John

ON ST. JOHN, BISHOP AND CONFESSOR, OF THE CITY OF MONTE MARANO,

In the Farther Principate of the Kingdom of Naples.

In the XI century.

John, bishop and confessor, of Monte Marano in the Farther Principate of the Kingdom of Naples (St.)

J. B. S.

Here we bring forward St. John the bishop, illustrious indeed among his own people and wont to be commemorated with a celebrated yearly cultus most festally on this day in the said city, Known from the Life alone published by Ughelli of whom in our Martyrologies of whatever region or age there is nowhere any memory, at least so far as I have hitherto seen; and — what is most to be wondered at — he has been altogether passed over by Ferrari himself, so diligent and skilful a collector of the Saints of Italy; and the same must be said of the monastic writers, so that he was unknown to Wion, Menard, and even to Bucelinus, and was known first of all and alone to Mabillon, who in vol. VI of the Saints of his Order, part 2, at the end, reported him from the notice received from Ughelli, observing thus concerning him in his preliminary note:

[2] All the knowledge which we have of this blessed man we owe to Ferdinand Ughelli, and reprinted by Mabillon, who in the Catalogue of the bishops of Monte Marano relates St. John, from a Benedictine monk raised to this see by order of Gregory

VII, the Sovereign Pontiff, reckons first in order, although he confesses that others preceded him in this see, but whose names are unascertained. That the Life of this blessed man once existed entire the same author observes, which, written in a codex of kidskin, perished together with the other treasures of the church of Marano in a fire, except two leaves which contained the fragment to be exhibited by us below, preserved not without a miracle. It is strange that our John's name is wanting in the Martyrologies which we have been able to see, since he is held the chief patron of the city and diocese of Marano, under which title his feast is honored in the church on the XVII day of August: his sacred relics are preserved in the cathedral church, besides which there is no parochial title in the city. In what year John died is uncertain. For of his age nothing else could be learned, save that by the care of Gregory VII he was made bishop, wherefore it has seemed good to refer his death to the end of this eleventh century.

[3] The illustrious writer Mabillon did not see, nor could he see, that other edition of Ughelli, which is illustrated from another edition. enlarged and corrected by the care and zeal of Nicholas Coleti, a priest and alumnus of the church of St. Moses, and published at Venice by his brother Sebastian in the year 1721, in which not a few things are corrected which seemed to have been explained by Ughelli too sparingly and meagerly; so that I have not thought that the Addition, however somewhat longer, should be omitted. Passing over, therefore, what the not-sufficiently-praised Ughelli had reported concerning the city and its splendor, I shall here set down first the Life itself as it was published by him, being about to subjoin the Addition of Coleti, by which not only the city but also the cultus of St. John are wonderfully illustrated, and which certainly could not be found elsewhere. Thus Ughelli prefaces the said Life, such as it is:

[4] St. John, a monk of the Benedictine Order, while Gregory VII was Pontiff and was staying at Salerno, Ughelli's preface. was consecrated bishop of Monte Marano by the archbishop of Benevento at his order. He presided most holily, and, famous for many miracles, fell asleep in the Lord on the XVII day of August, and is buried in the Cathedral, where he is piously honored as patron of the city. His Acts, written in a codex of kidskin, were extant; but the sacristy being burned by accident, they too were burned together with the monuments of that church: yet from them two whole kidskin pages remained unharmed, not without a miracle, which are kept in the sacristy; for they contain a part of the holy bishop's Life, written in a rude and simple style, as follows:

THE LIFE

From the edition of Ughelli.

John, bishop and confessor, of Monte Marano in the Farther Principate of the Kingdom of Naples (St.)

BHL Number: 4414

From the text published in Ughelli.

Having greatly resisted being made bishop, Now it befell that at these times the church of Marano lacked its own pastor; and when the fame of so great a man had grown, it pleased the clergy, the people, and the lord of Marano that so great and such a man should be given them as pastor to rule their church. And having taken counsel from Pope Gregory, who was then at Salerno, they sent envoys with honor to seek out such a pastor for themselves; whom the aforesaid Pope, kindly receiving, ordered to remain there until he should inquire concerning the person asked for, whether he were worthy to ascend to so great a height. But the kindly monk, with dovelike simplicity as was his wont, kissing the apostolic feet, unceasingly besought that so great a burden might not be laid upon him ^a.

[2] being compelled by Pope Gregory VII, The Apostolic man, gently answering, said: It behooves us, my son, to suffer many things for our brethren; and as our Lord spared not His own Son, but ordained and willed Him to be offered for us, so in this matter also thou art not to be spared by us; because it is better that thou be likened to a lamp, that thou mayest burn with divine love for thyself and give light to others, than that thou be likened to a coal, which burns for itself and gives no light to others. Thou oughtest also to remember what the Lord Himself said to blessed Peter: If thou lovest Me, feed My sheep. This is our precept, brother: if we love the Lord, let us feed His sheep; and if we do not, we seem not to love the Lord. Wherefore on the Lord's behalf I charge thee to take up His yoke most diligently.

[3] he is consecrated by the archbishop of Benevento and received by his own people. But John, seeing himself humbly shut in and unable to gainsay so great a precept, commended himself to all his charity. Then the Pope, being made glad, sent one of the Cardinals to the archbishop of Benevento, that he should consecrate the aforesaid John as bishop for the church of Marano, asking and charging that he treat him kindly and join him to his friends; which the archbishop fulfilled with a cheerful mind: and receiving the aforenamed John with honor, and by the will and request of the whole people of Marano, he chose and consecrated him. Then St. John, being made bishop of Monte Marano, came surrounded with throngs of clerics and laymen; and the whole people, both of men and of women, flow in throngs to receive so great a father.

[4] In the same year the aforesaid man of God dedicated a certain church by the name of St. Laurence, A church dedicated by him is filled with worms which is situated within that same city, at the entreaty of the lords of the aforesaid city, and appointed in it, for the service of that same church, a priest whom they themselves had asked for. But the devil, envier of good things, who is always an adversary to holy Church, so inflamed that aforesaid priest with his own love that above that very church — that is, in the upper chamber ^b of that same church — he lay with a certain harlot. Wondrous in manner, and beyond measure wonderful! Straightway that whole church was so full of worms that no one could walk through that church save upon worms; which the inhabitants of that place were zealous to relate to the lord bishop John.

[5] At length the lord bishop came thither, and, when he saw what had been done, he groaned; by the crime of a priest, whom the Saint deservedly punishes. but turning before the cross he prayed at some length; and after he had finished his prayer, turning to the clergy and to the people standing around, he said: Do you all implore with us the mercy of the Lord, that of His clemency He may deign to show to us His servants, out of His mercy, for what this wondrous sign has been wrought, and on account of what that sign has been shown. And his prayer being divinely heard, the crime committed was very quickly made manifest; and straightway that priest came, and being examined by the holy prelate as to what he had done, he could not hide his crime, but confessed before all what and how it had befallen; whereupon the prelate, exceedingly saddened at so great a crime so shamefully ^c committed by a priest, suspended him from the priesthood, enjoining upon him fasts with an almsgiving laid upon him.

[6] In the time when the man of God, the prelate John, governed the church of Marano, When wine failed the laboring workmen he unceasingly and studiously bore care not only for heavenly things but also for earthly things pertaining to the increase of the church. On a certain day, for the work of that same church, near the river Calore, having many men with him, he appointed some of them to cut wood and others to tear up the turf. Now there was a thick wood where these things were being done, not far from St. Potitus's, which he desired utterly to root out, that a field might there be made, from which he might have gain whence to bestow upon the poor.

[7] But it befell on that day that very many came thither from the castle of Baiano, and wine failed to help him in carrying out that work. And when many came thither, seeing the servant of God briskly performing the labor with his own hands, they straightway set to work manfully with him in the task, and to tear up by the roots the dense thickets and the rough roots ^d. And when many were there to labor with him, it happened that on that day wine failed him. Now at that time there was in that country a great scarcity of wine; but since the limbs of the laborers must naturally be refreshed, when the hour of taking food again was drawing near, his servant came, saying: Lord, we are altogether without wine.

[8] Then the Saint caused a certain servant of his named Eustace to be summoned, whom he bade go quickly to Monte Marano and could not be found elsewhere, and seek the hamlets, that if he could find wine, whether to buy or in any way, he might come as quickly as possible and bring it with him. And when he went and by no means found what he had sought, at length the servant, returning without wine to the man of God, announced to him before all how he had sought and had not been able to find. Then the Saint, filled as he was with the grace of God, said to them: Though the juice of the vine be not ours, let the grace of the Holy Spirit be with us, who ever waters the hearts of His servants with His love and abundantly gladdens them; for He is able to grant grace and gladness to His servants who stand fast in His commandments and in their work.

[9] water changed into wine refreshes them all, Then he bids the men recline beside the bank of the river; and presently, with cheerful aspect as was his wont and with simple heart, having hope in God, he charges a certain servant of his, saying: Bring us a flagon ^e of the river water, that we may distribute it to the workmen of the church to drink. Straightway the servant, all beholding, having drawn the water of the river, brought it to the man of God. But almighty God, who is everywhere present and always hears His own — who heard Moses in the desert, when the people murmured, not crying out but silent — He, foreknowing the wishes of His servant and willing that he should be made known to men in the world, of how great merit he is and how powerful with God, did not long defer those things which he asked not with voice but with heart and mind, but granted them very quickly: for not words but the desires of a pure heart make voices before the most gracious and most sacred ears of God.

[10] and he wondrously exhorts them Hence it is that the man of God, the prelate John, hoping in the Lord, deserved straightway to obtain from heaven what with pure heart and humble mind, not by speaking but by keeping silence, he asked. When the water had been brought, as soon as the Saint blessed it and gave it to those reclining to drink, that water was wondrously changed into wine. And straightway, when they began to taste not the savor of water but of wine, marveling greatly at this among themselves and utterly astounded at so great a miracle, for exceeding joy rising from the table, they cast themselves at the Saint's feet with tears, saying: Holy man of God, pray for us; for we see and have known a great marvel this day, which we believe to have been wrought wholly by thy holy merits.

[11] to give thanks to God, And when the Saint had learned why they did this, he said to them: Men, brethren, and sons, it behooves us to praise God, and for our offenses with worthy satisfaction to ask mercy and pardon from Him who has deigned this day to bestow upon us such great benefits: I believe indeed that He abides in you who once said to His disciples: I am the true vine, and you the branches; he that abideth in Me,

and I in him. But He, the Almighty, seeing your charity and your works and your faith, and how faithfully you have labored to His honor and for the profit of mother Church, would not have you left empty of the grace of His love, but filled.

[12] and forbids the matter to be disclosed to any one, Wherefore believe that what you see done among yourselves was done not by my merits but for your sakes, that from henceforth and always you may abide firmly and more securely in His commandments. But I ask you, and charge you, that so long as I enjoy this life you take care to disclose to no one what God has granted you for your good deeds. And they, consenting to his admonitions and prayers, told it to no one so long as he lived. But the aforesaid man of God, the prelate John, happily running the course of this life, as the discourse that follows will declare, not long after paid his debt and passed from this present world to the Lord.

[13] and not long after dies holily. Those men, therefore, after his death, were zealous faithfully to relate what had been done. But we, to the praise of our eternal God and Savior, who by the merits of this holy prelate deigned in his times to work such things, and for the strengthening of the minds of the faithful, have thought it worthy to write what was related to us by the faithful. And now let us implore the clemency of this Saint, that for the remission of our offenses he may not delay to confer help upon us with Him, to whom be honor and glory unto the ages of ages. Amen.

ANNOTATIONS.

THE ADDITION OF NICHOLAS COLETI

To Ughelli, in the Venetian edition.

John, bishop and confessor, of Monte Marano in the Farther Principate of the Kingdom of Naples (St.)

To the notices given above from Ughelli Among the seats of episcopal dignity shining with more ancient mitres in the province of the Farther Principate (formerly called Samnium, as John Vincent Ciarlanti notes, but otherwise among the most recent writers the territory of the Hirpini) is that which is called of Monte Marano, upon which we have thought we must dwell a little more briefly, since among the writers of ancient matters no author is found who makes even the slightest mention of it. Hence, beyond what has been heaped together by Ughelli, there remain a few things to be added out of the many transmitted to me by the illustrious Baptista Petra of the patricians of the city of Rossano, an eminent jurist and filled with every kind of erudition; to whom goads for writing were given and spurs applied by the most illustrious and most reverend lord Celestine Labonia, bishop of the aforesaid city, who died last year.*

[2] The city of Monte Marano, then, is no less ancient than the rest in the said province of the Farther Principate; there is here added a fuller description of Marano, and some monuments out of the ruins of its most flourishing age echo this truth, appearing through a very few remnants still within the enclosure of the now shortened district, amid so great a length of times as excludes the memory of all things — by which our belief must needs be captivated, the authors being silent upon the matter. There are likewise those who declare the city in its beginnings to have been exceeding stately, filled with a vast populace and adorned with lofty buildings; although at present it is discerned as very small, and scarcely peopled with 700 inhabitants and built up with meaner little cottages.

[3] For Jerome de Marra, once chief chaplain of the Catholic Majesty in the kingdom of Naples, and useful lord of this city, testifies in a certain little book and it is praised for its throng of people, that he found in the registers of the royal chamber of accounts at Naples that in centuries gone by a very numerous people inhabited our city; nay, that it was surrounded by 12 little towns or hamlets, which afterwards were leveled to the ground in the common plague which the kingdom suffered in the year 1500, and in the last completion of that same ruin in the year 1656; whose remnants, scarcely visible in certain old buildings, now survive.

[4] And this assertion of Jerome the words in the Life of St. John seem to confirm, and from the origin of its name which Ughelli here reported, as follows: The peoples of Marano flowed together in throngs to receive such and so great a pastor; likewise the remnants of the walls which followed it, as also those of the many towers, which they commonly call Fortini, with which it is surrounded. But if you ask the origin and cause of the name of the said city, from the most ancient tradition of the citizens it is called Mons Maranus, or Marianus, from a certain Caius Marius, who as founder of the city caused it to be built upon the mountain. Others again will have it so called from this, that the cathedral church with which it is adorned is dedicated under the Marian title of the undefiled Mother of God assumed into heaven.

[5] and for its abundance of things. For the rest, the city is very pleasant, and abounds in all plenty of herbs and fruits; and since it is situated upon a mountain toward the eastern quarter, 18 miles distant from the metropolitan city of Benevento, the most flowery breathings of its breezes establish there a healthfulness of air and a richness of soil, so that from it there springs a people thrice robust and never failing under the yoke of labor; as also it is seen most abundant in every kind of sheep feeding in flocks upon its own soil; and thence milk foods of most exquisite savor, filled with a pleasant richness, and delicate meats, are seen in particular in its holdings.

[6] The first bishops unknown. But the time at which this city was adorned with the pre-eminence of a bishopric is unknown. It is indeed established that St. John, with whom Ughelli begins this series, was not the first prelate of this see, since in the aforesaid Life of St. John this is read: Now it befell that at these times the church of Marano lacked its own pastor. And therefore, since in the time of Gregory VII (he flourished in the year of restored salvation 1073) the election is narrated to have been made of the aforesaid St. John to this chair for lack of its own pastor, it follows that long before this church was distinguished with the dignity of a bishopric.

[7] Praises of the cathedral church, Its cathedral is most beautiful and likewise most ample, and is divided into three aisles, of which one shines forth with the cross; on both sides it is most magnificently adorned with a support of columns; likewise it is not destitute of an ample and noble sanctuary, choir, and chapels, beautiful with a large but rich vault, and of an underground receptacle for bodies, enriched here and there at the side with two very convenient stone staircases (they call it the catacomb, commonly subcorpo); it shines with three ample and resounding bells and with a tower suited to them, from the pious and generous restoration of the prelate de Albergone, in whose time was found a leaden chest, from which it was ascertained that the church of Marano had received the marks of consecration in the year 1494 from bishop Julian Ysopus.

[8] in which is an altar enriched with Indulgences; But the beauty of this church is had specially from the adornment of a certain chapel, which, wrought with a spacious and elegant vault, breathes no small magnificence. It is on the Gospel side of the high altar, and its altar, although once sacred to the worship of the angels alone, at present nevertheless keeps the ark of the New Testament — the Eucharistic food, I mean — by the work and munificence of the prelate de Labonia lately deceased. The said altar has been enriched by Gregory XIII with a perpetual and ample treasure of indulgences on every day. And the aforesaid chapel was formerly of the right of patronage of the lords of the illustrious family de Marra, who were the useful lords of the city.

[9] likewise of the Chapter and the bishopric. The Chapter of this chief church consists of 12 canons, among whom there are only four dignities, namely the archdeacon, the archpriest, and two precentors, all of whom serve it harmoniously to the greater glory of God, as also of the most undefiled Virgin Mary, with all fitting assiduity, pomp, and skill in Gregorian chant. Of the revenues of the episcopal table it is better to be silent, since in the common destruction of the city these too suffered a notable diminution, so that today they are very slender and scarcely sufficient for the prelate's support; nor for the rest is it attended by an ample diocese: for, the said 18 hamlets having fallen, the episcopal see has remained authorized over only a threefold and not very extensive holding of suffragan places, namely of the old citadel, of Castelfranco, and of Volturara.

[10] The church breathes a venerable sanctity because of the notable relics of the Saints which are preserved in it. Notable relics of the Saints, Notable are a part of the arm of St. Sebastian, M.; a bony part of St. Anthony the abbot; an entire tooth of St. Peter, prince of the Apostles; two other teeth of St. Apollonia, virgin and martyr; a bone of St. Mark the Evangelist, of St. Paulinus bishop of Nola, of St. Vitus M., of St. Charles Borromeo, and innumerable others, but small, which it would be long enough to enumerate.

[11] But among the rest the sacred remains of St. John, bishop of the city, are held in the highest veneration by the citizens, among which the sacred remains of St. John are eminent, whose head is in a silver grating, carved with an old but beautiful design, while the rest of his body is in an altar dedicated to him by special vow within the catacomb of the aforesaid cathedral, where in the year 1604 the Genoese bishop had laid it in a leaden chest. But thereafter another prelate, his successor, namely Albergone, saw to the building of a most beautiful reliquary of walnut wood, with gold richly interlaid, wrought with paintings, figures, and other rich ornaments. In which reliquary, after many relics of the Saints had been laid, the said leaden chest being at last drawn out of the aforesaid catacomb, the sacred bones of John were laid away with a solemn translation, after they had been buried in the ground for a circuit of 18 years.

[12] But it is worthy of special admiration that one of the aforesaid bones is seen even to the present surrounded with blood as if freshly shed. Of which surrounding this cause is given from the most ancient tradition of the city: namely that it befell and notably a bone surrounded with blood. that when a certain impious man attempted the theft of some part of the sacred bone, blood miraculously flowed thence, and in testimony of the prodigy a bloody stain thereafter remained as it were carved into the bone.

[13] The arm a present help in necessities. But in the said leaden chest newly drawn out of the lowest catacomb there were found among the bones of St. John four leathern sandals, a pontifical apron, some napkins, linens, and veils, in which certain anonymous relics were wrapped: all which, not without a miracle, after so many centuries are seen incorrupt to this day. And the citizens are wont, in cruel storms and other necessities which press the city more heavily, to draw the arm of the said holy prelate from the reliquary and to have it carried by a priest clothed in a stole, with lights kindled, before the door of the church; and suddenly the fierceness of the air grows gentle, the hailstorms cease, and the citizens obtain what they ask.

[14] The wondrous construction and preservation of the wooden chair. Among the other memorials, finally, of the aforesaid St. John, his seat or episcopal chair is preserved, built of wood whose material is not known, put together without nails, but beautifully fashioned with most excellent workmanship and ancient carving. And it still remains untouched and incorrupt, although it has been broken in various and wondrous ways on account of the countless translations which it has undergone from place to place. But most recently

it was placed by the aforesaid bishop Albergone in a lofty place opposite the altar, in a chapel sacred by special dedication to the holy prelate, that thus with the common cultus and fitting homage it might be more conveniently venerated by all the citizens.

* 1720.