medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On Sat, 10 May 2003 09:44:17 -0700
Phyllis wrote:
>Today (10. May) is the feast day of:
>Catald (7th-8th cent.) An interesting case of a cult that developed about
>a saint of whom nothing is known. Catald is venerated in southern Italy,
>Sicily, and Malta; it all started in 1071 when his remains were found in
>Taranto. The coffin contained a pastoral staff of Irish workmanship,
>inscribed "Cathaldus Rachau." It seems likely that Catald was an Irish
>monk in peregrinatio on the continent.
We know even less than this. There are two different accounts of Cataldus' inventio at Taranto. One is an early modern reworking of an account by one Berlengerius (vel sim.) written soon after 1151, when C.'s grave under the high altar of the cathedral was opened and C.'s remains were placed in a silver reliquary, whereupon miracles began to occur. This is the version propagated by the _Acta Sanctorum_; in it the inventio is ascribed to the time of a bishop or archbishop Drogo and this ascription in turn has led to the dating of the inventio to 1071. The other, edited by Adolf Hofmeister, "Der Sermo de inventione sancti Kataldi: Zur Geschichte Tarents am Ende des 11. Jahrhunderts," _Muenchener Museum fuer Philologie des Mittelalters und der Renaissance_ 4 (1924; reprinted: Nendeln, 1972), pp. 101-14, implies that the inventio occurred in 1094. It seems to have been written shortly thereafter.
The two accounts differ in many important respects and not least in their attitude towards the Normans then gradually conquering southern Puglia; though neither is entirely confidence-inspiring, that placing the inventio in 1094 (and outside the city rather than inside in a cathedral under reconstruction) seems much more plausible than its competition, which latter has many of the earmarks of an official version tidying things up after Norman rule had become entrenched.
As Phyllis notes, Cataldus is venerated in southern Italy, Sicily, and Malta. These are precisely the areas in which Latin Christianity was either re-established or greatly expanded as a result of the Norman-led conquest of formerly Byzantine or Muslim territories. It is reasonable to suppose that newly settled Latins will have favored a Latin saint himself an immigrant to these parts. Of course his cult has since spread to other parts of Italy and beyond.
In Taranto, San Cataldo (to give him his Italian name) is the focus of festivities that take place on 8, 9, and 10 May; these include his being brought from the cathedral to the outer harbor (the Mar Grande), shown here:
http://www.comune.taranto.it/informazioni/visita/foto_max/san_cat.gif
In Ireland, where he has been given the attested Irish name Cathal and identified as a monk who studied at Lismore, various popular beliefs have become attached to him in recent times. For a good example, go to:
http://homepage.tinet.ie/~whitech/1classes.htm
and check out the "History of Canty" by young David McCarthy. (I particularly like St. Cathaldus' holy well).
A site combining Irish and south Italian elements is here:
http://www.amireland.com/clogheen/clogpage/cataldo1.html
There is, however, no reliable independent information of Irish origin about Cataldus; the Irish factual matter presented here is all derived from inferences based on the Berlengerius account and on the inscribed cross affixed to the staff said to have been found with the saint's remains.
Best,
John Dillon
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