ON SAINTS QUINTUS, QUINTILLUS OR QUINTILLA, QUARTILLA, MARCUS, AND NINE OTHER MARTYRS AT SORRENTO IN ITALY.
CommentaryQuintus, Martyr at Sorrento in Italy (Saint). Quintillus or Quintilla, Martyr at Sorrento in Italy (Saint). Quartilla, Martyr at Sorrento in Italy (Saint). Marcus, Martyr at Sorrento in Italy (Saint). Nine Others, Martyrs at Sorrento in Italy (Saints).
[1] Sorrento, in Greek Syrrhenton and Sourenton, in Italian Sorrento, is everywhere placed among the cities of Campania, once the metropolis of the Picentini, illuminated with the light of the Gospel either by the very Prince of the Apostles Peter himself, at Sorrento or by his disciples, as Ferdinand Ughelli teaches in volume 6 of his Sacred Italy, in the prooemium before the Archbishops of Sorrento, adding that on the fourteenth day before the Calends of April a solemn commemoration is made there of Saints Quartus, Quartillus, Quintilla, Marcus, and nine companions, who are considered most blessed citizens crowned by martyrdom in this city, of whom the Roman Martyrology makes mention, the cult and church of these Martyrs: and whose Church was restored by the Carmelites in the preceding century. So he says, with the names themselves not transcribed without error by copyists. In the Roman Martyrology they are read thus: "At Sorrento, of the holy Martyrs Quintus, Quintilla, Quartilla, and Marcus, with nine others." In the same manner those names were expressed by David Romaeus, a priest of Sorrento, in his Catalogue of the Saints of the Kingdom of Naples, page 400; their birthday inscribed in the calendar. but not a word about their contest, as Ferrarius also notes in his Catalogue of the Saints of Italy, where he treats of them.
[2] Baronius in his Notes on the Roman Martyrology cites Bede, Usuard, Ado, and others who treat of them on this day, among whom are Notker, Bellinus, and Maurolycus, in all of whom it is read thus: "On the same day, of Saints Quintus, Whether the name should be Quintillus or Quintilla: Quintillus, Quartilla, Marcus with nine others." Very many manuscripts agree, in some of which, in place of Quintillus, is read Quintilis, and in place of Quartilla in the Vallicellian and Trier manuscripts, Quintilla, so that the names would be Quintus, Quintillus, Quintilla, Marcus. But Quintilla and Quartilla are named in the Roman Martyrology and the Catalogue of Romaeus. The Dachery manuscript agrees with the words: "Surrento, of Quinctus, Quintilla, whether Florentius, Gregory, and others should be added. Quartilla," with Marcus and companions omitted. On the other hand, three codices of the ancient Martyrology of Saint Jerome have Quintillus and Quartilla with the rest. Galesin adds Florentius with these words: "At Sorrento in Italy, of the holy Martyrs Quintus, Quintillus, Quartilla, Marcus, Florentius, and nine companions," and notes that he added Florentius from handwritten books. In the said codices of the Martyrology of Saint Jerome, after Marcus and the other nine, Florentius and Venecta or Vonocta are added. And in one codex, before Marcus, Saint Gregory is interposed. In the printed Bede, after the nine others, is added: "of Lucania, Ingenius, Rogata, and Timothy" -- whom we would not dare therefore to join to these. Of these, Timothy pertains to the Martyrs killed in Mauritania and commemorated on the preceding day; on which day also, in the said codices of the Martyrology of Saint Jerome, these Martyrs are recorded: "In Campania, of Quintus, Rogatus, Ingenua, Quartilla, Rogata, Lucianus, Aurilius, Saturninus, Victor, and Maurus" -- to whom those mentioned above from the printed Bede are to be referred; and for "Lucania," perhaps "Lucianus" should be substituted, and "Ingenua" for "Ingenius," as we said on that day.
[3] [In various Martyrologies, in place of Sorrento, a Saint Sorentus is placed, joined to Saint Leontius the Bishop and others:] Another difficulty arises in that Sorentus seems to be established among the holy Martyrs, not Sorrento the city. Thus four codices of the Martyrology of Saint Jerome, after various Martyrs, perhaps all African, add: "The burial of Leontius the Bishop, Sorentus, Quintus, Quintillus, Quartilla, Marcus with nine others, Florentius, and Vonecta." In one codex, as we said, "of Saint Gregory" is interposed. All the same are in the Tamlacht manuscript Martyrology, but on the following day, and seven others are joined to Marcus, nine to Florentius. But in place of Leontius and Sorentus, one reads "Leotinus and Soretinus." The Labbe manuscript has thus: "Of Theodore, Bassus, Baselia, Leontius the Confessor, Sorentus, Marcus, Florentius." Which in the Augsburg manuscript of Saint Ulrich are written thus: "Of Theodotus, Bassus, Basilia, Leotius the Confessor, Sorentus, Marcus, Florentius." The first three have been treated. But some of the African Martyrs in the Tournai manuscript of Saint Martin are reckoned with these words: "In Africa, the burial of Saint Leo the Bishop and Saint Quintus." The Reichenau manuscript: "In Africa, of Bassus and twenty others. Of Lucilla, Fissianus, Pomenus, Apollonius, Leontius the Bishop, Marcus with nine others." In the Patrician manuscript, preserved at Naples among the Clerks Regular, the following is read: "In Africa, of Saint Bassus. The burial of Saint Leontius the Bishop, Orientinus with nine others." Here the one who in the earlier sources is Sorentus and in the Tamlacht manuscript Soretinus is called Orientinus. Hermann Greven, after recording the Saints of Sorrento in the Martyrology of Usuard, adds: "On the same day, of Saints Apollonius, Bassus, Sorentus, and Leontius the Bishop." Luke Dachery in the Index of the Martyrology of Saint Jerome published by him also numbers Sorentum among the Saints of this day.
[4] We preferred to lay these things before the reader rather than to decide among such illustrious Martyrologists on the basis of our own conjecture. It occurred to us that Saint Leontius could be established as Bishop of Sorrento, Should Saint Leontius be called Bishop of Sorrento? since Ughelli supposes that in those first centuries of Christian salvation, several were set over Sorrento by the Roman Pontiffs to govern and instruct that Church for salvation while the persecutions of the Christian name were raging, of whose names down to Renatus, who lived in the year 425, no memory survives. This opinion would be favored by the fact that in place of "Sorentus" one also reads "Soretinus" and "Orientinus," as if "Sorentinus" or "Surrentinus." But as we turn over those ancient Martyrologies, we note that the names of places are placed before the Saints themselves. We treat of these separately, omitting everywhere "Sorentus," whom together with the Saints here recorded and those soon
to be related, we judge, on the authority of the aforesaid Martyrologies, that all can be assigned to another place.