 |
 |
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture Today (28. January) is the feast day of: John of Reomay (d. 544) John was an early leader of the monastic movement in Francia. He became a monk at Lerins and later returned to his native town (village?) of Reomay to found a monastery, later named Mount St. Jean in his honor. Paulinus of Aquileia (d. 804) Paulinus was a farmer in his youth, but became a priest noted for his scholarship. In c. 776 he was named patriarch of Aquileia. P. was a favorite of Charlemagne, representing the king/emperor at church councils. P. denounced Adoptionism both at a synod and in writing; he also preached in Carinthia and Styria and sent missionaries to the Avars. Charlemagne (d. 814) Canonized by an anti-pope in the twelfth century, when popular devotion to him became common (encouraged by Frederick Barbarossa during his fights with various popes). A feast in Charlemagne's honor was made compulsory in France in 1475. Benedict XIV allowed Chuck the title "blessed." He certainly deserves "saint" status more than many saintly kings---he was a defender of the papacy, very strong-armed promoter of religious reform, sponsor of missionaries, and pious Christian. Amadeus of Lausanne (blessed) (d. 1159) Amadeus was a member of the Franconian royal house, says my source (I confess I don't know what that would mean in the twelfth century---dukes of Franken?). He became a monk at Clairvaux in 1124, abbot of Hautecombe in 1139, and bishop of of Lausanne in 1144. A. served as co-regent of Savoy when Duke Amadeus III went on the 2nd Crusade, and in 1155 became chancellor of Burgundy. A's cult was approved in 1910. Peter Nolasco (d. 1258) Peter was a French nobleman who gave his wealth to ransom Christian prisoners from the Moors. He was co-founder of the Mercedarian Order, dedicated to the ransom of captives. He was canonized in 1628. Thomas Aquinas (d. 1274) Thomas was the son of Count Landulf of Aquino (Italy), a very well-connected family related both to the Hohenstaufen and Capetians. He was given to Monte Cassino as an oblate at the age of five, then went to finish his education at Naples and became a Dominican there in 1244---a move so opposed by his family that they kidnapped him and imprisoned him for 15 months in an effort to get him to change his mind. It didn't work. T. became a mastery of theology at Paris and taught at Paris, Naples, Anagni, Orvieto, Rome, and Viterbo. And of course he wrote and wrote and wrote, especially forging a link between Aristotelian philosophy and Christian theology. Tom was canonized in 1323 and declared a doctor of the church in 1567. He became patron saint of all universities, colleges, and schools in 1880. Peter Thomas (d. 1366) Never formally canonized, but his feast authorized among the Carmelites in 1608, Peter Thomas was a French Carmelite, known for his preaching and drafted into the papal diplomatic service. The many activities of his life include being named archbishop of Candia in 1363 and titular patriarch of Constantinople in 1364, making peace between Venice and Hungary, trying to reunite the eastern and western churches, leading a military expedition to Constantinople in 1359 as papal legate, and in 1365 leading an attack on Alexandria. The last activity did him in; he was seriously wounded in the unsuccessful assault and died three months later. ********************************************************************** 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