ON THE HOLY ROMAN MARTYRS
SYMPHRONIUS, OLYMPIUS, EXSUPERIA, AND THEODULUS.
From the Acts of St. Stephen the Pope, martyr.
About the year 256.
CommentarySymphronius, Martyr at Rome (S.)
Olympius, Martyr at Rome (S.)
Exsuperia, Martyr at Rome (S.)
Theodulus, Martyr at Rome (S.)
BY THE AUTHOR J. B. S.
Not the only holy Martyrs are these whom the praised Acts of St. Stephen the Pope have supplied, more approved by Baronius than by the critics who followed thereafter, observing in them various blemishes, concerning which we long ago premised a few things, with a view to the true day of martyrdom, in the observations on Usuard on this day, On account of the diversity of the Acts on which why they are reported, no other reason appears than that he who first announced them, the author of the Little Roman, followed the corrupted Acts, such as are read in Mombritius, volume 2, folio 274, where, the martyrdom of the holy Nemesius and his daughter Lucilla being related on the 8th day before the Kalends of September, he marks the immediately following triumph of our champions here, wrongly, if I mistake not, a whole month earlier, in these words: For the same night, the bishop Stephen coming with clerics and religious, after the accustomed hymns had been said, took away their bodies, and buried them, near the Latin Way, at the first milestone, on the seventh day before the Kalends of August: where we think it should be read, the 7th day before the Kalends of September, although that Martyrologist celebrates them on the 2nd day before the Nones, or the 4th of December, in this manner: At Rome, of Symphronius and Olympius, Exsuperia and Theodulus, who suffered on the seventh day before the Kalends of August: translated by blessed Xystus on the Latin Way on the 2nd day before the Nones of December, when their feast day is kept more celebrated.
[2] And hence arose all that confusion of which we treated on Usuard, noted on various days, when Ado, following the Little Roman, reported those Saints on the 4th of December;
the more scrupulous Usuard thought they should be consigned on the very birthday, although there wrongly noted: whence into all his progeny, and the present-day Roman itself, the birthday of those Saints was propagated, contrary to what Baronius wrote at the year 259, where, from number 26, relating the Acts of our Martyrs, which Surius took from him, he thus most expressly writes: Whose bodies, taken away by night by the clerics, with the accustomed hymns, were buried by the bishop Stephen on the day before the Kalends of November: whence also, at the 31st of October, treating of St. Nemesius, he inserted these in the Roman Martyrology in express words: Whose bodies, buried by blessed Pope Stephen, then more honorably entombed by blessed Sixtus on the Appian Way on this day, Gregory V translated into the deaconry of St. Mary the New, together with the holy Symphronius, Olympius the tribune, Exsuperia his wife, and Theodulus his son, who all, converted by the work of Symphronius, and baptized by the same St. Stephen, had been crowned with martyrdom. Which bodies of the Saints, found there under the most high Pontiff Gregory XIII, were more honorably placed under the altar of the same church on the sixth day before the Ides of December.
[3] on this day they are noted by Usuard. If those words, more honorably entombed on this day, are referred also to the bodies of St. Symphronius and his companions, it is doubtless to be judged that that clause, on the day before the Kalends of November, was superadded to the Passion which Baronius brings forward. Nor even so is the matter settled, unless we confess that St. Symphronius and his companions, equally with St. Nemesius and his daughter, suffered at one time, as the Acts sufficiently clearly intimate, and so about the end of August, on the 8th and 7th days before the Kalends of September: but that, on occasion of the translations that were made, these were consigned to the 31st of October, those to the 4th of December, and were wrongly drawn back by Usuard, from the Adonian Acts, to this 26th of July. Those other Acts, which Surius subjoined to the Baronian ones from Lipomanus under the name of Metaphrastes, agree neither with these, nor with the Mombritian or others, nor do they append the note of the day, so that in these certainly those will deservedly desire consonance who shall examine the aforesaid Acts a little more severely: about the very year of the martyrdom, as it is indicated in Baronius, being about to object no lesser difficulties, to say nothing of others which, on the second day of August, when St. Stephen the Pope is to be treated, can be observed, and cannot obviously enough be solved.
[4] We judge that it matters little whence the deeds and Passion of our Saints be received. In Mombritius they are somewhat dislocated and involved; The bodies at Rome at St. Mary the New. in the ecclesiastical Annals a little purer, as also in the edition of Surius, with which to compare other manuscripts we have not thought worth while, thinking that we have discharged our office, when we pluck out what pertains to the glorious Martyrs from the more ancient Legend which went before Ado, where all things are described accurately enough, from which their illustrious combat may abundantly shine forth. Concerning the deposition of the sacred relics, their translations and elevations, and their constant religious cult even today, enough has already been said from the Roman Martyrology; almost the same things recite Panciroli, Fioravante Martinelli, and Piazza, where they mention the church of St. Mary the New. If you desire more, consult Aringhi's Roma Subterranea, volume 2, page 8, from number 3, and, more recently, Boldetti's work on the Roman cemeteries of the holy Martyrs, page 97. Behold now the eulogy of Ado.
[5] At Rome, the birthday of the holy martyrs Symphronius and Olympius, The constancy of Symphronius in the faith in the times of the emperors Valerian and Gallienus. Of these, one, Symphronius, the debtor of blessed Nemesius, presented to him, Valerian ordered to be handed over to Olympius the tribune, that he might require of him the goods of Nemesius, under the examination of punishments. Presented therefore to Olympius, and questioned by him, he answered: If thou seekest the goods of Nemesius my lord, I have already handed them over to Christ, since they were His, and shall be. But if thou compellest me to offer sacrifice, I sacrifice, but to Christ Jesus my Lord a sacrifice of praise and confession, to whom my lord Nemesius also offered himself. Then Olympius, filled with anger, had him stretched on the rack and beaten with cudgels, then an image of Mars of gold, together with a tripod, to be brought. Which immediately, at the words of Symphronius, was dissolved.
[6] But Olympius, seeing this, began to wonder, and, coming to his wife Exsuperia, he converts Olympius with his wife and son, indicated to her how, in the name of his God, Symphronius had melted the image of Mars. And that same night, coming with their only son named Theodulus, they prostrated themselves at the feet of Symphronius, doing penance, and demanding the baptism of salvation. Blessed Stephen the pontiff, therefore, being summoned, came by night to the house of Olympius, and baptized him, catechized, and his wife Exsuperia and his son Theodulus, and as many as believed in the house of Olympius. Which when Valerian and Gallienus heard, kindled with exceeding fury, they ordered Symphronius to be presented to them, and, soldiers being sent, they led him, loaded with iron chains, naked and haltered, together with Olympius and his wife and his son Theodulus. Gallienus therefore said to Olympius: I still indeed defer to inflict on thee the torments of punishments, because I am not in doubt of thy conscience, that thou wilt by no means desert the gods whom thou hast always adored, and compelledst others to adore: for thou didst even persecute with many torments, unto the shedding of blood, those who would not give consent to sacrifice to our gods. Olympius answered: I indeed did it, not as Olympius, but as an impious and cruel man. For which things committed I repent, and pour out tears of bitterness in the sight of Him in whom I believe, the living and true God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit; that He may deign to remit to me the iniquity which I exercised in the blood of His Saints, which I caused to be shed.
[7] who all undergo martyrdom. Then sentence was given that they should be consumed by fire. They were led therefore before the statue of the sun near the amphitheater, and, stakes being fixed and their hands bound, they were tied, and fire set under them in a heap of faggots and thorns. And immediately, at the very beginning of the fire, singing thanks to Christ the Lord, they gave up the ghost. But, their bodies being left, the soldiers departed. But holy Stephen the bishop, coming with clerics and religious, and hymns being rendered according to custom, took away the bodies of the martyrs Symphronius, Olympius, Exsuperia, and Theodulus, and buried them near the Latin Way at the first milestone, on the seventh day before the Kalends of August. But translated by blessed Sixtus the Pontiff, they made a celebrated day on the second day before the Nones of December.