medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
At 05:54 PM 9/18/2002 -0700, Phyllis Jestice wrote:
>Today (19. September) is the feast day of:
>
>Januarius (d. c. 305) Januarius was a bishop of Benevento and martyr. He
>is most famous for the liquefaction of his blood on his three feast days
>each year (today, the anniversary of his translatio on the 1st Saturday in
>May, and 16. December--the anniversary of his saving Naples from volcanic
>eruption). This miracle was first recorded in 1389.
Januarius has had more than one translation. The celebration in May (which
has moved around a bit and which I believe now takes place on the vigil of
the first Sunday in May, so sometimes it actually falls on 30 April)
commemorates the first one (from Pozzuoli to Naples; early 5th
century). J. was returned to Benevento by the Lombards in 831 after an
assault on Naples (the catacombs were outside the city walls, whereas the
blood relics were inside the city and remained there). In 1154, in a still
new kingdom and with new centers of patronage, he was removed to the abbey
of Monte Vergine near Avellino, where he spent the remainder of the Middle
Ages. On 13 January 1497 he was returned to Naples; I have the impression
that this translation has also been the subject of an annual liturgical
commemoration (and would welcome further particulars on this point if
anyone can offer such). Another impression is that the festivities in May
have taken on aspects of the patrocinio. It and that on 19 September seem
now to be J.'s two principal feasts, at least in terms of popular
celebration. Best, John Dillon
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John B. Dillon TEL: 608-262-0342
European Humanities Bibliographer
278E Memorial Library FAX: 608-265-2754
University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Madison, WI 53706 USA
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