medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Today (20. March) is the feast day of:
Photina and companions (1st cent.) Legend reports that this was the
Samaritan woman at the well, described in John 4. According to one version
of her story, P. preached for several years before being martyred at
Carthage. A lively version tells that she was martyred at Rome under Nero,
after converting Nero's daughter and 100 of her servants to Christianity.
Martin of Braga (d. 580) Martin was a zealous missionary in Spain, and
introduced communal monasticism to Galicia after learning about it in
Egypt. He became bishop of Braga, and was a successful evangelist both to
non-Christians and to the Arian Suevi.
Cuthbert (d. 687) The English Cuthbert became a monk at Melrose. He
accepted Roman customs after the synod of Whitby and became prior at
Lindisfarne, and the bishop of Hexham (although he soon exchanged sees so
he could be at Lindisfane. C. was an active preacher and teacher, credited
with the gifts of prophecy an healing. C's body was still incorrupt 11
years after his death. His body was taken to Durham after Lindisfarne was
destroyed by vikings. It was still incorrupt in 1104. In fact, when Henry
VIII's commissioners dismantled C's shrine in the early sixteenth century,
the body was still so lifelike that they sent off to London for special
instructions.
Herbert of Derwentwater (d. 687) Herbert was a close friend of Cuthbert, a
priest and hermit. Cuthbert prophesied that they would die on the same
day, as indeed they did.
Wulfram (late 7th cent.) Wulfram was the son of a Merovingian official,
who received the archbishopric of Sens as a court appointment. After two
years in office, he resigned---the former archbishop was still alive, and
Wulfram wanted to go and convert Frisians. He had some success, but failed
to win over the Frisian king. W. finally retired to Fontanelle, where he
died.
Martyrs of Mar Sabas (d. 796) A group of 20 monks of St. Sabas near
Jerusalem were killed in an anti-Christian Arabic raid. One of the monks
who escaped the slaughter wrote a detailed account of the event.
Ambrose Sansedoni (blessed) (d. 1287) Ambrose was born in Siena. He was
born deformed, but miraculously healed in a Dominican church. He became a
sickly-sounding child prodigy, and entered the Order of Preachers on his
seventeenth birthday. A. was then sent to Paris, where he studied with
Albertus Magnus. Ambrose spent the rest of his career as a preacher---so
intense that he's credited with levitating during sermons, and was
frequently used on peace-making missions. Many miracles were reported at
his tomb.
Maurice Csaky (blessed) (d. 1336) Not formally beatified. Maurice was a
Hungarian prince. He wanted to become a Dominican, but was forced to
marry. So he and his wife took a vow of continence and, when the time was
ripe, fled to become a Dominican and a nun respectively. M's
father-in-law, the count Palatine, was annoyed, and tried to force them
back to secular life, even kidnapping M. and holding him in prison for
several months before giving up. M. then spent the rest of his life in
obscurity and poverty as a priest.
Giovanni Baptista Spagnuolo (d. 1516) (blessed) Giovanni, who was
beatified in 1885, was born in Mantua and studied in Padua. He became a
Carmelite. Credited with the gift of counsel, in 1513 he became prior
general of the order. Giovanni is most noted as a Latin poet and eminent
Christian humanist.
Dr. Phyllis G. Jestice
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