ON THE HOLY AFRICAN MARTYRS FELIX, FELICITAS, AND OTHERS.
CommentaryFelix, Martyr in Africa (Saint) Felicitas, Martyr in Africa (Saint) Others, Martyrs in Africa
By I. B.
[1] The name of Felix and Felicitas is frequent among the African Martyrs, as may be seen from the Indexes of the month of January. The feast of Felix and Felicitas. Both of these are joined on this day by the Martyrologies of S. Martin of Tournai and of Liessies, and by Hermann Greven: In Africa, the feast of Felix and Felicitas. The manuscripts of Prague and of S. Lambert of Liège, the place omitted: Likewise of SS. Felix and Felicitas. In the manuscript of Aachen a foul transposition of words is made: In Africa Nat. S. Blasij, Celerinæ, & VII mulierum, cum duobus filiis vnius. Felicis, Felicitatis. Vappingo depositio Episcoporum Tygridi & Remedij. Lugduino depositio Lupicini Christi, Laurenti, Ypoliti. [In Africa, the feast of S. Blasius, of Celerina, and of seven women, with the two sons of one. Of Felix, of Felicitas. At Vappingum the deposition of the Bishops Tygridius and Remedius. At Lugduinum the deposition of Lupicinus of Christ, of Laurentius, of Ypolitus.] So it seems it should be read: Natalis S. Blasij & VII mulierum, cum duobus filiis vnius. In Africa Celerinæ, Felicis, Felicitatis. Vapingo dep. Epp. Tigridi & Remedij. Lugduno depos. Lupicini Ep. vel forte, Confess. Christi … Laurentij, Hippolyti. [The feast of S. Blasius and of seven women, with the two sons of one. In Africa, of Celerina, of Felix, of Felicitas. At Gap the deposition of the Bishops Tigridius and Remedius. At Lyon the deposition of Lupicinus, Bishop, or perhaps, Confessor of Christ … of Laurentius, of Hippolytus.] Felix and Felicitas are also recorded in the Roman manuscript of S. Cyriacus, to be cited below.
[2] But Felix, in several carelessly copied Martyrologies, seems to be assigned to Lyon and joined to S. Lupicinus the Bishop. In some, Celerinus is added as well. Bellinus of Padua: At Lyon, Whether another Felix at Lyon of Lupicinus, and of Felix likewise. Canisius agrees. But the Florarium, Maurolycus, Galesini, and very many manuscript and certain printed Martyrologies prefixed with the name of Usuard, those of the Charterhouse of Cologne, the Doctrinale Clericorum published at Lübeck in the year 1490: with Celerinus, At Lyon, of SS. Lupicinus, Bishop, Felix and Celerinus. Galesini and very many others add: And Martyrs. Galesini admits that he added the two latter from a very ancient manuscript Martyrology. Baronius alone called Felix a Bishop, and indeed a Bishop: and so inscribed in the Roman Martyrology: At Lyon, of SS. Lupicinus and Felix, likewise Bishops. He notes that Lupicinus alone is reported by Bede; that Felix seems to have been Bishop of another city. Certainly no one has recorded Felix as Bishop on this day; but they either write Felix alone, or call him a Martyr. And Baronius did not omit the Martyr either, but established two Felixes; a Martyr in Africa, a Bishop at Lyon. Théophile Raynaud doubts,
[47] The Confessors themselves too informed Cyprian (who had exhorted them to it in letter 44) that they had made peace with Cornelius their Bishop and with the whole Clergy. Cyprian congratulates them and Cornelius. And Cyprian congratulated both them, in letter 51, on their return from schism, and Cornelius in letter 47. These things have been drawn out at greater length at the feast of S. Celerinus, because we have not yet found in the Martyrologies the names of the other Confessors, who seem to have been superior in Ecclesiastical grade and authority: for these things do not pertain to S. Moyses, who is venerated on the 25th of November and always shunned the schism.
[46] What followed was that this whole proceeding had to be made known to the people, so that they too might see established in the Church those whom they had long seen wandering and straying and had grieved over. Matt. 5 8 and before the people When their wish was known, a great concourse of the brotherhood took place. There was one voice of all, giving thanks to God, expressing the joy of their breasts with tears, embracing them as if they had that day been freed from the punishment of prison. And to set down their own words: acknowledging him as Pontiff, We, they say, know that Cornelius was chosen Bishop of the most holy Catholic Church by God almighty and by Christ the Lord. We confess our error: we have suffered imposture, we have been ensnared by perfidy and captious loquacity. and detesting their error, For although we seemed to have had, as it were, some communication with a schismatic and heretical man, yet our mind was always sincerely in the Church. For we were not ignorant that there is one God, that there is one Christ the Lord, whom we confessed, one Holy Spirit, and that there ought to be one Bishop in the Catholic Church. Should we not be moved by this profession of theirs, that what they had confessed before the power of the world they should, being established in the Church, confirm? he receives them; Wherefore we ordered Maximus the Presbyter to take up his place again; the rest we received with the great acclaim of the people. And all things we have remitted to God almighty, in whose power all things are reserved. These things, then, dearest brother, we have sent to you written in the same hour, at the same moment.
whether or not this was the Bishop of Belley: Saussaius asserts that he was. On this matter below, when we treat of Lupicinus. The Spanish Chronicle, which more recent authors ascribe to Flavius Dexter, has the following at the year of Christ 270: whether some Spanish Felix and Hippolytus are Bishops here, "At Carthage in Spain, Saint Hippolytus, Bishop of the same city, with whom also suffered other Martyrs." Bivarius confidently asserts that this is the one whom Baronius, from the manuscript of Saint Cyriacus, entered into the Martyrology with Felix and Symphronius; they were wrongly thought to be Africans, because they suffered at Carthage, but the Carthage of Spartaria. Yet at the year 300, commentary 3 number 10, the same Chronicle reads thus: "At Carthage of Spain, Felix the Bishop, Martyr, and companions." Bivarius judges that these are the ones of whom in the common edition of Bede on March 23 it reads: "In Africa, of Felix and twenty others." Yet he then doubts whether these are the same who are honored on the third of February: Felix, Symphronius, and Hippolytus. Juan Tamayo de Salazar in the Spanish Martyrology records on this day Saints Hippolytus, the fifth Bishop of Carthage Spartaria, Felix, and Symphronius, Martyrs. All proof depends upon the authority of Dexter.
[3] Baronius assigns several companions to the African Felix. For he writes thus in the Roman Martyrology: "In the same place (in Africa), of the holy Martyrs Felix, whether Symphronius and Hippolytus are companions of the African Felix, Symphronius, Hippolytus, and companions." He notes in the Annotations that all these have been restored from a very ancient manuscript codex of the monastery of Saint Cyriacus in the Baths. Not very successfully. The manuscript of Saint Cyriacus reads thus: "In Africa, of Felix, Symphronius, Laurentius, Hippolytus, Felix, and Saint Blasius." The manuscript of Saint Jerome sheds more light on the matter, in which the following is found: "On the third of the Nones. Birthday of Felix. At Forum Sempronii, of Laurentius, Hippolytus. Felix. Celer. At Vapincum, the passion of Teridius and Remedius. At Lyons, the burial of the Blessed Lupicinus." When these are weighed and compared with the manuscripts of Aachen and Saint Cyriacus, there seems to be no doubt that these refer to the saints of Forum Sempronii, Laurentius and Hippolytus, of whom we spoke on the second of February. And indeed they are not listed on the second of February in either of those manuscripts; in the manuscript of Saint Jerome they appear in a plainly ambiguous manner, as we indicated there. It seems that "Celer" was put for Celerinus, and another Felix for Felicitas, whether another Felix and Celer, unless it can be made clear from another source that both Celer and another Felix should be placed here.
[4] Certainly in a certain concise Martyrology, which our Alexander Wiltheim copied for us from a very ancient codex of the imperial monastery of Saint Maximin, the following is found: Euphraxius and Lucianus? "On the third of the Nones of February. In Africa, of Felix, Celer, Lucianus, Euphraxius." No Euphraxius has yet come to our attention. A certain African Martyr named Lucianus is mentioned on the thirteenth of June. Whether this is the same person, or that Lucianus who was both blamed and praised by Saint Cyprian and was the friend of Saint Celerinus, we cannot determine.
[5] Finally, in a recent manuscript of the Charterhouse of Brussels, after the name of Felicitas is added "and Geminianus." Who this might be Geminianus? we cannot say.