ON SS. GERMANUS AND COMPANIONS: THEOPHILUS, CAESARIUS, VITALIS, DOMNINUS, JUSTUS, HERMES, GOBBANUS, AND EGRILIUS, MARTYRS AT CAESAREA IN CAPPADOCIA,
UNDER DECIUS.
CommentaryGermanus, martyr. (S.)
Theophilus, martyr. (S.)
Caesarius, martyr. (S.)
Vitalis, martyr. (S.)
Domninus, martyr. (S.)
Justus, martyr. (S.)
Hermes, martyr. (S.)
Gobbanus, martyr. (S.)
Egrilius, martyr. (S.)
BY G. V. H.
In almost all the calendars of the saints there is celebrated on this day a certain glorious fellowship of martyrs, who, under the persecution of Decius, gave to Jesus Christ the testimony of their blood. Yet some martyrologies count more martyrs, others fewer. Let the Little Roman Martyrology lead the order with the following elogium of the martyrs: In Cappadocia, of the martyrs Germanus, Theophilus, Caesarius, Vitalis, under the Decian persecution. Ado: At Caesarea of Cappadocia, the feast of Saints Germanus, Theophilus, Caesarius and Vitalis, who most excellently underwent martyrdom under the Decian persecution. Usuard: At Caesarea of Cappadocia, of the holy martyrs Germanus, Theophilus, Caesarius and Vitalis, who under the Decian persecution most excellently underwent martyrdom. Wandelbert:
On the third Germanus, Vitalis and Caesarius
And Theophilus shine out with the equal light of their feast.
Galesinius: At Caesarea in Cappadocia, of the holy martyrs Germanus, Theophilus, Caesarius and Vitalis, who in the Decian persecution, refusing no tortures of cruelty for Christ, and at last led off to death, bore away the palm of martyrdom by an unconquered defence of piety. Maurolycus: At Caesarea of Cappadocia, of the holy martyrs Germanus, Theophilus, Caesarius and Vitalis, who under the Decian persecution most excellently underwent martyrdom. The Roman Martyrology: At Caesarea in Cappadocia, of the holy martyrs Germanus, Theophilus, Caesarius, Vitalis, who in the Decian persecution most excellently underwent martyrdom. Peter de Natalibus, book X, chapter 18, weaves this elogium of these martyrs: Germanus, Theopolus, Caesarius and Vitalis, martyrs, at Caesarea of Cappadocia under the persecution of Decius Caesar underwent a most excellent martyrdom. At that time, as Jerome writes, it was the wish of Christians to be struck down for the name of Christ, but the cunning enemy too, seeking out punishments slow to bring death, desired to slaughter souls, not bodies, and, as Cyprian himself, who suffered from him, says, those who wished were not permitted to be killed. At that time suffered those two young men of whom it is told in the Life of St. Paul the first hermit, as was said above in his Life, on the fourth of the ides of January. The aforesaid holy martyrs Germanus and companions suffered on the third of the nones of November. So Jerome in his martyrology. Everyone before whose eyes the text of the martyrologies called Hieronymian has at some time come will know that Peter did not draw his elogium from them; he drew it from Usuard, whose martyrology, as Sollerius notes, Peter took for Jerome's, and he added from his own a few things on the character of the Decian persecution.
[2] All these martyrologists so far cited, then, list a band of only four martyrs of Christ. The true Hieronymian martyrologies add more. Their series I subjoin according to the various copies. The Bern copy [Which we published in the year 1883 in the Acta Sanctorum, volume XIII of October.]: In Cesarea Cappadocie Germani, Thiofili, Cesari, Egrili, Vitalis. The Lucca copy (by a notable slip of the copyist): In Africa Cappadociæ natalis sanctorum Germani, Theofili, Cesari, Egrili, Vitalis. The Echternach copy: Cesarea Cappadociæ natalis Germani, Theofili, Vitalis, Justi, et Hermetis, Gobbani, Germani, Teofili, Cessari, Egrili, Vitalis. The Corbie copy: In Cæsarea Cappadociæ natalis sanctorum Germani, Theophili, Cæsarii, Egrili, Vitalis. Rabanus in his martyrology adds one martyr passed over by all: At Caesarea of Cappadocia, the feast of Germanus, Domninus, Theophilus, Vitalis, Justus and Hermes. Another ancient martyrology in Fiorentini writes Thechali for Theophili, which we think a slip of the copyist. There was great confusion in the Leiden martyrology Which we published among the Analecta Bollandiana, volume I (1882).. Of the martyrs of Caesarea, Germanus, Theophilus, Justus and Hermes are first brought forward; then, after others interposed, mention is made of Caesarius and Vitalis. Egrilius is put off to the following day, joined to the Caesarea martyrs, who are repeated except Justus and Hermes. It commemorates Domninus, but as bishop of Vienne, the same as in the Roman Martyrology. Whence a suspicion may arise that the Domninus cited by Rabanus is this very man of Vienne, for the Leiden martyrology was published from a Fulda codex of the Leiden library. I would not attribute too much to this suspicion, for among the saints several Domnini occur. In the Ottoboni martyrology it runs thus: In Cæsarea Cappadociæ natale sanctorum Germani, Theophili, Cæsarii, Egrili, Vitalis.
[3] If we gather the number of the martyrs from the authors cited, we have first the quaternion of Germanus, Theophilus, Caesarius and Vitalis; to which is added Egrilius; then Domninus, and at last Justus, Hermes, Gobbanus come in: so that the number of nine martyrs is completed. Justus and Hermes may indeed seem to be repeated from the preceding day. But Vitalis also occurs on the 2nd and on the 3rd day. Yet the Vitales are different; so too the Justi and Hermeses may be different, being assigned to different days. Theophilus, however, Germanus and Vitalis, repeated on the same day and brought forward as if in one announcement in the Echternach copy, plainly seem to be the same. We have therefore a fellowship of nine martyrs, whom we are of the opinion are the same as those to whom, with names suppressed, the metrical Ephemerides of the Greeks assign this day, in the following distich:
Ψυχαῖς ἀτρέπτοις χερσὶ τμηθέντες πλάνων
Πλάνην περιτρέπουσιν ἄνδρες ἐννέα.
With unmoved souls, cut down by the hand of the wicked,
Nine men removed the wicked fraud.
[4] We regret indeed that nothing survives for us of the Acts of the martyrdom. For what Baronius says in the annotation to the elogium of these same martyrs in the Roman martyrology, namely that Peter described their Acts briefly from ancient tablets, signifies nothing other than that Peter reports the elogium of Usuard with a few things added, which concern not the martyrs but the persecution in which they suffered.