Nicholas of Flue

Biography

His entire life was spent in Switzerland. At the age of thirty he married Dorotea Wyss, by whom he had ten children. For twenty years they were happy running a prosperous farm at Ranft in the Kalch Valley. For his work as a peacemaker, he has been revered as the patron saint of Switzerland above confessional divisions. However, already at this time Nicholas spent numerous nights in prayer and received extraordinary graces. In 1467 God called him to the hermit life. At first everyone opposed this decision, with the exception of his heroic wife. In a very particular way, his two eldest sons opposed it, but the following year they changed their minds, as they helped their father build the chapel he needed for his prayers. He spent twenty years on a nearby mountain completely devoted to contemplation without setting foot at home. He died right there, surrounded by his wife and children.