medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Today (6. January) is the feast day of:
the Epiphany. This is a feast commemorating several "manifestations" of
Christ, including his baptism and the coming of the magi. Matthew 2:1-12
reports the visit of magi from the east, who brought gold, frankincense,
and myrrh to the baby Jesus. Tertullian was the first to call them "three
kings," and they came to be identified from the ninth century or so as
Melchior, Caspar, and Balthasar. Empress Helena is supposed to have
brought the relics of the three kings to Constantinople, whence they were
taken to Milan. Then Frederick Barbarossa, after destroying Milan, gave
the relics to Cologne in 1164, where they are magnificently enshrined in a
gold reliquary behind the high altar of the cathedral. They were one of
Europe's most important pilgrimage goals until the eighteenth century.
Nilamon (?) Nilamon was a hermit in Egypt. When he was elected as bishop,
he barricaded himself in his cell, and then prayed until he died, while the
other bishops waited for him outside of his hermitage.
Petrus of Canterbury (blessed) (d. 607) Petrus was among the first group
of monks sent to England by Gregory the Great. He was the first abbot of
St. Peter and Paul (later St. Augustine's) in Canterbury. He was drowned
during a missionary journey in 607. His cult won formal approbation in
1915.
Erminold (d. 1121) Erminold was a child oblate at Hirsau (Germany). In
1107 he was put in charge of the monastery Lorsch to reform it, becoming
abbot in 1110. From 1114 on, Erminold was the first prior of Prufening,
founded by Otto of Bamberg, becoming abbot in 1117. He ruled his monastery
with all the rigor of the Hirsau-Cluniac reform, maddening one of the monks
so much in the process that he beat Erminold down with a piece of wood; the
abbot soon died of his injuries. Thus, Erminold is accounted a martyr.
His relics were raised in 1238, and his elaborate tomb can still be seen in
the church of St. Georg in Prufening.
Petrus Thomas (d. 1366) Petrus was born in 1305 in southwest France. He
joined the Discalced Carmelites in 1325 and proceeded to hold a series of
important offices in the order, including acting as a papal legate. In
1354 he became bishop of Lipari, and in 1363 archbishop of Crete. The main
goal of his life was to reunite eastern and western Christendom. According
to tradition, he went on crusade and was so badly injured that he later
died. His cult was approved in 1608.
Andreas Corsini (d. 1374) Andreas, born probably in 1301, became a
Carmelite. He was provincial general for Tuscany and in 1349 became bishop
of Fiesole. His body is still uncorrupted today. He was canonized in
1629.
Dr. Phyllis G. Jestice
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