medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On 08/12/06, Christopher Crockett <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
interesting as this question is, in and of itself (and well answered by J.B.),
of more interest to those of us of a middlevil Bent of Mind is the issue of
*How* (on earth) could the tomb have been "lost" in the first place?
If I have understood correctly, the issue is not the "loss" of the tomb itself, which has always been known to be under the high altar and has been constantly venerated (including by me with great devotion two weeks ago, for what it's worth), but rather of diminished access to it due to the constant repair and development of a 4th-century building with a long history of instability, and the usual superimposition of later structures which send the original layers deeper and deeper under the floor level. Rebuilding after the disastrous fire of 1823 further complicated everything. Some reports are suggesting that thorough investigation was impossible to carry out because of risk to the present sanctuary structures, which are a mixture of medieval elements and post-fire 19th-century reconstructions. Perhaps Monday's report will make the situation clearer.
George's comment is interesting, however. How can there be uncertainty about the existence or location of major relics? The Veronica, supposedly one of the four major relics of St Peter's, allegedly in one of the pillars of the dome, is a case in point. Did it disappear in the Middle Ages, or in the sack of Rome, or in the time of Napoleon, or is it still there? Is anything there, in fact, and if so, what is it exactly? The literature is a mass of confusion. Can't someone just nick upstairs and have a look? Maybe post us a .jpg? In the case of dubious relics, church authorities often seem to adopt a "don't see, don't tell" attitude which serves no-one.
A different mentality allowed the relics of St Luke in Padova to be subjected to exhaustive tests with extraordinary results, suggesting that the relics are very likely to be authentic. A news report (in Italian) is here:
http://www.30giorni.it/it/articolo.asp?id=2949 (though John Dillon probably already posted a bunch of much better links years ago to which I didn't pay proper attention).
The full report is: San Luca evangelista testimone della fede che unisce : atti del congresso internazionale, Padova, 16-21 ottobre 2000. vol. 2, I risultati scientifici sulla ricognizione delle reliquie attribuite a san Luca / a cura di Vito Terribile Wiel Marin, Francesco
G.B. Trolese. (Fonti e ricerche di storia ecclesiastica padovana ; 29). Padova : Istituto per la Storia Ecclesiastica Padovana, 2003.
Another ancient relic which seems to invite the utmost scepticism but which has attracted some plausibly positive attention in recent years is the "titulus crucis" in S. Croce in Gerusalemme.
--
Paul Chandler, O.Carm. | Institutum Carmelitanum
via Sforza Pallavicini, 10 | 00193 - Roma | Italy
tel: +39-06-68.10.08.1 | fax: +39-06-68.30.72.00
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which is here, near St Peter's and Castel S. Angelo: <http://tinyurl.com/ycddsl
> (A marks the spot)
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