Marusius and Restitutus and Perhaps Julius

ON SS. MARUSIUS AND RESTITUTUS AND PERHAPS JULIUS, AT CARTHAGE IN AFRICA,

AT CARTHAGE IN AFRICA.

From the Martyrologies.

Marusius, martyr at Carthage in Africa. (S.) Restitutus, martyr at Carthage in Africa. (S.) Julius, martyr at Carthage in Africa. (S.)

The confused announcement of these Martyrs and of St. Adauctus. The Hieronymian Martyrology in Florentini embraces today three saints in one announcement and assigns them to Africa: Adauctus, Marusius, Restitutus. Here are the words: In the city of Africa, of Adaugtus, Marusius, Restitutus. The Reichenau one in Sollier, vol. VI of June, part 2, has only two, Marusius being omitted: And in Africa, of Adauctus and Restitutus. The Augsburg one in the same Sollier makes mention of Adauctus and of Marusius, but of the latter wrongly at Auxerre. With Florentini's Hieronymian one the Martyrology of the queen of Sweden, formerly, as it appears, of the church of Fulda, entirely agrees, except that it writes Maurusius. A manuscript Martyrology inserted in vol. 3 of our collection, and believed by Bolland to be Rabanus's, uses a twofold announcement, but wrongly: In Africa, of Marusius, Restitutus; to which presently this is added: At Carthage, of Audactus, Carusus, Restitutus — where Audactus and Carusus seem to be the same as Adauctus and Marusius. Our manuscript Florarium is similarly dislocated, in which this is read: In Africa, of Marusius, Restitutus; and then: At Carthage, of Audactus, Carusus, Restitutus. Finally Florentini's Corbie Martyrology attributes to Africa, besides Maurisus and Restitutus, also Julius, but Adauctus by no means. In this discrepancy of the codices I think it must be determined with Florentini that Adauctus be assigned to Ephesus, but Marusius and Restitutus to Africa or Carthage, and that the differing readings be emended in this manner: In the city of Ephesus, Adauctus. In Africa, or in the city of Carthage, of Marusius, Restitutus. For the cited codices severally attribute Marusius and Restitutus to Africa or to Carthage; but why Adauctus seemed to Florentini to be assigned to Ephesus, the author's words reported in this volume at p. 409, n. 10, disclose. For since on the one hand Florentini had observed that Adauctus is not reckoned among the African martyrs by the Corbie Martyrology, and on the other that a Saint of the same name, who was both a citizen of Ephesus and, after consummating his martyrdom in Mesopotamia, obtained a tomb and a cult in that same city, is inscribed in the Basilian Martyrology at this very day, he suspected that the same man was recorded both in the Hieronymian transcripts and in the Basilian Martyrology — which indeed he did probably. For although it may have been that one Adauctus was venerated on this day by the Africans and another by the Greeks, yet since the Hieronymian transcripts in which Adauctus is assigned to Africa are everywhere corrupted in this place, and no other ground of distinction appears from elsewhere, there is no reason why it should be necessary to assign one Adauctus to Africa and another to Ephesus. But that on the authority of the Corbie Martyrology alone Julius should be added to Marusius and Restitutus, while all the other codices are silent about him, I do not see what greatly urges. For the rest, instead of Marusius or Marisus one should perhaps write Maurusius; for so Augustine writes, vol. 2 of the Benedictine edition, Epistle 57 to Celer. Whether they are martyrs or confessors you will determine from what has just been said concerning St. Dasius.