medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Today (13. November) is the feast day of:
Arcadius and companions (d. 437) Prosper of Aquitaine tells of these
martyrs in his chronicle. They were victims of the Vandal
persecution in North Africa. King Gaiseric did his best to wear
these anti-Arians down, having them beaten and put to heavy labor, so
they eventually died of exposure, maltreatment, etc.
Brice (d. 444) Brice was a native of Turenne, raised by Martin of
Tours. Brice was highly troublesome and even contemptuous of
Martin---but eventually repented and begged for forgiveness. B.
succeeded Martin as bishop of Tours. He had a stormy episcopate,
including a 7-year exile after he was accused of engaging in illicit
sex. But he eventually made amends so well that he was regarded as a
saint immediately after his death. B's cult spread to England---thus
today is also the anniversary of the St. Brice's Day massacre of
1002, when Aethelred the Unready ordered the massacre of all Danes in
England.
Maxellendis (d. c. 670) Maxellendis was a noble girl from the area
of Cambrai. She refused to marry; her parents told her to shut up
and started planning the wedding; she ran away and took refuge with
her old nurse. M's betrothed found her hiding place and carried her
off. But she broke loose and started to run away. Her intended was
extremely angry by this time, so he whacked at her with his sword.
She was killed and the thwarted bridegroom went blind on the spot.
Miracles were reported at M's tomb and when, several years later, her
relics were translated, her would-be husband publicly confessed his
crime and begged for forgiveness---his sight was immediately restored.
Nicholas I (d. 867) Nicholas the Great was definitely one of the
most influential popes of the MA, one of only three popes to win
general recognition as "great." He was an adamant defender of
theories of papal primacy and of indissoluble marriage.
Abbo of Fleury (d. 1004) Abbo was one of the great scholars of the
tenth century (one of my computers is named after him!) He was also
a monastic reformer, which is how he met his end: he set out to
reform the monastery of La Reole in Gascony, but the monks didn't
want to be reformed, and during the course of a quarrel A. was
stabbed to death. So he is of course a martyr.
Homobonus (d. 1197) Homobonus of Cremona was a married man, the son
of a tailor. He was famous for his generosity and general goodness.
When he was about 50 he gave up his business and devoted himself
full-time to charitable works. After his death, he was immediately
venerated as a saint, and the bishop of Cremona went off to Rome to
make the case for H's canonization. Innocent III was quickly
convinced, and canonized H. in 1199.
**********************************************************************
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
|