medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
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
|