Severus

ON ST. SEVERUS, BISHOP OF RAVENNA, ST. VINCENTIA HIS WIFE, ST. INNOCENTIA, VIRGIN, THEIR DAUGHTER,

ABOUT THE YEAR 390

Preliminary Commentary.

Severus, Bishop, at Ravenna (St.) Vincentia, his wife, at Ravenna (St.) Innocentia, Virgin, their daughter, at Ravenna (St.)

By I. B.

Section 1. The feast day of Sts. Severus, Vincentia, and Innocentia.

[1] The Kalends of January are graced by St. Severus of Ravenna, Martyr; the Kalends of February by St. Severus, likewise of Ravenna, Bishop, but a Confessor -- although the latter is also assigned to January 1 by some, and the former to February 1 by others. So that what will be said about his deeds and his era may become clearer, it is fitting here to set forth what the Martyrologies proclaim about him on various days. The memorial of St. Severus in the Martyrologies. The ancient Roman Martyrology, which we commonly call that of St. Jerome, reads: "At Ravenna, of Severus the Bishop." Bede, Rabanus, the manuscripts of St. Maximin and St. Martin of Tournai: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop." Bellinus of Padua, and certain manuscripts of Ravenna: "Of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor."

[2] Other Martyrologies draw somewhat from his Acts. Molanus in his additions to Usuard: with an encomium drawn from the Acts "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor, whom God raised from the craft of wool-working to the episcopate." The modern Roman Martyrology: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop, who on account of his outstanding merits was elected by the sign of a dove." Maurolycus: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop, who said while in ecstasy that he had buried Geminianus, Bishop of Modena, after his death, and who ordained Heraclianus as Bishop of Pesaro." Constantius Felicius: "Severus the Bishop, born of the lowest origin, a weaver, lived with his wife in the most holy poverty. When he had gone to the church together with others to observe the election of a Bishop, and a white dove had descended upon his head three times, especially concerning his election he was elected Archbishop of Ravenna by the unanimous consent of the Fathers; in which dignity he lived for a long time, producing great proofs of holiness and of learning divinely infused into him; at length, having foreknown the hour of his death, after celebrating Mass in the presence of all the people, still clothed in his sacred vestments, he buried himself in a tomb, placing himself in the middle between his wife and daughter, having ordered them to yield their place to him as much as was needed; and thus, bidding farewell to the people, he expired, concerning his death in the time of the Emperor Jovian; thereafter he was made illustrious by many miracles. He was present in ecstasy at the death of St. Geminianus, Bishop of Modena, and he ordained Heraclianus as Bishop of Pesaro." Whether he died under the Emperor Jovian will become clear below. Galesius has this about him: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor. This man, a commoner, seeking a livelihood for himself and his family by wool-working, at the time when in that city, upon the death of Marcellinus, arrangements were being made for the election of a Bishop, was divinely declared Bishop, a dove having flown to his ears; which, when first repelled by him, again settled upon his head. Thus having obtained the episcopate, from a wool-worker he was miraculously made the greatest Theologian; in the Council of Sardica his deeds in the Council of Sardica he fought with singular courage against the Arians on behalf of Athanasius; and he accomplished many other things admirably by the gift of God. Laden with the praise of these deeds and of a most holy life, and with the merits of episcopal virtues, at last worn out by old age, when he had been divinely informed of the certain day on which he was to depart from the body to heaven, after performing the sacred rites in the customary manner and convening all the priests and all the people of Ravenna, he preached most solemnly about celestial glory; when he had finished, still clothed in his sacred vestments, he proceeded to his sepulchre, where, kneeling, and with hands and eyes raised toward heaven, as if humbly pouring forth prayers, he fell asleep in the Lord."

[3] The feast day of his daughter and wife on this day is recorded by the manuscript Florarium: "At Ravenna, the birthday of St. Severus, first a weaver, afterwards Bishop and Confessor of the same city; The memorial of Sts. Vincentia and Innocentia. of Vincentia his wife, and Innocentia the Virgin, their daughter, in the year of salvation 420." Hermann Greeven the Carthusian, in his additions to Usuard: "At Ravenna, the deposition of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor, who, seeking his livelihood from wool-working, was designated by a dove sent from heaven as the one to be elevated to the episcopate. Others hold that on this day the memorial is kept of him and of Vincentia his wife and their daughter Innocentia; but that his deposition falls on the eleventh before the Kalends of November." Canisius has the same, but expresses the last part thus: "Some hold that on this day the memorial of his wife and daughter is observed; but on October 22 the deposition of St. Severus himself." Indeed, at that date a Translation is celebrated, as we shall say hereafter.

[4] Now we shall set forth those who place St. Severus the Bishop on the Kalends of January. The Cologne Martyrology printed in 1490, St. Severus the Bishop commemorated on January 1 and the manuscript of the monastery of Alberg: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus the Bishop." The manuscript of the Church of St. Gudula in Brussels: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus the Confessor." But Maurolycus, Felicius, the manuscript Florarium, the manuscript Martyrology of the professed house of the Society of Jesus at Antwerp, the manuscript of the Church of St. Lambert at Liege, both bearing the name of Bede as title: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop and Martyr." The Martyrology of St. Jerome, or the ancient Roman one, in which St. Severus of Ravenna, Bishop, and St. Severus, Confessor, are recorded on February 1, has under January 1: "At Ravenna, the deposition of St. Severus the Bishop with his brethren." Which, as we said on January 1, we do not sufficiently understand what it means. Since nothing is known about Severus, the Ravennate Martyr, whom Jerome Rubeus says is venerated on January 1 whether the same as the Martyr? while others assign him to February 1, except that he was crowned with martyrdom under Maximian -- may it not be permissible to suspect that that man was a Bishop, but that since his Acts lay hidden, the more celebrated memory of the later Severus the Confessor has been preserved? But Ughelli in volume 2 of his Italia Sacra sternly declares it to be a falsehood to assert that there were multiple men named Severus. We do not indeed assert this; but by what argument the most learned man supports his stern censure, we do not sufficiently perceive. That there was certainly already in ancient times a well-known opinion about a St. Severus, Bishop of Ravenna and Martyr, will be evident below from the Life written by Luidolf, in whose chapter 2, number 5, a Ravennate monk replies thus: "Severus, whose life you desire to know, was not a Martyr, but a Confessor." Therefore Luidolf had inquired about the Bishop in such a way that he supposed him to be a Martyr -- if indeed the response fits the question.

Section 2. The Life and era of St. Severus.

[5] Surius published the Life of St. Severus from ancient codices, but polished by himself. Whence the Life of St. Severus? We give it in its original style from a manuscript codex of the Fathers of the Congregation of the Oratory at Rome, collated with the version found in Bonino Mombritius (where it survives in a mutilated form) and with the ancient Breviary of the Church of Erfurt. That the author of this Life was a monk and lived in the tenth or eleventh century is argued by the fact by whom and when was it written? that in chapter 2 he inveighs so sharply against the adversaries of monks, and in chapter 1 against simoniacs; for at that time monks labored with great zeal to extirpate that plague utterly, as will be evident on February 7 from the Life of St. Romuald the Abbot, and on the eighth from that of Blessed Peter Igneus; and on that account a great hatred against them blazed up among those who had already purchased ecclesiastical dignities for a price, or who aspired to them.

[6] Jerome Rubeus appears to have had another Life, likewise written at the same period or not much later, since the author records a miracle performed in his own time under the Emperor Henry and the Marquis Boniface. Another Life seen by Rubeus. Boniface, Marquis of Etruria, lived in the time of Conrad the Salic, whose son-in-law he was and brother-in-law of the Emperor Henry II, and he died in the year 1051. That miracle, moreover, we shall publish below from book 2 of the History of Ravenna by the same Rubeus.

[7] We give another Life, written long before by Luidolf -- or Luitolf -- a priest, another Life written in the ninth century by Luidolf the Priest from an ancient codex of the monastery of St. Paul at Utrecht and of the monastery of Budick of the Canons Regular in the diocese of Paderborn. The author indicates his own era when, in book 2, chapter 1, he narrates that the relics of St. Severus were stolen from his monastery by Felix, a Gallic priest, and by him handed over at Pavia to Otgar, Archbishop of Mainz, and by Otgar carried off to Germany; and concerning Felix he testifies in number 2: "Whom I remember having seen when I was a boy." And in chapter 2, number 8, he writes thus: "When Otgar had died, and his successor Rabanus also, Charles, the son of King Pippin, was raised to the honor of the same bishopric. He, assenting to the prayers of the nuns residing in the monastery of Altomunster, transferred a certain part of the relics of St. Innocentia to the aforesaid convent, as you yourself have seen." Otgar died in the year 847, Rabanus in 856, as we shall say on February 4 in connection with his Life; Charles died in the year 862 on the day before the Nones of June, as the Annals of Fulda record. Molanus, in his additions to Usuard, mentions this Life by Ludolph, whom in the first edition he calls a Priest, and in the second a monk; but he errs when he says that the Life of this St. Severus is cited by Wolfgang Lazius in book 1, chapter 14, of his work on Viennese affairs. Lazius cites, in book 1, chapter 4 (not 14) of his work on Viennese affairs, the Life of St. Severinus, Apostle of Noricum, whom he nevertheless incorrectly states to have been Bishop of Ravenna -- a claim that Otto of Freising, book 4, chapter 30, and Godfrey of Viterbo, part 16, had written before him -- as we said on January 8 in connection with the Life of St. Severinus. There exists a somewhat shorter Life of St. Severus in the second part of the Legenda printed at Louvain in the year 1485, apparently compiled from this one.

[8] Furthermore, the deeds of St. Severus are related by Peter de Natali, book 3, chapter 65; others by other authors Philip Ferrari in his Catalogue of the Saints of Italy; Zacharias Lippeloo and Francis Haraeus, from Surius; and likewise in French by Jacques Tigeou, Jacques Doublet, and Guillaume Gazet. Blessed Peter Damian has two sermons about St. Severus, the fourth and fifth of volume 2, in which he confirms most of what is narrated in the earlier Life -- concerning his election, the obsequies of the Bishop of Modena, the burial of his daughter, etc. -- and he records a miracle omitted by others, which we shall give below from his works. Mention of St. Severus is made in the chapter Statuimus, distinction 61, section E contra B. Nicolaus.

[9] The question of St. Severus's era is prejudiced by the opinion of Jerome Rubeus, a not unlearned historian of the Ravennates, which can otherwise be settled without great difficulty in the following manner. He held office from about the year 346 to 390 or thereabouts. He was created Bishop, as is recorded in the Life, chapter 2, number 6, under the consulship of Constantius IV and Constans III, that is, in the year of Christ 346; he was consecrated at Rome by Pope St. Julius, whose tenth year it was. In the following year he attended the Council of Sardica, under the consulship of Rufinus and Eusebius, as is evident from the subscriptions. Finally, he was present at the funeral of St. Geminianus, Bishop of Modena, many years later, since in the time of Pope Siricius -- who was elevated to the pontificate in the year 385 -- Geminianus was still alive, as we said on January 31 in connection with his Life. Haraeus therefore correctly conjectures that Severus died around the year 390; the manuscript Florarium places him as having reached the year of Christ 420, the seventy-fourth year of his pontificate. It is perhaps by a printer's error that the year 320 appears in the third edition of Surius, and 350 in both editions of Canisius.

[10] Rubeus reports that he succeeded Marcellinus in the year 284, and that he died in 348, having recently returned from the Council of Sardica, broken by old age and the hardships of the journey; and that Agapitus II was appointed in his place, who had attended the Roman council under Pope Julius. And because these claims were refuted by Baronius in his Notes on the Martyrology, Rubeus endeavors to support them with more arguments, and denies that Severus lived either to the reign of Jovian, much less to the pontificate of Siricius. As for what is reported about the fury of Attila being checked by the prayers of St. Geminianus, we too agree with Rubeus that this is far too remote from the era of St. Severus and of St. Geminianus, whom Severus is said to have buried; and it appears to have occurred either through the patronage of St. Geminianus before God, already received into heaven but still watching over his city; or through the prayers of a second Geminianus, as was indicated in his Life on January 31; or perhaps it was not the Huns under Attila but other invading barbarians not extending to the time of Attila who were repelled from plundering the city, and the report was corrupted as it passed to posterity. That Agapitus, who attended the Roman council under Pope Julius, was the successor of Severus, Rubeus thinks can be inferred from the fact that from the ancient paintings and histories of the church of Ravenna it is established that Severus succeeded Marcellinus; therefore it was not Agapitus but Marcellinus who should have attended that council, unless it was celebrated later, since he lived long enough. Nor indeed did Agapitus attend the other Roman synod of fifty bishops held before the Sardican, but rather the one at which 120 bishops were present, which was convened in Indiction 6, nor from the year 284 to 348 namely in the year 348, in which year, and not in any preceding year of Pope Julius's pontificate, that indiction fell. Finally, nothing of what was transacted in that synod of fifty bishops was discussed in the one at which Agapitus was present. Moreover, it seems plausible that this new synod was held to confirm the Acts of the Council of Sardica. Lastly, Protasius, Bishop of Milan, was present at the Sardican council; his successor Julius was at the Roman one together with Agapitus. For Gratus, who is named in the letter of the Fathers of the Council of Sardica to the Bishops of Egypt and Africa, cited in the second Apology of St. Athanasius, together with other African bishops who attended the same council, is not called Bishop of Carthage but simply a Bishop -- that is, of another city -- so that it is no wonder he was not present at the Roman synod, but rather Rufus, upon whose death Gratus was elevated to the primacy from his former see. Fortunatianus of Aquileia subscribed to the Sardican synod; Benedict subscribed to the Roman one; another Fortunatianus succeeded him. Rubeus therefore holds that St. Agapitus was created Bishop under the reign of Septimius Severus -- which Severus occupied from the beginning of July in the year 193 until February 4, 211 -- and that St. Marcellinus was appointed as his successor around the year 231, and St. Severus succeeded Marcellinus around the year 284, dying on the Kalends of February 348.

[11] But Rubeus himself confirms none of this with any certain chronological datum or the testimony of an ancient writer. That the Roman synod under Julius was held before the Sardican [since St. Agapitus, Bishop of Ravenna, attended the Roman council in the year 337] is far more probable, even though the beginning and end of the synod present a different chronological indicator. The beginning reads thus: "In the name of the Lord God and of our Savior Jesus Christ, and also in the reign of Constantius and Constans the Augusti, in the fourth year, on the nineteenth day before the Kalends of October, Indiction 6, with the holy and most blessed Pope Julius of the Apostolic See presiding at Rome," etc. The fourth year of Constantius and Constans was the year 340 of Christ, in which not the sixth but the twelfth indiction was beginning. The end of the council reads: "Given on the Kalends of November, in the consulship of Felicianus and Maximianus, most illustrious men." But Felicianus and Titianus were consuls in the very year in which Constantine died, that is, the year of Christ 337, not 348 the first year of Pope Julius, Indiction 10, the first year of Constantine the Younger, Constantius, and Constans. Baronius rather embraces this chronology, on the ground that it is easier for an error to creep into the numbers of the emperors' reigns or the indictions than for false names of consuls to be inscribed. Whichever year you take, it will fall before the Sardican synod, as it is correctly placed in the volumes of the Councils. In the year 348, besides the sixth indiction, nothing fits, for the consuls were Philippus and Salia, and it was the twelfth year of the Augusti.

[12] The remaining arguments or evasions of Rubeus have no force. For in denying that Gratus was Bishop of Carthage at the time of the Council of Sardica, and in positing two Fortunatiani of Aquileia, he does so without any authority. Concerning Julius of Milan -- whether he was the same as St. Maternus or another omitted in the common catalogues -- we shall inquire elsewhere. As certain authors assert without reason. The fact that Severus is said to have succeeded Marcellinus does not make it follow that Agapitus did not attend the Roman synod, or that Marcellinus himself ought to have attended. For whence does it appear that Marcellinus, as Rubeus writes, lived a sufficiently long time in the episcopate? Agapitus could have died after the first Roman synod under Julius, and his successor Marcellinus himself not long thereafter. And whence did Rubeus learn that neither of them attended the other synod of fifty bishops? Or what bearing does that have on the matter? Nor is there any reason why he should insist that something of what was transacted in the latter synod ought to have been treated in the former. Yet neither was the Sardican synod mentioned; how then is it plausible that the latter was convened for the purpose of ratifying it?

[13] If anyone should prove that St. Marcellinus was more ancient and that some Severus succeeded him, let him by all means say that there were two men named Severus -- Baronius himself not wholly objecting -- but that the fame of the earlier was obscured by the celebrity of the later. What if Bishop Severus was that Martyr perhaps two Bishops of Ravenna named Severus? whom we said is venerated on the Kalends of January, killed under Maximian? Many, as we said in the preceding section and on that day, place him as a Bishop and Martyr on that date. Nor can it be proved from the Acts of his martyrdom -- which do not exist -- that he was not a Bishop. But to assert this is not necessary for establishing the era of St. Severus. Raphael Volaterranus also, in book 19 of his Anthropology, considers that St. Severus lived in the time of the Emperor Jovian. From the era of St. Heraclianus, Bishop of Pesaro, who was ordained by Severus, nothing can be proved, since his Acts, as Ferrari writes under December 9, do not exist.

Which whole period the same Serarius defines as twenty years, three months, and twenty-three or twenty-four days, since he holds that Haistulf, Otgar's predecessor, died in the year 826 on the fifth before the Kalends of January. It is not necessary to discuss all these matters here; but at least it does not appear that Otgar was ordained Bishop before the year 825.

[15] Sigebert nevertheless writes in his Chronicle under the year 824: "The bodies of the Saints Severus, Bishop of Ravenna, and of his wife Vincentia, not in the year 824 and of their daughter Innocentia, were translated to Mainz by Archbishop Otgar." Rubeus likewise, in his History of Ravenna, book 2: "About the year of the Lord eight hundred and twenty-four, by Otgar, Bishop of Mainz, the remains of Severus, of his wife Vincentia, and of their daughter Innocentia were imported to Mainz and placed in the church of Herford." And in book 5 he expressly states that Otgar came to Ravenna and carried off those bodies from there. Following Rubeus, Baronius explains nor directly from the city of Ravenna on what occasion Otgar could have come to Ravenna. For since, as the cited Annals of Fulda record, along with other writers of Frankish affairs, Lothair was sent to Italy by his father the Pious in the year of Christ 822, crowned by Pope Paschal in 823, and again in 824 went to Rome at his parent's command to see Pope Eugenius, Baronius adds Otgar as his companion on this journey, in the year 824, number 16: "In which year likewise, Otgar, Bishop of Mainz, a companion of Lothair on the journey, carried the bodies of the Saints Severus the Bishop, and of his wife Vincentia, and of their daughter Innocentia, taken from Ravenna, to his own church at Mainz." But Otgar was not yet a Bishop in that year, nor was Hilduin of Verdun, his companion on the embassy; and they were sent for the restoration of peace and friendship between Louis the Pious and Lothair, as Luidolf writes; but at that time no hostilities had yet been stirred up. Finally, they went only as far as Pavia, where the relics had already been brought previously by the priest Felix.

[16] Serarius thinks that Otgar was sent by Louis, King of Germany. For although Louis held him, as Nithard writes in book 2, "in hatred unto death," Serarius nevertheless believes that once affairs were settled, nor as an ambassador of Louis, King of Germany the same prelate had influence with the said King; and since his other son Lothair was at odds with him, Serarius supposes that Otgar was sent to Pavia to arrange peace between them, and from there brought the relics of St. Severus to Mainz. But who attributes to Louis, King of Germany, a son named Lothair? Or what right could he have had in Italy, so as to sojourn at Pavia, when Italy obeyed the Emperor Lothair, and then his son Louis II?

[17] Lambert of Schafnaburg declares more certainly in which year these events occurred, writing thus: "836. Archbishop Otgar translated St. Severus to Frankfurt." Certainly from the Life of Louis the Pious it is clear but of the Emperor Louis the Pious, 836 that even after he had received his sons back into favor, following the wicked and by all ages detestable abdication of himself, he convened an assembly at Thionville after Easter in the year 835 -- that is, near the beginning of 836 -- and ordered his son Lothair to send certain nobles of his own to the same place, so that the terms of mutual reconciliation between himself and Lothair might be investigated. Thereafter many envoys were sent by him to the same son in the same year: first to reconcile him with the Empress Judith and with Charles her son, then to visit him when ill, and finally to warn him not to oppress the Church and its subjects. Those who carried out the two latter embassies are named; the first was perhaps entrusted to Otgar and his companions, or some other one. Trithemius mentions this Translation in his Chronicle of Hirsau under the year 847.

[18] The memorial of this translation has been recorded in the Martyrologies on October 22, in many of them as if that were his birthday, [The memorial of St. Severus in the Martyrologies on October 22, as if his birthday] with no mention made there of the translation, or on the Kalends of February of his deposition. Thus the Appendix to the Martyrology of Ado, published by Rosweyde: "On the same day, of St. Severus, Bishop of Ravenna." The Martyrology of the Order of St. Benedict: "Of Severus, Bishop and Confessor." The ancient Martyrology of Utrecht: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor." The Cologne Martyrology printed in the year 1490: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor. He was raised from the craft of wool-working to the episcopate by the entire Clergy and people through the appearance of a dove. When his wife Vincentia and his daughter Innocentia saw this, they entered his monastery and dedicated themselves to the Lord. The holy man himself, foreknowing his death, after celebrating the sacred mysteries and expelling the people from the church, approached the sepulchre of his wife and daughter, and having rolled away the stone by himself, said to them: 'By the Lord's command I am called; give me a place to sleep with you.' And when they had made room for him, he entered alive, about to die." Whether a monastery then existed at Ravenna, if anyone doubts it, we shall say that the author of that Martyrology means only that they embraced the life of religious women.

[19] Other Martyrologies indicate that another day is sacred to him elsewhere. Hermann Greeven in his additions to Usuard: "On the same day (but according to others, on the Kalends of February), at Ravenna, of Blessed Severus, Bishop and Confessor, who from a wool-worker, indicating another celebration by the miracle of a dove sent from heaven, was elevated to the episcopate; and when he had vigorously administered the office enjoined upon him and foreknew the day of his dormition, he opened the sepulchre of his wife and daughter, commanded them to give him a place to rest with them, and when they had given him place, he entered the sepulchre about to die." Canisius has the same, except that he adds that he lived in the times of the Emperor Jovian, with the year 350 incorrectly noted in the margin -- since Jovian assumed the empire on June 27 of the year 363 and held it barely eight months. Perhaps he meant to write, as Haraeus did, 390. In the second edition he adds: "His sacred body was afterward translated to the diocese of Mainz." The manuscript Martyrology of the Metropolitan Church of Prague reads: "At Ravenna, of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor, who from the mechanical craft of weaving was divinely appointed Bishop of that place through a dove, illustrious in virtues; who, when he had buried his wife in his own tomb, afterward buried his daughter Innocentia in the same place, to whom the mother yielded place at the Bishop's command; into which tomb he himself afterward entered alive, and placing himself in the middle, rested in Christ on the ninth before the Kalends of February -- but his feast is celebrated on this day."

[20] Molanus expressly indicates that his Translation is celebrated on this day, in the second edition of his supplement to Usuard: and under the name of the Translation "On the same day, the Translation of St. Severus the Confessor, Bishop of Ravenna, together with his wife and daughter, to the diocese of Mainz." And the manuscript Florarium: "On the same day, the bodies of the Saints Severus, Bishop of Ravenna, and of his wife Vincentia, and of their daughter Innocentia,

were translated to Mainz by Archbishop Otgar in the year of salvation 824."

[21] On that day, moreover, several German churches celebrate the feast of St. Severus, as is evident from their own proper Breviaries. And indeed the Erfurt Breviary carries this notable title: "Breviary for the recitation of the Canonical Hours, he is venerated on that day in Germany according to the custom of the Severian College of Erfurt"; and it has on the frontispiece images of Saints Severus, Vincentia, and Innocentia; on the second page a poem of ten verses addressed to the reader, among which are these:

"Thence offer your vows to great Severus, Who holds the temples near the billowing Gera."

His celebration is appointed with the rite of a double on October 22, and a portion of the first Life -- which we shall give from Mombritius and the Roman codex -- is distributed into readings to be recited on the following days; on the octave day, the history of the Translation by Luidolf. The feast of St. Severus is also celebrated on that day in the Church of Mainz, as is evident from the Breviaries printed in the years 1495, 1507, 1570, and 1611. In the Worms Breviary printed in 1576 it has an office of three readings, and likewise in the proper offices of the Church of Wurzburg printed in 1625. A commemoration of him was made in the Hildesheim Breviary printed in 1516, and in the ancient Utrecht Breviary; yet in the proper offices of the Church of Utrecht which Philip Rovenius, Archbishop of Philippi, had printed in 1623 and 1640, this was omitted -- for what reason, or by what authority, we do not inquire.

[22] But since a double Translation of St. Severus was made by Otgar -- namely, when his relics were first carried from Pavia to Mainz, and then from Mainz to Erfurt -- This Translation is twofold: one more ancient we cannot pronounce with certainty which of the two took place on this day, nor whether one of these, or some earlier one, is referred to in the Martyrologies on February 15, where the ancient Cologne Martyrology and Hermann Greeven read: "Likewise at Ravenna, the Translation of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor" -- and the manuscript Florarium has nearly the same. But Canisius calls it an Elevation. Nor indeed can there be any doubt that the sacred relics were transferred from the original tomb to some other repository or reliquary before Felix carried them away, since he could not have dug them up without anyone noticing. The Elevation and that first Translation were perhaps carried out by Peter III, Bishop of Ravenna. perhaps made in the sixth century For Rubeus writes thus in book 2: "Severus was buried in the town of Classe, not far from the district which they called Salutaris; in which place a church was erected in his name in subsequent times by Peter the Elder, Archbishop of Ravenna, when many miracles were continually occurring at the tomb of the holy man." The same author, in book 3, writes that Peter, surnamed -- and also in age, but much more in the excellence of his virtues and character -- the Elder, a most grave man and greatly praised for a life of innocence, was made Bishop of Ravenna around the year 568. Below he records concerning his death: when a church was built for him "He began to build a notable church for St. Severus, Archbishop of Ravenna, or rather to make it greater and more splendid, in that district of the town of Classe which they called Vicus Salutaris; but he died in the very course of the building." What is again recorded in the manuscript Florarium under June 30 -- that the Translation of St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor, occurred on that date -- needs correction, for it ought to be understood as referring to the Translation of St. Severus the Priest, about whom we treat on February 15.

LIFE BY AN ANONYMOUS AUTHOR,

from a manuscript of the Congregation of the Oratory at Rome, collated with the ancient Breviary of Erfurt and with Mombritius.

Severus, Bishop, at Ravenna (St.) Vincentia, his wife, at Ravenna (St.) Innocentia, Virgin, their daughter, at Ravenna (St.)

BHL Number: 7683

By an anonymous author, from manuscripts.

CHAPTER 1

The homeland, marriage, and craft of St. Severus.

[1] Whenever the deeds of brave men and the advancement of praiseworthy Fathers are read aloud in the churches -- men who, burning with desire for heavenly rewards, left to their weaker neighbors a plainer path of faith -- this is without doubt believed to be done so that the ardor of divine love, which daily, as iniquity abounds, is wont to grow lukewarm even in holy men through a certain blast Why the Life of St. Severus is written of the North Wind, may be rekindled as if by the most welcome breath of the South Wind. Whence the Church says in the Canticles: "Arise, O North Wind, and come, O South Wind." Song of Songs 4:16 Hence it is that we, being nearly unlearned and unskilled, desiring to set forth in whatever style we can the life, ordination, and most sacred death of that most precious lily of Christ, the blessed Archbishop Severus, have undertaken to make known plainly to the ears of the faithful those things which were able to come to the notice of our humble selves concerning so great a man, looking more to their edification and salvation than to the ostentatious refinement of the curious. Sirach 37:23 For he who speaks with sophistries, according to Solomon, is found hateful to God, because he both strikes himself with the dart of boastfulness and furthermore takes no account of the weakness of his hearers.

[2] But since it is necessary to attach an anchor of credibility to the narrative, in the manner customary for historians, we place three things at the head of the account by way of authentication, which are to be fittingly employed in weaving together the proposed work: namely, person, homeland, and condition. For to touch briefly upon the truth of his person, he was not without omen called Severus he was called Severus by his parents not without a certain divine augury. For if we wish to examine the etymology more closely, it does not signify "cruelty" but rather "manly gravity," concerning which it is sung in the Psalm: "In a weighty people I will praise You." Psalm 34:18 And not undeservedly, because he was indeed to be a most austere eradicator of vices and a most eager gatherer of virtues. As for his homeland, it is well known to all, because he was a citizen of Ravenna; born at Ravenna and, as was said of the blessed Pope Gregory:

"Whence he drew his lineage, thence he ascended to the highest honor."

[3] As for his condition, the whole course of his most holy life demonstrates it: for he was truly Christian and led a dove-like life in simplicity of heart. Tobit 4:23 He led a life of poverty, like Tobias, but because he feared the divine Presence and always meditated upon the watchfulness of the Almighty, he possessed all good things, because he had in every way charity, which is God. For as far as pertains to the luxury of the world, he led a life of poverty, because, as most truthful witnesses report, together with his wife, whom he had long since joined to himself in the most chaste matrimony, he derived his daily sustenance from nothing other than the craft of wool-working. For, as a devout and orthodox Catholic, living by the craft of wool-working he lived by the labor of his hands with the Apostle, and inflicted neither violence nor fraud upon any man. Nor did he pass with deaf ear the Psalmist who thunders: "You shall eat the labors of your hands: blessed are you, and it shall be well with you." Psalm 127:2 married At this point, if any supercilious person should with enigmatic mind and foolish objection disparage the blessed man because he came to the cathedral of Ravenna as a married man, let him hear the Apostle answering on his behalf: "All things are clean to the clean." Romans 14:20 For just as a man is not defiled by the eating of food, unless the treacherous force of concupiscence precedes it, so indeed a Christian is not stained by lawful marriage if he has in no way bound himself by a vow of virginity or continence -- unless the deceiving power of lust first corrupt him with the kindling of obscene love. Moreover, if anyone is bound by a vow, let him be compelled to fulfill it; for it is written: "Make vows and pay them." Psalm 75:12

[4] But since we have spoken somewhat in defense of the truth, as if in a digression, let us return to what we had begun. elected, as eleven other Bishops of Ravenna had been Therefore after the most preeminent champion of truth, Apollinaris, just as divine Providence had predestined before all ages, was ordained Bishop by the Prince of the Apostles for the preaching of the word of God, and received the keys of the kingdom of heaven as a worthy and in every way most proven vicar, he chose for his apostolate Ravenna, a most noble city of Italy and the metropolis of many cities, as if a second Rome. For Christ the merciful and loving King so adorned and distinguished this city above others with the outstanding merits of that same triumphant one, blessed Apollinaris, that from the time that happy soldier, crowned with the laurel of martyrdom, entered into the joy of his Lord, after the pattern of the twelve Apostles at the summit, He supplied twelve successors to him by the sign of a dove resting on the head over the course of various years, elected not by human effort but rather called by divine Providence, and upon whose heads a dove sent from heaven came to rest. Whence that venerable proverb has long been widespread throughout the whole circuit of the world: "Blessed is that city where, in the election of its Bishop, the Holy Spirit descends in the likeness of a dove, and he is ordained upon whose head it rests."

[5] But, O change of times! O wickedness of trafficking! Our Redeemer, therefore, to show His faithful ones how damnable is the business of trafficking, entered the temple and vigorously cast out all who were selling not as in the author's day, when some Bishops were simoniacally chosen and buying therein; and having made a scourge of small cords, He especially drove out of the temple those who were selling doves. But the ancient enemy of the human race, who, as the Apostle says, even now works the mystery of iniquity in his members, and who sits with the rich in secret places to slay the innocent, again with the gall of bitterness makes the dove for sale through his Simon; 2 Thessalonians 2:7 nor does he cease through his money-changers to heap up the mammon of iniquity, that he may plunge them more deeply into the pit of perdition. Behold, now no Bishop is elected anywhere, because the churches are not permitted to do so; but -- what is more horrible than all monstrosities, and the most abominable species of adultery, which holds first place among punishments -- while the Bishop of some city is still living, his honor is coveted by some unlearned and depraved person, even while the predecessor is still alive it is sought, it is promised, the hope is secured by an oath, the person is exalted, his learning is praised, money is shamelessly given, so that what is procured by so nefarious a venture may afterward be sold even more shamelessly. But since the reasoning of this matter has presented itself in connection with the dove, for the sake of ecclesiastical vigor let us, as we had begun, pursue its undeserving sellers. Do you not see how, although the head of Simon, the first heresiarch, was severed by the Apostolic sword amid the very cradle of the infant Church, and then buried under perpetual anathema at ecclesiastical councils with so many Fathers favoring justice, other heads again sprout as if from a hydra? Hence it is inevitable that the Bishops of our present time are either very rare or nonexistent before Almighty God. Hence it is said through the Prophet: "They have set up princes, but not through me; they have made rulers, and I knew it not." Hosea 8:4 But let this suffice.

CHAPTER 2

The election and ordination of St. Severus to the episcopate.

[6] In the time of the aforesaid and ever-to-be-mentioned Severus, it happened that the Church of Ravenna was widowed of its own Pastor by Marcellinus, while Constantine the Great was still reigning and presiding uniquely over the Roman world, in the consulship of Constantius for the fourth time and Constans for the third time, sons of that same Emperor. [In the year of Christ 346, when an assembly was convened for the election of a Bishop] And when many Bishops, both neighboring and from more distant places, convened in order to ordain a Bishop for so great a city in the customary manner, and after the prayer was completed, all were waiting together for the joyful spectacle -- namely, that someone should be designated from heaven by the dove -- that same man of the Lord, blessed Severus, happening to be at home attending to his work, being simple and a friend of the dove, addressed his wife in these words: "I shall go, if you please, quickly, and I shall see the marvelous vision -- how a dove comes from heaven by divine power and settles upon the head of the elect." To whom she replied: "Sit here and work; do not give yourself to idleness, for it is not beneficial for us. Whether you go or remain in place, the people will by no means ordain a Bishop." To this he said: "Allow me to go." But she: "Go, if you like, for at whatever hour you enter, you will immediately be ordained Bishop." Severus goes to the church, his wife disapproving With his wife uttering such things ironically, he immediately arose and hastened to the church where the people were assembled with the priests; and because of the poorness of his clothing, since he was clad in squalid garments, he hid himself behind the doors of the temple. And when the prayer was finished, and a dove settles on his head immediately a dove whiter than snow descended from heaven and settled upon the head of Blessed Severus, who wished to remain hidden. And while he was trying to drive the dove away from himself, and it was flying this way and that through the air, again and again it returned to the beloved head of the same blessed man, as if the Holy Spirit were revealing outwardly in visible form what was true in reality, saying: "Upon whom shall I rest, if not upon the humble and the quiet, and upon him who trembles at my words?" Isaiah 66:2 And again: "I love those who love me." Proverbs 8:17

[7] All the magistrates and the Clergy and all who were present at this divine spectacle were struck with wonder and gave immense thanks to God, the bestower of all goods and dignities; he is elected Bishop and leading him out from his hiding place, they decreed his election by unanimous will. He was sent to Rome to Julius, Bishop of that city, who was the third after Blessed Sylvester the Great, and was ordained Bishop of Ravenna; ordained by Pope St. Julius and returning to the city of his own office, he was held in all veneration. For if this man had not been humble and meek and God-fearing, the Holy Spirit would not have declared him with such evident signs as His own testimony. Yet we read that this was done after the Apostles in only a few cases. We read, however, that the election of Flavian -- or of Zephyrinus, Bishop of Rome -- was similarly declared. In such a manner, therefore, was Blessed Severus ordained Bishop of the Church of Ravenna, and anointed with the oil of exultation and the ointment of sacred Chrism according to the custom of a Bishop. Then was fulfilled in him what the Lord said in the Gospel: "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." Mark 10:27; 1 Corinthians 1:27 And according to the voice of Paul: "God chose the weak things of the world to confound the strong." Behold what Peter the Apostle said: "God is no respecter of persons, but in every nation he who fears God and works righteousness is acceptable to Him." Acts 10:34

[8] What do the newfangled and ignorant murmur at these things, they who know the Lord after a fashion but by no means savor Him? "Monks," they say, "do not have permission to preach, even though they be filled to overflowing with divine authority."

But this is no wonder, for the flesh does not know the spirit. Truth indeed is bitter, and those who strive to teach it are filled with bitterness. Behold, Blessed Severus, almost an unlettered man and without learning, An invective against those who refuse to allow monks to preach was filled with the Spirit of truth and became a most fruitful Teacher; and shall a monk who from his earliest years has devoted himself to the study of divine letters be required to keep silent? The Apostle Paul obtained this special privilege above all others: that he who learned the sacred letters at the feet of Gamaliel merited to be both called and to be a Vessel of election; whence he is also called the special Teacher of the whole world, although the other Apostles are also regarded as Teachers. Let these few words be said against those who are accustomed to judge men according to outward appearance, and who according to their pleasure favor iniquity but disparage truth, asserting that no one ought to be made a Bishop unless he is either ennobled by birth or tall of stature.

CHAPTER 3

The burial of St. Geminianus; the ordination of St. Heraclianus by St. Severus.

[9] And when the holy Bishop of the Lord, occupied daily in the exercise of the divine work, was governing the holy Church entrusted to him from heaven with fitting moderation, as a most vigilant Pastor, and was fulfilling his heart's desire, being situated in the increase of virtues, on a certain day St. Severus celebrating at Ravenna while he was celebrating the solemnities of the Mass according to the episcopal rite, at the hour when the Lector ascended the pulpit to recite the Epistle of the blessed Teacher of the Nations in the customary manner, suddenly the man of God was rapt into ecstasy upon the altar, as if held fast by slumber. And when the ministers of the holy altar supposed that the Saint of the Lord had fallen asleep, rapt into ecstasy they hastened with swift step, rousing him and saying: "What is it that you are doing?" But he, startled, as though awaking from sleep, raised himself up, and said to them as though with agitated mind: "O sons, what have you done? Why have you disturbed me? Although I seemed to be here with you bodily, in spirit I was elsewhere." And they, pressing him more earnestly, began to inquire of him where in the meantime he had been. To them he answered, saying: "May Almighty God pardon you, dearest brothers, for having so unwisely awakened me, for I was in the holy church of Modena, he is present at the burial of St. Geminianus at Modena and there I commended to Almighty God the soul of my holy brother and fellow Bishop Geminianus, the Bishop of that same church; and I remained there so long until I more devoutly entombed his sacred body."

[10] Therefore, to investigate more thoroughly the truth of so great a vision, the citizens of Ravenna together with the people of Classe sent messengers in great haste to the aforesaid city of Modena, which the Ravennates confirm by sending messengers to Modena in order to ascertain with all possible speed what was happening with regard to the holy Lord Bishop Geminianus. When they had arrived with the utmost swiftness at the aforesaid city, as had been enjoined upon them, they began to inquire more eagerly what was happening with the Bishop. To whom the citizens of Modena replied, saying: "What news you have is unknown to us, brothers. But be aware of this: we have very recently been made orphans, our Father and Bishop Geminianus having departed, who was held to be not the least among the priests of the Church. And although we believe we have him as our patron in heaven, still we cannot but have sorrowful hearts at his absence. Did not the Lord Archbishop Severus himself come on that very day and commend his soul to Almighty God? and discover it to be true Did he not stand here vested in pontifical garb until his body was enclosed in the sarcophagus? And when it was closed, he was suddenly taken from our sight." They returned and reported to their fellow citizens how the holy Lord Geminianus had departed to the Lord, and how the blessed Archimandrite Severus had been divinely appointed to attend his burial. Having heard these things, the citizens of Ravenna inquired more diligently about the day and hour, and received full confirmation that Blessed Severus had fallen asleep upon the altar at the very moment when St. Geminianus is known to have departed from this world; and from that time they began to venerate his holy celibacy all the more.

[11] Moreover, it is reported by many that the same charioteer of the Lord, Blessed Severus, nurtured the holy man Heraclianus, He ordains St. Heraclianus as Bishop and after fully imbuing him with every rule of the Catholic faith, set him over the aforesaid city of Pesaro as its most worthy Bishop.

CHAPTER 4

The death, burial, and miracles of St. Severus.

[12] There is also another memorable deed of his, which we by no means allow to remain hidden, but deem it fitting to set forth in whatever style we can. For he is declared to have been of such great holiness before Almighty God that his deceased and buried wife, on account of an urgent necessity, after the passage of many years, was moved to one side. For when the daughter of the most blessed Confessor of Christ, Severus, had breathed her last breath and closed her final day, he buries his daughter St. Innocentia very many people came together to place the young woman's body in the sepulchre of her mother. The same virgin was distinguished by the name Innocentia. And when the hour drew near at which the young body was to be laid to rest, the blessed Bishop came weeping, as they say, in the manner of human nature. And when all who were present at the funeral saw that the same burial place was by no means large enough for two bodies, full of sorrow and anxiety, they said to the Bishop with one voice: "Alas, Father, what shall we do? Do you see that the vessel is too small?" with her mother who had long since died Moved by these cries, the blessed man addressed his own wife, long since deceased, in these words: "O woman, why do you trouble me? Why do you not make room for your daughter? Receive what you bore, and do not be obstinate about your resting place. Turn yourself to one side and give room for burial, having commanded her to make room for her daughter lest perhaps it should happen that I am grieved." At this voice, the body of his wife, already long deceased, was drawn to one side and turned with such swiftness that an animated body could by no means have been moved so quickly, and it gave ample room for the burial of her daughter.

[13] But now the order of reason and the sequence of the composed narrative demand that we set forth in brief also the death of this holy man -- how he departed from this world to the Lord -- insofar as we have been able to extract from ancient exemplars. For when he was now of advanced age and his snow-white head displayed the hoary crown of perfection, he was cut down by the divine sickle like an Evangelical sheaf fully ripe in the field of the Church, he himself, aged, after many labors while peace reigned everywhere, and was carried to the granaries of the divine storehouse on Angelic arms, where all the sheaves of the Lord's harvest rejoice forever with their Sower. on the day of his death, foreknown, after celebrating Mass This priest, therefore, chosen from heaven, when on a certain day he had devoutly celebrated the solemnities of the Mass and had fortified his departure, which he had foreknown long before, with the reception of the Lord's body and blood, summoned the entire Clergy of the city as well as the people, and having delivered a sermon and, according to his custom, delivered an extended sermon concerning the preservation of the integrity of the Catholic faith and the attainment of unanimity and fraternal charity, according to the wisdom given to him. When this was finished, after confirming the peace and giving his blessing, clad as he was in his pontifical stole, he ordered his own sepulchre to be opened. Entering it, indeed, before a great multitude of bystanders, and placing himself in a wondrous manner between his wife and daughter, [he places himself in the middle between his wife and daughter in the sepulchre, and dies praying] with serene voice and vigorous countenance, he gave his last farewell, about to sleep in the Lord, and gently commanded himself to be enclosed beneath the marble slab. There, praying for some time, he joyfully rendered his precious soul to the Lord, and divested of the burden of the flesh, he attained the Capitol of the heavenly kingdom. In such a manner, therefore, he died in the peace of the Church, full of days, on the day of the Kalends of February.

[14] From that time until this day, the merciful and compassionate Lord Christ our Redeemer, to manifest the illustrious merits of His Confessor, works innumerable miracles at his tomb, where now there is a marble basilica constructed with paneled ceilings in his honor, in the city that was formerly called Classe, not far from the district that is called Salutaris to the present day.

[15] He shines with miracles. Of the innumerable benefits of signs which Almighty God has deigned to display through His beloved Confessor, Blessed Severus, toward the sick, we set forth one with a faithful account -- one that was demonstrated in our own time In the author's time -- so that through it the rest, which we have not seen, may be commended. A certain woman of Ravenna, having a small son laboring excessively from a daily pattern of fevers, resolved, on account of the excess of his continual pain, to present him quickly to God at the sepulchre of Blessed Severus, Archbishop and Confessor. When, accompanied by the assistance of friends, she had arrived there with her son, they prostrated themselves humbly before God, a sick boy brought to his tomb praying also to His Saint Severus with greater earnestness for the health of the little one. And when, led by good hope, they resolved to spend the night in the church, partly from the length of the night and partly relaxed by the constancy of their prayer, they all were seized by sleep and rested. But at the dead of night, with all pressed down in sluggish slumber, the sick boy alone was startled and uttered a plaintive cry, awakening everyone. Looking about, they saw that the lamps, which had been extinguished before, lamps divinely lit were gleaming with a fitting brightness of light. And when they recognized the miracle of the light sent from heaven, struck with awe, they gave glory to the Lord and to St. Severus. When the boy had been led into the midst, his mother began to question him, saying: "What happened to you, my son?" And he said before them all: emerging from the tomb "I saw coming forth from this sepulchre a man in episcopal attire, adorned with a white head of hair, having an angelic countenance, who touched me, and I was frightened." he heals with a touch And that infirmity at once departed from the boy, and he was no longer afflicted with fever. But to what purpose are these things? Because it cannot be doubted that whatever he wished to ask of Almighty God, he obtains without delay and without hesitation.

[16] Let these things suffice for the present concerning so great a pillar of the Church, whose history of holiness we believe no pen can adequately describe, even if the style of Cicero himself were at hand. Behold, the author excuses the simplicity of his style as we promised, we avoid the trappings of novel words; although they might to some extent be at our disposal, had it not pleased us to attend more to goodwill than to ostentation. For we, being small, have written for the small; for we read that "small things befit the small." Moreover, the Apostle teaches us not to be wise in lofty things, but to consent to the humble. Romans 12:16 And certainly the Law forbids anyone to place a stumbling block before the blind. Leviticus 19:14 For we cannot all do all things.

CHAPTER 5

A mystical digression on the marriage and craft of St. Severus.

[17] But since we have now, with the West Wind blowing, navigated the pool of this history with our merchandise safe, let us pause a little to observe whether there lies hidden in this same history, as in a shell, some precious pearl of allegory. The Holy Spirit resting in a dove upon St. Severus Is it to be supposed that the dove glided down easily and without great authority from the highest point of heaven to the earth? By no means. For nowhere is the advent of a dove recorded except for the purpose of testifying to the presence of the Holy Spirit. No room for reproach is left to heretics, who

think that the holy Lord Severus was bound in marriage to the disgrace of the Church, and who, wrapped in the dregs of their own obscenity, are ignorant of the grace of the Holy Spirit, and what they by no means perceive in themselves, they in no way recognize in others. He refutes heretics who condemn marriage If anyone therefore has never tasted the flavor of honey, he is entirely ignorant of its savor. On the other hand, those who use only wormwood, neglecting other herbs, to them indeed sweet seems bitter, and they think the other herbs are of the same bitterness on account of their inexperience of their flavor. For of such it is written... and other creatures as evil If therefore something seems evil to anyone, he is a witness against himself that he is evil; and what he has through privation, he supposes all have without distinction through nature. But he who understands all things simply, and with uncorrupted eyes believes every creature to be good, is himself a witness that he is good. Let the good man therefore rejoice that he was created by the Lord; but let the evil man know that he exists without the Creator, and therefore is nothing; for nothing, except God, is uncreated. If therefore the evil man were something, what would he be but good? "And God saw," says Scripture, "all that He had made, and they were not only good but even very good." Genesis 1:31 Hence it may be determined that the things which exist are good, and that they do not exist if they are not good. Are all good things therefore also just?

[18] The blessed Severus, therefore, surveying all the works of the Lord with dove-like eyes, understood that marriage is indeed very good, if one uses it lawfully; for if it were not good, those who do not appear good to good things a woman would by no means have been created by God as a helper. Genesis 2:18 For the son of the dove -- by whom the Holy Spirit is signified -- had the eyes of a dove. Not that any of the faithful can rightly be called a son of the Holy Spirit, but plainly a son of God the Father and of Mother Church, through the grace of adoption. Whence the Bridegroom in the Canticles addresses the Bride, seeking the eyes of doves. Song of Songs 1:14 and 4:1 These eyes our first parents lost when, as a consequence of their transgression, they were forsaken by God, "and the eyes of both were opened." After they lost the eyes of doves, they at once felt shame, because death entered through the windows of carnal eyes. Behold, so long as a child is led by the Spirit of innocence, by those who view them simply and innocently he is said to have the eyes of a dove, because he views simply all things that are in the world. For he does not blush at his own members, he envies no one, he is angry with no one, he thinks nothing shameful, he desires nothing unlawful, because the indwelling Holy Spirit, who guards him with an uncorrupted mind, knows none of these things. But if through the byways of vices, an exile from life, he falls into the concupiscence of the flesh, he rightly then feels shame, because what the Psalmist says is fulfilled in him: "Man, when he was in honor, did not understand; he was compared to senseless beasts and was made like unto them." Psalm 48:13, 21 The Spirit of adoption, therefore, which Blessed Severus received in holy rebirth, like a dove in the cleft of the wall, so nurtured the chicks of virtue in the nest of his heart, and did not depart from him until in the election of the Bishop it was made known to men what merit was his. Behold how men forget the heavenly life after they fall from the lofty summit of innocence into the earthly with a corrupted mind.

[19] Blessed Severus therefore had a wife, and he had a daughter, but before his episcopate. Was he for that reason unworthy of the episcopate, because he had a wife? Far from it. Yet after ordination he had his wife as a sister, as the Apostles also did. Did not Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, have a wife by lawful right? He certainly did -- but before his calling to the Apostolate. Behold, by the same reasoning Blessed Severus, when the grace of the Gospel was already shining forth, was joined in marriage, just as Paul, the Teacher of the Nations, taught; which marriage Blessed Peter, while living under the Law, is said to have used. Behold, Peter, called and elected to the Apostolate, leads about a wife, but does not use her as such. For the wife was turned into a sister, because the order of the times had now changed. For He who formerly under the Law condemned those who remained without offspring among the people of Israel, now thunders terribly through His Gospel: "Let your loins be girded." Luke 12:35 For Blessed Severus, elected to the episcopate through the dove, led about his wife like Peter, nurtured his daughter spiritually; yet he no longer uses his wife as such, because he is appointed as the vicar Pastor of the Church of Christ. Let the calumniators of the Church withdraw far off, they who understand neither what they condemn nor what they affirm.

[20] Moreover, that the man of the Lord, Severus, sought his livelihood from the craft of wool-working commends his holy simplicity. For it was indeed most fitting in every way he wove cloth from the wool of sheep that the rational sheep of the Lord, clothed with the fleece of the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world, should sustain her own life and that of her household from nothing other than the covering of sheep -- that is, of clean animals. For she was one, and no ordinary one, of those which the true and eternal Shepherd Christ commends in the Gospel with these words: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give them eternal life." John 10:27 Of which He says elsewhere: "Other sheep I have which are not of this fold, and those I must bring, and they shall hear my voice." John 10:16 For the sheep is, as they say, by nature the cleanest and gentlest of all animals, and given to simplicity. If therefore there is any meaningful comparison between the rational and the irrational, we rightly compare like with like in such cases. So great a man, therefore, is not to be believed to have obtained such a calling by mere chance. Rather, it seems to have been an indication of his future office; which he was mystically to tend for to him was to be entrusted the pastoral care by which, like Peter, he would labor to feed both the lambs and the sheep. John 21:16-17

[21] For thus we read in the Acts of the Apostles that Paul, the Teacher of the whole Church, lived by the labor of his own hands so as not to be a burden to any of his hearers; so St. Paul made tents and he was of the tent-making craft. Could Paul not have lived by other means, he who was full of every skill? He could have indeed. Acts 18:3 But we believe this was done for the sake of a certain mystery, so that because the eminent Preacher commended by deeds everything that he preached to the faithful -- lest he himself become reprobate -- it was highly fitting that the labors of his hands also bear witness to his life and preaching. And because the very work by which he lived was necessary for travelers and pilgrims, mystically teaching that we must depart from here what he himself, persuading the Hebrews of contempt for this world, was going to write -- saying: "We have not here a lasting city, but we seek one that is to come" Hebrews 13:14 -- he was already then speaking in a certain prescient language of his craft in a figurative way. As if those little shelters, by human reasoning, were saying plainly to those who used them: "See, O sailors and pilgrim travelers, the material and fabric of your huts, and by the reason of our nature, which is known to you, weigh the loftiness of your dignity, which our maker and weaver Paul teaches you without ceasing. from rushes born by the water We have our origin from the waters and are born on the banks of pools, and we are of such lightness that we can easily be carried by travelers, and yet through our service they have the desired shade. But you, who are rational, through which the faithful are reborn reborn of water and the Holy Spirit, do not weigh yourselves down with earthly desires and the enticements of the world, so that free and unencumbered you may traverse the brief road of this pilgrimage and merit to arrive as quickly as possible at the eternal homeland." See how the work of Paul speaks, by which he is recorded to have lived. The same may indeed be understood of the handiwork of Blessed Severus: that through all the fleeces he admonishes his followers to have meek and simple hearts.

CHAPTER 6

On the miracles of St. Severus: another digression.

[22] Now indeed the sequence of the exposition requires that we also attempt to penetrate with lynx-like eyes the meaning of this: St. Severus is present at the funeral of St. Geminianus that at the hour of the sacred oblation he is rapt in spirit and is reported to be present at the funeral of Blessed Bishop Geminianus. In this miracle of a special gift, we ought not unreasonably to esteem the holy Lord Archbishop Severus as equal in every way to Blessed Ambrose, as St. Ambrose saw in spirit the death of St. Martin for just as that most blessed Hierarch ministered at the birthday feast of the incomparable St. Martin, so also did this one at that of Blessed Geminianus. And if anyone should wish to object that the miracle should be considered somewhat dissimilar on this account -- that wider stretches of land lie between the cities of Milan and Tours -- let him know that Almighty God, who is in all places without place, is neither expanded in the greatest nor confined in the smallest spaces, for the hundred heavens are not His kingdom; He who is difficult to find where He is, is more difficult to find where He is not. And since we do not have a fixed date in the Church for Blessed Severus, which of them was earlier in time is by no means clear to us; but that both had one and the same gift of the Holy Spirit is evident to men of sound mind. But an objection is raised in this manner: "And how can it be that anyone from the number of priests should be compared to Ambrose, a Doctor of the Church?" -- an occasion for calumny which we resolve the more quickly if we take care to observe more closely the praise of the Holy Spirit. For we read in Scripture that the Holy Spirit is "manifold and one." Wisdom 7:22 The Spirit is therefore found to be manifold on account of His multiform knowledge in Ambrose; but He is of no lesser power as one in St. Severus. and in this they are alike That the glorious Fathers Ambrose and Severus were of one and the same merit is attested in this event by a similar gift.

[23] But let us also observe what may be the cause of so wondrous an authority, that the man of God, compelled at the burial of his daughter, commanded the body of his wife, long since deceased, who moved his wife's body by command to turn itself quickly to one side and to provide space for the burial of his daughter. For just as this power is rarely displayed, so it is not without difficulty expounded by us. Yet whatever it is that glimmers in our understandings, we judge it by no means fair to cover with silence. It also seems to the understanding of our incompetence he could have raised her that this holy man was by no means incapable of raising the body of his wife, seeing that he was able to obtain from Almighty God that she should so swiftly turn on her side.

[24] There is also another thing that seems useful to understand. For above we fought more than enough with a sharpened sword against heretics and enemies of the Church, who even by the mere reputation of a wife destined the holy man for no office; and therefore it was necessary that the devil with his liars should be confounded openly, and that the holy Church everywhere should attain such glory of divine proclamation in its priest. For to confess the truth, the Holy Spirit Himself evidently showed through the dove in the election of what chastity and continence he had been before the episcopate, that by the apparition of the dove, his chastity before the episcopate when the dove flew over so many Priests and Levites and assigned for Himself a beloved dwelling place. But lest any unresolved scruple remain among the servants of the Lord, the most sacred Bishop seems to be secretly satisfying his Church against the longstanding suspicion regarding his wife. For what is he said to have done before he performed the miracle? He is believed to have first recalled his former life, when by Christian liberty he is recorded to have been bound in marriage. The fact that he commanded with such imperious authority that the dead body of his wife should turn itself to the side thus indicated by this deed his continence in the episcopate plainly shows how free from concern he was regarding contact with her after he became Bishop.

[25] Lastly, let us go to consider his passing, and with eagle eyes (so to speak) let us see how full of virtues he was. He descended alive, I say, into the sepulchre in which his wife rested buried with their daughter, and placing himself in the middle, he fell asleep in peace. Whom did this man imitate in his death, if not that most resplendent ray, John the Evangelist and Theologian, who, as Ecclesiastical history attests, he enters the tomb alive, like St. John the Evangelist rested in a similar manner in his extreme old age? We presume to compare no one to John after his fellow Apostles, because the whole world is compelled to protest; but yet in this virtue we assert that Severus, the man of God, shares a portion with him. Blessed John is believed to have been assumed. But the man of God, Severus, is held among us to be fully present in his own tomb. He is therefore held on earth synecdochically, and he awaits in quiet the time of the inevitable anastasis.

[26] An exhortation to his veneration. For which reason let us strive with every effort of devotion to venerate so great and such a patron, and just as if he were still dwelling with us in the flesh, so let us regard him though absent, because (as the truth holds) he is more truly believed to stand by us than he was seen alive in the flesh in his own time. For since he is joined in heaven to the supreme Sun, who inhabits inaccessible light, nothing is done among creatures that he cannot see. Oh, if only... they could touch his tomb, how they would strive to bedew it with the most abundant waves of tears! We have in him a most sweet Patron, a most merciful Archbishop, who offers our prayers to Almighty God, and as a faithful Advocate interposes himself on our behalf by pleading the cause of faith. Let us by all means open to him the secrets of our conscience through confession, so that on that day of the fearful examination he may recognize us under the patronage of his protection. Praise and thanksgiving to Him who predestined him before all ages to the eternal kingdom, and through the dove of the Holy Spirit, a living creature, elected him to the episcopate, received him in peace, and introduced him, rejoicing forever, into the pastures of the eternal Jerusalem.

MIRACLE OF ST. SEVERUS

from Jerome Rubeus, History of Ravenna, book 2.

Severus, Bishop, at Ravenna (St.) Vincentia, his wife, at Ravenna (St.) Innocentia, Virgin, their daughter, at Ravenna (St.)

The author, still unknown to me, who wrote the life of this holy Archbishop, which I read after it was brought from the monastery of St. Donatus at Siena, relates the other miracles in summary fashion, but explains at length one that he testifies occurred in his own time. When the Emperor Henry had stationed the Marquis Boniface of Tuscany with his army around the ruined walls of the town of Classe, the soldiers soldiers squandering the goods of the monastery were making the area near the church of St. Severus and the nearby monastery hostile; and having entered the garden of the monks, who were of the Cistercian order, they carried off vegetables and leeks in particular. It happened that when they cooked them under ashes and ate them, blood poured forth over their mouths, terrified by a prodigy and from the very knives with which they had cut the leeks and from the hands with which they had handled them, it dripped. And so, disturbed by so great a prodigy and plainly confounded, first they began to fear divine vengeance; then, having taken salutary counsel, they ran into the church of the holy Archbishop, humbly begging for help and forgiveness, they beg for pardon and offering small gifts. When at last the blood dried up and was wiped away,

it signified that pardon had been obtained. The author adduces as sworn witnesses of this miracle the monks themselves and very many of the common people who were present.

ANOTHER MIRACLE

from Blessed Peter Damian, sermon 2.

Severus, Bishop, at Ravenna (St.) Vincentia, his wife, at Ravenna (St.) Innocentia, Virgin, their daughter, at Ravenna (St.)

But why do we speak of the ancient miracles of Blessed Severus, when even today we frequently hear that not a few prodigious signs occur in the venerable basilica of his burial? For, to pass over the rest in silence, how worthy of praise is this one thing, and with what joy is it to be referred to the glory of the divine omnipotence: that beneath the very altar of his most sacred body, a most clear water slowly emanates, beneath the altar of St. Severus water flows, salutary against diseases destined to benefit the various ailments of the sick? For if the faith of those who drink it demands it, as soon as their ailing breasts receive it, they straightway recover from sickness to their former health. And -- that you may hear of this marvelous event occurring in a marvelous way -- not in the mildness of the spring season, not in the rains of the autumn floods, not in the cold of the rain-bearing winter, when water is wont to ooze thinly from various rocky masses, in summer but in the very heat of the burning summer you will know it to bubble forth from dry lime and hard stones. from dry lime and stones So that, evidently, when the greater necessity of illness presses, then especially does divine compassion provide a remedy; and to human weakness, which is then engendered by the fault of fiery heat, it presents the force of healing from the contrary element, after the manner of physicians.

ANOTHER LIFE

BY LUIDOLF THE PRIEST,

from the Utrecht and Budick manuscripts.

Severus, Bishop, at Ravenna (St.) Vincentia, his wife, at Ravenna (St.) Innocentia, Virgin, their daughter, at Ravenna (St.)

BHL Number: 7681

By Luidolf, from manuscripts.

PROLOGUE OF THE AUTHOR.

[1] To the venerable Brother, to be embraced with the arms of unfeigned charity, Erlarius the Deacon, Luidolf, an unworthy priest. If I write to you, dearest, something that pertains to some usefulness, perhaps you will receive it gladly; nor indeed can you be ungrateful when you see yourself corrected of some error -- if, that is, you are willing to give credence to my words. Therefore what I learned while in Italy, I have sent to you to read, earnestly requesting that you correct it as you read it through, and send it back once recited. For to you alone do I presume to show my trifles, since you do not disdain to read my rustic efforts as though they were the polished works of others. Farewell, dearest friend, doing as I ask; and know that I am your most faithful friend in all things.

CHAPTER 1.

How the Author obtained the Life of St. Severus.

[2] At a certain time, while I was in a rather secluded place and was reading many things concerning the departure of souls and concerning the diverse retribution of the same according to the quality of their merits, in the Dialogues of St. Gregory and in visions of others, Luidolf, for the forgiveness of sins, visits the thresholds of the Apostles terrified by the fear of judgment and the dread of punishments, I recalled to memory, not without tears, the faults of my youth, which I had contracted through human frailty. But when, confused in mind and hemmed in by anguish, I considered how I might be able to abolish those offenses by which I had offended God, it occurred to me to visit the thresholds of the Apostles and of other Saints, and to endeavor with the utmost zeal to break the bonds of my sins through their intercessions. For "those who have no covering," according to the words of Blessed Job, "embrace the stones." Job 24:8 Having therefore received permission, I undertook the toilsome journey, and, impeded by various hardships -- especially floods of rain -- I barely reached Rome in the tenth week. And there, remaining for eight days, sometimes alone and sometimes with other companions, humbly prostrated before the memorials of the Apostles, I besought the Lord with all my heart that by His gratuitous grace, and entreated by the prayers of the Saints, He would deign to grant me pardon for my past sins, to bestow continence for the present, and to preserve me unharmed under His protection to the very end from future ones. But with these few necessary preliminaries stated, we must now come to the narrative which, with the Lord's help, I have prepared to set forth for you.

[3] When I was at Ravenna, a city of Italy, I diligently endeavored to investigate the life of the Saints -- namely, Severus, he inquires at Ravenna about the life of St. Severus Vincentia, and Innocentia -- whose bodies, having been taken from there, were translated to this diocese, with their names reversed; concerning whose translation, with Christ's favor, I shall treat at another time. And when I could obtain no certain information about them from anyone, I was, I confess, not a little saddened. But God, the consoler of those who mourn, consoled me through a certain monk who had gone from the monastery of those same Saints into the city (for this monastery is at some distance from the city of Ravenna) to visit certain friends of his. When I saw him returning from the city to the monastery, I met him; and among other words of our conversation I asked him to relate to me something about the life of the Saints, if he knew anything. And he said: "Come tomorrow a monk, whom the Saint had twice saved, inviting him to our monastery, and there you will have your wish fulfilled on this matter. For I shall show you a man who can tell you by word of mouth what you seek." For he was from the regions of Gaul and was unable to express in Latin what I wished. The same man also related that he had been captured twice by enemies: once by the Danes in Gaul, and a second time in the same monastery by the Saracens; but by the grace of God he was freed from both.

[4] He goes to the monastery On the following day, therefore, wishing to test whether his promise was true or not, and desiring to satisfy my longing, I proceeded to the monastery, having not a few companions on the journey. The brothers of that place received us kindly and brought us into the presence of the Abbot, by whom we were also charitably received; we all sat down in the monastery together with him, and a considerable number of monks of the same place likewise sat with us. and learned what he sought Then, when I was asked where I was from and for what reason I had come there, I explained both before them all. Then one of the monks who sat with us, at the Abbot's signal, gave me this account in the Latin tongue, beginning as follows.

CHAPTER 2.

The miraculous election of St. Severus to the episcopate.

[5] "Severus, whose life you desire to know, was not a Martyr but a Confessor. He, remaining for a long time in the lay condition, led a life of poverty in this city of Ravenna according to the ways of the world, having obtained a woman in marriage St. Severus practices the craft of wool-working named Vincentia, by whom he begot a daughter called Innocentia; with whom he carried on womanly work to earn his living. For he was accustomed to spin wool and to weave it, in the manner of women, whence he was commonly called a wool-worker."

[6] "Moreover, what merit this same man had before the interior judge, that same arbiter took care to make known also to men, as will be demonstrated in what follows. For when the Bishop of the said city had died, the people were ordered by the Prince of the city to observe a fast of three days, so that God might show by some sign who ought to succeed in the place of the deceased. While this was taking place, Severus said to Vincentia his wife: 'I shall go to the church to see who today is elected Bishop.' To whom she replied with indignation: 'What business do you, covered in rags, have among nobles and men clothed in purple? Or what concern is it of yours, the council of great men regarding the election of a Bishop? It is more useful for you to serve someone in the customary manner, he goes to the election of the Bishop despite his wife's unwillingness whence you may be able to provide the necessities of life for me and your daughter.' To this he said: 'What harm is it if I go?' But she: 'And I hope that having gone there, you will come back cuffed!' He, however, counting his wife's words as nothing, hastened to the church, and entering, he stationed himself almost next to the Prince."

[7] "And while the people were praying, behold suddenly a certain dove, flying above, settled upon his head in the sight of all. A dove settles upon him. Some, taking this as a sign, judged him worthy of the priesthood; but others, taking it ill that a man clothed in such mean garments should have presumed to stand among the foremost men of the city, he is first cast out; the prodigy is repeated three times compelled him to leave the church dishonorably, just as his wife had wished would happen to him. But on the second day, when he tried to hide in the church, he was again betrayed by the dove and stirred the hearts of those who beheld it. On the third day, when those in the church were awaiting some sign from God, He who sees and judges not the face but the heart, as if rebuking their stubbornness, plainly showed him to all as worthy of the priesthood through the dove, just as before. Then all said with one voice: 'Whom can we choose, except him whom the Lord has now chosen three times?' And seizing him from the crowd, they dragged him, resisting, to a more prominent place, he is elected Bishop and changing his garments, they made him a cleric. Then according to ecclesiastical custom they consecrated him Bishop."

[8] His wife refuses to believe it. "But a certain one of those standing by ran and announced to Vincentia that her husband was Bishop. But she, smiling, did not believe the one who brought the news, and added mockingly: 'I know that Severus, imbued with Grammar and the other arts, can well be a Bishop. For he has been the Father of many monasteries for a long time; therefore the rest ought to imitate the examples of his way of life.' But he who had brought the news affirmed that he had spoken the truth. When the truth is known, she and her daughter take the veil and live holy lives. And she said: 'He who up until now has been accustomed to walk through the streets stretching thread from the distaff and winding it onto the spindle is not undeservedly reported to be seated in the Bishop's chair.' While she was saying these things, a second and third person came, reporting things similar to the first message. Then she, led by wonder, arose, and together with her daughter ran to the church; and seeing that what she had heard was true, she gave thanks to God. Immediately both of them, covered with the sacred veil, persevered in holy living -- one in the resolution of widowhood, the other in that of virginity."

CHAPTER 3.

The deaths of Sts. Severus, Vincentia, and Innocentia; their celebration.

[9] Severus, illustrious for miracles and for divinely infused learning. "The holy Severus, making daily progress in the service of God and shining with miracles, presented a great spectacle of himself to the people. For he surpassed all the men of his time in his vicinity in holiness of life and the pursuit of sacred learning, and the Lord bestowed upon him such grace that he was loved and honored by all who could know him. Nor is it to be wondered at that a plebeian and unlettered man could suddenly become a master and Doctor of the Church; for our Lord Jesus Christ chose not rhetoricians, not philosophers, but fishermen, and sent them to preach throughout the whole world. For there is no delay in learning where the Holy Spirit is the Teacher; and in whomsoever He deigns to dwell, He makes that person both ardent and eloquent."

[10] The tomb of his wife and daughter. "It happened that the aforesaid women entered upon the way of all flesh; and he ordered them to be buried in the sepulchre which he had prepared for himself. Then, as time passed, when the man of God, now weary with old age, perceived his last day approaching, clothed in his sacerdotal vestments he celebrated Mass with some bystanders. When it was completed, he ordered everyone to return to their homes, except one servant, who at his nod closed all the doors of the church. Then, as the blessed man approached the place where the holy women had been interred, it opens of its own accord the tomb opened of its own accord. Then he said: 'Sister and daughter, I prepared this sepulchre for myself and lent it to you in your need; but since I am now about to depart to my Maker at His call, give me a place to sleep with you, so that we who lived together in this world may also share a common burial.' he enters and dies And when they immediately made room for him, he entered the tomb alive -- as St. John is read to have done -- and fortifying himself with the sign of the holy cross, he fell asleep."

[11] "The boy, however, who was inside the church, seeing the blessed man enter the sepulchre the tomb closing again of its own accord and the upper stone rolling back to its former place as if moved by human hands, ran with a great cry, and seizing a piece of his chasuble which happened to hang outside the sarcophagus, he tried to pull it toward himself. But those who were outside the doors, stupefied, rushed in through the entrances, asking the boy why he had cried out so. He said: 'My lord the Bishop has entered this sepulchre; come quickly lest he be suffocated inside.' But the men of more mature age, understanding that this was accomplished by the will of God and recognizing that his soul had already departed to the heavenly realms, he shines with miracles blessed the Lord in hymns and praises, rendering fitting honor to His Confessor. How many miracles of healing of the sick were thereafter wrought there through the merits of the holy Confessor by the Lord's generosity, it would take too long to explain to you. [He is venerated on February 1, as are St. Vincentia his wife and St. Innocentia his daughter.]"

[12] "After this I inquired about the feast days of the Saints, on which Kalends they should be celebrated. 'The feast of St. Severus,' he said, 'is celebrated on the Kalends of February; but the feast of the holy women, since

it has lapsed from memory on account of the attacks of pagans, is therefore celebrated with his solemnity on the aforementioned Kalends.' Having heard these things, I thought I possessed the riches of Croesus. Thereafter we experienced no small kindness from those brothers; for, refreshed with bread and wine, we completed our journey in joy."

[13] "These things, dearest brother, concerning the life and death of the Saints, just as I heard them from the monk himself in the presence of many, I have committed to writing and dedicated to your name; chiefly for this reason, that I might make you certain about the names and feast days of the Saints, and that I might not allow you to err with those who do not know these things. But if, still hesitating about these matters, you do not believe me, go to Italy and seek the place mentioned between Ravenna and the monastery of St. Apollinaris; there without doubt you will find as many witnesses of this narrative the monastery of St. Severus near Ravenna as there are monks. And even if the same monk has deceived me (God forbid) in this narration, he will without doubt pay the penalty for his falsehood, compelled by Him who leaves no sin unpunished. I indeed know that I have written nothing except what I heard from him."

[14] The relics of St. Vincentia at Mainz. "Therefore when you wish to go to pray at the church of St. Alban, coming to the southern side of that church, know that the bones of the holy woman Vincentia are deposited there; and know that St. Severus was translated from that church to Thuringia, and that St. Innocentia was in part transferred to another monastery those of others elsewhere called Paraciatense. Through whose merits and intercessions may the Almighty deign to grant us that we may so conduct ourselves here that on the day of the fearful examination we may merit to be rewarded by the most just Judge, together with those who are to be placed at His right hand."

BOOK 2.

The Translation of Sts. Severus, Vincentia, and Innocentia.

CHAPTER 1.

The sacred relics are transferred to Mainz.

[1] In my previous little book, my dearest Erlarius, I promised that I would write about the translation of the Saints mentioned there; and now, with the gift and aid of Him who gives to all abundantly and does not reproach, I shall not delay to fulfill this as best I can.

[2] There was a certain cleric from the regions of Gaul, named Felix (whether so in deed or not, it is not for me to judge), whom I remember having seen when I was a boy. It was his custom to wander through various provinces and to steal the relics of Saints Felix, a plunderer of relics wherever he could, for the sake of profit. He came to the aforesaid monastery, which we said is situated between the city of Ravenna and St. Apollinaris, he takes lodging at the monastery of St. Severus together with certain companions; and there he was received for religion's sake, as a pilgrim, and experienced such kindness from those brothers that he received daily provisions there as though he were one of them. Furthermore, lest those brothers suspect anything sinister about him, he confirmed by oath that he would never leave the monastery. And when he had begun to live there with such familiarity for some time, he attached himself to the custodian of the church and showed him assiduous attention.

[3] Then, having found an opportune time for the purpose for which he had come, he stole the bones of the aforesaid Saints and took flight with his accomplices. When the brothers discovered this, he steals the relics of Sts. Vincentia and Innocentia they sent messengers to the magnates of Italy, so that they might block all the exits from Italy, or at least prevent him from escaping in any way. But when he realized that the routes of escape were closed to him, traveling by night through byways he came to Pavia, and there he hid for some time.

[4] Meanwhile, the Emperor Louis sent Otgar, Archbishop of Mainz, and Hildi, Bishop of Verdun, and two Counts -- and to Otgar, Bishop of Mainz one named Warinus and the other Adalgisus -- to Lothair, his son, who was at that time residing at Pavia, for the restoration of the peace and friendship between them, which had been somewhat disturbed by the machinations of wicked men. When they had arrived, the aforementioned Felix, with the relics of the Saints which he had stolen, betook himself to the lodging of Otgar and told him what he had done. Otgar, receiving them with joy, he delivers them to Otgar concealed them in his chests and, so that no one should have access to them, sealed them with his own seal.

[4] In the morning, Hildi and the aforementioned Counts came to the lodging of Otgar, so that they might confer together who, when his companions were struck with dread at the presence of the relics as to how they might carry out in concert the embassy entrusted to them. And when they had entered the chamber where the holy relics were kept in the chests, great dread and excessive fear fell upon them, so that, shaken with trembling, they could hardly remain seated. Otgar, seeing them pale and trembling, asked what was the cause of so great a fear. And they said: "Perhaps in the course of this embassy we are about to meet the end of this life. For never, not even when facing enemies in battle, has such great fear invaded us." "Do not be afraid," said Otgar, "for on this journey, with God protecting us, we shall suffer no distress. But if you wish to hear it gladly, I shall tell you the cause of this fear. For yesterday relics of the Saints were brought to me, which I have in my keeping in these chests; and since upon entering here you did not pay them fitting honor, you have justly fallen into this fear." And hearing these things, they fell to their knees and prayed that prosperity might come to them through the intercession of the Saints. And so it was. the embassy successfully completed For on the following day they were honorably received by Lothair, and having completed their embassy, they returned with their wish fulfilled to the Emperor who had sent them. The aforesaid Felix, moreover, together with his companions, having received horses and other gifts from Otgar, and hiding among his men, departed from Italy and avoided the traps that the Italians had prepared.

[5] He carries the relics to Mainz. Otgar, having completed his embassy, came from the Emperor's court to Mainz and ordered the relics of the Saints to be received with the highest veneration by the Clergy and people. This being done, he placed the bones of St. Severus in a reliquary beside the altar of St. Alban, and placed those of St. Vincentia on the southern side, and those of St. Innocentia on the northern side of the same church, as we mentioned in the previous book, in the most honorable locations beside individual altars, having constructed small beds above them, which he adorned with gold and silver, as is still clear to those who see them.

CHAPTER 2.

The relics of St. Severus translated to Erfurt; those of St. Innocentia to another location.

[6] After some time had elapsed, the same venerable Archbishop Otgar, wishing the holy relics to shine forth for the greater veneration of sacred worship, transferred the bones of St. Severus to Thuringia, to the royal place then he transfers those of St. Severus to Erfurt called Erfurt, accompanied by priests and clerics of various orders and by a considerable crowd of people. But before the most sacred ashes arrived there, they became famous on the journey for many miracles wrought by God, not without miracles of which few out of many it is not tedious to insert here. For, as those who testified that they were present at the translation related, four sisters from Thuringia came with the rest of the multitude to meet the holy relics; of whom one, the eldest, was invaded by a malignant spirit and grievously tormented before all who were present. There was, moreover, on the same journey a certain priest named Reginharius, afterwards a Bishop, whom you too have very often seen, upon whom the Lord had conferred such grace in casting out demons that no demon dared resist him without immediately departing from the possessed person at his command. For whenever he approached a person possessed by a demon, he was accustomed to say: "Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but to Thy name give the glory." When he had begun to read the book of exorcisms over the woman possessed by a demon, the wicked spirit said through the woman's mouth: "Behold, you are casting me out from here by the word of the Lord and the merits of His Confessor; but before you reach Erfurt, you will find me opposing you not once or twice." Having said these things, it left the possessed vessel and entered her sister, four demoniacs freed and tormented her in like manner. Driven out thence by divine grace, it seized the third and compelled her to rage no less than the others. When she too was healed through the Lord's clemency and the merits of His holy Confessor, it invaded the fourth -- that is, the last -- of those sisters and tortured her beyond measure pitiably. Then, while the aforesaid priest was reading the book of exorcism, the demon complaining that it was driven out by St. Severus the apostate spirit said, in the hearing of all the people present: "Woe to us wretches, who must now leave this region which we have possessed for so long, because of the arrival of St. Severus; for henceforth we shall not have such power in this region as we have had until now." And saying these things, it departed. The woman, freed from the demon's assault, followed the bier of the holy Confessor all the way to Erfurt, giving thanks to God.

[7] The bones of the same Saint were translated into a church dedicated in honor of St. Paul the Apostle. Other miracles at Erfurt. Where, while they still lay in the reliquary just as they had been brought, unburied, such a multitude of signs and prodigies became manifest, and such a force of miraculous powers shone forth in every kind of healing by divine grace, that neither the number of those miracles can be grasped nor their variety narrated by any mortal.

[8] When Otgar had died and his successor Rabanus also, Charles, son of King Pippin, was raised to the honor of that same bishopric. He, assenting to the prayers of the nuns residing in Altomunster, transferred a certain part of the relics of St. Innocentia to the aforesaid convent, as you yourself have seen. The relics of St. Innocentia translated by Bishop Charles. Where the Lord deigned to work not a few miracles through the merits of the same holy Virgin; which, if you wish to know them, you will be able to learn from those nuns.

[9] There you have, dearest brother, my promise fulfilled -- not as I wished, but as I was able. I ask you therefore to pray on my behalf to Him who comes to the aid of His own with a single measure, and to ours with a double, that, won over by His gratuitous grace and the prayers of those same Saints, He may cause me to have at least some share with His elect on the day of judgment; since it would have been better for me not to have been born than to be separated from them forever.

ON ST. SEVERUS, BISHOP OF AVRANCHES, IN GAUL.

Sixth Century.

Preliminary Commentary.

Severus, Bishop of Avranches, at Rouen in Gaul (St.)

By I. B.

[1] Some have supposed -- without any certain testimony -- that the St. Severus whose relics are preserved in the Metropolitan basilica of Rouen and whose feast is kept on the Kalends of February St. Severus is venerated at Rouen, was a Bishop of that city. For Demochares in chapter 20 of his work "On the Divine Sacrifice" lists him in fourth place with these words: "Severus succeeded in 325" -- namely, to Avitianus, who subscribed to the Council of Arles under the consuls Volusianus and Anianus, in the year of Christ 314. Natalis Taillepied of the Order of Friars Minor, in his Compendium of the Antiquities of Rouen, chapter 16, gives slightly more, but no better attested: "To St. Avidianus in the archbishopric succeeded St. Severus in 325. He administered that office, to which he had been divinely called, in a holy manner. A parish church in the suburbs beyond the bridge bears his name, and in the great basilica of the Blessed Virgin his body is reverently preserved, placed in a notable reliquary." After him Jean Chenu of Bourges: "Severus succeeded in 325. He flourished for fifteen years, in the time of Constantine and Constantius, under Pope Mark and Julius." Finally Claude Robert: "IV. St. Severus, 325, distinct from the one of Ravenna and of Avranches. He has a suburban church of his own name."

[2] The Church of Rouen objects, as we shall show below, not a Bishop of that city, and does not acknowledge the Severus it venerates as having been its own Bishop. And formerly, as is clear from the Breviary published in 1587, it believed the one it venerated to be the Bishop of Ravenna, and recited eight readings about his Life, since his name appeared in all the Martyrologies. But now the readings of the second nocturn are about St. Severus of Avranches, but of Avranches: with the old prayer retained, which fits both but better the one of Ravenna. It reads thus: "O God, who wondrously raised Blessed Severus to the dignity of the priestly office; grant, we beseech Thee, that by his intercession we may advance by degrees to the heights of the virtues and attain to the fellowship of his exaltation."

[3] This Severus, therefore, was Bishop of Avranches, situated in the same province of Rouen, at the borders of Armorican Brittany. when he lived? At what time he lived, or under what Kings, the Life does not reveal. It only indicates that at that time there were still pagans in the district of Coutances, and that they were hostile to Christians, though they did not punish them with death and torment. Whence we conjecture that he lived around the time of Clovis I or his sons, and perhaps sat before St. Paternus, between Nepus (or Nepos), who subscribed to the First Council of Orleans, and Perpetuus, who subscribed to the Second Council of Orleans in 533 -- at about which time SS. Paternus and Scupilio were leading the eremitical life in those parts, while the superstitions of the pagans were still flourishing, as is clear from the Life of St. Paternus on April 16.

[4] We received the Life of St. Severus from our Frederick Flouet, from an ancient codex of the monastery of St. Severus, whence is the Life? when was it written? which is situated in the diocese of Coutances, not far from the river Vire. At what time its author lived is not entirely clear; for in chapter 2, number 5, speaking of the oak that had grown from St. Severus's staff, he writes: "Even today, when it has fallen, decayed with age, and the trunk lies on the ground rotting, no one presumes to cut it with an axe, nor to strip its bark by hand." And in chapter 1, number 2, about the holm-oak frequented by the pagans of Corbecenus for profane sacrifices: "Though it has fallen, consumed by the passage of much time and the fury of the winds, there still survive very many who profess to have seen it, and that the holm-oak which still remains has grown from its root." But in chapter 6, number 21: "The day of his death, though it is less well known, since..." -- "it is nevertheless commemorated on the day before the Nones of July, namely the day on which the relics were brought from Rouen to this place." This, however, occurred under William, who was created Archbishop of Rouen from being Abbot of Caen in 1079 and died in 1110. Therefore both trees must have stood for about six hundred years, unless someone says that these last details were added later to the Life, which had been written before the incursion of the Danes. The interpolator of the Life and the writer of the Translation are not the same person, however, the Translation is by another, since the former writes that the relics were brought from Rouen on the day before the Nones of July, and the latter on the fourth day before the Nones of February. The former, however, seems to have been a member of the monastery of St. Severus, since he writes that they were brought "to this place"; perhaps the latter was as well.

[5] His feast day, as is said in chapter 6, number 21, is unknown. He is celebrated at Rouen with the double office on February 1; his feast day is February 1; on which day his relics were perhaps brought there under Duke Richard I and Archbishop Robert. Richard I succeeded William, who was slain by the Flemish, on December 18, 942, and died in 996. Robert, his son, Archbishop of Rouen, died in 1037. elsewhere July 7. The Church of Avranches, however, celebrates the feast of St. Severus with the double office of the second class on July 7; and on that day Saussay has a notable encomium of him in which he has briefly embraced his whole life. But on February 1, the Carthusians of Cologne in their Additions to Usuard have this about him: "Likewise Blessed Severus, Bishop and Confessor, whose body is reverently shown to the people on this day in the Metropolitan basilica of Blessed Mary at Rouen." his name in the Martyrologies. Molanus and Canisius have nearly the same, and Saussay at greater length, though he correctly calls him Severus. More briefly Galesini: "At Rouen, St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor." The same, however, like Ferrarius, considers in his Notes that he was Bishop of Rouen; as does Ghini, writing thus: "At Rouen, St. Severus, Bishop and Confessor, who, ordained fourth Bishop there in the year of the Lord 325, sat for sixteen years; whose body is deposited in a venerable reliquary in the Metropolitan basilica of Blessed Mary, and is reverently shown to the people on this day."

[6] Some relics of St. Severus and of St. Sinerius, likewise Bishop of Avranches, relics sent to Paris, who is venerated on September 18, were sent by the Archbishop of Rouen and the Canons to Paris, to the most pious King Louis XII, in 1639. We received a copy of the public document drawn up on that matter from the same Frederick Flouet.

[7] Of Blessed Aegidius and another anonymous Saint buried in the same church of St. Severus, the feast of Blessed Aegidius, his disciple, and of another Saint, is unknown, we have found the name nowhere in the Martyrologies. That they were long since counted in the number of Saints may be gathered from the history of the Translation, chapter 2, number 6, where the following is found: "The tombs of two Saints lay on either side: one of Blessed Aegidius, formerly a disciple and co-worker in God's work, and another of another Saint, whose name, though unknown, has his merit nevertheless manifested by God." In the Life, chapter 4, number 14, where the discourse is about St. Severus's disciples, the following is read about Aegidius: "Among these a certain man, Aegidius by name, a venerable man, was prominent, who was the companion and chief co-worker of the blessed man in his holy purpose; and following the footsteps of his Teacher in all things, he strove to be subject to the teaching of heavenly discipline." One might perhaps wonder whether this Aegidius is the one who, as Bishop of the Church of Avranches, subscribed to the Fifth Council of Orleans.

LIFE BY AN ANONYMOUS AUTHOR

From an ancient MS. of the Monastery of St. Severus.

Severus, Bishop of Avranches, at Rouen in Gaul (St.)

BHL Number: 7668

By an Anonymous Author. From MSS.

CHAPTER I

The Birth of St. Severus. The Care of the Mares.

[1] The venerable man Severus was born in the territory of Coutances, of freeborn but not wealthy parents. Nor, however, did the absence of riches prejudice their purity; St. Severus born of humble parents, for it is not earthly riches but the love of the heavenly homeland that makes people truly rich. Yet a sufficient supply for this life was not lacking to them, from which they gave little to themselves and more to the poor of Christ. but devout and generous to the poor: So great a charity for Christ burned in them that generosity was always present outwardly, and even voluntary poverty was not absent. They begot a son named Severus, whom they raised in the fear of God and, once raised, gave over to serve a certain head of a household named Corbecenus, who was still a pagan.

[2] That man assigned the boy entrusted to him to the care of his mares; and the boy faithfully kept the trust, and by faithfully keeping it made the herd increase from a small and nearly nothing number to a large one. he guards the mares of a rich but pagan man: Now that same pagan had on the slope of a mountain a certain ^d estate adjoining his, which is today called Vieux-Chateau, situated on the river Beuvronne; where he frequently gathered, since he was greatly delighted by the nearness of the woods, the pleasantness of the orchards, and the hunting of deer and goats; and there the multitude of his herds was kept, and a vast solitude surrounded those places on every side. And there, with his horsemen and his very numerous household, he stayed at a certain time of year, especially during the hunting and winter seasons. For the surrounding region was subject to his authority -- namely, the districts of Coutances, ^e Bayeux, and ^f the valley of the river called the Vire. At other times he hastened to other places. And because, being a pagan, he was still governed by the rites of the pagans, he had in the vicinity of his house a very large holm-oak, dedicated to the worship of demons; at the holm-oak where they sacrifice to the gods: under which he poured the blood of calves and goats immolated to his gods. Though that tree, consumed by the passage of much time and the fury of the winds, has fallen, there still survive very many who profess to have seen it, and that the holm-oak which still remains has grown from its root.

[3] There was situated, at a distance of nearly two miles, a certain small church of Blessed Martin, which is today called "Ad-septem-fratres" (At the Seven Brothers); and another opposite it, built in honor of Blessed Quintinus. To these a few Christians at that time came, not without fear of the pagans, on feast days, he pastures near the church of the Christians: especially Sundays. For the pagans, though they did not ^g at that time put Christians to death, nevertheless mocked them and, as is accustomed to happen at the hands of the more brutal, when they were found alone, beat them. Thither, therefore, it was the custom of Blessed Severus to come quite often, as if under the pretext of richer pasture; since, being assigned to the care of his herds and intent upon the service of God as time and ability allowed, he strove to obey both his temporal lord and the eternal and true King. Where, frequently sitting on the public road, very merciful, he distributed to passersby who were suffering need all the necessities he had or could obtain.

[4] It happened, however, that one day, when nearly everything he had had been distributed to the poor, and he no longer had anything further to give except only his undergarments, it happened, I say, that a certain old woman passing by asked for alms. The holy man, sympathizing with her need but having nothing to expend, began to be distressed in spirit because he had nothing of his own that he could bestow upon the begging poor woman. When she, more insistently, he gives a mare with its foal to a poor woman, as that sort of people are wont, pressed him to have pity on her, the servant of God happened to turn his eyes toward the herd of mares, and choosing from them one that he judged to be the best, he handed it over with its foal to the petitioning poor woman and ordered her to depart quickly. When she had departed, the matter was reported to the King. The King, angered, ordered the widow to be brought back with the mare, and both to be kept in his own possession. He then summoned his herdsman by a messenger, and ordered him to render an account of the herd of mares committed to his care. They go to the herd; it is divided into groups; the groups are counted; none is found to be missing. The generous kindness of Almighty God brought it about that, though all were present, one was still lacking. Nor was it difficult for God to supply one in place of another -- since what had been before remained, and what was lacking was made new. Therefore the mare with its foal was returned to the widow; and greater trust was placed in the holy shepherd's faithfulness. but the number is divinely supplied. Whence it came about that both the integrity of the trust committed to the holy man of faith remained intact toward his master, and the truth of the gift that had been given was preserved in good faith.

CHAPTER II

The Generosity of St. Severus to the Poor. Miracles.

[5] At another time also, the man of the Lord, Severus, worn out by the great weariness of labor and the burning sun, while wishing to rest briefly on a green turf, stuck into the ground at the head of his resting place the oak staff which he carried in his hand for driving the animals. he sticks a staff in the ground, Having slept a little, anxious about his herd, he quickly rose and found the staff he had stuck in the ground at his head had taken root. which immediately grows into a tree: Growing gradually into a very large tree, it remained for a long time in the sight of all, to display the grace which the blessed man had earned from God. The holy man, therefore, perceiving God's mercy toward him, prostrated himself on the ground and with copious tears gave Him thanks for His blessings. The tree was held in such reverence by the inhabitants that all venerated it as if it possessed some divine power in itself, and gathered at it on feast days rejoicing together. Nor undeservedly: for, that God might show what regard He already then held Blessed Severus in His sight, violated by none with impunity, whoever attempted to break the branches of that tree either immediately lost his senses entirely or immediately fell down. A bird also, which roosted in its branches, was found dead nearby in the morning. And if by chance an ox or a goat touched any of the ivy by which it was bound, nor even by beasts, it immediately expired in the presence of bystanders. Even today, when it has fallen, decayed with age, and the trunk lies on the ground rotting, no one presumes to cut it with an axe, nor to strip its bark by hand. nor even in the trunk: This God did so that He might be glorified in His Saint, and that the praise and memory of the just man might be more frequently observed.

[6] His father's and mother's affection toward him was so great that, leaving their native soil, home, and relatives, they took up residence at the place to which their son most frequently came. his parents give their clothes to the needy: Both were advanced in years and, having distributed nearly all their possessions for the use of the poor, they willingly led a life of poverty -- to such a degree that they lacked the necessities of human life, namely food and clothing. Blessed Severus, not bearing their need with equanimity, clothed them with the garments which he received from his temporal lord as wages for his service, preferring to reach Abraham's bosom naked with Lazarus than to burn in hell with the rich man clothed in purple.

[7] But the steward of the royal household, seeing the intention of the blessed man, was driven by jealousy and went to his master, intending to defame the man of God -- both because he utterly abhorred the pagan sect and diligently avoided their company, and because he gave away the garments given to him, down to his underclothes, to needy Christians. King Corbecenus, therefore, stirred to anger at hearing this, ordered the servant of God to be watched, so that if by chance he gave away to anyone at all the garments which he ordered to be given to him a second time, and to other poor people: no one should thereafter give him clothing, no one should receive him into their house, but he should remain naked in the open air. And so when Blessed Severus, having immediately distributed in the customary manner for the use of the poor the garments given to him, was returning naked from the field, a young household servant, eager to investigate this, ran ahead and met him and reported in advance to the house therefore shut out from his master's house in the severest cold, that the servant of God had arrived naked. The cruel King ordered the royal doors to be closed to the servant of God, and that he be driven away with insult to the place from which he had come. The severity of winter had been harsher than usual, and deep snow had covered the surface of the ground.

[8] But the servant of Almighty God, seeing himself repelled from every quarter by all, and all raging against him in a bestial manner, and now in no way willing to have pity on him, deprived of human comfort but having hope in the ever-merciful Christ, went to the herd of mares entrusted to him, and standing opposite them, naked, began to pray to the Lord in the open air. The manifold mercy of the compassionate God, seeing him, was present with help and aided him with beneficence. For the herd of mares, at God's command, came from the place where they stood at a great distance to their shepherd, and turning their faces toward him on both sides, they surrounded him, and emitting their breath upon him, did not allow him to feel the cold. he is warmed by the breath of the mares. The snow, at God's command, avoiding the place where the man of God dwelt with the mares who were faithfully serving him, presented the appearance of a shore on the outside while leaving a spacious open area within. When this was reported to the King, he ran there in haste, saw it, began to marvel, and marveled greatly; he praised Almighty God in the works of His Saints, and immediately ordered the man of God to be clothed in new and better garments.

CHAPTER III

The Prince Corbecenus and His Household Converted Through St. Severus.

[9] he is honored by his master: Thus, with fury and envy turned into love and reverence, the King began to venerate the one he had previously despised, and began to embrace him no longer in the place of a shepherd but of a father; and he greatly desired to entrust to him the guardianship of his whole household, if he were willing. But the Saint of God, who had already once set his hand to the plow of the Lord, counting it unworthy to look backward -- that is, to prefer temporal honor to the Divine work -- humbly refused what was offered to him; and saying that he wished henceforth to lead a solitary life, he asked his temporal lord for permission to depart, so that he might be free for God alone.

[10] King Corbecenus, therefore, seeing that the mind of the blessed man was utterly burning with love for the heavenly King and was setting aside all earthly things in order to meditate on heavenly ones, devoutly asked him whom he had instructed in the faith to make known to him the sacraments of the Christian religion, saying that he wished to follow that God who had such servants, through whom He commanded even the very elements. The holy man, therefore, hearing that for which he had frequently besought the Lord -- that He would make known the knowledge of Himself -- sought out a certain Priest of good repute dwelling not far away, informed him of the King's request, and invited him to come with him. That Priest, with the sign of the Cross raised aloft and the book of the Gospel, followed by a multitude of the faithful, went to the King and greeted him with humble devotion and devout humility. Then, having given a blessing, and all the Christians present responding "Amen," Blessed Severus, filled with the grace of God, clearly instructed the King, his children, and his household in the mystery of the Incarnation of Christ and the sacrament of the Christian faith. he procures the baptism of him and his household: Almighty God granted such great grace to His servant that all immediately abandoned the rite of paganism and sought both the grace and the name of Christianity. When the Priest had prescribed a fast of forty days, on the fortieth day the King was the first to approach, the Church having been assembled in a better manner; after a fast of forty days, he receives him from the sacred font: and having publicly confessed the name of Christ and been divested of his royal garments, he asked with tears to be baptized, and was deemed worthy. And Blessed Severus became his father in baptism -- he who had been his previous guide and counselor to this end. Very many followed his example, and the dignity of our religion... while the vain superstition of idols was utterly despised.

[11] Blessed Severus therefore rejoiced at so great a harvest of his sowing, and it was for him the crown of blessedness that he had been the first in that region to fix the plow of the Lord's preaching, he instructs the neophytes whence he saw abundant fruits growing for the heavenly granary. He rejoiced that he had been the cause of salvation and remedy for the one from whom he had frequently received the wages of present life's service. with words and examples: He discoursed before the King on the integrity of faith, purity of life, and sincerity of heart; and little by little he was forming their minds from the monstrous superstition of idolatry to the manner of the heavenly homeland, applying himself to daily preaching; and while he devoted himself to constant prayer whenever he was free, he offered himself to others as a pattern and example of the religion to be imitated. And it was wondrous to see the name of Christ now publicly preached in the place where recently there had been fear even to hear it. And daily the loss of the devil's party grew, so that as it decreased, the faithful people received increase.

CHAPTER IV

The Solitary Life of St. Severus. His Disciples.

[12] When, therefore, the servant of Almighty God saw that the seeds of faith were sprouting more abundantly in their hearts, already yielding a hundredfold fruit in good works, the temples of idols being utterly destroyed, and churches of Christ being built everywhere; about their progress, being long kindled with desires for a more remote life, he convened those whom he had gained for Christ, disclosed his desire to them, and comforted their grieving hearts with this speech: "I give thanks to Almighty God, having given thanks to God; since you, who through the transgression of the first parent and through ignorance of your own action had been made children of the devil, have now been made children of God by adoption. What had been vitiated in you, you have restored by the bath of Baptism, and you have presented yourselves as a holy and immaculate offering: for you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. and having exhorted them to constancy, Whence, brothers and children, hold fast by your conduct the faith which you received in baptism and which you confessed before the Priest, and perseveringly carry it out in deed. For the kingdom is promised to those who begin, but it is given to those who persevere. Remember with what wretched and fragile flesh we are encompassed. Remember how brief a life we enjoy in this fleeting time, as the Prophet says: 'My days have declined like a shadow, and I am withered like grass.' Ps. 101:12 Set before your eyes the last day of judgment, as ^a Solomon says: 'Remember your last things, and you will never sin.' Ecclus. 7:40 And I, dearest brothers, have dwelt with you for some time, and have long been intent upon your progress, by the grace of God. Seeing now that your hearts are fully burning with the charity of Christ, he resolves to go into solitude, I too, anxious for my own sins and fearing the punishment of fierce hell, have resolved to seek a more secluded place, that I may cling more attentively to God. I commend you to God, who caused you to come to the knowledge of His name, that having been made conformable through the adoption of His Son, He may make you co-heirs of Christ Himself."

[13] When those present heard this, all began alike to ask with tears all grieving, that he would not abandon them, whom he had recently begotten for Christ through his preaching. King Corbecenus said to him: "You see, Father, that in you alone the sum of our salvation consists, since by our madness and persecution and that of others like us, the Christians have been driven from our borders, and very few remain, scarcely even capable of heavenly teaching. You were the one whom Divine goodness reserved for us -- one fit for heaven, to beget new children, and to present yourself to us as a pattern of religion and chastity. the master begging him not to go far: Whence I do not believe it would be of much profit if, while you wish to save yourself alone, you should see -- indeed, suffer -- many to perish, whom you could, if you wished, lead to the right path by your admonition. For to those recently devoted to idols, it is difficult not to repeat the custom of accustomed sacrifice and to subject free necks to the new service of God. Whence I also, who especially need a teacher of heavenly rites, beseech your kindness most earnestly that, if your intention of this kind cannot be changed, at least a dwelling near to us may please you, so that if anything... should arise among us, we may run to you as the thirsty run to a spring. We have, moreover, various places suited to the wishes of men: it is yours to choose, and ours to assign what is chosen to your name."

[14] The servant of God, hearing this, filled with great joy at his devotion and that of his people, gave his assent in private, chose for himself a place nearby, and had it ascribed to his name. There was indeed a place there, a mile from the King's castle, situated on a wooded mountain..., which a vast solitude surrounded, near the oak once grown from the pastoral staff of that Saint. he builds a church in a nearby place: Coming to this place, the servant of God first built a church in honor of the blessed Mother of God, Mary. Dwelling therein, perpetually intent upon heavenly contemplation, he constantly devoted himself to vigils, fasts, and prayers. By his example many noble men also, leaving secular things, following heavenly things with their whole desire, and rejoicing to bear their cross after the Lord, chose to lead a poor life with him. Among these a certain man, Aegidius by name, a venerable man, was prominent; he admits disciples, and among them Blessed Aegidius: who was the companion and chief co-worker of the blessed man in his holy purpose, and following the footsteps of his Teacher in all things, he strove to be subject to the teaching of heavenly discipline. Meanwhile, the manifold reputation of their manner of life grew, for they who had nothing desired nothing, devoting themselves to daily labor so that they might have -- beholden to none -- that little from which to live. And a sufficient richness was theirs: namely bread and water, the daily refreshment at evening; clothing serving only necessity; to covet nothing earthly; to obey one another at the voice of command; to make themselves strangers to this world; to bear patiently the injuries of the wicked.

CHAPTER V

The Episcopate of St. Severus. His Abdication.

[15] Blessed Severus, however, while the others were occupied with the necessities of human life, kept himself within the enclosure of his church, and went forth nowhere except for the sake of visiting the sick. Having obtained the priesthood he becomes a Priest, at the request of the Brothers and the entire people, he strove to offer worthily, as best he could, the sacrifice of our salvation more frequently to God; and at the same time he immolated himself as a holocaust to God through the compunction of tears. In this rank of the Lord's office he merited heavenly and human favor and grace in manifold ways, and by meriting it he was divinely brought to a higher rank in this manner. There was nearby a city which is today called Avranches, situated on the brow of a hill toward the west, then Bishop of Avranches, unwillingly: which, widowed by the death of its Pastor, was seeking a successor from God by fasts and prayers. This city, as report has it, having heard the famous name of the blessed man's sanctity, admonished by Divine inspiration, with unanimous favor and concordant election, compelled the servant of God -- unwilling and greatly resisting -- to preside over them. But since he could in no way resist the will -- indeed, the ordination -- of God, he accepted the episcopate unwillingly.

[16] But he showed himself to be such as he had been before: he devoted himself to prayer, reading, fasting, and vigils; full of authority and full of charity. he carries out that office with great zeal and humility: He so used the dignity of the episcopate among the people that he did not forget the continence of his solitary life. He was persistent in his dwelling, gentle in his speech, severe in correction. He admonished the good to advance to better things; he terrified the wicked to desist from evil; he moved unbelievers by persuasion to be converted to the faith of Christ; but those who refused to believe he utterly banished from the whole region. How little he valued the glory of the deceitful world and how much he despised secular honors could be indicated by both the cheapness of his clothing and the lowliness of his speech and countenance. Though he was covered with a vile garment, his appearance nevertheless displayed a certain mark of nobility. His face was pale from fasting; his body was afflicted with squalor; yet in his squalid body the lines of his limbs were prominent -- so much so that if you were unaware the man was holy, the reverence of his form would indicate it.

[17] He performed very many miracles during his episcopate, which have by no means come to our knowledge. For as far as it lay in him, his whole life was hidden; he is famous for miracles: since he desired neither to be rewarded with praise nor to be temporally recompensed with wages for the deeds he had done. And since at that time very many in his diocese were still held by the most vain error of idols, he was engaged in continual dispute against this diabolical vanity, in order to convert those whom the vain delusion of demons had subverted. Indeed, wherever he found an idol or a temple consecrated to idols, he overthrows idols, he would hasten to it and, without hesitation, either utterly destroy it or, in the name of Almighty God, expel the demon and consecrate it. And no one dared to resist such great splendors of the signs that were wrought by him. and converts the pagans: And so it came to pass that within a short span of time the light of the true faith shone through him upon all in his diocese, so much so that all publicly professed the name of Christ and rejoiced to lay aside the darkness of their error under such a Pastor.

[18] While he was giving himself more attentively to these and other divine matters, fearing lest by the heavy burden of pastoral care an unexpected occasion of ruin might be prepared for him, he asked that a successor be given him by the people. having resigned the episcopate, When the people were not willing readily to accede to his request -- since his presence cheered them and his absence saddened them; they rejoiced to be subject to him, and grieved not to have him as their ruler -- he declared that he absolutely wished to return to his former life and place, and that this wish could in no way be changed; and that they had very many by whose word and example they might be instructed; that his absence was to the detriment of his former flock; and that the ecclesiastical faith of those who were present would in no way be violated by his absence. he returns to his monastery: When they were unwilling to resist him, they gave their consent unwillingly. Having received permission, therefore, he departed and went to the solitude beloved of his heart.

[19] The Brothers, as if receiving back a father, gave thanks to God and, strengthened by his presence, strove to outdo one another in good work. he devotes himself to contemplation: The man of the Lord, as if a great burden had been cast from his shoulders, began to attend more freely to the Divine work and to pursue the path of a stricter life, casting behind him the whole world, retaining only necessities. Luke 18:14 And as Divine Scripture attests, "He who humbles himself shall be exalted"; meanwhile he began to be made manifest by great signs of miracles, so much so that you might see the troops of those coming and going, visiting the holy man or at least seeking him, frequenting the Brothers' dwellings like swarms of bees. Concerning the bodily health of those who came, he had merited from God so great a grace he heals the sick, that whoever came to him oppressed by the weight of any ailment would return cheerful, restored to his former health by his prayers. He gave sight to the blind, the power of walking to the lame, speech to the mute, hearing to the deaf. For driving out demons from possessed bodies also, the present working of Divine power was with him. Many too, before they reached the threshold of the blessed man, were restored to health, the demon being put to flight. He also came to the aid of the diseases of souls both by the teaching of Divine Scripture and by the grace of prayer, and instructs them in piety, so much so that all who came, pricked in mind by his words, greatly improved, both wept over the past and were unwilling to commit again what would need to be wept for.

CHAPTER VI

The Last Admonitions of St. Severus. His Death.

[20] When therefore the blessed man was devoting himself to these and many other holy works, foreknowing, being now worn out by old age, the day of his calling by Divine revelation -- that he might receive from the Lord the reward of his labor, namely the unfading crown of eternal glory -- he foreknows his death by Divine revelation and prepares himself for it: lest he be found unprepared by the Just Judge whom he had always feared to offend, so that he would never need to fear Him once offended, he strove by constant meditation and assiduous prayer to anticipate His face. Whence, having convened the company he had gained for Christ, he both foretold the day of his departure and admonished them to pour forth prayers to the Lord on his behalf. And restraining those who lamented at his dissolution with a just rebuke, he said: "We seem to be ungrateful for God's blessings when we resist that which we know happens by His dispensation and His will. For the servant who knows the will of his Lord and does not do it he admonishes his own not to grieve, shall be beaten with many stripes. Whence, since a certain glory after death awaits the Saints of God for their deeds, to lament for them while they die can not unjustly be ascribed to our own advantage, not theirs. For to die in Christ is far better than to live in the flesh. And because for me to live has been Christ, and to die is gain, therefore, rejoicing and giving thanks, I await the day of death, greatly trusting in the goodness of the merciful God: that He who was willing to redeem the undeserving and the unbelieving by His death would deign to vindicate the believing and the veteran soldiers of His service from the attack of the ancient enemy. I commend you to God, that He may turn His eyes upon you, but that they be diligent in the pursuit of virtue, so as to lead you by the straight path together to the homeland which we lost through the incontinence of the first parent; that His grace may restore what our negligence lost; and that He may not drive away to punishment, as always unprofitable, us whom He called as His children to the kingdom. James 5:16 I also ask you, mindful of the Apostolic precept which says, 'Pray for one another that you may be saved,' that you pour forth prayers to God on my behalf, lest the hand of enemies, ignorant of mercy, come upon me, and that they pray for him, nor terrify me with their onslaught. For though this hand may find some little of its own in any of the Saints, yet by its own savage cruelty it violently assails its own, and although it cannot violate what belongs to another, yet it presumes to do so in its fury; and it is to be feared the more, the less it can be entreated. Since we can in no way resist it by ourselves, Christ must be entreated, whom it cannot resist, so that through Him we may be able to escape the hand of its savagery and cruelty. If we once have Christ appeased, we shall fear no onslaughts of those who assault us."

[21] When he had finished these words, and given to all the kiss of peace, he sent them to their own homes, grieving and groaning greatly. He himself was now wholly occupied with the exercises of the interior man and, placed in great contrition of flesh and spirit, desired to be dissolved and to be with Christ. Not long afterward the blessed man was seized by a severe fever, which growing worse day by day, as it diminished the strength of his body, he is seized by a fever: so much the more did it increase the vigor of his soul. Even while placed in his infirmity, he did not cease from the praises of God, and removed from himself all the noise of worldly activity, so that, intent solely upon the supreme Judge, he might commend his spirit into His hands, by whose sole mercy and help he believed he could be defended from the hands of the wicked. And he asked with groaning and tears that He would remember him, whom he had always remembered without fear in his life. On the last day, however, fortified with the Sacraments, he dies, having been fortified by the Lord's Sacraments, with all the Brothers standing by and weeping, amid the words of psalms and prayers, without very great pain (as it seemed), as if dissolving into sleep, he breathed forth his spirit. the day is unknown: The day of his death, though it is less well known -- since by the storm of invading barbarians all the Brothers fled after his death, so that no one remained there, and for a long time that place was deprived of human comfort -- is nevertheless commemorated on the day before the Nones of July, that is, the day on which the Relics were brought from Rouen to this place. He had caused a tomb to be made for himself in the church of the Blessed Mother Mary, which he himself had built, buried, he is famous for miracles, in which, placed by his forebears, he manifested by signs of miracles, as if he were alive, that he was alive; and the power of healings, displayed from the dust of the buried man, showed the living how great his merit was in heaven. Blessed be God in all things, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.

CHAPTER VII

Another Miracle of St. Severus During His Lifetime.

[22] ^a And since the gift and power of our God is neither less in great things nor greater in small, but everywhere and in the whole and in every part omnipotent -- to whom, when faithfully served, more is granted than is asked -- who set boundaries for the sea which it does not transgress, at whose command the powers of fire grow weak; He Himself preserved Blessed Severus unburned amid burning fire, so that through this he might not incongruously appear to equal in merit, as in age, the three youths praising God in the burning furnace of the proud King. For at a certain time a certain poor old woman was putting loaves into a hot oven to bake them; and while she was putting them in, the peel -- the implement called a "pala" -- placed under the bread, remained in the oven and was burned. When the old woman saw that she had lost her peel, and had no other at hand to substitute for it, but had very many loaves still to bake, she began, once, he had entered a hot oven unharmed to help a widow, as is the habit of her age and sex, to complain with groaning, fearing two losses in the damage: that she had nothing with which to draw out the baked loaves or put in those to be baked. When Blessed Severus, passing by, heard her tearful voice, he flew from the road, inquired and learned the cause of her grief, and moved by pity and full of faith, immediately approached and burst into the burning oven, heedless of himself. He received the loaves left by the woman from outside, arranged them through the oven for baking, and shortly afterward returned them baked, together with others he had not put in, to the widow who rejoiced greatly; and he came out of the oven unharmed, so that neither on his flesh nor on his garment could any injury be detected. Coming out, he marveled at what he had done, and feared, and fearing God, in whom he could do what he could not by himself, he praised Him; and henceforth served Him more faithfully, and in serving raised himself against himself to tolerate greater things for His love.

TRANSLATION I AND II

By an Anonymous Author, from the same MS.

Severus, Bishop of Avranches, at Rouen in Gaul (St.)

BHL Number: 7669

A.D. 1089.

By an Anonymous Author. From MSS.

CHAPTER I

The Church of St. Severus Burned by the Danes, Then Restored.

[1] How that venerable body of the blessed man was carried from the place of its original burial to Rouen, and there fittingly placed in a silver coffin, as I received from our forebears, I have chosen to write for posterity.

[2] After the death of the blessed Confessor Severus, the Christian religion grew ever colder and the fervor of Divine worship declined, and the love that had recently been united by zealous purpose of mind fell back into hatred and enmity. The enormity of the sinners brought it about that the inhabitants of this land were punished with a fitting penalty -- they who had voluntarily withdrawn themselves from the service of God in order to live wickedly. Hence, that a worthy vengeance of God might utterly extirpate this nation, vitiated as it were from the root, while the Danes were devastating Gaul, a certain people ignorant of mercy and piety... ^aa nation crossing the sea with fleets and a great apparatus of war, finding the inhabitants of this land leading a life of ease in luxury, attacked them with unexpected war, delivering to death those they could seize -- some to fires, some to rivers, some to precipices. Terrified by this horror, the entire nation, carrying all their possessions with them, took flight with no return; so much so that places previously delightful and full of their people were left to be inhabited only by wild beasts and birds. As they sought the refuge of flight, such fear of the enemy fell upon them that they themselves set fire to the churches with the houses and the houses with the goods that could not be carried away, taking with them many bodies of the Saints were carried elsewhere; the bodies of the Saints in whose patronage they rejoiced. Whence it happens that this land, widowed of the bodily presence of its Saints, rejoices less in their patronage -- it which attributes an equal efficacy of deeds to their bodies as to their souls. Some were also overcome by so sudden an irruption of the enemy that, by no means masters of their wishes, and unable to resist the attackers, having merely escaped the peril of death became for them a great price for things and places never to be seen again. And since to the Danes, who still worshipped idols in place of God and were enemies of the worshippers of Almighty God, the rule of the Christian religion had not yet been made known, temples were destroyed; they had no reverence for the buildings of the Saints, and no fear or piety in destroying the relics of the Saints' bodies. Whence the holy places, reduced to the desolation of a desert, lacked for a long time both Divine worship and human service. that of St. Severus was burned: Among these, the place and the coffin of Blessed Severus, the illustrious Confessor of Christ, were delivered to the flames by the unspeakable enemy and utterly destroyed from the foundation, so much so that neither was the power of the place's protection held in memory, since it had no one to protect; nor was the place held in veneration, since there were none present to venerate it.

[3] They therefore occupied the entire land, emptied of its native inhabitants, with savage cruelty, and oppressed it long under the heavy dominion of their impiety. Until at length, when they themselves had come to know the truth, they would subject their fierce hearts voluntarily to the Almighty, and apply diligence to the religion which they had hitherto undermined. when they were at length, though with difficulty, converted: And because we said they had come from the northern part and were called Danes, they were henceforth called Normans: for "Man" means "person," and "North" is the name of the wind. Normans, therefore, are so called as those coming from the North, or dwelling under the North. Having received the faith, since they were of a barbarous mind and an unbridled condition, they could not quickly or easily be bent to Divine worship -- until at length, sweetened by the grace of the merciful God, by the frequency of signs and by constant preaching, they gradually set aside that bestial ferocity and began to hold in veneration what they had previously consigned to vanity; and the churches of God began to be rebuilt by those who had once been their destroyers. miracles began to occur again: God also began meanwhile to work wonders among His Saints, to strengthen the faith of the living, and to make their tombs known by manifest signs.

CHAPTER II

The Body of St. Severus Translated to Rouen.

[4] It happened at that very time that two Clerics of Rouen were seeking the Mount of Blessed Michael for the sake of prayer, two Clerics turn aside to the church of St. Severus, modestly restored, and that they frequently passed near the church of Blessed Severus on their way out and back, and sometimes spent the night there under the pretext of devotion. That church, covered at that time with poor straw and woven with wattle walls, was nevertheless frequented by the people on account of the frequent signs which were wrought there by the merits of their Patron. For having been recently destroyed by the infidels, but generously restored by the same people once they had become believers, it was held, amid the thickets of the forests and the lairs of wild beasts, as a place of many notable signs. they resolve to carry off his body: When those two Clerics had frequently spent the night there, and had walked about here and there and had seen the place without an inhabitant except for a certain Priest, they were enticed by the desire to seize the body and began to seek the time and hour in which they could bring to completion what they had conceived in mind. The shrewd Priest, foreseeing their ^bdesigns, and with much cleverness taking precautions both for himself and for the place, they are impeded by the Priest's diligence: ordered a chair to be made for himself, in which he had nails half a foot long driven in on every side, so that if by chance at some time during his watches he should be weighed down by sleep, and thus keeping vigil in sight of the holy body, he would be compelled to remain standing even against his will.

[5] When the spies had seen these things, troubled in mind and frustrated in their hope, they returned to Rouen and reported in order to the Archbishop and the Clergy what signs they had seen wrought through Blessed Severus, the servant of God. the Rouennais, having learned of this, By a definitive counsel, they sent envoys to Richard, the son of William, Prince of the land, humbly requesting that he would honor the Mother Church of his duchy with the body of Blessed Severus, which, though set amid the thickets of a vast wilderness, they had heard was shining with miracles but lacked the worthy service of ministers. Duke Richard, hearing these things, with the consent of Richard I, Duke of Normandy, much in doubt about the matter -- since he wished both to accede to such a request and not to contradict the will of the Saint (for in the one he feared danger and in the other he valued the affection) -- decided that it should be determined by the common judgment of his nobles, and that whatever they decreed to be more useful should be done. The council determined that they should go to the appointed place, and that, lest any men resist, it should be permitted that if it pleased the guardian of the place, they might carry the holy body away. they send men to carry it off: The envoys, therefore, greatly gladdened with joy, returned home; they announced the decree they had heard; two Clerics of good repute were chosen, with whom many others also, by the Prince's command, came to the place with great haste and joy and commotion.

[6] Furthermore, the local people, having learned the reason for the envoys' coming, and having found no plan by which to resist, turned to tears and grieved that he was being taken from them in whose prayers they trusted for protection. They asked, however, that some part of the holy body be left there, these men, having suppressed the locals, so that they and their descendants might have someone to whom, after God, they might commit the vows of their prayers. But the envoys, pursuing them with insults and striking with blows some who presumed to resist, drove them outside the precincts of the church with insult. When these had been expelled, they fell unanimously to prayer with tears; and when it was completed, they approached with great trembling and reverence the tomb of the Saint, which had been placed before the altar and sunk into the ground, showing only the top of its rim. For there, by the faithful, out of fear of the pagans, he had been placed in a stone coffin and committed to the lowly earth -- earth of much value held in common. the tomb was situated between two others of Saints: The tombs of two other Saints lay on either side: one of Blessed Aegidius, formerly a disciple and co-worker in God's work; another of another Saint, whose name, though unknown, has its merit nevertheless manifested through signs. Approaching the middle of these, where it had been confirmed by manifest signs that Blessed Severus lay, they dig it up: some sang psalms, others dug the earth, others cast out the excavated earth. When the tomb was laid bare, they pushed the stone placed on top with rakes and staves; and when it was raised from the right side, so great and so sweet an odor emanated from that tomb from which a sweet odor, breathing forth, heals the sick: that all who were present were filled with it, and being filled, were healed of their infirmities. Nor did that fragrance fill only those within the church, but also all those placed outside, and from it their senses were immediately restored from their ailments.

[7] When the coffin was opened, they saw a body like that of a sleeping man, stretched out, wrapped in the cleanest cloths and anointed with precious ointments, the body, whole and decorously wrapped, which, being white on the surface, already foreshadowed in its changed flesh what was to be wholly in the resurrection to come. When a bier adorned on every side with silk garments was prepared, bathed in tears and with their hands applied to the holy body, they lifted it -- as rigid as if it had been buried that very day. And since the bier, prepared only for bones, was unsuitable for the extended body, after deliberation they cut it through the middle with a knife, re-clothed it in new and better cloths, and placed it in a portable coffin; and immediately, with great exultation of voice and heart, they placed it upon their shoulders.

[8] But as they were going out of the church, a furious crowd of rustics arrived, they carry it away: wanting to take the holy body from those who were bearing it. But at the sight of the multitude of armed men, they turned to flight and abandoned their attempted undertaking. But the others, proceeding with quickened step on the public road all day long, came at sunset to a village a mile distant from ^cEvreux, where, intending to take lodging, they set down the holy bier in the church with candles lit and under guard. Then, having refreshed themselves more carefully with food, where it had rested at night, it could not be lifted, and having given the night partly to vigils and partly to sleep, they approached in the morning after hymns and attempted in vain to lift the holy body. Failing in their very attempt, they summoned a crowd of inhabitants and applied their hands far more earnestly; but they were unable to move him whom the Holy Spirit and his own will had fixed. Whence, dismayed in spirit and utterly ignorant which way to turn, they at length hit upon this plan: to try to appease him with promises which the promises would not disappoint. unless a vow was made to build a church; They promised therefore to carry him back to where they had brought him from; they promised to leave him there -- but he could not be moved. They promised to build a church there in his name; and with such ease was he moved and this throughout the whole journey: as if a weight were without weight. And this was done throughout the entire stretch of the journey to Rouen: that by no force and no means could he be moved from the place where he was set down at night, until it was confirmed to him by oath that a church must be built there in his name.

[9] What miracles, however, the Lord wrought during his translation, in the sight of all, it is not within our ability to unfold. For an infinite multitude of both sexes, coming from fields and villages, came to meet him -- some for the sake of healings, others out of devout affection. very many miracles occurred: And whoever faithfully sought the Saint's patronage, a swift remedy anticipated the wish of the petitioner. Those who could not come by their own power, carried by the hands of others, were restored to health upon touching the holy bier and returned by their own power.

[10] At length they arrived at a village three miles distant from the city, the Archbishop comes to meet them with a procession: where, having set down the bier, the happy outcome of the affair was sent by messenger to their Bishop. He, rejoicing greatly, summoned the Clergy and the people, and having told all the business at hand, went forth to meet them with hymns and praises, crosses and thuribles. Coming there and having said a prayer, he applied his hand to lift the holy bier -- and could not. He exhorted his men to apply their hands, he cannot lift the body unless a similar vow is made: but the many were no more gladdened by a successful outcome than the one. Whence, dismayed in mind, and not yet knowing what had happened to the envoys, they hesitated at first as to what they should do -- until at length, when the will of the Saint had been made known through the envoys themselves, they made a donation in the present moment and bound themselves to build a church in his name.

[11] Thereupon, with hands scarcely applied to the bier, it was moved with such ease that what was being carried scarcely seemed to be carried at all. As they bore it and were now approaching the city, the whole city rushed forth to meet them, praising the Lord who was providing them with such a Patron, it is honorably deposited in the Cathedral church: by whose presence they would be strengthened and by whose prayers they would be supported. And so, with a voice of jubilation raised on high, it was carried on the shoulders of the rejoicing into the Mother church of Blessed Mary; and there, placed in a coffin fittingly fashioned with gold and silver and covered with silk, it bestows very great benefit upon those who truly seek it. And so it came to pass that the same servant of God, who had shown himself temporally vile and abject to the world for the love of God, and who had lain hidden in a thatched hut, covered with a cheap garment, poor himself with the poor -- now both exalted in heaven before the sight of God, and raised high on earth in the metropolitan church -- provided an example to the living of humbling themselves temporally, so as to be exalted eternally.

CHAPTER III

Some Relics of St. Severus Returned to His Monastery.

[12] And since the Saint did not wish to leave this place, in which he had especially served God, entirely bereft of his presence, he had certain relics from his body brought back there in this manner. In the time, therefore, of Lord William, the Brothers of the monastery of St. Severus visit his body: ^a formerly Abbot of Caen and afterward Archbishop of Rouen, the Brothers of the monastery of St. Severus, which is situated in the Valley of the Vire, went to Rouen for the sake of devotion, that they might both see the coffin of their Patron and commend themselves, present, to him as if he were present. When the Archbishop recognized their devotion, he received them with honor, bestowed upon those he received the full grace of charity, and by promising to bestow greater things, gave them hope that he would do so if they asked. Provoked by his kind promise, it occurred to them to ask the same Pontiff for some of the relics of the precious body. But they were very much afraid that they could not easily obtain what they desired they ask for some of his relics: from him whom they had heard and seen to be so greatly honored, venerated, and loved. And since they believed that no loss could come from a refusal but some profit from a petition, they approached the Lord Archbishop with confidence and humbly laid open their request. He, inclining his head downward and deliberating for a long time what he should reply, answered that he in no way dared even to attempt such a thing, since he had read in many codices that it had harmed very many people to have touched the relics of Saints, the Archbishop at first hesitating, and some even merely to have seen them. They insisted that the Saint of God would by no means hate his former place -- the one which he had founded while living, which he had dedicated as his own, and which he had made illustrious by signs so great and so frequent. That he should, being dead, repudiate what he had so loved, seemed incredible. They asked, therefore, that permission be given to them to approach the holy body by themselves, and if they could take something from it; if indeed they could not, they would owe thanks only to him -- the Bishop -- since, kindled with a living faith, he might consent. He promised to comply with their request, provided he might know that his promise would in no way displease the Saint of God.

[13] On the morning of the following day, therefore, having summoned a few of his own, together with the aforesaid Brothers, and having said preliminary prayers and the solemnities of Mass, he had the reliquary of the holy relics taken down. He himself approached first with great fear, and bathed in tears, he opened it and unwrapped the body wrapped in silk. at length they obtain their request: Although its flesh had been reduced to dust, the skin, however, still remained intact. The Archbishop therefore took the bone commonly called the "cauila" of the neck, together with a portion of the skin, and afterward the joint of the middle finger which adheres to the palm of the hand; and wrapping all these together in a cloth, he handed them to the aforesaid Brothers to be carried away. The Brothers, with the greatest joy and honor, having received such a pledge, returned in great gladness and brought to their own Brothers gifts more precious than gold and silver. and carry them to their own: They too, rejoicing not a little, prepared a reliquary of no small value for the holy relics, in which they deposited them with many others, and instituted the day of their reception -- the fourth day before the Nones of February -- to be celebrated as a feast. they venerate them on February 2: And on that day the whole surrounding region, joyfully gathered to seek the patronage of so great a Father, rejoices to be present at his solemnity, and trusts that by his prayers it will be snatched from every adversity and, not by its own merit but by his, be enrolled among the choirs of heavenly spirits.

CHAPTER IV

An Exhortatory Epilogue.

[14] And since we celebrate his feast not for his sake but for ours, let us see what sort of people we are the Author exhorts who frequent the feast of so great a Father. For, as Scripture says, "Praise is not seemly in the mouth of a sinner." Ecclus. 15:9 For if, as is true, we have sinned beyond number, why do we presume to handle his praises? Ps. 32:1 Indeed, if, as is said, "Praise befits the upright," what will be the glorying of sinners? But lest sinners should despair, in the same psalm it is added: "The earth is full of the mercy of the Lord." v. 5 For by the name of "earth" sinners are designated, who, gaping after earthly things, while they ought to go in mind to heavenly things, cling more eagerly to the anxiety of worldly cupidity. Their life or reason still strives and sweats that sinners also might implore the mercy of God, to possess that by which it may become more honorable; to this end it labors: to preside over more people and to rejoice in riches. But to these also the full... of mercy is extended, if they are willing not to be what they have been: for God withholds the bowels of His mercy from none, if one is willing; He impels the willing and always bestows upon the one impelled, as if always willing, the reward of recompense. But from the unwilling -- indeed, from the one who contradicts -- insofar as it proceeds from the freedom of the will, He takes away grace, and by taking it away He permits hardness to creep into the heart, so that one neither wills nor can what one could have willed and been able to do, if one had been able to recognize the grace of faith. Rom. 9:18 and 16 "For God has mercy on whom He wills," says the Apostle, "and whom He wills He hardens." And elsewhere: "It is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who has mercy." Whence, brothers, let us be solicitous for our salvation, since, with our sins resisting, we do not know whether we are among the elect. But by obeying the precepts of God's commandments, let us act so that we may truly know, lest we be found unworthy of God's grace at the end and be delivered to eternal fires. Let us run back to the fountain of mercy, open for the washing of the impure. Let us cleanse with tears what we have defiled with sins.

[15] But if, darkened by our evils, we cannot approach by ourselves the very light of truth, let us seek intercessors through whom we may deserve pardon. and the patronage of the Saints, Let us entreat those who, while they lived, served God more attentively, to deign to be our patrons in the present world -- they whom we will have as judges in the world to come. They too, inebriated by the fountain of mercy, will not deny to those present what they wished to have in common with the penitent. For they wish to be more companions than strict judges. Among these let us ask this Father of ours, Blessed Severus, to intercede for us, especially that of St. Severus, and through him let us carry out an embassy to Christ, that by his prayers He may make Himself appeased toward us, whom we had made angry by living wickedly. Let us ask that he come to the aid of the flock devoted to him, he who faithfully guarded the herd of mares for his temporal lord and by guarding merited to augment them; and he who, out of the affection of piety, in order to clothe the naked, did not shrink from nakedness, may obtain the garment of justice for the family that entreats him. Furthermore, he who in pity gave a mare with its foal to a crying widow, and merited that another be divinely supplied in its place, may himself obtain for us that God may supply in us the good that is lacking, and mercifully take away the evil that is present; and may He extinguish in us the bilge-water of vices -- He who did not feel the fires of the burning oven. Amen.

TRANSLATION III OF ST. SEVERUS

FROM ROUEN TO PARIS.

Severus, Bishop of Avranches, at Rouen in Gaul (St.)

A.D. 1639.

FROM THE DOCUMENT OF THE CHAPTER OF ROUEN.

To the most Christian and unconquered Lord, our Lord Louis, by the grace of God King of the French and of Navarre, his most humble suppliants, the Canons and Chapter of the holy Metropolitan Church of Rouen, offer submission and the service of most ready devotion. As soon as we understood from the letters of our most Illustrious and most Reverend Lord Archbishop to King Louis XIII, requesting relics from the Church of Rouen, that your most august Majesty, inflamed with zeal of piety toward the domestic sanctity of this Church, desired with religious affection some portion from the treasure which we hold in earthen vessels, giving thanks to God for so salutary a desire, we strove to fulfill it with exulting spirits. For which purpose, after mature deliberations among ourselves, from the various Relics of Saints resting in the sacristy of the same Church, we cast our eyes chiefly upon the two bodies of the blessed Confessors of Christ and Bishops, Severus and Sinerius, from which to extract sacred pledges for this end. Therefore, on the day appointed below for this purpose, after the daily solemnities of the Masses had been performed, assembling in the aforesaid sacristy, where caskets of various kinds, full of immortal riches, had previously been brought out from the cupboards in which they are devoutly kept and decorously arranged, we had the blessed remains of each Saint successively taken from their own repositories by our dear fellow Canon Jean le Prevost, a Priest and at that time the Hebdomadary, vested in a chasuble and other sacred vestments, accompanied and assisted by our dear colleagues Nicolas Throsnel and Denis le Feure, Priests, prepared in diaconal and subdiaconal attire, and we had them reverently exposed upon a table adorned in the manner of an altar with veils and lights, with incensation and prayers befitting the holy action, in this order: First, from a very ancient tabernacle elegantly covered with various metals and adorned with gems and engravings, externally bearing the name of Blessed Severus in inscriptions engraved in Gothic characters around the circumference, the bones of St. Severus the Bishop were sent, there was taken out a certain large, ancient piece of leather, still sound, clean, and solid, containing the principal part of the body of the same Saint with its skin still firm and intact. When this was reverently unfolded upon the aforesaid table, we gazed as suppliants with trembling and joy, marveled at, and venerated that precious seed-bed of blessed immortality, in which Divine goodness prefigures the glory of the future Resurrection by the very long incorruption of so many centuries. Immediately, the first vertebra of the neck was detached by the unanimous counsel of all and set aside, and the remainder was carefully rewrapped as before and put back. Then the body of St. Sinerius, and of St. Sinerius, Bishop, from another ancient tabernacle, wrought of cast bronze (which, on account of the manifold abundance of Relics enclosed therein, is called the bier of All Saints), where, separately placed in silks and multicolored cloths of very ancient weaving, with various inscriptions, it awaits the day of recompense -- was brought out, uncovered, and examined with equal reverence; and a certain bone exhibiting the shape of a heel-bone was extracted from it, and the rest was put back in the same tabernacle of All Saints. These two venerable pledges, separately wrapped in purple silk and marked with labels, we placed in this little casket, secured with a lock and key, to be diligently transmitted to your most august Majesty. And that your most august Majesty may be more confidently encouraged to venerate them from a fuller knowledge of the same Saints, we faithfully and sincerely attest in the Lord that these two men of mercy, who obtained glory in the generations of their nation, are held in praise in their days: and that the Deposition of Blessed Sinerius has been entered in our diptychs on the fourteenth day before the Kalends of October for many centuries; and that the feast of Blessed Severus is celebrated among us annually on the Kalends of February. On which day the merits of the glorious Bishop are explained from the pulpit under the title of the Cross, the feast of each: by preachers of the divine word, Canons selected in turn for this purpose, in solemn rite, before his sacred relics, which are then customarily shown reverently to the faithful people in various reliquaries. Furthermore, we attest that the deeds of both are found in certain codices of the Churches and, reduced to a compendium, are contained in the Diocesan Breviary; a compendium of the Acts of St. Severus: from whose series it is established that that pair of outstanding sanctity, just as they now share heavenly glory and a common burial, so were they once joined by the proximity of their native soil, the kind of their profession, and the succession of their priesthood. For both illuminated the territory of Coutances in this Province with their cradles, the monastic life with their examples, and the Church of Avranches with their mitres. Severus, born of humble station, from a lowly guardian of cattle became first a preacher of the Gospel and the instructor and teacher of his master (whom, while still an infidel, together with his whole family, he brought to Christ by the greatness of his miracles); then, having left the world, an anchorite and Father of monks; finally, by the singular providence of Him who took David His servant from following the ewes to be king, he was raised to the summit of the pastoral office. After he had led the flock entrusted to him with the wisdom of his hands and had removed the remnants of paganism from his diocese, he returned at last to his former solitude, and dying, he laid down the burden of his incorrupt flesh in the oratory he had built in honor of the most holy Mother of God. Sinerius, and of St. Sinerius: the successor in honor and merits of St. Paternus (who was placed over the See of Avranches by King ^a Childebert I), having himself also been famous for many virtues, after a happy death was buried at the bodies of the same Paternus and ^b Blessed Scubilio, his companion, in the monastery which they called Sisiacum. That we possess the bodies of both with certain and indubitable title is confirmed for us both by long-standing tradition and by domestic documents. And the Translation of Severus from the territory of Coutances to Rouen, the body of each was translated to Rouen, made more than six hundred and forty years ago through the effort of Richard I, Duke of the Normans, was commended by illustrious miracles. For the body, which had previously lain for a long time buried in the ground out of fear of wars, was found intact; and as often as it was set down during the journey for the night's rest, it held so firm that it could be moved from the spot by no force until the sacred bearers of the burden had first bound themselves by a vow to build a new church there. As evidence of this, temples built in his name still stand in those places. May your most august Majesty therefore accept from the storerooms of our poverty these parting gifts, full of grace and sanctity, and may it glory in possessing in a small portion of Relics the whole bodies of the Saints, and, fortified by their protections, may it experience continual increases of heavenly blessings. And lest any occasion of ambiguity creep in regarding the matter as described above, as it was conducted by us, we have deemed it necessary to strengthen the page of the present writing with the subscriptions of all of us who were present and of our Notary, and with the impression of the seal of Holy Mary. Done in the aforesaid sacristy, under the bodily presence and testimony of the Saints, in the year of the King of Kings, our Lord Jesus Christ, one thousand six hundred and thirty-nine, on the fourth day before the Ides of January. The Canons subscribe to the donation of relics.

I, Nicolas le Royer, Cantor and Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean Baptiste Godart, Treasurer and Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean Caresmel, Archdeacon and Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Louis Sausson, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean Sequart, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Anselme Marette, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Nicolas Barbey, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean le Vendangs, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean le Mercyer, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean Briffault, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jacques le Chevalier, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Charles Brasdefer, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jacques Mallet, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean le Prevost, Canon, took out the glorious Relics of the Saints with my unworthy hands, and subscribed. I, Pierre de la Mare, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Barthelemy le Roux, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean Aubourg, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Nicolas Throsnel, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Denis le Feure, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Pierre Picot, Canon, was present and subscribed. I, Jean Patry, Priest, Notary of the venerable Chapter, was present, reread, and subscribed. J. PATRY. Place of the Seal.

I, Francis, by the mercy of God Archbishop of the holy Church of Rouen, and the Archbishop, Primate of Normandy, have approved the Acts of our fellow Brethren, done synodally and hierarchically, faithfully written, devoutly offered, to be holily presented to our most holy Lord King Louis the Thirteenth through the venerable Treasurer of our Church and two of the above-written Canons, Masters Brasdefer and le Prevost; and I have confirmed them with seal and subscription, and have sealed the Episcopal deposit of the sacred Relics with the key enclosed, and have delivered it to our named most worthy deputies to be reverently carried, after the customary and solemn ceremonies of the Translation, at Gaillon in our Castle, in the Year of the heavenly glory of the Saints and of the incarnate King of heaven one thousand six hundred and thirty-nine, the twenty-ninth of our most Christian King, the dedication of the Kingdom of the Queen of All Saints, in the second month from August, on the seventeenth day of the month of January. Written and subscribed by our hand.

Fr., Archbishop of Rouen. By the command of the most Illustrious and most Reverend Lord, my Lord. -- Esprit. With the seal hanging from parchment cords.