ON THE HOLY ROMAN MARTYRS: PERHAPS SALUTARIUS AND POSSESSUS AND JANUARIUS AND AMPLUS AND CELEDONUS AND JUSTINUS, AND SOME SOLDIERS, MARTYRS,
AT ROME.
From the Hieronymian Copies.
PrefaceSalutarius, Roman martyr, at Rome. (S.)
Possessus, Roman martyr, at Rome. (S.)
Januarius, Roman martyr, at Rome. (S.)
Amplus, Roman martyr, at Rome. (S.)
Celedonus, Roman martyr, at Rome. (S.)
Some soldiers, Roman martyrs, at Rome. (SS.)
Some Roman Martyrs. Just as above we disputed doubtfully about some martyrs of Thrace, so here too we are compelled to dispute about Romans, whom the Hieronymian Copies announce at this day with much variety, agreeing with one another in this one thing, that they all assign some notable handful of Martyrs to Rome. The most ancient Epternach one, in Florentini's Annotations, has as follows: Romæ Salutari, Possessi, Januarii, Ampli, Celedoni. Florentini's codices in the text which he gave have first: Romæ Milites VI. And after the mention of St. Michael there is added: Et alibi Sosi. Januarii. Ambuti. Celedoni. The Corbie one in d'Achery: Romæ Militum sexaginta octo. And lower down: Et alibi, Januarii, Sosii, Ampuni, Celedoni, Justini. Out of all these only two names agree everywhere, namely Januarius and Celedonus. Whether he is the same Martyr who in the Epternach codex is called Salutaris or Salutarius, and in the others by a Greek name of the same meaning Sosius, I should not dare to determine. He may be the same who is named Amplus in the Epternach codex, Ambutus in Florentini's text, Ampunus in the Corbie one. But Ambutus in most codices is assigned to Thrace, and in the Reichenau codex alone is ascribed to Rome along with Placidus. Possessus is found only in the Epternach codex, as Justinus only in the Corbie one. Again it can be doubted whether the names given are of the Soldiers, who are first announced anonymously as six in Florentini's text, and as sixty-eight in the Corbie one. Finally it seems doubtful whether Januarius and Sosius, who are also found in the Augsburg, Labbean, and Gellone ones, in which the others are omitted, are not the Martyrs of Pozzuoli reproduced today, of whom we treated at the nineteenth of September with five others. Out of all this one thing alone seems certain enough, that some Roman Martyrs are announced today, and that they were Soldiers, either all of them or several of them.