Peter

ON ST. PETER, BISHOP OF POLICASTRO, AND ABBOT OF CAVA IN ITALY, YEAR 1123.

Preliminary Commentary.

Peter, Bishop of Policastro, and then Abbot of Cava in Italy (St.)

[1] Salerno, a most famous city of the ancient Picentines in today's Principatus Citerior on the Tyrrhenian Sea, produced among others, and those very many, men illustrious in learning and holiness, St. Alpherius and his nephew through his brother, St. Peter, born of the most distinguished nobility, namely from the notable Pappacarbone family, which drew its origin from the blood of the Lombards; St. Peter born of noble stock at Salerno, shining far more brightly, however, by the preeminence of their merits: as those merits are read in the Chronicle of the holy monastery of Cava, whose founder and first Abbot was St. Alpherius, who, distinguished for holiness and the glory of miracles, migrated to heaven on the day before the Ides of April in the year 1050, having left as his successor in the governance of the monastery St. Leo: to whom the day July 12 was dedicated on account of his holy merits, because he departed this life in the year 1075, having long before appointed St. Peter as his successor, the third Abbot of the said Cavenese monastery, afterward its restorer, and the new founder of the Cavenese Congregation, Order, and Rule. Abbot of Cava. The said monastery was founded at Metelliano at the Cava near the Grotto, which the ancients called Arsitia, in a most delightful valley by the clear little river Selano, about five miles from Salerno. We have also treated of that monastery on January 10 at the Life of Blessed Benincasa, its eighth Abbot, and on February 17, on which day is venerated the fourth Abbot and St. Peter's successor, St. Constabilis.

[2] The Acts of the four first holy Abbots were written by one and the same author, a contemporary of theirs, as one who below at number 27 acknowledges Blessed Simeon, the fifth Abbot, as his own Abbot: between whom and St. Peter, from the latter's death, St. Constabilis lived only 11 months and 13 days. The Life written by the Abbot of Venosa, The same author at number 31 asserts that he came from the Cavenese to the Venusine monastery, where he was Abbot, or Father, of the monks of the monastery of the Holy Trinity, which at that time was subject to the Cavenese Congregation, as is related in the manuscript Chronicle of Cava, and he is said, illustrious for his learning, to have graphically and lucidly described these Lives. The things said by us at the Life of St. Constabilis may be consulted. When he is about to describe the miracles of St. Peter, he indicates whence he received them. Thus at number 11 he says they were narrated to him by Peter of Spoleto and Peter of Troia, from the certain knowledge of those who had seen: companions at that time on the journey of St. Peter the Abbot: again at number 12 he asserts that he learned it from the narration of the same Peter of Troia. In the same way, eyewitnesses are cited: at number 19 the monk Cioffus, at number 27 the monk Sergius, indeed indicating what had happened to himself: at number 28 the monk Ursinus, and at number 31 John the Roman, who had come with him to the Venusine monastery. Finally, as he states in his preface at number 1, he narrates what was told to him. Moreover, these Acts survive in the book of illustrious men of the said Cavenese monastery, written in Lombard script: which we also have, copied from that source. published from the Cavenese MS., Lawrence Surius published the same at this March 4, and Ferdinand Ughelli in book 7 of Italia Sacra, treating of the Bishops of Policastro; the same Life, written both in prose and verse, because he believed it hitherto unpublished, he also made public. The version he published written in verse, we also have in manuscript: but since it contains nothing different from the earlier Life, we omit it here, since it can be read in Ughelli. In its place we give the History of the Dedication of the Cavenese Church built by St. Peter, from the Cavenese MS. with the History of the Dedication of the church. The said Policastro, in whose Bishopric St. Peter is reported at number 4 to have spent little time in administering, is in the aforementioned Principatus Citerior toward Basilicata on the maritime shore of Lucania. That city has at this time few houses, because it has been captured twice by the Turkish fleet and leveled to the ground: where is the Bishopric of Policastro situated? hence the Bishops usually reside in the town of Torre-Ursaca, or another called Torre-Petrasia, whose temporal jurisdiction they also hold. More about that Church and diocese can be read in Ughelli.

[3] The festive solemnity of St. Peter is celebrated on this March 4 under the rite of a Double Office in the Cavenese monastery: where his body rests in the sacred grotto enclosed in a marble coffin and exposed for public veneration. The sacred veneration of St. Peter: More recent authors have inscribed him in their Martyrologies. Arnold Wion in these words: At Cava, of St. Peter the Abbot, admirable for holiness and learning, and of such abstinence that during the entire time of holy Lent he was content with the refreshment of five or six loaves. Wion adds in his Notes that the author of the Life is John the monk, and of the aforementioned Cavenese Chronicle, Alexander of Naples, a monk of Cava, which we do not read elsewhere. The eulogy of Wion is copied by Menard, Dorgani, and Ferrari in the General Catalog; with the addition of the Cluniac monastic profession by Saussay in the Supplement to the Gallican Martyrology. But Ferrari in the Catalog of the Saints of Italy, having neglected the Life published by Surius, copies Paul Regio, who in part two of his work on the Saints of the Kingdom of Naples, after the Life of St. Priscus the Bishop, chapter 5, treats of the four holy Abbots of Cava, and asserts that God confirmed the holiness of Blessed Peter with many miracles, especially in freeing demoniacs: about which demoniacs no mention is made elsewhere. He adds that the same man was present at the Council of Clermont held under Urban II, where the expedition to the Holy Land was discussed. But we fear that that Council was introduced in place of the one held at Troia in Apulia under the same Pontiff, about which we shall treat below in the Acts at number 25. Bucelinus, in his usual manner, lumps everything together without discrimination, and reports that he was present, from Wion, at the Council of Auvergne, and from a marginal note of Surius, at another Council of Benevento. But in place of these, the first Trojan Council should be substituted, as is clear from the manuscript Chronicle of Cava.

[4] Age: Regarding his age, authors also vary. Bucelinus writes that he died in the year 1137: Ferrari, cited by him, following Paul Regio, places his death in the year 1134. Meanwhile Bucelinus reports that St. Constabilis, whom he asserts to be Peter's successor, died in the year of Christ 1121 or the following. But rejecting these, from the manuscript Chronicle of Cava itself we give these certain facts, which are recorded thus: When St. Peter, worn out by old age, one day fell into an ecstasy while contemplating death, so that he himself was thought to be dead; soon returning to himself, he appointed Blessed Constabilis

of Lucania as his successor, and entrusted his labors to him on the 4th of the Ides of June, 1118. And afterward, in the year 1123, on the 4th of the Nones of March, he was translated to the eternal joys of heaven, and his holy body, transferred to a marble coffin beside the sacred remains of the blessed Fathers Alpherius and Leo, shone with very frequent miracles. So it is recorded there. The Acts of St. Constabilis, who died on February 17 of the following year 1124, agree; Blessed Simeon then succeeded him, under whom the Acts of St. Peter and the other Abbots were written, as we have said.

[5] The Acts below relate that St. Peter was a visitor of monasteries throughout the surrounding area, and St. Peter himself at number 17 emphasizes the Cavenese Order: therefore I add the Cavenese Congregation and its monasteries. what Ughelli published about the Cavenese Congregation in his section on the Archbishops of Salerno, page 515, in these words: The churches subject to the Cavenese monastery were above the number of three hundred and thirty-three in various places, both in the Kingdom of Naples, and in Sicily, and in the City of Rome itself, which were said to be under the Cavenese Congregation: among which there were one hundred and twenty conventual monasteries, of which twenty-nine were governed under the title of Abbey, while the remaining ninety-one were governed under the title of Priory or Provostship. Whence the Prior of the Cavenese monastery, in relation to the other Priors of the same Congregation (of all of whom he was indeed the first) was called the Grand Prior. The remaining churches, up to the aforesaid number of three hundred and thirty-three, were also customarily governed by Cavenese monks under the titles of Rectory or Custodianship. In most of them, the monks exercised the entire parochial ministry. Wherefore the Cavenese monastery and the Church of the Most Holy Trinity of Cava was called and was the Head and Mother Church of all those churches. And because all those churches, established under the Abbot of Cava, the one Head of all, professing the rule of the Cavenese monastery and following that one norm of living, served Christ the Lord; they rightly claimed for themselves the name of the Cavenese Congregation... Thus Peter, Archbishop of Benevento, in a diploma signed in the year 1147, calls Marinus, the seventh Abbot, the Abbot of the Cavenese Congregation and of the entire Cavenese Religious Order. Ughelli gathers many more such documents, which the Reader will find in his work, as well as a Catalog of illustrious men: of whom various former Counts and noble Lords entered the monastic life under St. Peter, while others were from there raised to Episcopal or Cardinalatial dignity.

LIFE

By the Abbot of Venosa

From the Cavenese MS. and the editions of Ughelli and Surius.

Peter, Bishop of Policastro, and then Abbot of Cava in Italy (St.)

BHL Number: 6767

CHAPTER I.

The Monastic Life of St. Peter at Cava and Cluny. The Bishopric of Policastro Relinquished. The Abbatial Dignity. A Most Ample Monastery Constructed.

[1] That the Cavenese monastery might clearly shine forth, because it had deserved the increase of its growth from divine disposition, Among the holy Cavenese Abbots, Almighty God always governed it through venerable men and did not permit unworthy Pastors to accede to its administration. For after the most reverend man Alpherius, He substituted the equally venerable Leo: and then He appointed Peter in his place, who would render the distinguished Fathers superior in holiness and surpass them in spiritual gain. But since we have described certain things concerning their virtues and lives, the order of our work requires that we also narrate the third, St. Peter: those things which have been told to us about this venerable Father. Those men indeed, by the type of Blessed Elijah, deserved to penetrate heaven in the fiery chariot of desires; this one, while he ardently strove to watch those ascending, deserved to have a double portion of their spirit: namely, that strongly loving heavenly things and admirably arranging earthly things, he might enter heaven rich. Those men indeed, poor in things but rich in virtues, arrived at eternal joys; this one was both rich in the merits of his labors and, like another Joseph, wisely drew the riches of this world to the service of his Lord.

[2] He was Salernitane by birth, nephew in the flesh of the venerable man Alpherius, Salernitane, he gives himself to the monastic life: heir by custom: from which custom it happened that as a young man he remembered the latter's way of life and strove with all his affections to imitate it. Coming therefore to the venerable Abbot Leo, he received the habit of holy religious life: and immediately he seized upon the pursuit of the religious life so fervently that by his proposal of rigor he seemed to equal even the ancient Fathers. For he is said to have been of such abstinence that he seemed content with the refreshment of five or six loaves during the entire time of holy Lent. But also bearing the desire for a more remote life, he was accustomed to observe the days of that same holy Lent on Mount St. Elijah, in Lent he seeks solitude: which towers higher above the Cavenese monastery: so that the vaster the solitude that separated him from the company of men, the more closely he might insert himself into divine contemplation. Where he also had an oratory of St. Elijah and a little cell built for himself afterward, and there he often acquired the great joys of eternal life by great labors.

[3] At that same time, when he learned of the celebrated religious observance of the monastery of Cluny, attracted by the fragrance of so great a fame, he departs for Cluny: although far distant, he began to ardently emulate the order of that congregation. Having therefore taken with him certain Brothers from the monastery, when he had already come by ship to Genoa, b nearly all his money ran out for the poor of God. And when, in that same lack of funds, even the hope of the journey began to fail, the pious young man prostrated himself in prayer, that Almighty God might deign to grant him the means to complete what he had begun for love of Him. And when he rose from prayer and walked along the seashore, he found a golden ring: he finds a golden ring the value of which sufficed for the expenses of the entire journey. as provision for the way: Coming therefore to Cluny, he was received with wonderful charity by the venerable c Abbot Hugh, either because the young man burned with the great ardor of religious devotion, or because he had come from such distant parts of Italy for the sake of emulating perfection. The senior monks of the monastery suggested to the Abbot he is received by St. Hugh the Abbot: that he should place him in the school of boys to be educated: to whom the Father of the monastery responded with words of great discretion, saying: Unless this man burned with great devotion, he could never be drawn from so far by the reputation of a religious house. Therefore the manly work of devotion raised him above the weakness of his age. From that day onward, received into the community of the Brothers, he shone with such virtue of obedience that he diligently and honorably performed seven, as some say, or, as others assert, more ministries of various offices simultaneously.

[4] And because it would take long to cover everything in writing, when he had completed five years in the cloister of Cluny he returns to Cava: and three years in the Abbot's chapel, and had learned to obey and carry out orders within, but to arrange and organize without; by the generosity of St. Hugh, he was d restored to his own, that is, the Cavenese monastery: where, since he was already regarded as a learned scribe in the kingdom of heaven and of great reputation, at the petition of the Clergy and people together with e Gisulf, Prince of Salerno, he was elected Bishop in the Church of Policastro. he is ordained Bishop of Policastro: Having spent little time there, unable to bear the tumult of external life, he returned to the monastery and gave himself entirely to the pursuit of the interior life as was his custom. Then the venerable Father Leo, fearing greatly lest the monastery be deprived of so great a man, and at the same time considering that he could no longer bear the burden of governance due to old age, having called the Brothers together, having returned to Cava, appointed him his successor, and he himself, that he might be free for God in quiet, withdrew to the church of St. Leo the Old, which he himself had built.

[5] But the venerable Abbot Peter, taking up the care of the monastery, he is made Abbot: found so many temptations of malignant spirits that it seemed as if the devil was rising up for the first time against the same man's deeds. For the Brothers whom he found in the cell, when he pressed them with the norm of the Cluniac order, he found so stubborn and obstinate that they carried the whispers of their murmuring to the venerable Leo and drew that simple mind to anger. When Abbot Peter learned this, he withdraws to another monastery: providing for the things of concord and peace, he departed to the monastery of St. Michael the Archangel, which is situated in the territory of Cilento: and there, having gathered Brothers, he first established the norm of the same order which he had learned. Not much time afterward, summoned back by Father Leo and the Brothers, he returned, he is recalled: and they received with great devotion the institution which they had previously despised as burdensome.

[6] And as the fame of his holiness spread far and wide, many noble men, he gave the monastic habit to more than 3,000 men: many rich and powerful men of the world began to desert the world and to submit themselves to him in the training of the heavenly life. But such a multitude of wise and simple people came to him that the divine promise seemed to have been made to him, which says, I will make you a great nation. Gen. 12:2 For as a certain religious paterfamilias testifies that he heard from the man's own mouth, one day when the venerable Father was more cheerful, compelled by a certain necessity of affection, he testified that he had conferred the habit of holy religious life on more than three thousand men, although he survived afterward and received more into the monastery. Then in this man's monastery even the prophecy of the pious Father Alpherius became clear, who had said that from that same cell the greatest gains of those converting to eternal life were to be gathered.

[7] Powerful men of the world also began with great generosity to offer f estates and possessions abundantly for the support of the servants of God. For Almighty God so opened their hearts to the work of piety that they brought so much to the monastery he receives sufficient sustenance that not only could the multitude of Brothers gathered there live, but also from their abundance much could be distributed to the poor. Which the venerable Father also nobly demonstrated: because from the supplies given to him he not only provided for the Brothers of the monastery according to the Rule, but also distributed an immeasurable amount to the needy. But why do we say only that he distributed, when he also established also for feeding the poor: a source from which distribution might always be made? For in our times it is difficult to find anyone who would be considered his equal or comparable in care for the needy: whom indeed he was accustomed to feed and clothe in crowds, and to seek them out with such zeal for clothing and feeding that he even searched the cities to find them. Truly, to praise him with the words of Scripture, he was a Father of orphans and widows, not a judge, but a guardian: whose care he so wisely arranged that he would secretly send them the means of sustenance: so that they might receive without shame, and might conceal what he was spending for eternal life. Wherefore he so earned the generosity of divine mercy that, though he poured out so much in the sustenance of the poor, he always had the means to give abundantly at all times. For the purpose of the holy man, although he strove entirely for concealment, could not be hidden: and so that they might deserve to share in so great a grace, not only men, but also women, contributed assistance as their hands were able.

[8] Then the man of God, when he saw himself supplied with the necessary funds for completion, resolved to enlarge the monastery and prepare a dwelling suitable for so great a multitude: which indeed, with divine grace cooperating, as far as the narrowness of the place allowed, he completed so fittingly

that the arrangement of the work can be admired, but cannot truly be estimated. he enlarges the monastery, For since on one side it is enclosed by a rocky cliff, and on the other by the overhanging bank of a river, in that small space between them such great buildings have been founded that when the place is viewed from outside, it is altogether wonderful to those investigating that such great spaces are contained within. In which work, if we wish to weigh what was said to Moses, we find it in a certain way. For when he wished to construct a tabernacle for God, he heard: Make all things according to the pattern shown to you on the mountain. Exod. 25:40 Indeed Almighty God wished an earthly house to be made, but one which the form of heavenly things would illuminate. in which a heavenly life is led: The venerable Father therefore drew all that beauty of the tabernacle to the adornment of the minds of his disciples. For that perfect form of heavenly things is the one about which it is said: They shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, but are like the Angels of God in heaven. Matt. 22:30. That also is the form of heavenly things which He impresses upon us when He says: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matt. 5:3 For with such a beauty of modesty, with such a splendor of virtues, he caused that divinely gathered multitude to serve Almighty God there, that no one could doubt that they shone with a heavenly manner of life. But since we are now speaking of the order of the building, we see that what is read about the eternal city applies to it: In all its streets Alleluia shall be sung. For all the corridors of that cell are so arranged that nearly each one is assigned to its proper functions of prayer, reading, and psalmody, and wherever one goes, one encounters people praying, singing psalms, chanting, or reading.

CHAPTER II.

The Virtues and Miracles of St. Peter.

[9] When the work of the monastery was therefore completed, he leads others by example. the Brothers gathered there began to render divine services all the more freely, since not only did the fervor of charity urge them to this, but the place itself also invited them. The venerable Father Peter also confined himself in so strict a religious observance that in so great a multitude of subjects, although many shone with great religious life, no one could bear his rigor of life. For neither the constancy of his prayer, nor the length of his vigils, in the harshness of life; nor the number of his genuflections, nor his tolerance of cold could any man endure. Next to his dormitory cell he had a small pool of water constructed for himself: where, frequently entering it in winter time, he could have boasted with Paul about his tolerance of nakedness and cold. He so completely spurned wine that even with his stomach weakened and his voice nearly lost, he could scarcely be induced by Pope a Urban of blessed memory to resume even a moderate use of it. He wore a coat of mail hidden beneath his clothing next to the skin until it rotted and fell broken from his body.

[10] he despises the glory of the world. But since it would take long if we dwelt on each point, let us add only this about his fame, that he was held in veneration throughout almost the entire world. But to use the words of a secular author, he was such an observer of strict honesty that although Emperors themselves and powerful men of this world, though far distant, wished to see him and promised many benefits to the monastery for this reason, the holy man refused and judged that one should not leave God for the sake of temporal things. And because by some it is not believed what he is like before God, let us bring forth what was shown by Him, for the confusion of his detractors. For, to use the words of the Evangelist John: If he were not from God, he could do nothing. John 9:33 And because, as I said, we wish to confound the rivals of the holy man, let us produce the best witnesses of nearly all his miracles, namely holy and venerable men: although it would not be necessary to prove his holiness by miracles, since we possess such a magnitude of his works. For the works are marvelous and mighty even without miracles, a man of the highest rank: which bear witness about him; the construction of so great a monastery, the great elegance of the religious order founded by him. For if he who converts some sinner covers a multitude of sins, and he who gives a cup of cold water to one who thirsts has a reward in heaven, how great do we say are this man's gains, how great the heaps of merits, who is declared so generous to the poor, so rich in mercy, so zealous and fervent in winning souls, that as long as he lived he did nothing else: and as long as the world turns, because sinners do not cease to be converted in it, his merit is always increased? James 5:20, Matt. 10:42

[11] But how vigorously the same man's endeavors burned, and how rigid he was toward the wicked, how humbly subject to the gentle, since it would be long to explain, let us omit these and see how wonderfully he was shown forth by Almighty God. For the venerable old man Peter of Spoleto, and Peter of Troia, how great their religious devotion and truthfulness were, no one who lived in the monastery in their time was ignorant. They were accustomed to narrate to me A brandeum stained with oil is divinely cleansed: that one day, while he was making his rounds of the monasteries, they came with him to Teresino. There indeed, while he was celebrating Mass in the church of St. John, and a certain man negligently performed the ministry of the fan, he struck a lamp and spilled the oil upon the altar: and when the spilled liquid had soaked the b brandeum, the man of God began to be greatly saddened, and he ascribed what had happened not to the negligence of the minister, but to his own merits. After some days, however, when they had come to the church of St. Michael the Archangel, the aforesaid Brothers and the others who ministered to the holy man took care to bring out that brandeum, so that they ought to wash the oil out of it: but, what is greatly to be wondered at, it was found so white and clean, as if oil had never fallen on it. When the Brothers recognized this, they gave thanks to Almighty God: who so tenderly loves certain of His elect that He does not suffer them to be saddened even for a little while.

[12] In the same monastery an equally wonderful thing happened, as I learned from the narration of the same Peter on account of a garment that was gnawed of blessed memory, c the Troian. For when the d frock of the Lord Abbot had been negligently put away by his chaplains, a weasel found it near the opening of its little den, gnawed it, and tore it. And when it was brought to the venerable man, he saw it was gnawed, pushed it away indignantly, and said: Go and throw it to the one who presumed to tear it. Which the Brothers placed, just as he had ordered, where they had taken it from. On another day, a weasel is found dead: as they were passing through the place, they found the weasel that had gnawed that garment lying dead upon it. Then they began to marvel greatly, gathering how great a virtue their Father possessed, since brute animals could not live against his will.

[13] But why do we establish the divine affection toward the venerable Father by the killing of brute animals, when we perceive that he often did not spare even rational beings? he afflicts the peasants of the monastery, For Roger, Lord of the castle of St. Severino, frequently afflicted the peasants of the monastery and provoked the venerable man's mind to anger; one day he exceeded his customary wickedness and grieved him beyond what he was accustomed to. Then, as if standing in the presence of that supreme messenger, he said: Come now, St. Michael the Archangel, do you protect us thus? And striking the ground with his staff, he said in agitation: Let us leave, for we cannot endure such things here. He was then at Cilento, in the aforesaid monastery of St. Michael the Archangel. he is variously punished, even by the death of his son, Whose affliction was followed by a wonderful and terrible divine vengeance: for although the aforesaid Roger lived far from that monastery, the upper floor of his house collapsed and killed his little son. And perhaps such vengeance for the injury done to the servants of God had to be inflicted by the internal Judge, so that the one who would punish the father with grief might die, and not grow up to imitate his father's wickedness. The innocent boy indeed, killed, was received into paradise, he becomes a monk: but his death pricked the father's conscience. For the same Roger, often struck by these and similar blows, at last came to his senses and, converted at the end, received the religious habit in the monastery. Nevertheless, to him while he was still raging, he did not always resist in one manner alone, for sometimes he assailed him with terrors, sometimes he overcame him with humility.

[14] For he had coveted a certain fertile field of the monastery and was planning to claim it for his own uses. And when he threatened to violently expel the peasants from working that field, the venerable Father was informed. The following day, having followed the laborers to the field, he took some Brothers with him, with whom he immediately began to sing psalms. That one also, striving to exceed his threats in wickedness, came to the place with a band of armed men, thinking that he who had contemned his threats by sowing would not have come to that field without the protection of armed men. But when he drew nearer, he saw arrayed against him not the points of swords, but the missiles of prayers. Then that stony breast was softened from the hardness of its ferocity: previously conquered by the prayers and humility of St. Peter: for conquered by the mere contemplation of religion alone, he threw down his weapons, dismounted from his horse, and, cast at the holy man's feet, begged pardon for his rashness. Which was no less wonderful than if he had driven away from his body the affliction of some great illness by prayer: because the wounds of the heart are far more difficult to cure than those of the flesh. In which work indeed the dignity of psalmody is demonstrated, which is known to powerfully put to flight the ferocity of malignant spirits.

[15] And since we have discovered that these things happened at Cilento, we ought to narrate other things which were likewise shown there. For the same venerable man, when he wished to visit the Brothers in Calabria, proposed to turn aside to the church of the Blessed Apostle and Evangelist e Matthew, which is situated on the Lucanian coast near the ancient sepulcher of the same, here he defers visiting the church of St. Matthew: and to celebrate the solemnities of the Mass. And when he had come near it by sailing, seeing that it was an excellent time for navigation, he ordered the sailors to proceed, and deliberated to render the tribute of his devotion to that same Apostle on his return:

which indeed happened thus, not so much from the devotion of truth as by the power of the Apostle. For when on the return he doubted the reliability of the sea and wished to pass by as if without greeting the Apostle, when he came before his church, the boat was overturned, he fell into the sea, and was compelled to pay what he had promised. But a wondrous spectacle also followed upon this compulsion by the Apostle: because the holy Father, cast into the sea, came to land through the waters, but his garments were found so dry, as if no water had touched them. Which miracle many Brothers knew, and they were accustomed to add that the saddlebag of the chapel, the books and cloths, and all the vessels of the altar were found [cast into the sea, he comes out with clothes and other things entirely untouched:] completely free from any moisture of water, as if they had not floated in the sea but had been carried over land. By which deed indeed it became known how familiar he was to the Apostle, who, holding him for the use of his own ministry, both allowed him to slip into the sea and drew him unharmed as if over dry land. And thus it happened that the holy man, who would not willingly stay in the place, stayed unwillingly, and rendered his vow in the memory of the Apostle all the more devoutly, the more openly he had learned the Apostle's will concerning himself.

[16] But why should we marvel that he prevailed over quiet waters, when we hold it as certain that, through the invocation of his merits, the swelling and raging billows of the sea were calmed before the eyes of secular men? when he was invoked, a sea storm is calmed: For certain noble men of Naples, when they were going by sea to Gaeta to bring the bride of a certain noble young man, who had been brought there by her parents, began to be greatly afraid when the sea was disturbed by violent winds. And when the waves surged vehemently and the hope of escaping had already begun to fail the exhausted, one of those nobles, a familiar friend of the Abbot, poured forth a prayer to the Lord and asked that he and his companions might be freed from so great a danger by the merits of the Abbot and his Brothers. After whose prayer indeed, the wondrous swellings of the sea wonderfully subsided, and seemed to show how great were the merits of the holy man, to whom, following the example of the Savior, they submitted by obeying. Matt. 14.

CHAPTER III.

Various monks corrected not without miracle. The meekness and humility of St. Peter.

[17] And because not only to strangers and the unlearned, but also to certain more negligent monks, the man seemed severe on account of the fervor of his Order, I shall narrate in succession that from which it may more clearly be seen how acceptable to God he was in all that strictness of his: whom although we can easily refute with the authorities of Holy Scripture, nevertheless, having shown the splendor of miracles, we confute them better. For there was a certain Brother in the a obedience of St. Fabian the Martyr: who, when he was behaving negligently, saw the Lord Abbot in his dreams: by whom, having been regularly beaten, Appearing in spirit, he chastises a negligent monk. he was thereafter diligent.

[18] Something entirely similar to this was done in another place, as venerable Brothers reported. For at a certain time, when a certain Brother from a cell in Calabria was coming to the monastery, he was received in the hospitality of a certain secular man's house. In that same house a banquet was being prepared for a certain feast, and when many were invited to the dishes of that same banquet, they began also to ask that Brother to use common food that day out of respect for charity. Which indeed that Brother at first refused, saying: I cannot do what you say, Brothers: for the rule of the monastery is such that no one may presume to eat meats. And when they asked a second and third time and vehemently insisted with their entreaties, the man was bent and promised to take their food. But while lunch was being prepared, the monk, wishing to rest a little from the labor of the journey, fell asleep: to whom the venerable Abbot Peter appeared in his dreams, saying: What is this, Brother, that you have so quickly given assent to your seducer? likewise another who presumed to eat meat: Is the Cavenese order such that Brothers directed on the road should eat meats? And when he acknowledged his fault and begged pardon, he was ordered to be stripped of his undergarment and was flogged, and so he awoke. Then, to his insistent hosts, he responded, saying: I, Brothers, have not yet eaten your food and I have already earned a beating: if I now eat, what will happen to me? And when they heard the order of events, they were no longer troublesome to him about the meal. By which signs indeed it is clear that the affection of love which he was accustomed to show to those present, he seemed to show in spirit to those absent: so that it might clearly appear that all that rigor of discipline flowed from the fountain of great love: and that what often seemed to depart from the peace of the negligent, agreed with the good of supreme peace. Which we show better if we see not only corrected bodies, but also the signs of purified souls by the vigor of his discipline.

[19] For the monk Cioffus, a nobleman, was accustomed to relate that a certain monk named Frederisius was, b of Amalfitan birth: who, having been ordered to remain in a certain cell outside the monastery, lived negligently and dishonored the splendor of religion which he had received with unfortunate actions. After some stretches of time, however, he was seized with a grave illness in the monastery and brought to the point of death. to a monk unwilling to confess his sins, dying, he inflicts punishment: And since he saw himself dying and was ashamed to confess his faults, it was done with him by wonderful piety that the illness drew him toward death with great torments, and yet he could not die: so that both punishments might constrain him and death terrify him, that he might be able to lay bare his sins while still living. The Body of the Lord also, of which he had made himself unworthy by living negligently and far more unworthy by concealing his faults, he frequently refused to receive when offered to him. And when the Brothers admonished him repeatedly and he covered himself with excuses, at last the aforesaid monk yielded to their counsels, confessed and revealed his faults, and after the custom of the monastery, showed to the Lord Abbot what sort of man he saw himself to be. The man of God, considering that no span of life remained for him to do penance, lest he depart unpurified, resolved to go before the face of the Lord. For he decreed that the aforesaid dying Brother should be subjected to corporal punishment, so that by the contrition of the flesh he might purge the one whom he had known to be filthy through pleasure. But wonderful signs of divine clemency also followed upon those fatherly beatings. For as soon as he patiently accepted the judgment of his merits, he received the Body of the Lord that was offered to him and immediately died with such peace that in him not only the affection of his Father, but also the promise of the Lord, was confirmed. Because in the hour when the sinner is converted, he shall live and not die. Ezek. 18:9

[20] There was also another Brother in the monastery, who was called Peter, surnamed Pitantius: a man otherwise good, but infected with a certain blemish of avarice: who, when he was already approaching his end, held fast by illness, saw the demon of that same vice standing near him; and when he upbraided it and asked what it sought there, the malicious spirit answered: On account of that c tareno which you have, you are to be handed over to me today. likewise to another, to whom the demon had cast up a crime: Then the monk, trusting in the labor of his other good works, upbraided the demon and, out of simplicity, threatened to strike it with his staff; the demon departed and left the monk disturbed with no small terror. By chance then a certain senior monk, making his customary rounds, heard that monk from a distance speaking as if with another, and finding him alone, endeavored to inquire from him with whom he had been speaking. To whom the sick monk said by a sign: I will tell you in the morning. At dawn therefore, when the one making rounds returned, he narrated everything to him in order and, begging pardon for his fault, asked him to report it to the Lord Abbot. When the venerable Father learned this, he absolved him, purified as with the other by corporal punishment, and on that day allowed him, now free, to die. Concerning whom indeed it is established that the good man, by the merit of his virtue, obtained that he should recognize while living the consequence of what he thought a small sin, so that he would not need to suffer its punishment after death. But also, since it is clearer than daylight that malicious spirits always want the consequences of our sins to be hidden from us in this world, lest we take care to escape them by repenting; the demon who revealed to the dying man the consequence of his sin clearly did so not willingly, but under compulsion. Which must also be ascribed to the efforts of the Father of the monastery: because the man was exposed to him for purging, whose pious correction of his sons was proven. He saw, therefore, the malignant spirit so that he might not see it, and might escape its cruelty through the zeal of the reverend Father.

[21] But to put demons to flight at the passing of disciples was nothing new for him. For Hugo the monk, son of the good man Rainer the smith, was converted in the monastery with his father and his other brother, named Mauro: of whom the other brother, as a learned and prudent man, was Prior of the monastery: but this one, living simply in the common order, remained until death. And when the time had come for receiving his reward, he incurred the infirmity of bodily death. a demon appearing to a dying man in the form of a black bird The venerable Father came to him as he was passing and endeavored to commend his soul to Almighty God. And the dying Brother said to him: In that window, Father, there are two birds, one very beautiful, the other horribly black. I ask you, therefore, to cast out that horrible one. Then the Brothers who were present began to marvel that he pointed out attentively what they themselves could not see. But the pious Father, understanding that the dying Brother could see something other than the living, ordered exorcized water to be brought to him: with which indeed, while sprinkling the window in prayer, he drives it away with holy water: the dying man saw that same black bird immediately depart: and as he gave thanks to God, his holy soul was released from the flesh. Then the Brothers began to gather that by the ministry of the venerable Father, in that horrible bird the evil Angel had departed, and the good one remained in the beautiful bird to provide guidance for the chosen soul: who, when the other departed, immediately received it as it left the body, to conduct it to eternal joys. For the same Brother appeared to someone sleeping a few days later in a shining garment, and it was no longer doubtful that, received by the good guide, he had ascended from this exile to eternal joys.

[22] But neither should this be passed over in silence: that a certain secular man, buried in the old cemetery near the chamber of this venerable man, emitted cries

and wailings for many nights. And when this happened frequently and was no little annoyance to the venerable Father, one night, he silences the wailing that was wont to be heard nightly at someone's tomb: when the same crying and wailing occurred around the tomb of that wretched man, the Father rose from prayer, went outside, and with great indignation threatened the one crying: and so that one fell silent, so that he entirely ceased to cry and did not dare to trouble the man of God further. And so it clearly appeared that the venerable man, when he wished, commanded even the dead. But if that cry was not of the dead man, but of an evil spirit, the authority of the holy man was great in this too, since at his command the evil spirit fell silent.

[23] But since we have shown the wonderful deeds of the same man, we ought also to produce certain examples from his life: although we believe that what has been said about the manner of his ministry is sufficient, namely that he was a lion to the proud and irreligious, and a lamb to the religious and gentle. For no one ever more strongly tamed unruly and contumacious subjects, no one more kindly honored the humble and obedient. Toward the gentle and the haughty and proud, he is a wise physician of souls: For among the latter he was unaware of the vigor of his authority, since he who was accustomed to ask the humble as if he were their inferior, asking them as his Patrons to pray to the Lord for him: but the former he restrained both with words and regular corrections, so that they might abandon the torpor of their negligences and thenceforth be fervent in heavenly living. To the obstinate and wicked, after the bites of regular discipline, he was accustomed to apply those mollifying remedies of his custom, by which he showed the good of both his work and his intention more clearly than daylight: With a chain, he would say, I will lead you unwilling to heaven. By which word he sufficiently indicated to the wise with what intention, with what fruit of correcting, with what internal sweetness of piety he exercised the severity of his strictness. Truly he was a physician of souls, whose gains he placed before everything. But we show this better if, as if placed in the light, a certain memorable deed of his is proclaimed.

[24] For a certain soldier, a Frenchman by birth, was converted in the monastery: who, having lived religiously in the common order for a considerable time, at last looking backward, desired the delights of the world which he had fled by despising them, like the pots of meat of the Egyptians. Having therefore left the monastery, he threw himself from the height of religion into a precipice, took up arms again, and began to live as a secular. Exod. 16 Who, when he had so madly erred and made himself worthy of death, at some point, by divine grace and the merits of his Father, he looked back to the monastery and returned, and brought many things he had acquired as if they were most welcome gifts. he receives back an apostate monk who has repented: But the venerable Father, when he learned this man had returned, received him with great joy: but all those things which he had brought, he despised; he ordered an enormous pit to be dug, in which he burned by fire everything that had been brought. Which indeed the holy man did, giving an example to posterity, that they should love the persons of the Brothers and not permit the loss of souls under any dispensation of gain.

[25] At a d Synod, while he sat with head bare as was his custom, Pope Urban of holy memory sent him a pontifical mitre: he is given a mitre by Pope Urban II: which indeed the man of the Lord received venerably out of reverence for the Supreme Pontiff, and saluted it with the greatest courtesy, and yet he scorned the use of that same priestly mitre, even at the Pope's request. Which he is not believed to have done for any other reason than to condemn by the example of humility the arrogance of certain men, who while vainly exalting themselves, do not fear to usurp honors of Holy Church not due to them. There are moreover many things which the elders of the monastery were accustomed to narrate about this venerable Father: but for me it suffices to have reported these things from what has been related.

CHAPTER IV.

Having died piously, he corrects the delinquent even after his death.

[26] But that we may come to his blessed departure, in the same year in which he was about to depart from this world to the Lord, John of Diano, his chaplain, saw a vision of this kind. For he saw that from their place three very great mountains were being moved, which by their movement threatened no small collision to the world: from whose movement such a great clamor arose, as if the world seemed to be destroyed. he is seen by another to be invited to heaven by Saints: And when he too, compelled by that same terror, wished to flee to the church and to inquire what it was that he saw, he heard that those three mountains were three Cluniac Abbots, namely a St. Odo, St. Maiolus, and St. Odilo, who had come to take Lord Peter the Abbot with them. But when he inquired at what time he was to be taken, he again heard that they would come near the feast of the Prince of the Apostles and take him from the monastery. But when that Brother awoke, he dies: he began to be exceedingly saddened at the approaching death of his Abbot: which however did not happen at the feast he supposed. For the holy Father passed the approaching feast of the Apostles alive, but around the feast which is called the Chair of Blessed Peter the Apostle, he migrated to eternal joys. The venerable old man therefore died, ripe in years, he is buried in the oratory of St. Michael: but riper in integrity, and was buried in the cave which was transformed from the cell of the venerable Father Alpherius into an oratory of Blessed Michael the Archangel.

[27] In which place, what reverence is owed to his merits, he demonstrated many times. For the monk Sergius, the monastery's armarius, had often been rebuked by the man of God for his negligences: but one day, instigated by an evil spirit, when he remembered not his own merits but the bitterness of his correction, he spat against the sepulcher of the man of God, and he who the Brothers of the monastery were accustomed to greet with bowed heads in that same place as if he were living, he did not shrink from spitting upon after the manner of the Jews. Now the custom of the venerable man, while he still lived, was to punish the faults of his subjects, lest by his neglect he should preserve them for future vengeance. Maintaining therefore the dignity of his custom even after death, a monk who spat on his tomb is punished: he grievously struck that same monk. For when he spat against the tomb, his face swelled up and his mouth was so twisted that it seemed to be deposited at the side on his jaw. Having been struck, he then for the first time began to recognize the greatness of his Abbot, when he learned that the one whom he had reproached as dead, lived better after death and maintained the vigor of his dignity at a higher level. But when, ungrateful for paternal benefits, he was tormented with great pains, his face livid, his lips swollen, girded with pains, he came to the venerable man, my own Abbot b Simeon, revealed his guilt by confession, and asked that the punishment fitting for such bold audacity be given to him for his offense. To whom the venerable Abbot responded: If you were struck by him, no one else can cure you. The monk, therefore ordered, returned, and prostrated before the tomb of the venerable man in prayer, he obtained the health of his face and mouth. invoking him, he is healed: For the mouth which had raised spit to the derogation of the Saint was struck with pain, and when he uttered words of penance, it received health, so that it might prove the justice and piety of his Father against the falsehood of detractors. Because indeed as a good master he struck the erring one, and as a pious father he healed the one he had struck. Fortunate indeed was he who could do both, namely both correct by striking and soothe by healing. Moreover, the same monk Sergius, now an old man, reported this: but when I sought the miracle of his account, he confirmed it with the testimony of the Lord Abbot Simeon.

[28] The monk Ursinus also is accustomed to narrate a miracle not very dissimilar to this. For he says that one day in Tuscany at the church of St. Michael the Archangel, many Brothers of the monastery had gathered: among whom was Leo of Bari and Ursus Ramarius. Then, as is wont to happen, in their conversations the topic arose of comparing the works and religious observance of the Abbots of the monastery. But when they referred all the religious life of the monastery and the conferral of external goods to Abbot Peter, the same monk Ursinus began to vehemently resist the praisers of his Father: he rebukes one who disparages him, in a dream, and when he would not even spare detractions, the Brothers began to admonish him that he ought to be silent from such words. But he would not be silent, but proceeded in speaking wickedly as much as pleased him. On that same night, the one whom he had despised appeared to him in his dreams and began insistently to inquire of him, saying: Is this the way, Ursinus, is this how a monk should speak about his Abbot? And when he remembered what he had said while awake and saw the one against whom he had detracted as if absent, not only present but also endowed with his former authority, with great fear he begged pardon for his guilt. and beats him with rods: But the holy man would not pardon him, but leading him before the altar of the oratory, subjected him to regular discipline and began to beat him so fiercely that amid his pains he cried out and openly indicated by his shouts what he was suffering while asleep. And when the Brothers came and awakened the crying man, he explained the course of the floggings, and to confirm their truth and the presence of the avenger, he produced as witnesses the bruises on his shoulders. Which miracle indeed Ursinus himself told me: but wishing to know the matter more certainly, when I inquired of Ursus Ramarius, he said he had heard Ursinus crying amid the beatings and had seen the marks of the blows on him when he awoke. By which signs indeed it is shown with what honor of eternal dignity the holy man is endowed, who can both correct by teaching those whom he had nourished in this world, and amend them with chastisements.

[29] For Odo Vestarasius, a man of venerable life, how great his truthfulness and holiness were, he reproves the faults of another: no one who knew him well was ignorant. He was accustomed to relate frequently that he often appeared to him and reproved his deeds if he erred in anything.

[30] Moreover, a habit of a certain bad custom had grown upon the aforementioned monk Sergius, another's wandering about, so that he could not remain fixed for long in one place. But one night the venerable Father appeared to him and, terribly rebuking him for his instability, threatened that he would correct him very soon. Not many days later the same Sergius fell from an upper floor and broke a rib: and from that day onward he could not run about the monastery. These things and similar things, as I have already said, the venerable Father is known to have done in the correction of his disciples, so that none of them might be found unprepared at the hour of their calling. Of whom indeed he often forewarned several and commanded them to prepare themselves for their approaching departure.

[31] A certain John, a Roman, a monk of that same monastery of ours, who also came with me to this c Venusine monastery, how great his simplicity and religious devotion were, another's negligence in praying for the departed. is known by many. He had been ordered to remain at the castle of St. Adjutor with the other Brothers. One day, coming to the monastery, he reported what he had newly learned had happened at the aforementioned castle, saying: To Lord Leo of Bari, the master of that same castle, last night the Lord Abbot Peter appeared in his dreams and said to him: Brother Leo, why do you act so negligently and by no means render the psalmody due to the departed Brothers? Hasten and prepare yourself, because you are going to die very quickly. Awakening, he began to fear wonderfully at the terror of his foretold death. To whom also on the following night the venerable Abbot Constabilis appeared and said the same things. From which doubled vision indeed he was so terrified that, singing psalms in church, he repeated the Psalter twice daily in order, and ceased from all that idleness of his. After some days, however, the same monk Leo, seized by illness, died, and confirmed by dying that he had spoken the truth while living. These things, moreover, the venerable monk John narrated to me while the one who had seen the vision of his death was still living. Which, when I learned they were fulfilled in his death, I also began to believe those things which I had not seen for myself. d The feast of the nativity of this most blessed man Peter is celebrated on the 4th of the Nones of March. Amen.

HISTORY OF THE DEDICATION OF THE CAVENESE CHURCH

From the MS. Cavenese Chronicle.

Peter, Bishop of Policastro, and then Abbot of Cava in Italy (St.)

[1] a Third from the blessed man Alpherius, and his nephew in the flesh, Blessed Peter flourished as Abbot of this Cavenese monastery, who both by the extent of his deeds, and by the gravity of his character, and by the severity of his discipline, far excelled all others. About whom indeed (lest we depart from the plan of our work) only this is now to be said, which the solemnity of the present day seems to demand. Pope Urban II, formerly St. Peter's disciple and inseparable companion, In the year from the saving birth of Christ the Lord Jesus one thousand and ninety-two, the Supreme Pontiff, and Vicar of Christ Jesus, who presided was Urban, the second of that name: who, a Frenchman by nation, a monk by profession, Odo by name, had formerly been a disciple of this same Blessed Peter in the Cluniac monastery, and the inseparable companion and associate in life of him who was returning to the b Cavenese monastery: until, enrolled by the most holy Pope Gregory VII in the college of the chief Fathers and made c Bishop of Ostia; and at length after the death of Pope Victor III, raised to the summit of the Apostolic order, d fearing the wickedness of e Henry, the enemy of the Church, and to be less subject to the seditions of the Romans, he preferred to stay among the f Normans rather than at Rome.

[2] Conducted therefore to Salerno with honor by the Most Serene Duke Roger, son of Robert Guiscard, he comes to Salerno, while, inflamed with the ardor of piety and a grateful heart, he desired to render this place sacred and to fulfill the vow of his most holy Master; g Alfanus, Archbishop of Salerno, the second of that name, who was already striving by every means to gain subjection over this place, upon learning that a fitting adornment for so great a thing was being prepared, took it very ill, and he removes the obstacle that was raised. and explained to the Pontiff that it was not permitted, to the degradation and detriment of his Cathedral Church, for the Cavenese monastery to be honored with so great a gift. To whom the Pontiff prescribed a day for the hearing, on which he should defend his rights. But he, admonished from heaven (as the report goes) and touched and terrified by the sanctity of the place, refrained from pursuing the action.

[3] The controversy having been settled by God's will, Pope Urban, with the harmonious applause of all the peoples, having taken with him his most reverend brother Bishops and Cardinals, h Ubaldus of Sabina, Odo of Albano, Berard of Palestrina, John of Tusculum, i Bruno of Segni, k Rangerius of Reggio, Gerard of Troia, John of Rapolla; accompanied by Bishops, Cardinals, and the Priests and Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church, Hermann of the title of the Four Crowned Saints, Gregory of the title of St. Vitalis, Benedict of the title of St. Susanna; Gregory of the Diaconate of St. Mary in Via Lata, John of the Diaconate of St. Mary in Schola Graeca, Peter of the Diaconate of St. Adrian, James of the Diaconate of St. Eustace, and Teutio of the Diaconate of St. Gregory at Velum Aureum, and a copious multitude of other clergy, as befitted the Supreme Pontiff, Clergy, having set out from Salerno, he proceeded to the monastery, about to perform the ceremony of consecration: so that the one whose monastic discipline excelled in religious observance, the same should receive the outstanding gift of Pontifical generosity. Dukes and Princes, he sets out for Cava: And the Most Serene Duke Roger also accompanied him, with an innumerable throng of Dukes and Princes and other Nobles; both to honor the Pontiff, illustrious for the glory of his deeds, and to render service, and to be present at the ceremonies of so great a solemnity and to enhance them with their gifts.

[4] But when, proceeding thus, he had come near the monastery (where afterward a chapel was built in memory of the event), embracing in his pious heart the holiness of the place, the singular gift of religion, the angelic character of the monks dwelling there, the immense merit of his Master, and the very paths worn by the feet of the Saints; he proceeds on foot with the others to the monastery: turning to Duke Roger and the others who were present with Pontifical Majesty, he said: It is unworthy, Sons, that we sinners should approach the place which those who lead a heavenly life inhabit, and where they walk with bare feet, otherwise than on foot. Having said this, he leaped down to the ground, and by his example the rest proceeded on foot to the monastery. He had scarcely gone the distance of a stone's throw from there, when the venerable Peter, shining with pleasing white hair, surrounded by a crown of Brothers, he kindly receives St. Peter the Abbot and the monks as they come to meet him: reverently came to meet him; and immediately with all his company he knelt before the Supreme Pontiff: who, immediately raising him from the ground, embraced and kissed him affectionately; then, looking upon the rest of the Brothers with a serene countenance, he blessed them and greeted them graciously: and a wonderful rivalry arose on both sides, as they rushed to kiss his feet, while he, moved by the benevolence of his Brothers, wished to embrace them in the midst: and so, delighted by the mutual sight, and mixing their tears with joy, they came to the monastery.

[5] he salutes the Holy Eucharist and visits the bodies of the Saints: Having entered the building, the Pontiff first rendered his worship to the Most Holy Eucharist, then betook himself to the cave: and there, prostrate, he kissed and watered with tears the monuments of Alpherius and Leo, and prayed long and much. And at last, rising and blessing the people, he entered the prepared quarters of the monastery with Duke Roger and the others, and there he spent the remainder of that day in familiar conversations (forgetting himself as Pontiff) with Blessed Abbot Peter and certain other monks whom he had previously known while living in monastic life. And even he performs Matins at night: on that same night, with those same Brothers who were solemnly reciting the morning praise, he devoutly took part. On the following morning, with the necessary things prepared as customary, the Pontiff, proceeding to the altar in solemn pomp, anointed these buildings — then indeed covered with precious silk, adorned with golden basilisks, and wreathed with a crown of fragrant flowers — with sacred oil by his own hands, he dedicates the temple to the Most Holy Trinity with Pontifical ceremonies and rites, and anointed each wall; and applied an exquisitely carved Cross as a sign and memorial of the sacred act, and dedicated it to the Most High God of the Supreme Trinity, September 3, on the day l of the Nones of September, in the fifteenth Indiction.

[6] So magnificent indeed was the pomp of the consecration that the sweetest fragrances were perpetually burned, the sweetest harmonies were heard, the modulations of organs and flutes to a most delightful rhythm kindled not only the ears of all, but their minds to piety and religion in a wonderful manner, and they all thought themselves already dwelling in the most blessed shores of heaven. Especially indeed the Most Serene Duke Roger, aroused by these tokens of piety, Duke Roger bestows very many privileges and revenues. before the Pontiff and Cardinals, in the hearing of Princes and peoples, granted to the entire Cavenese domain: authority over all the Lucanians, immunity from taxes, dominion of the sea: he granted the power to create public notaries, judges, and vassals: to rescue those condemned to death, to establish the procedure of duels; to decide controversies both civil and criminal; to prosecute appeals. And (to say it in a word), together with the supreme right of royal power, he conferred revenues and fruits amounting to the sum of many thousands of gold pieces with religious generosity.

[7] But the Pontiff's magnificence was all the more illustrious, as heavenly treasures and divine gifts are more illustrious than earthly and human ones. For, turning with tears to Duke Roger and the other Prelates and Princes and all the people, the Pope grants various indulgences to those visiting this church, using his supreme Pontifical power and bringing forth the most abundant treasures of Christ the Lord, he granted: that whoever, being in a state of penance by divine grace, should visit these most holy buildings before the day of the consecration and on the day itself, that is, on the fourth and fifth day of September, and also on the sacred days of the Lord's Supper and of the saving Passion; should merit the same indulgence that he would merit if he went and returned to St. James of Compostela. For the other days of the year, to anyone who came there for devotion's sake, he granted an indulgence of four years and as many quarantines. He also arranged that the chapel which is called the Abbot's should be consecrated by the Most Distinguished Bruno, a Cassinese monk and Bishop of Segni, on the same day, and another, the Abbot's, adding an indulgence for those visiting it on these feast days of seven years and as many quarantines. To the church located in the adjacent village monastery, and a third, of the Coenobial village, and consecrated at that time by the Most Reverend Bishop Rangerius of Reggio, was granted an indulgence for those devoutly coming there of seven years and as many quarantines, not only on the said days but on every feast of the Virgin m Mother. The monks themselves, he grants very many privileges: and the sacred monastery, he so fortified with his privileges, and endowed with liberty, and augmented with prerogatives, elevated and adorned; that you would find few monasteries comparable to it, but would set none above it.

[8] Then indeed, when the pomp was finished, the Pontiff and Cardinals, with the Most Serene Duke and Princes, with Blessed Peter leading the way, betook themselves to the cloister. The rest of the great multitude occupied the entire valley, and after a frugal meal had been completed, with the monks gathered together, the Pontiff is said to have spoken thus: he delivers an exhortation to the monks, Consider in your minds, Brothers, how great is the dignity and majesty of the religious monk, whom God, having brought forth from the waves of the world, has led into the most peaceful bosom of Religion; so that with the eye of the mind purified by monastic discipline, he may easily perceive how fleeting, how narrow, how mortal, how full of error and vanity all human things are: and although he lives on earth, about the happiness of their state: yet he holds the rights of the heavenly citizens, and is already in a certain way placed among the number of the Blessed. For these are the true ornaments, these the admirable distinctions. For the

golden staff which I use, though it be of great dignity, is yet but a covering for the most troublesome cares and a most wearisome burden. Wherefore hold fast what you have, lest anyone take your crown. And our burden, dearest Brothers, since authority does not permit it, bear with your prayers, and with the affection of piety feel pity for my condition. Having said these and other things, and having granted a blessing, having given his blessing, he departs. and having called each one by his proper name, he returned to Salerno with Duke Roger and the others who had come with him. n