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medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture According to Gordon Whatley, who recently edited Simon Winter's Middle English Life of Jerome, the cross-dressing episode seems first to have appeared in the mid 12th-century Vita Hieronimi that's now attributed to Nicholas Maniacoria (PL 22.186). Whatley cites Eugene Rice's *St Jerome in the Renaissance* on this story. Sherry Reames ----- Original Message ----- From: John Dillon <[log in to unmask]> Date: Wednesday, October 21, 2009 2:30 pm Subject: Re: [M-R] Medieval lighting To: [log in to unmask] > medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture > > Hi, Henk > > As I noted when I first brought this up), the text -- and therefore > its intended audience -- is considerably later than the seventh > century. When I last thought about its dating (back in 2005), I > accepted the view that it probably was written in the later twelfth > century. But that's only a guess. The Vita could be later still. > Does anyone on the list know when the St. Jerome version of the trick > (which I presume is earlier) is first attested? Not that that's > likely to matter much in the issue of the clothing. Underlying all > this is Deuteronomy 22:5, a text that presumes differentiation between > men's and women's clothing. That text, however unverisimilar it may > have been in the seventh century or in the twelfth, will have been > known to Christian religious of every century. > > The Vita's placing of Vitalian's final years at the future site of the > Benedictine abbey of Montevergine suggests a monastic origin (either > at Montevergine or at some house elsewhere wishing to lay a claim to > that abbey's legendary past). And therefore a monastic audience. So, > whereas verisimilitude might not have been important for the Vita's > author in the matter of different clothing for men and women -- just > as it apparently was not in the Vita's story of V.'s enemies at > [inland] Capua putting him in a sack which they then cast into the sea > but from which V. escapes and then _rows_ [in what?] all the way to > Ostia --, verisimilitude could well have been an issue in respect of > the Liturgy of the Hours. The saintly bishop is said to have been > officiating at Matins, not celebrating a Mass, and conditions of light > in the chancel at the outset of Matins (before it begins to be light > outside) are something with which a monastic audience will be quite familiar. > > Best again, > John Dillon > > > On Wednesday, October 21, 2009, at 12:58 pm, Henk wrote: > > > Poppycock and balderdash. If this saint was a 7th c person the differnend > > could not have been clear at all. It is well known that clothing of > males > > and females at that time only differed in length not in cut. And priests > > wore their cottes long, down to the feet, like monks. And women. > There > > was > > no real difference between women's clothing and the dress of clerics > except > > maybe for the colour, as the latter tended to be of more sombre hue. > And > > there was certainly no difference at all between shoes for men and women. > > Celebrating mass as a bishop of Capua further obliged him to don liturgical > > dress in the shape of a wide whitish linen garment called an alb, > worn > > over > > the normal clothing and falling to his feet. After that there came the > > chasuble, which was a wideish poncho like mantle, a stole and a > mitre. > > There > > was no way that people could see he was wearing women's clothing > under > > all > > that, and if they had it would not have been clear that it was women's > > clothing either. > > > > Henk > > > > I'm sorry: Vitalian of Capua is a saint of the Regno who, having > been > > absent > > from "saints of the day" for a couple of years, is perhaps not as familiar > > as many of his fellows. He has a brief Vita (BHL 1254) whose repeated > > sensationalism is powered by an improbability drive of some magnitude. > > According to this text, V.'s enemies at Capua (who later > successfully > > got > > rid of him) placed women's clothing and women's shoes in his bedroom > one > > night in the correct expectation that when he arose on the following > > > day he > > would in the darkness dress himself in these and, so attired, celebrate > > Matins before the people and clergy. As the light grew, it became apparent > > to others how V. was dressed; it was widely assumed that V.'s sartorial > > embarrassment arose from unchaste behavior on his part. > > > > The incident is adapted from one in the legendary Vitae of St. > Jerome > > where, > > with similar intent, the same trick is played and J. goes to Matins > > similarly dressed. Probably the easiest version of that to find > will > > be the > > one in the _Legenda aurea_. > > > > Best again, > > John Dillon > > ********************************************************************** > To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME > to: [log in to unmask] > To send a message to the list, address it to: > [log in to unmask] > To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion > to: [log in to unmask] > In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: > [log in to unmask] > For further information, visit our web site: > http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html ********************************************************************** To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: [log in to unmask] For further information, visit our web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html