medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Today (29. April) is the feast day of:
Tychikos (1st cent.) Tychikos was a friend a companion of St. Paul on his
third missionary journey. Greek tradition makes him a bishop; Latin
reports name him as a deacon.
Severus of Naples (d. 409) Severus was bishop of Naples from 363 until his
death in 409. He had a reputation as a miracle worker, and is credited
with resurrecting a dead person.
Hugh the Great of Cluny (d. 1109) Hugh was born in 1024, and in 1038
became a monk at Cluny. At the age of 25 he was elected abbot, an office
he held for 60 years. Hugh was one of the greatest figures of the eleventh
century, trying to mediate between pope and emperor, continuing the
expansion of the Cluniac confederation, and building the great 3rd abbey
church of Cluny. He was canonized in 1120.
Robert of Molesme (d. 1110 (1111?)) Robert, Stephen Harding, and Alberich
are given joint credit for founding the Cistercian order. Robert was born
near Troyes (France) in c. 1027; at the age of 15 he entered the monastery
of Moutier-la-Celle. He soon became abbot of Tonnerre, but was
disappointed with the lax observance he found, so in 1075 he and seven
like-minded monks founded the reform monastery of Molesme, of which he
became first abbot. After a few years, Robert was again disappointed as
the initial rigor of the new monastery fell by the wayside. So in 1098 he
and 20 monks founded yet another new monastery in the wilderness of
Citeaux. Robert was probably first abbot for a short time, but he was
ordered to return to Molesme by the pope. Robert was canonized in 1222.
Theoger (d. 1120) Theoger was a leading member of the Hirsau monastic
reform and thus a supporter of the papal party in the German civil war. He
became abbot of St. George's in the Black Forest in c. 1100, and died in
1120 at Cluny.
Robert of Bruges (d. 1157) After an encounter with Bernard of Clairvaux,
Robert joined the Cistercian order in 1131. In 1138 he became the first
abbot of Les Dunes in Flanders. After Bernard's death, Robert succeeded
him as abbot of Clairvaux.
Catherine of Siena (d. 1380) Catherine is one of the great mystics of
Christianity, and in 1970 was named a doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI.
Catherine Benincasa was born in 1347, the 24th child of her family. At
the age of 12 she refused to marry at her parents' wish, and in 1362
entered the Dominican lay order. In 1366 Catherine experienced a "mystical
marriage" with Christ, after which she dedicated herself to care of the
sick, even going to Pisa in 1374 to care for plague victims. A highly
charismatic figure, Catherine attracted both followers and detractors, and
continued to have mystical visitations, including the stigmata in 1375
(which was kept secret until her death). It was Catherine who is credited
with convincing the Avignon pope to return to Rome in 1378. In the years
before her death at the age of 33, Catherine was believed to have eaten
nothing but the eucharist. Her intact body is in a glass shrine in the
church of S. Maria sopra Minerva in Rome (the head was reconnected in
1998). Although Catherine never learned to write, she left 381 dictated
letters.
Dr. Phyllis G. Jestice
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