It took Adeodatus two days to reach Niersteyn.

A child guided him to the hermit's

dwelling-place under a rock beside the waters of the Rhine. The child told him that the saint

had no name and that he had been living there for years all alone and that he cursed anybody

who tried to approach him. Adeodatus approached him in all humility. He found the anchorite

on his knees on a slab of stone praying, his burning eyes raised to the sky and beating his

chest with closed fists as his beard tangled with mud and thorns fluttered in the breeze. His

words were unintelligible ; just a prolonged mutter. When he felt Adeodatus approach he

turned his head, eyed the monk carefully from top to toe and bellowed out :

"Devil, have you come in human shape to tempt me ?"

The monk fell on his knees, crossed himself and was silent. There was such bitterness in

his eyes that the saint murmured :

"I, too, was once like you. But look at me now and see how wicked and unworthy I am

even to see the light of day".

He went on with his prayers until it was dark without having another look at the young

monk who felt happy at being able to stand near a saint. Several times during the night,

Adeodatus was waked up by angry mutterings : the hermit was driving away devils trying to

approach him.

He stayed seven days and seven nights with the hermit. He could not find out his name

but he found out all about his life. The hermit belonged to the group of monks who had

murdered the abbot at the Farfa monastery and afterwards brought women there and lived in

debauchery for many years. Filled with remorse one day he ran away, wandered through

Italy, tried to climb mount Gargano, on whose peak, they say holy anchorites converse with

angels but half-way up he was stopped by a voice that commanded him to live and repent if he

wanted to achieve forgiveness from God. He then went on into the world, fed himself on roots,

finally landed up here where he wished to end his sinful life preaching the Lord's word to

waters for human beings are up to their necks in mud and are no longer able to repent and

will soon be wiped off the face of the earth. This is the year when the millennium will be

completed. There are more and more signs that the end was drawing near but no one was

taking notice. The wicked will come to only when they hear the archangels' trumpets but then

it will be too late.

Adeodatus arrived at his monastery at ease and contented. His only concern was that
Judgement Day should find him with a clean heart. The archbishop's words aroused

indignation at Lorsch. Abbot Kempten died before the written answer came from Mainz. The

monks considered the death of their devout master as a favour deliberately bestowed on him

by the Saviour to spare him the pains of general perdition.

Adeodatus again fell back on his habit of keeping to himself in his cell except when he

went to the basilica. He fasted and prayed. He would do no reading. He threw away even the

prayer books. He had also told the hermit that books are the roots of all evils, the beginning

and end of all deadly sins. The icon of the Holy Virgin watched over him all the time with her

too forgiving eyes. And yet at times he would find himself haunted by worldly memories :

some shameful scene he witnessed on his way to Mainz, or the time he had met Margaret

Hippier... He would not hesitate for a second. He would go to the torture chamber and torture

his flesh until his blood calmed down.

A new abbot took over at the monastery. He was young, well-dressed and loved books.

Adeodatus saw not a single trace of true devoutness in him. There was now greater freedom

in the monastery. Learned monks were brought to reorganize the school, others came to

study and bring more books into the library. The new abbot forbade the monks to talk about

the end of the world although it was drawing near. In a sermon delivered from the pulpit he

declared that it was heresy to believe such nonsense and nowhere in the holy scriptures

could one find such rubbish.

Hearing the abbot's words Adeodatus, to whom these words were sacrilege, mumbled :

"Forgive him, O Lord, for he knows not what he says !"