ON SS. AFRIGUS AND COMPANIONS: AFRIGUS OR APRICIUS, MACHARIUS, DICEUS, AND PROCULUS, MARTYRS AT NICAEA IN BITHYNIA, AND ON SS. MODESTUS AND TWO HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-TWO COMPANIONS, MARTYRS AT NAPLES IN CAMPANIA, FROM THE MARTYROLOGIES,
FROM THE YEAR 303 TO 305.
CollectionAfrigus or Apricius, martyr, at Nicaea in Bithynia. (S.)
Macharius, martyr, at Nicaea in Bithynia. (S.)
Diceus, martyr, at Nicaea in Bithynia. (S.)
Proculus, martyr, at Nicaea in Bithynia. (S.)
Modestus, martyr, at Naples in Campania. (S.)
Two hundred and seventy-two companion martyrs, at Naples in Campania.
BY V. D. B.
After the Nicomedian and African groups of holy Martyrs, the Hieronymian calendars in Fiorentini exhibit the following announcement: From the Hieronymian calendars, somewhat entangled, "And at Nicaea of Bithynia. Of Afriges. Of Macharius. Of Diceus. Of Proculus. At Naples. Of Festus. Of Modestus. And of others, number 272." To which Fiorentini subjoins this commentary: "Among the several cities under the name of Nicaea, there is marked here chiefly that which is in Thrace (nay, in Pontus), most celebrated for the Council of Nicaea. In this the Antwerp manuscript recounts only two Martyrs, namely Apricius and Matthew. But Afriges, not Apricius, is the leader of the others in our books and in the Corbie one; and he who follows in order is called Macharius, not Matthew; then Diceus and Proculus. Yet one sticks on a rock as to whether Neapoli, the name that follows, is that of a Martyr or of a city. D'Achery seems from his manner of punctuation to have taken it for a Martyr; as also Rosweyde in the Appendix of Ado at the twelfth day before the Kalends of November: 'At Nicaea of Bithynia, of Afriges, Macarius, Diceus, Proculus, Neapolus, Modestus and others to the number of seventy-two.' (From this appendix, although Ferrarius believed that he had taken it from Ado, he put Neapolius, with the name somewhat changed, as a Martyr in his new Catalogue of the Saints. So that, since he adds nothing beyond the authority of the supposed Ado, he neither adds weight nor solves the knot. In our books Festus is read before Modestus and the anonymous ones. In the monuments of the Neapolitan Church of d'Engenio and Caracciolo, Modestus does not appear, and Festus, numbered among the companions of St. Januarius, is said to rest and be venerated at Benevento, not at Naples. The number of the anonymous ones is in excess in our books. In the appendix of Ado adduced, seventy-two are associated with Modestus, in the Corbie Martyrology eighty-four; in both of our codices two hundred and seventy-two are marked, whom it has not been possible to find mentioned elsewhere." Thus far Fiorentini.
[2] [a twofold band of holy Martyrs seems to be derived, and Neapoli to be taken as the name of a city;] Before all else, therefore, it is asked here whether there is a twofold band, one of Nicaea, the other of Naples, or rather a single one, so that by the word Neapoli is designated a St. Neapolus who, like the rest, is a martyr of Nicaea. For my part I should rather believe that there are two bands, both because in the Rosweyde auctarium of Usuard at the 22nd of October these most plain
words are read In Sollerius, Martyrology of Usuard, page 619.: "At Naples, of the holy Martyrs Festus and Modestus and of 271 others"; and because in all the codices in which the names of places were omitted, the word Neapoli was passed over, as being the name of a place and not of some Saint: as may be seen in the Augsburg codex In Sollerius, before part II of Usuard, page 22., the Labbe one Ibid., page 29., that of St. Germain of Auxerre In Martène, Thesaurus novus Anecdotorum, vol. III, col. 1561., the Murbach one Ibid., col. 1570. and the Gellone one In d'Achery, Spicilegium, vol. II, page 35.. It can indeed be objected that other names of saints too were omitted in the same places; but the force of the argument lies in this, that the name Neapoli was always passed over; whence it seems to have been held the name of a place, not of a man. And so, of the ancient documents, one auctarium of Bede seems to favour the opposite side; since in it one may read Acta SS., before vol. II of March, page XXXV.: "At Nicaea of Bithynia, the heavenly birthday of Macharius, Proculus, Modestus with two hundred and seventy others." Where the word Neapoli is indeed omitted; yet Modestus with his companions is assigned to Nicaea. I should not deny that there is some force in this matter; but not so much as I think there is in each of the two preceding arguments. And what Fiorentini noted, that the Corbie codex was so punctuated by d'Achery, and the appendix of Ado by Rosweyde, that the word Neapoli seems to designate a man and not a city, is altogether true. But it must be known that La Barre Spicilegium, vol. II, page 20., who re-edited d'Achery's books, and Giorgi Martyrology of Ado, page 644., who re-edited Rosweyde's, thought quite otherwise and so placed the points that the word Neapoli now pertains to the city; and indeed Sollerius, bringing the Reichenau codex to light Before part II of Usuard, page 13., held the same path. All of which being considered, I hold it more probable that two sacred bands are in question here, the one of Nicaea, the other of Naples. Nor may you say that St. Neapolus is thus struck out of the Calendars, who from almost the beginning of this century began to be celebrated in France on the 13th of August and to be held the namesake of Napoleon: for he is by no means in question here, since he was a Martyr of Alexandria; of whom, under the name of St. Neopolus, as also of his companion St. Saturninus, treatment was given in our Work at the 2nd of May Acta SS., vol. I of May, page 180..
[3] the former, Nicene, crowd consists of four; The names also cause difficulty. The leader of the Nicenes in the Antwerp or Echternach manuscript is called Apricius, in the rest, as also in the appendix of Ado, Afriges, by Ferrarius in the General Catalogue of the saints Africus: which form is preferable I am quite uncertain. The second is called Macharius in the Lucca and Corbie manuscripts, and likewise in the auctarium of Bede, in the Greven one of Ado and Usuard, in the Catalogue of Ferrarius and in the German Martyrology called that of Canisius; wherefore the reading of the Antwerp codex, where Mattheus is written, seems to be disregarded; a name, moreover, little used in this age. Diceus and Proculus are not to be called into controversy, since Ferrarius alone thrusts in Procacus. That these holy Martyrs suffered in the year 303 or 304, when the persecution of Diocletian pressed upon all Bithynia and at Nicaea carried off St. Theodota and her sons, St. Diomedes, St. Neophytus and others, seems beyond doubt. Concerning St. Nicaea, whom they call the mother of St. Proculus, we raised some suspicion among those passed over at the 19th of October Ibid., vol. VIII of October, page 385, c.; it will be enough to have recalled it to memory here.
[4] [the other, Neapolitan, to be distinguished from the Puteolan (which is to be referred among those passed over), of St. Modestus and 272 companions.] The Neapolitan band is somewhat more obscure. For after the words already recited, "At Naples, of Modestus and of others to the number of 272," there follow in d'Achery's Corbie codex these others: "At Puteoli of Campania, of Proculus, Eutyches, Macharius, Donatella"; in the Lucca ones: "At Puteoli of Campania, of Proculus, Eutychius and Macharius"; which, however, are lacking in the Antwerp one. However that may be, in other codices all these names are in a wonderful manner mixed up with the Neapolitan ones or truncated. In the Reichenau codex you have barely: "At Naples, of Festus." In the Augsburg one: "Of Modestus with 272 others, of Macharius, of Festus"; in the Labbe one: "Of Modestus with two hundred and seventy others. Of Festus, of Macarius"; the appendix of Ado already recited omits Festus altogether; the Rosweyde auctarium of Usuard, with the names of Festus and Modestus and 271 companions, we have already given; the auctarium of Bede is much truncated, and reports only Modestus with two hundred and seventy others; finally in the Gellone Martyrology one may read: "Of Modestus with two hundred and seventy-two others (the word 'two' is lacking in Baluze's codex), of Macharius, of Festus." For my part I should believe (to omit a longer disputation) that the genuine or primitive reading is: "At Naples, of Modestus and of 272 others. At Puteoli of Campania, of Proculus, Eutychius and Festus"; where I have placed Festus after, since only the Lucca codices and the Rosweyde auctarium of Usuard put that name before Modestus. Macharius, however, I have omitted, because he seems to be the same as the Nicene one, and Donatella as being met with in the Corbie codex alone. For the rest, Proculus and Eutychius, crowned at Puteoli, and Festus, venerated at Benevento, belong to the band of St. Januarius of Naples; of which there was discussion in our work at the 19th of September: but how it comes about that they return here again has been sufficiently explained among those passed over at the 18th of October Ibid., page 276.. The number of 272 companions, which indeed by far the greatest part of the codices favours, I have thought should be held. But is not Modestus with his 272 companions of the phalanx of St. Januarius? I should not think so; both because the name of Modestus does not come among the companions of Januarius, and because to St. Januarius are assigned not 272 companions but only six. It is probable, however, that Modestus with his retinue suffered at about the same time as St. Januarius; namely under Diocletian in the year 305. For the rest, as the stars seem to vanish before the light of the sun, so St. Modestus with his companions at Naples before the glory of St. Januarius and his companions.