medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Today (2. May) is the feast day of:
Exsuperius and Zoe (d. c. 135) This couple were slaves to a Roman in
Asia Minor. They thoroughly annoyed their master by refusing to join
in the celebration of the birth of his son---which included eating
sacrificial meat. So E, Z, and their two sons were tortured and then
roasted to death in a furnace.
Athanasius (d. 373) One of the great figures of Christian history
(how many people have had a creed named after them??), Athanasius was
a native Alexandrian. After a good education he became secretary to
Bishop Alexander in c. 318, and succeeded Alexander as bishop in c.
327. Athanasius became the great leader of the catholic Christians
against the Arians. He was banished for a time to Trier, was deposed
from his see, won a great deal of support, was nearly exterminated
along with a fair amount of his flock, had to flee to the
desert----you get the picture. It looks like he only spent about 7
years of his time as bishop in Alexandria. A. is a doctor of the
church and is calle the "champion of orthodoxy." While a highly
influential theologian, A. did not actually write the "Athanasian
Creed"---it was drawn from his writings, though.
Waldebert (d. c. 665) Waldebert (Gaubert) was a Frankish noble who
became a monk at Luxeuil, where he was elected third abbot in 628.
In his long abbacy he built Luxeuil up into one of the great
monasteries of the early Middle Ages, besides establishing a series
of daughter houses, for both monks and nuns.
Wiborada (d. 926) Wiborada was a noble Swabian who became a recluse
at St. Gall (Switzerland). She won a reputation as holy woman,
spiritual counsellor, and prophet---she prophesied the Magyar
invasion that led to her own death. (The accounts of her martyrdom
in the various vitae Wiboradae are suspiciously similar to an account
in Gregory of Tours.) W. was canonized in 1047---the first woman to
enjoy a formal papal canonization
Mafalda (Matilda) (d. 1252) Mafalda was a daughter of Sancho I of
Portugal. She was married off to Henry I of Castile, but the
marriage was annulled on the ground of consanguinity, after which she
became a nun at Arouca. She got the convent to adopt the Cistercian
rule, gave to the poor, built a hostel for travelers, and restored
Oporto Cathedral. M's cult was approved in 1793.
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