Alena was a 7th-century Frankish saint born in Dilbeek to noble pagan parents. After secretly converting to Christianity, she faced intense opposition from her father, Levold, who believed she had been bewitched. During an attempt to force her home, she lost an arm and eventually died in captivity in Forest. Her steadfast faith and the subsequent miracles reported at her burial site, such as the restoration of sight to a nobleman, eventually led her parents to embrace the Christian faith.
Life and death
Born around 601, Alena lived a life of secret devotion to her new faith. Following a violent confrontation with her father, she succumbed to her injuries in prison in 640. Traditional accounts suggest an angel carried her severed limb to her place of worship, a miracle that served to validate her convictions to her family.
Veneration and legacy
Her remains were enshrined in the Priory of Forest in 1193, making her shrine a significant pilgrimage site. She is often depicted in art holding a tree stump or missing an arm. Devotees in Brussels invoke her name to help with toothaches or eye ailments. While her relics were moved during the suppression of her abbey, they were eventually returned to Forest.