medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Today (19. February) is the feast day of:
Quodvultdeus (d. 439) Q. was bishop of Carthage at the time of the
Vandal invasion of North Africa. He seems to have been certain that
the invasion was God's punishment because his flock enjoyed the games
too much (he sounds like a reincarnation of Tertullian). Q. and most
of his clergy were banished, with a nice twist: they were loaded onto
decrepit ships without oars or sails and sent out into the
Mediterranean. They reached Naples safely, though.
Barbatus (d. 682) Barbatus' 9th-century vita tells that he was a
native of Benevento. He set out on a personal crusade to win the
Lombards from their "superstitions," preaching unremittingly, praying
and fasting a lot, etc. In 663, when Duke Grimoald defeated a
Byzantine invasion, B. credited the victory to the archangel Michael,
and convinced the people that this was the case. He was made bishop
of Benevento and stamped out non-Christian practices.
Boniface of Lausanne (d. 1260) Boniface was a native of Brussels who
studied at Paris and then taught there and at Cologne before being
elected bishop of Lausanne. B. proved to be an unpopular bishop,
violently denouncing his clergy for their laxity and offending
Emperor Frederick II---who had B. attacked and badly wounded. After
that, the pope accepted B's request for permission to abdicate. He
took up residence at the Cistercian nunnery of La Cambre and carried
out episcopal functions as they were needed. B. was canonized in
1702.
Conrad of Piacenza (d. 1351) When the young nobleman Conrad was out
hunting one day, he had a fire lit to help drive the game. The blaze
got out of control and destroyed several villages. C didn't admit
his fault until a poor man was sentenced to death for the arson,
whereupon C confessed and used most of his wealth (and his wife's
dowry) to pay reparations. The two then devoted themselves to
religious life, she as a Poor Clare and he as a hermit. C. attracted
fans with his extreme piety, so he escaped to Sicily, where he lived
as a hermit for the remaining 30 years of his life---still pestered
by people wanting his prayers and especially his miraculous cures.
He was especially famous for his ability to cure hernias.
Alvaro of Zamora (blessed) (d. c. 1434) Alvaro joined the Dominican
community at Cordoba in 1368. He became famous as a preacher
throughout Andalusia and in Italy. He was a major figure of the
Dominican reform movement in Spain, founding a reformed house,
Escalaceli, that became a center of learning. A's cult was confirmed
in 1741.
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