leprosy, working in conjunction with other official organisations to provide care for leprosy patients. These knights, who classed themselves as "living dead", while never large in number, were ferocious in battle, always choosing to die rather than face surrender. The early Grand Masters of the Order were themselves amongst those so afflicted. As most were warrior monks, and still quite able to fight, they usually joined their confreres under the banner of Saint Lazarus. ![]() During the time of the crusades all knights of the great military orders found to be suffering from the dreaded disease of leprosy were forced by their own rules to leave their order. ![]() The Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem was originally created by the militarisation of an order of monks, who, as followers of St Basil, had chosen to work amongst those suffering from leprosy.
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