Crescentius

CONCERNING ST. CRESCENTIUS,

SUBDEACON AT FLORENCE IN ETRURIA.

ABOUT THE YEAR 396.

Crescentius, Subdeacon, at Florence in Etruria (St.)

BY G. H.

Among the more ancient Bishops of the Florentine Church, Saint Zenobius is celebrated, the fifth Bishop of the said Church, who, as Ferdinando Ughelli the Florentine witnesses, was elected to that summit of dignity almost in the year 376, and administered the Church entrusted to him until the year 407; The age of Saint Zenobius Bishop. and on May 25, full of merits and conspicuous for sanctity, flew up to the heavens. Meanwhile Ughelli confesses that there is such diversity in investigating the reckoning of times in those things which pertain to this Saint, that unless the truth be tracked by conjecture, it seems very difficult to be explained. The same seems to be said of his two Clerics, his Subdeacon Saint Crescentius: inscribed in the catalogue of the Saints. One of these is Eugenius the Deacon, inserted in the Roman Martyrology on November 17: the other Crescentius the Subdeacon, to whom April 19 is sacred here, also noted in the Roman Martyrology with these words: At Florence, of Saint Crescentius Confessor, disciple of Saint Zenobius Bishop.

[2] Concerning the life of this Crescentius we give a certain eulogy, composed a few centuries ago, as we transcribed it at Florence from the Collection of ancient Ecclesiastical Offices Mss. contained in codex 691 folio 45, Life eulogy from Mss. with the most illustrious Senator Carlo Strozzi: whose diligent industry in searching out the antiquities of Florentine matters both sacred and profane, we could not sufficiently admire. Now this eulogy of the Life was distinguished into nine Lessons, which were usually recited at Matins. In these it is said that Saint Crescentius was buried by Bishop Saint Zenobius, so that he must necessarily have departed life before him. Indeed it is added that his passing was announced by letter of Saint Zenobius to Saint Ambrose Bishop of Milan, therefore necessarily before the year 397 or the following, characters of the time in which he died in which Saint Ambrose put off this mortal life, he must be said to have died. Besides, he is said to have passed to heavenly glory in the time of the Emperors Honorius and Arcadius, who after their father Theodosius the Great, in the consulship of Sextus Anicius Olybrius and Sextus Anicius Probus, on January 17 having departed life, began to reign. These characters being set, Saint Crescentius must necessarily be said to have died either in the said year 395, or in one of the two following. There was not yet in the time of those Saints introduced into use the Era of Christ born, wrongly referred to the years of Christ, which the author, more studious of piety than skilled in antiquities, with very poorly drawn calculations employed, saying that Crescentius died in the 24th year above four hundred: for before this year Saints Ambrose and Zenobius had ceased to live, and the Emperors Arcadius and Honorius themselves.

[3] memory in the sacred calendars: Meanwhile this parachronism is found transcribed in the Ms. Martyrology, which the aforesaid Strozzi communicated: and in the same words is contained in the Martyrology edited by Francesco de Bonacursi Presbyter at Florence in the year 1486, which are these: At Florence, in the parts of Tuscany, Saint Crescentius, Subdeacon of Saint Zenobius Bishop of the same city, whose life shone by virtue and miracles, in the year 424 was honorably buried by Saint Zenobius, then Bishop there, in the Cathedral Church, and was praised in a letter to Saint Ambrose of Milan Bishop announcing his death. So he has it there, which confirms the cultus of Saint Crescentius, and proves the eulogy of the life, which we give, at least composed in the 15th century. That the same exists in the Vatican library, we know from some Catalogue transmitted thence. There exists in Surius the printed Life of Saint Zenobius, composed by John Archpresbyter of Arezzo around the year 1430: in which the author about to treat of his aforementioned disciples, The author of the eulogy Simplicianus promises that he will collect from their conversation and life, what he found scattered in the writings of Simplicianus and others. We may opine that this Simplicianus is the author, both of this eulogy of Saint Crescentius, and of others about the Florentine Saints, chiefly Zenobius and Eugenius, similarly distributed into Lessons for use in choir.

[4] But whence could he or whoever else coeval with him have drawn what they wrote? Doubtless they had to draw and collect everything from the narrations of the Florentine people handed down by hand. after the burning of the church For indeed Laurentius Archbishop Amalfitanus the second, elected in the year 1030, in that Life of Saint Zenobius which he wrote at Florence, and which from an old codex of the monastery of Saints Vincent and Anastasius at Aquae-Salviae in Rome Ferdinando Ughelli received and published in the Bishops of Florence, cautions lest those things which, he says, we have learned from very religious men, who truthfully asserted, drawn from the memory of elders, that these indeed had been anciently written, but consumed by a fire which happened by chance, seem to be of less authority. And if this happened with the deeds of the master himself, how much less ought we to esteem to have been preserved, if any things outside his Acts were separately written, concerning his disciples?

[5] Now what Constantine Ghini afterward composed concerning Saint Crescentius in the Natales of the Canon Saints; and Filippo Ferrari in the Catalogue of Saints of Italy, more recent encomia, drawn from the Life of Saint Zenobius compiled by the said John, it is not worthwhile to add here: let it suffice to say, that in these and others, while Crescentius is called a Canon, and mention of the Florentine Canons is brought in, the authors speak from the usage of their own, not of the ancient, time. Nicholas Brautius, Bishop of Sarsina, in his Poetic Martyrology, honors Saint Crescentius with this distich:

Crescentius grew immeasurably by lofty signs,

Until his body entered the ground, his spirit the stars.

EULOGY OF THE LIFE

From a Florentine Ms. Breviary.

Crescentius, Subdeacon, at Florence in Etruria (St.)

BHL Number: 1984

[1] Born of Catholic parents, Crescentius, a Florentine citizen, drew his origin from honorable and Catholic men of honorable lineage: whom when his parents had received from God with ineffable joy of their youth, they had regenerated by the font of sacred baptism; and they besought God that he might proceed from virtues to virtues; and that it might be impressed on his memory, they ordered that he be called Crescentius. The years of infancy having been completed under the diligent care of his nurse, he is handed over to the study of letters: he is piously educated in letters: in which in a short time he is wonderfully adorned. For he was angelic in appearance, in conversation appropriate to it and empty of vices: an assiduous observer of the will of his parents, wholly a stranger to the familiarity of his contemporaries: desirous to learn sciences, to visit the church, to hear the divine law above all things solicitous: withdrawn by every perfection from all those vices in which that kind of men is wont to be entangled.

[2] He came to the notice of the holy Bishop Zenobius, then Bishop of the Florentine city, fame running through the mouths of all citizens: he sent for his father: he is handed over to Saint Zenobius the Bishop. he sought him: having received him kindly, that his life and doctrine might shine in the Church of Christ, he took care so far as he could. In the beginnings of his adolescence, as I think, troubled by inexperienced fires, he afflicts the flesh: he began by strict fasting, and rough hair-shirt upon bare body, and vigils and prayers to afflict the flesh; instructed by God lest the Lord's handmaid become the mistress of the servant, and lest the purity which went forth with him from the womb should labor by wickedly going through the precipices of vices.

[3] When Bishop Zenobius beheld these things, filled with the highest joy, he promoted him to the Clericate, he becomes a Cleric and Subdeacon: and at the appointed time of the Cathedral Church, with the assent of his Canons, he crowned him with the diadem of the Canonicate and Subdiaconate. The aforesaid holy young man therefore, considering himself joined to Canons so wonderful in life, knowledge and composure of morals, and bound to the sacred Order; began to be advanced from virtues to virtues, with humble, prudent, devout and learned conversation. At the appointed times in the church with others he rendered attentive and assiduous prayers of the Canonical Hours: to greater, equal and lesser, according to the state of each, with honorable rendering of obedience, reverence, and diligence he showed himself; [he loves virtue:

with] such great guardianship in the observance of his purity, that he never without worthy testimony received any man or woman for his speech, he is held by all as an Angel: acquaintance, friendship or conversation: and where he could suspect anyone, of whatever age or state, to be contrary to his honorableness, he left him.

[4] Whom already the Prelates, whom the subjects of his congregation, and also all the fellow-citizens held in such reverence, by Saint Ambrose what he would become is foretold: that in common talk, in his absence, they declared that he was not a man, but an Angel sent from heaven, humanized as an example to them: which things most greatly promoted him to God, and among all his associates and others continually provoked the Christian worshiper to most humble reverence, obedience, and honor to be shown.

[5] When according to custom Blessed Ambrose had visited his most dear Saint Zenobius at Florence, and had found Crescentius with him, at the first sight, divinely inspired, he recognized who he was and how great he was to be, told Saint Zenobius in order, and united him to himself with the greatest affection. From then Saint Zenobius made him stay with himself in the Episcopal palace assiduously with Eugenius his Archdeacon, a man of highest sanctity; and took care with every affection, He imitates the virtues of his own, of Saint Eugenius and of Saint Zenobius, that he should be conformed to the morals of Bishop Ambrose, of Eugenius, and his own: which is marvellous concerning him, he so took up their morals in all things, that as long as he lived he did not vary in any case.

[6] O adolescence truly adorned with virtues, which merited to be joined to the fellowship of the Holy Bishops Ambrose, Zenobius, and Eugenius! he loves their fellowship: Not without merit. For they saw his intellect adorned with prudence, his will with justice, with temperance in the concupiscible, with constancy in the irascible: with which shining in the highest degree, they eagerly received him running after them; taking an example from John the Evangelist in the Apocalypse, assuming the Archbishop with the other consecrated ones.

[7] On a certain day therefore, while he was staying with Saint Bishop Ambrose at Milan; and as the fame of his sanctity ran hither and thither, two men having demons were brought with great labor to him by a multitude; he frees 2 possessed by the sign of the holy Cross: at the prayers of those bringing them, he gave himself to prayer, made over them the sign of the Holy Cross, restored them to pristine health, and ordered that they return to their own. Who fulfilling the orders, gave thanks to God, and divulged everywhere whatever had happened. Which having seen, the Saint of God, having received the blessing from the holy Bishop Ambrose, returned to Florence and announced to no one what had happened. But Blessed Ambrose announced the deed to Saint Zenobius. Who filled with joy, showed himself as knowing nothing, before, with fame quickly running, the whole city of Florence stirred up acclaimed him.

[8] When the young man had returned to Florence, and saw the unusual honor being rendered to him by all on account of the publication of the miracles, he fled the fellowship of all, gave himself to abstinence, prayer, fasts beyond the usual manner; and besides small food and clothing according to the decency of his state, he wished to hold nothing from the earth: but he procured that everything be transferred to heavenly things through the hands of the poor. On a certain occasion, when a man deprived of natural sight, under pretext of weakness, had gone to him in the Cathedral Church, and sought with many tears that through his merits sight be restored to him, prostrated at his knees, he illumines a blind man moved by piety he bent his knee, and gave himself to prayer with eyes raised to heaven weeping: he made the sign of the Cross over his eyes, and at once he gloriously received the sight of his eyes; and returning to his own, he announced to all what had been done. But although the Lord showed such sanctity to be in him by evident signs, he nevertheless wished humbly to remain hidden by affable conversation: showing that he knew nothing of those things which others truly affirmed, although he could not conceal them because of the signs of the Apostolic life, which he assiduously observed in words and deeds.

[9] His body weakened, foreknowing his end to be imminent, he went to the holy Bishop Zenobius, fortified with the Sacraments of the Church he dies. and with the greatest affection and most joyful face set forth in order. From the same with the highest devotion he received all the Sacraments of holy Mother Church, and a few days interposed, with the aforesaid Bishop Zenobius and all his associates together with Saint Eugenius standing by, lying down in his little bed and signing himself with the sign of the Cross, he fixed his gaze on heaven, and among the hands of Saint Zenobius weeping and praying with the standing Clergy, sent forth his soul, and penetrated the heavenly places on the 13th day before the Kalends of May in the year of the Lord * 424, in the time of the Emperors Honorius and Arcadius. Then the Bishop Saint Zenobius, with the greatest honor of the Clergy and all the Florentine people, anointed with aromatics in the Basilica of Saint Salvator, with devotion buried him, publicly preached his life, he is buried in the basilica of Saint Salvator, and announced his passage to holy Bishop Ambrose in his letters.

ANNOTATIONS.

b The same:

He entirely cured some paralytics at various times in the city of Florence, and to two entirely blind, with many standing by, he restored the brightness of light.

* Perhaps 396.