1.
Calendar of saints
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The word feast in this context does not mean a large meal, typically a celebratory one, but instead an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, a calendar of saints is called a Menologion, Menologion may also mean a set of icons on which saints are depicted in the order of the dates of their feasts, often made in two panels. As the number of recognized saints increased during Late Antiquity and the first half of the Middle Ages, eventually every day of the year had at least one saint who was commemorated on that date. To deal with this increase, some saints were moved to days in some traditions or completely removed. For example, St. Perpetua and Felicity died on 7 March, when the 1969 reform of the Catholic calendar moved him to 28 January, they were moved back to 7 March. Both days can thus be said to be their feast day, the Roman Catholic calendars of saints in their various forms, which list those saints celebrated in the entire church, contains only a selection of the saints for each of its days. A fuller list is found in the Roman Martyrology, and some of the saints there may be celebrated locally, Saint Martin of Tours is said to be the first or at least one of the first non-martyrs to be venerated as a saint. The title confessor was used for saints, who had confessed their faith in Christ by their lives rather than by their deaths. Martyrs are regarded as dying in the service of the Lord, a broader range of titles was used later, such as, Virgin, Pastor, Bishop, Monk, Priest, Founder, Abbot, Apostle, Doctor of the Church. Pope Pius XII added a common formula for Popes, the 1962 Roman Missal of Pope John XXIII omitted the common of Apostles, assigning a proper Mass to every feast day of an Apostle. The present Roman Missal has common formulas for the Dedication of Churches, the Blessed Virgin Mary, Martyrs, Pastors, Doctors of the Church, Virgins, some Christians continue the tradition of dating by saints days, their works may appear dated as The Feast of Saint Martin. Poets such as John Keats commemorate the importance of The Eve of Saint Agnes, as different Christian jurisdictions parted ways theologically, differing lists of saints began to develop. In the present ordinary form of the Roman Rite, feast days are ranked as solemnities and those who use even earlier forms of the Roman Rite rank feast days as Doubles, Semidoubles, and Simples. See Ranking of liturgical days in the Roman Rite, in the Eastern Orthodox Church the ranking of feasts varies from church to church. In the Russian Orthodox Church they are, Great Feasts, middle, each portion of such feasts may also be called feasts as follows, All-Night Vigils, Polyeleos, Great Doxology, Sextuple. There are also distinctions between Simple feasts and Double, in Double Feasts the order of hymns and readings for each feast are rigidly instructed in Typikon, the liturgy book. In the Church of England, there are Principal Feasts and Principal Holy Days, Festivals, Lesser Festivals, and Commemorations. com
2.
Saint
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A saint, also historically known as a hallow, is a term used for a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness or likeness to God. Depending on the context and denomination, the term also retains its original Christian meaning, as any believer who is in Christ and in whom Christ dwells, whether in Heaven or on Earth. Depending on the religion, saints are recognized either by official ecclesiastical declaration, the English word saint comes from the Latin sanctus. The word translated the Greek ἅγιος, which derives from the verb ἁγιάζω, the word ἅγιος appears 229 times in the Greek New Testament, and its English translation 60 times in the corresponding text of the King James Version of the Bible. In the New Testament, saint did not denote the deceased who had recognized as especially holy or emulable. Many religions also use similar concepts to venerate persons worthy of some honor, the anthropologist Lawrence Babb in an article about Sathya Sai Baba asks the question Who is a saint. These saintly figures, he asserts, are the points of spiritual force-fields. They exert powerful attractive influence on followers but touch the lives of others in transforming ways as well. In the Bible, only one person is called a saint, They envied Moses also in the camp. The apostle Paul declared himself to be less than the least of all saints in Ephesians 3,8, in the Catholic Church, a saint is anyone in Heaven, whether recognized on Earth or not. There are many persons that the Church believes to be in Heaven who have not been formally canonized, sometimes the word saint also denotes living Christians. They remind us that the Church is holy, can never stop being holy and is called to show the holiness of God by living the life of Christ, the Catholic Church teaches that it does not make or create saints, but rather recognizes them. Proofs of heroicity required in the process of beatification will serve to illustrate in detail the general principles exposed above upon proof of their holiness or likeness to God. On 3 January 993, Pope John XV became the first pope to proclaim a person a saint, on the petition of the German ruler, before that time, the popular cults, or venerations, of saints had been local and spontaneous. Pope John XVIII subsequently permitted a cult of five Polish martyrs, walter of Pontoise was the last person in Western Europe to be canonized by an authority other than the Pope, Hugh de Boves, the Archbishop of Rouen, canonized him in 1153. Thenceforth a decree of Pope Alexander III in 1170 reserved the prerogative of canonization to the Pope, one source claims that there are over 10,000 named saints and beatified people from history, the Roman Martyrology and Orthodox sources, but no definitive head count. Alban Butler published Lives of the Saints in 1756, including a total of 1,486 saints, the latest revision of this book, edited by Rev. Herbert Thurston, SJ and British author Donald Attwater, contains the lives of 2,565 saints. Monsignor Robert Sarno, an official of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints of the Holy See, expressed that it is impossible to give an exact number of saints
3.
Veneration
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Veneration, or veneration of saints, is the act of honoring a saint, a person who has been identified as having a high degree of sanctity or holiness. Angels are shown similar veneration in many religions, philologically, to venerate derives from the Latin verb, venerare, meaning to regard with reverence and respect. Veneration of saints is practiced, formally or informally, by adherents of some branches of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam. The practice of veneration is deemed heretical by iconoclastic denominations, Hinduism has a long tradition of veneration of saints, expressed toward various gurus and teachers of sanctity, both living and dead. Branches of Buddhism include formal liturgical worship of saints, with Mahayana Buddhism classifying degrees of sainthood, other sects, such as Wahhabists etc. abhor the practice. In Judaism, there is no classical or formal recognition of saints, in some regions, for example within Judaism in Morocco, there is a long and widespread tradition of saint veneration. Both main branches of Buddhism, Theravada and Mahayana, recognize those who have achieved a degree of enlightenment as an Arhat. Mahayana Buddhism particularly gives emphasis to the power of saints to aid ordinary people on the path to enlightenment and those who have reached enlightenment, and have delayed their own complete enlightenment in order to help others, are called Bodhisattvas. Mahayana Buddhism has formal liturgical practices for venerating saints, along with specific levels of sainthood. Tibetan Buddhists venerate especially holy lamas, such as the Dalai Lama, veneration towards those who were considered holy began in early Christianity, with the martyrs first being given special honor. Official church commemoration of saints in Rome beginning as early as the third century, over time, the honor also began to be given to those Christians who lived lives of holiness and sanctity. Various denominations venerate and determine saints in different ways, with some having a formal canonization or glorification process, in Roman Catholic and Orthodox theology, veneration is a type of honor distinct from the adoration due to God alone. It is the manifestation of submission, and acknowledgement of dependence, appropriately shown towards the excellence of a divine person. It is the worship of the Creator that God alone deserves, veneration, known as dulia in classical theology, is the honor and reverence appropriately due to the excellence of a created person. Excellence exhibited by created beings likewise deserves recognition and honor and we see a general example of veneration in events like the awarding of academic awards for excellence in school, or the awarding of olympic medals for excellence in sports. There is nothing contrary to the adoration of God when we offer the appropriate honor. We must make a further clarification regarding the use of the term “worship” in relation to the categories of adoration and veneration, historically, schools of theology have used the term “worship” as a general term which included both adoration and veneration. They would distinguish between “worship of adoration” and “worship of veneration. ”The word “worship” was not synonymous with adoration, hence Catholic sources will sometimes use the term “worship” not to indicate adoration, but only the worship of veneration given to Mary and the saints
4.
Rhineland
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The Rhineland is the name used for a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine River, chiefly its middle section. In the High Middle Ages, numerous Imperial States along the river emerged from the stem duchy of Lotharingia. The term covered the whole occupied zone west of the Rhine including the bridge-heads on the eastern banks, after the collapse of the French dominated West Bank in the early 19th century, the regions of Lower Rhine and Jülich-Cleves-Berg were annexed to the Kingdom of Prussia. In 1822 the Prussian administration reorganized the territory as the Rhine Province, following the First World War, the western part of Rhineland was occupied by Entente forces, then demilitarized under the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. German forces remilitarized the territory in 1936, as part of a diplomatic test of will, stretching down to the North Palatine Uplands in the south, this area, except for the Saarland, more or less corresponds with the modern use of the term. The southern and eastern parts are mainly hill country, cut by valleys, principally the Middle Rhine up to Bingen and its Ahr, Moselle. The border of the North German plain is marked by the lower Ruhr, in the south, the river cuts the Rhenish Massif. The area encompasses the western part of the Ruhr industrial region, toponyms as well as local family names often trace back to the Frankish heritage. The lands on the shore of the Rhine are strongly characterised by Roman influence. In the core territories, large parts of the population are members of the Catholic Church. On the right bank of the Rhine, between the Main and the Lahn, were the settlements of the Mattiaci, a branch of the Germanic Chatti, while farther to the north were the Usipetes and Tencteri. Julius Caesar conquered the tribes on the left bank, and Augustus established numerous fortified posts on the Rhine. The Frankish conquerors of the Rhenish districts were singularly little affected by the culture of the Roman provincials they subdued, by the 8th century the Frankish dominion was firmly established in western Germania and northern Gaul. On the division of the Carolingian Empire at the Treaty of Verdun the part the province to the east of the fell to East Francia. As the central power of the Holy Roman Emperor weakened, the Rhineland split up into small independent principalities, each with its separate vicissitudes. After the Imperial Reform of 1500/12, the territory was part of the Lower Rhenish–Westphalian, Upper Rhenish, aachen was the place of coronation of the German emperors, and the ecclesiastical principalities of the Rhine played a large role in German history. At the Peace of Basel in 1795, the whole of the bank of the Rhine was taken by France. The population was about 1.6 million in small states
5.
European dragon
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European dragons are legendary creatures in folklore and mythology among the overlapping cultures of Europe. Some depictions show dragons with feathered wings, crests, ear frills, fiery manes, ivory spikes running down its spine, others have no legs or multiple heads. In folktales, dragons blood often contains magical properties, keeping them alive for longer or giving them magical power, for example, in the opera Siegfried, dragons blood allows Siegfried to understand the language of the Forest Bird. The typical dragon protects a cavern or castle filled with gold, an evil dragon is often associated with a great hero who tries to slay it, and a good one is said to give wise advice. Though a winged creature, the dragon is generally to be found in its underground lair, possibly, the dragons of European and Mid-Eastern mythology stem from the cult of snakes found in religions throughout the world. Dragon is derived from the Latin word draco, as in the constellation, Draco, roman dragons evolved from serpentine Greek ones, combined with the dragons of the Near East, in the mix that characterized the hybrid Greek/Eastern Hellenistic culture. From Babylon, the muš-ḫuššu was a representation of a Near Eastern dragon. Johns Book of Revelation—Greek literature, not Roman—describes Satan as a dragon, flaming red, with seven heads. Much of Johns literary inspiration is late Hebrew and Greek, with the jaws facing into the wind, the silken body inflated and rippled, resembling a windsock. Several vague incarnations of evil in the Old Testament were given the translation draco in Jeromes Vulgate, to changes in meaning. Dragons in Greek mythology often guard treasure such as Ladon, a hundred headed dragon which guarded the tree of Herdias until he was slain by Heracles, likewise Python guarded the oracle of Delphi until he was likewise slain by Apollo out of revenge for Python tormenting his mother. The Lerneaen Hydra, a multiple headed serpentine swamp monster is said to be a dragon, being killed by Heracles later, but the matter if hes a true dragon or not is still over controversy. Dragons are usually shown in modern times with a body like a huge lizard and this traces back to the continental dragon, commonly referred to as a fire-breathing dragon. The continental, like many other European dragons, has bat-like wings growing from its back and it has been speculated that accounts of spitting cobras may be the origin of the myths of continental dragons. In Western folklore, dragons are usually portrayed as evil, with the mainly in Asturian and Welsh folklore. This is in contrast to Asian dragons, who are depicted as more benevolent creatures. In the modern period, the European dragon is depicted as a huge fire-breathing, scaly and horned lizard-like creature, with wings. It is sometimes shown with feathered wings, crests, fiery manes, ivory spikes running down its spine, Dragons blood often has magical properties, for example, in the opera Siegfried it let Siegfried understand the language of the Forest Bird
6.
Monastery
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A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone. A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which may be a chapel, church or temple, a monastery complex typically comprises a number of buildings which include a church, dormitory, cloister, refectory, library, balneary and infirmary. These may include a hospice, a school and a range of agricultural and manufacturing such as a barn. In English usage, the monastery is generally used to denote the buildings of a community of monks. In modern usage, convent tends to be applied only to institutions of female monastics, historically, a convent denoted a house of friars, now more commonly called a friary. Various religions may apply these terms in specific ways. The earliest extant use of the term monastērion is by the 1st century AD Jewish philosopher Philo in On The Contemplative Life, in England the word monastery was also applied to the habitation of a bishop and the cathedral clergy who lived apart from the lay community. Most cathedrals were not monasteries, and were served by canons secular, however, some were run by monasteries orders, such as York Minster. Westminster Abbey was for a time a cathedral, and was a Benedictine monastery until the Reformation. They are also to be distinguished from collegiate churches, such as St Georges Chapel, in most of this article, the term monastery is used generically to refer to any of a number of types of religious community. In the Roman Catholic religion and to some extent in certain branches of Buddhism, there is a more specific definition of the term. Buddhist monasteries are generally called vihara, viharas may be occupied by males or females, and in keeping with common English usage, a vihara populated by females may often be called a nunnery or a convent. However, vihara can also refer to a temple, in Tibetan Buddhism, monasteries are often called gompa. In Thailand, Laos and Cambodia, a monastery is called a wat, in Burma, a monastery is called a kyaung. A Christian monastery may be an abbey, or a priory and it may be a community of men or of women. A charterhouse is any monastery belonging to the Carthusian order, in Eastern Christianity, a very small monastic community can be called a skete, and a very large or important monastery can be given the dignity of a lavra. The great communal life of a Christian monastery is called cenobitic, as opposed to the life of an anchorite. In Hinduism monasteries are called matha, mandir, koil, or most commonly an ashram, jains use the Buddhist term vihara
7.
Relic
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In religion, a relic usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangible memorial. Relics are an important aspect of forms of Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Shamanism. Relic derives from the Latin reliquiae, meaning remains, and a form of the Latin verb relinquere, to leave behind, a reliquary is a shrine that houses one or more religious relics. In ancient Greece, a city or sanctuary might claim to possess, without necessarily displaying, the sanctuary of the Leucippides at Sparta claimed to display the egg of Leda. The bones were not regarded as holding a power derived from the hero, with some exceptions. Miracles and healing were not regularly attributed to them, rather, their presence was meant to serve a tutelary function, the bones of Orestes and Theseus were supposed to have been stolen or removed from their original resting place and reburied. Plutarch says that the Athenians were likewise instructed by the oracle to locate, the body of the legendary Eurystheus was also supposed to protect Athens from enemy attack, and in Thebes, that of the prophet Amphiaraus, whose cult was oracular and healing. As with the relics of Theseus, the bones are sometimes described in sources as gigantic. On the basis of their size, it has been conjectured that such bones were those of prehistoric creatures. The head of the poet-prophet Orpheus was supposed to have transported to Lesbos. The 2nd-century geographer Pausanias reported that the bones of Orpheus were kept in a stone vase displayed on a pillar near Dion, his place of death and these too were regarded as having oracular power, which might be accessed through dreaming in a ritual of incubation. The accidental exposure of the bones brought a disaster upon the town of Libretha, according to the Chronicon Paschale, the bones of the Persian Zoroaster were venerated, but the tradition of Zoroastrianism and its scriptures offer no support of this. In Hinduism, relics are less common than in other religions since the remains of most saints are cremated. The veneration of corporal relics may have originated with the movement or the appearance of Buddhism. In Buddhism, relics of the Buddha and various sages are venerated, after the Buddhas death, his remains were divided into eight portions. Afterward, these relics were enshrined in stupas wherever Buddhism was spread, some relics believed to be original remains of the body of the Buddha still survive, including the much-revered Sacred Relic of the tooth of the Buddha in Sri Lanka. A stupa is a building created specifically for the relics, many Buddhist temples have stupas and historically, the placement of relics in a stupa often became the initial structure around which the whole temple would be based. Today, many also hold the ashes or ringsel of prominent/respected Buddhists who were cremated
8.
Martyr
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A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, refusing to renounce, or refusing to advocate a belief or cause as demanded by an external party. This refusal to comply with the presented demands results in the punishment or execution of the martyr by the oppressor, originally applied only to those who suffered for their religious beliefs, the term is now often used in connection with people imprisoned or killed for espousing a political cause. Most martyrs are considered holy or are respected by their followers, becoming symbols of exceptional leadership, Martyrs play significant roles in religions. Similarly, martyrs have had effects in secular life, including specific figures such as Socrates, as well as in politics. In its original meaning, the martyr, meaning witness, was used in the secular sphere as well as in the New Testament of the Bible. The term, in this sense, entered the English language as a loanword. The death of a martyr or the value attributed to it is called martyrdom, the early Christians who first began to use the term martyr in its new sense saw Jesus as the first and greatest martyr, on account of his crucifixion. The early Christians appear to have seen Jesus as the archetypal martyr, the word martyr is used in English to describe a wide variety of people. However, the table presents a general outline of common features present in stereotypical martyrdoms. Examples of this are found in the Mahabharata, during the great war which commenced, even Arjuna was brought down with doubts, e. g. attachment, sorrow, fear. This is where Krishna instructs Arjuna how to carry out his duty as a righteous warrior, Martyrdom in Judaism is one of the main examples of Kiddush Hashem, meaning sanctification of Gods name through public dedication to Jewish practice. Religious martyrdom is considered one of the significant contributions of Hellenistic Judaism to Western Civilization. Frend, Judaism was itself a religion of martyrdom and it was this Jewish psychology of martyrdom that inspired Christian martyrdom. In Christianity, a martyr, in accordance with the meaning of the original Greek martys in the New Testament, is one who brings a testimony, in particular, the testimony is that of the Christian Gospel, or more generally, the Word of God. A Christian witness is a biblical witness whether or not death follows, however, over time many Christian testimonies were rejected, and the witnesses put to death, and the word martyr developed its present sense. Where death ensues, the follow the example of Jesus in offering up their lives for truth. The concept of Jesus as a martyr has recently received greater attention, analyses of the Gospel passion narratives have led many scholars to conclude that they are martyrdom accounts in terms of genre and style. Several scholars have concluded that Paul the Apostle understood Jesus death as a martyrdom
9.
Saint Christopher
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Saint Christopher is venerated by several Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman Emperor Decius or alternatively under the Roman Emperor Maximinus II Dacian. There appears to be due to the similarity in names Decius. He may be the figure as Saint Menas. Therefore, he is the saint of travelers, and small images of him are often worn around the neck, on a bracelet, carried in a pocket. There are several associated with the life and death of Saint Christopher which first appeared in Greece and had spread to France by the 9th century. The 11th-century bishop and poet, Walter of Speyer, gave one version, according to the legendary account of his life Christopher was initially called Reprobus. He was a Canaanite,5 cubits tall and with a fearsome face, while serving the king of Canaan, he took it into his head to go and serve the greatest king there was. He went to the king who was reputed to be the greatest, on thus learning that the king feared the devil, he departed to look for the devil. He came across a band of marauders, one of whom declared himself to be the devil, but when he saw his new master avoid a wayside cross and found out that the devil feared Christ, he left him and enquired from people where to find Christ. He met a hermit who instructed him in the Christian faith, Christopher asked him how he could serve Christ. When the hermit suggested fasting and prayer, Christopher replied that he was unable to perform that service, the hermit then suggested that because of his size and strength Christopher could serve Christ by assisting people to cross a dangerous river, where they were perishing in the attempt. The hermit promised that service would be pleasing to Christ. After Christopher had performed this service for time, a little child asked him to take him across the river. During the crossing, the river became swollen and the child seemed as heavy as lead, so much that Christopher could scarcely carry him, when he finally reached the other side, he said to the child, You have put me in the greatest danger. I do not think the world could have been as heavy on my shoulders as you were. The child replied, You had on your shoulders not only the whole world, I am Christ your king, whom you are serving by this work. Christopher later visited Lycia and there comforted the Christians who were being martyred, brought before the local king, he refused to sacrifice to the pagan gods. The king tried to win him by riches and by sending two beautiful women to tempt him, Christopher converted the women to Christianity, as he had already converted thousands in the city
10.
Saint Giles
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Saint Giles, also known as Giles the Hermit, was a Greek, Christian, hermit saint from Athens, whose legend is centered in Provence and Septimania. Giles founded the abbey in Saint-Gilles-du-Gard whose tomb became a place of pilgrimage and it was a stop on the road that led from Arles to Santiago de Compostela, the pilgrim Way of St. James. Giles is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, Giles first lived in retreats near the mouth of the Rhône and by the River Gard in Septimania, todays southern France. The story that he was the son of King Theodore and Queen Pelagia of Athens is probably an embellishment of his early hagiographers, the two main incidents in his life were often depicted in art. This retreat was discovered by the kings hunters, who had pursued the hind to its place of refuge. An arrow shot at the wounded the saint instead, who afterwards became a patron of cripples. The king, who by legend was Wamba, an anachronistic Visigoth and he held the hermit in high esteem for his humility rejected all honors save some disciples. Wamba built him a monastery in his valley, Saint-Gilles-du-Gard, which Giles placed under the Benedictine rule and he died there in the early part of the 8th century, with the highest repute for sanctity and miracles. Several Latin and French texts, including the Legenda Aurea refer to hidden sin of Charlemagne. This legend, however, would be contradicted by generally accepted dates for the life of Charlemagne. A later text, the Liber miraculorum sancti Aegidii served to reinforce the flow of pilgrims to the abbey, around the abbey allegedly founded by him in the 7th century, the town of St-Gilles-du-Gard sprang up. The abbey remained the center of his cult, which was strong in Languedoc. In 1562, the relics of the saint were transferred to Toulouse to save them from the Huguenots. With the restoration of a part of the relics to the abbey of Saint-Gilles-du-Gard in 1862, and the publicized rediscovery of his former tomb there in 1865. In medieval art, he is depicted with his symbol, the hind and his emblem is also an arrow. Giles is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, and the only non-martyr and his feast day is September 1. Besides Saint-Gilles-du-Gard, nineteen other cities bear his name, cities that possess relics of St. Giles is also the patron saint of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, where St. Giles Cathedral is a prominent landmark. He is also the saint of, Graz, Nuremberg, Osnabrück, Sankt Gilgen, Brunswick, Wollaberg, Saint-Gilles
11.
Denis
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According to Christian tradition, Saint Denis is a Christian martyr and saint. In the third century, he was Bishop of Paris and he was martyred, with his companions Rusticus and Eleutherius, in connection with the Decian persecution of Christians, shortly after 250 AD. Denis is said to have picked his head up after being decapitated, walked ten kilometres, while preaching a sermon of repentance the entire way and he is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church as patron of Paris, France, and as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. The medieval and modern French name Denis derives from the ancient name Dionysius, gregory of Tours states that Denis was bishop of the Parisii and was martyred by being beheaded by a sword. The earliest document giving an account of his life and martyrdom, dionysii Rustici et Eleutherii dates from c. 600, is attributed to the poet Venantius Fortunatus, and is legendary. There Denis was appointed first Bishop of Paris, the persecutions under Emperor Decius had all but dissolved the small Christian community at Lutetia. Denis and his companions were so effective in converting people that the non-Christian priests became alarmed over their loss of followers, at their instigation, Roman Governor arrested the missionaries. After a long imprisonment, Denis and two of his clergy were executed by beheading on the highest hill in Paris, which was likely to have been a holy place. Of the many accounts of martyrdom, this is noted in detail in the Golden Legend. The site where he stopped preaching and actually died was marked by a shrine that developed into the Saint Denis Basilica. Another account has his corpse being thrown into the Seine, veneration of Saint Denis began soon after his death. Her Vita Sanctae Genovefae attests the presence of a shrine near the present basilica by the close of the fifth century, dagobert I, great-grandson of Chlothar I had the first Royal Basilica built. The Merovingian tradition was originally to bury kings as Clovis and Chlothildis in Paris, yet Chilperic I had his own mother Dowager Queen Aregunda at Saint Denis. His grandson was clearly following a family tradition, aregundas tomb was discovered in 1959 and her burial items can be seen at Saint-Germain-en-Laye museum. A successor church was erected by Fulrad, who became abbot in 749/50 and was linked with the accession of the Carolingians to the Merovingian throne. In time, the Saint Denis, often combined as Montjoie, Saint Denis. became the war-cry of the French armies. The oriflamme, which became the standard of France, was the banner consecrated upon his tomb and his veneration spread beyond France when, in 754, Pope Stephen II, who was French, brought veneration of Saint Denis to Rome
12.
Saint Blaise
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Saint Blaise, was a physician, and bishop of Sebastea in historical Armenia. According to the Acta Sanctorum, he was martyred by being beaten, attacked with iron combs and he is the patron saint of wool combers. In the Latin Church his feast falls on 3 February, in the Eastern Churches on 11 February, marco Polo reported the place where Meeser Saint Blaise obtained the glorious crown of martyrdom, Sebastea, the shrine near the citadel mount was mentioned by William of Rubruck in 1253. However, it appears to no longer exist, from being a healer of bodily ailments, Saint Blaise became a physician of souls, then retired for a time to a cavern where he remained in prayer. As bishop of Sebastea, Blaise instructed his people as much by his example as by his words, from all parts, the people came flocking to him for the cure of bodily and spiritual ills. He is said to have healed animals and to have been assisted by animals, in 316, the governor of Cappadocia and Lesser Armenia Agricolaus began a persecution by order of the Emperor Licinius and Saint Blaise was seized. After his interrogation and a severe scourging, he was hurried off to prison, the legendary Acts of St. Blaise were written 400 years later. The Acts of St. Blaise, written in Greek, are medieval, when the bishop of the city died, he was chosen to succeed him, with the acclamation of all the people. His holiness was manifest through many miracles, from all around, people came to him to find cures for their spirit and their body, even wild animals came in herds to receive his blessing. In 316, Agricola, the governor of Cappadocia and of Lesser Armenia, having arrived in Sebastia at the order of the emperor Licinius to kill the Christians, arrested the bishop. As he was being led to jail, a mother set her only son, choking to death of a fish-bone, at his feet, and the child was cured straight away. Regardless, the governor, unable to make Blaise renounce his faith, beat him with a stick, ripped his flesh with iron combs, and beheaded him. According to the Acts, while Blaise was being taken into custody, touched at her grief, he offered up his prayers, and the child was cured. Consequently, Saint Blaise is invoked for protection against injuries and illnesses of the throat, in many places on the day of his feast the blessing of St. At the same time the following blessing is given, May Almighty God at the intercession of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, preserve you from infections of the throat, then the priest makes the sign of the cross over the faithful. As the governors hunters led Blaise back to Sebastea, on the way, at the command of Blaise, the wolf restored the pig to its owner, alive and unhurt. When he had reached the capital and was in prison awaiting execution, in the West there was no cult honoring St. Blaise prior to the eighth century. One of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, Blaise became one of the most popular saints of the Middle Ages and his cult became widespread in Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries and his legend is recounted in the 14th-century Legenda Aurea
13.
Erasmus of Formia
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Saint Erasmus of Formia, also known as Saint Elmo, was a Christian saint and martyr, according to Christian tradition, who died c. He is venerated as the saint of sailors and abdominal pain. St Erasmus or Elmo is also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, the Acts of Saint Elmo were partly compiled from legends that confuse him with a Syrian bishop Erasmus of Antioch. There appears to be no basis for his passio. Erasmus was Bishop of Formium, Italy, during the persecution against Christians under the emperors Diocletian and Maximian Hercules, he left his diocese and went to Mount Libanus, where he hid for seven years. However, an angel is said to have appeared to him, on the way, he encountered some soldiers who questioned him. Erasmus admitted that he was a Christian and they brought him to trial at Antioch before the emperor Diocletian, after suffering terrible tortures, he was bound with chains and thrown into prison, but an angel appeared and helped him escape. He passed through Lycia, where he raised up the son of an illustrious citizen and this resulted in a number of baptisms, which drew the attention of the Western Roman Emperor Maximian who, according to Voragine, was much worse than was Diocletian. Maximian ordered his arrest and Erasmus continued to confess his faith and they forced him to go to a temple of the idol, but along the saint’s route all the idols fell and were destroyed, and from the temple there came fire which fell upon many of the pagans. That made the emperor so angry he had Erasmus enclosed in a full of protruding spikes. When he was recaptured, he was brought before the emperor and beaten and whipped, then coated with pitch and set alight, thrown into prison with the intention of letting him die of starvation, St Erasmus managed to escape. He was recaptured and tortured some more in the Roman province of Illyricum, finally, according to this version of his death, his stomach was slit open and his intestines wound around a windlass. This version may have developed from interpreting an icon that showed him with a windlass, Saint Erasmus may have become the patron of sailors because he is said to have continued preaching even after a thunderbolt struck the ground beside him. This prompted sailors, who were in danger from sudden storms and lightning, the electrical discharges at the mastheads of ships were read as a sign of his protection and came to be called Saint Elmos Fire. Pope St Gregory the Great recorded in the 6th century that the relics of Erasmus were preserved in the cathedral of Formia, when the old Formiae was razed by the Saracens in 842, the cult of Erasmus was moved to Gaeta. He is currently the patron of Gaeta, Santeramo in Colle, there is an altar to St Erasmus in the north transept of St Peters Basilica. A copy of Nicolas Poussins Martyrdom of St Erasmus serves as the altarpiece, besides his patronage of mariners, Erasmus is invoked against colic in children, abdominal pain, intestinal ailments and diseases, cramps and the pain of women in labour, as well as cattle pests. The Golden Legend – e-text adapted from Wynken de Wordes edition of 1527, Saint of the Day, June 2, Erasmus of Formia at SaintPatrickDC. org
14.
Saint Barbara
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Saint Barbara, Feast Day December 4, known in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the Great Martyr Barbara, was an early Christian Greek saint and martyr. Accounts place her in the 3rd century in the Greek city Nicomedia, present-day Turkey or in Heliopolis of Phoenicia, present-day Baalbek, there is no reference to her in the authentic early Christian writings nor in the original recension of Saint Jeromes martyrology. Her name can be traced to the 7th century, and veneration of her was common, especially in the East, from the 9th century. Because of doubts about the historicity of her legend, she was removed from the General Roman Calendar in the 1969 revision, Saint Barbara is often portrayed with miniature chains and a tower. Many of the thirteen miracles in a 15th-century French version of her turn on the security she offered that her devotees would not die without making confession. Having secretly become a Christian, she rejected an offer of marriage that she received through him, dioscorus, in pursuit of his daughter, was rebuffed by the first shepherd, but the second betrayed her and was turned to stone and his flock changed to locusts. Dragged before the prefect of the province, Martinianus, who had her cruelly tortured, during the night, the dark prison was bathed in light and new miracles occurred. Every morning her wounds were healed, torches that were to be used to burn her went out as soon as they came near her. Finally she was condemned to death by beheading and her father himself carried out the death-sentence. However, as punishment for this, he was struck by lightning on the way home, Barbara was buried by a Christian, Valentinus, and her tomb became the site of miracles. Williams of the Anglican Community of the Resurrection, the name of Saint Barbara was known in Rome in the 7th century, her cult can be traced to the 9th century, at first in the East. Since there is no mention of her in the earlier martyrologies and her legend is included in Vincent of Beauvais Speculum historiale and in later versions of the Golden Legend. Various versions, which include two surviving plays, differ on the location of her martyrdom, which is variously given as Tuscany, Rome, Antioch, Baalbek. Saint Barbara is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and her association with the lightning that killed her father has caused her to be invoked against lightning and fire, by association with explosions, she is also the patron of artillery and mining. Her feast on December 4 was included in the Tridentine Calendar, in 1729, that date was assigned to the celebration of Saint Peter Chrysologus, reducing that of Saint Barbara to a commemoration in his Mass. In 1969, because the accounts of her life and martyrdom were judged to be entirely fabulous, lacking clarity even about the place of her martyrdom, but she is still mentioned in the Roman Martyrology, which, in addition, lists another ten martyr saints named Barbara. A small part of St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Bloomingdale and her feast day for Catholics, Eastern Orthodox and Anglicans is December 4. Saint Barbara became the saint of artillerymen
15.
Vitus
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Saint Vitus /vaɪtəs/, according to Christian legend, was a Christian saint from Sicily. He died as a martyr during the persecution of Christians by co-ruling Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian in 303, Vitus is counted as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers of medieval Roman Catholicism. Saint Vitus Day is celebrated on 15 June, in places where the Julian Calendar is used, this date coincides, in the 20th and 21st centuries, with 28 June on the Gregorian Calendar. In the late Middle Ages, people in Germany and countries such as Latvia celebrated the feast of Vitus by dancing before his statue and this dancing became popular and the name Saint Vitus Dance was given to the neurological disorder Sydenhams chorea. It also led to Vitus being considered the saint of dancers. Vitus is considered the saint of actors, comedians, dancers. He is also said to protect against lightning strikes, animal attacks, various places in Austria and Bavaria are named Sankt Veit in his honour. According to the legend, Vitus, Modestus and Crescentia were martyrs under Diocletian, the earliest testimony for their veneration is offered by the Martyrologium Hieronymianum. The fact that the note is in the three most important manuscripts indicates that it was also in the exemplar of these, which appeared in the fifth century. It is easily possible that it is the same martyr Vitus in both cases, according to J. P. Kirsch, the testimony to the public veneration of the three saints in the fifth century proves that they are historical martyrs. There are, nevertheless, no accounts of them, nor of the time or the details of their martyrdom. According to this legend, which has no apparent historical value and he resisted his fathers attempts, which included various forms of torture, to make him turn away from his faith. He fled with his tutor Modestus and Modestuss wife Crescentia, who was Vituss nanny and he was taken from there to Rome to drive out a demon which had taken possession of a son of the Emperor Diocletian. This he did, and yet, because he remained steadfast in the Christian faith, by a miracle an angel brought back the three to Lucania, where they died from the tortures they had endured. Three days later Vitus appeared to a distinguished matron named Florentia, the veneration of the martyrs spread rapidly in Southern Italy and Sicily, as is shown by the note in the Martyrologium Hieronymianum. Pope Gregory the Great mentions a monastery dedicated to Vitus in Sicily, the veneration of St. Vitus, the chief saint of the group, also appeared very early at Rome. Pope Gelasius I mentions a shrine dedicated to him, and at Rome in the century the chapel of a deaconry was dedicated to him. In 756 AD, it is said that the relics of St. Vitus were brought to the monastery of St-Denis by Abbot Fulrad and they were later presented to Abbot Warin of Corvey in Germany, who solemnly transferred some of them to this abbey in 836
16.
Saint Pantaleon
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Though there is evidence to suggest that a martyr named Pantaleon existed, some consider the stories of his life and death to be purely legendary. St. Alphonsus Liguori wrote regarding this incident, He studied medicine with such success, envious colleagues denounced him to the emperor during the Diocletian persecution. The emperor wished to save him and sought to persuade him to apostasy, Pantaleon, however, openly confessed his faith, and as proof that Christ is the true God, he healed a paralytic. Notwithstanding this, he was condemned to death by the emperor, according to the later hagiography, Pantaleons flesh was first burned with torches, whereupon Christ appeared to all in the form of Hermolaus to strengthen and heal Pantaleon. Then a bath of molten lead was prepared, when the apparition of Christ stepped into the cauldron with him, the fire went out, Pantaleon was now thrown into the sea, loaded with a great stone, which floated. He was thrown to beasts, but these fawned upon him. He was bound on the wheel, but the ropes snapped, an attempt was made to behead him, but the sword bent, and the executioners were converted to Christianity. Pantaleon implored Heaven to forgive them, for which reason he received the name of Panteleimon. It was not until he desired it that it was possible to behead him, upon which there issued forth blood. The vitae containing these miraculous features are all late in date, the Eastern tradition concerning Pantaleon follows more or less the medieval Western hagiography, but lacks any mention of a visible apparition of Christ. The saint is depicted as a beardless young man with a full head of curly hair. Pantaleons relics, venerated at Nicomedia, were transferred to Constantinople, armenians believe that the Gandzasar Monastery in Nagorno Karabakh contains relics of St. Pantaleon, who was venerated in eastern provinces of Armenia. At the Basilica of the Vierzehnheiligen near Staffelstein in Franconia, St. Pantaleon is venerated with his hands nailed to his head, relics of the saint are to be found at Saint Denis at Paris, his head is venerated at Lyon. A Romanesque church was dedicated to him in Cologne in the 9th century at latest, in France, he was depicted in a window in Chartres Cathedral. In southern France there are six communes under the name of Saint-Pantaléon. Though there are individual churches consecrated to him elsewhere, there are no communes named for him in the north or northwest of France, a phial containing some of his blood was long preserved at Ravello. On the feast day of the saint, the blood was said to become fluid, paolo Veroneses painting of Pantaleon can be found in the church of San Pantalon in Venice, it shows the saint healing a child. Another painting of Pantaleon by Fumiani is also in the same church and he was depicted in an 8th-century fresco in Santa Maria Antiqua in Rome, and in a 10th-century cycle of pictures in the crypt of San Crisogono in Rome
17.
Cyriacus
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Cyriacus, sometimes Anglicized as Cyriac, according to Christian tradition, is a Christian martyr who was killed in the persecution of Diocletian. He is one of twenty-seven saints, most of them martyrs, however, legend has it that Cyriacus was a Roman nobleman who converted to Christianity as an adult and, renouncing his material wealth, gave it away to the poor. He spent the rest of his life ministering to the slaves who worked in the Baths of Diocletian. Under the reign of Western Roman Emperor Maximian, co-emperor with Diocletian, Cyriacus was tortured and put to death, beheaded in 303 on the Via Salaria, Saint Cyriacus is credited with exorcizing demons from two girls. The first was Artemisia, the daughter of Emperor Diocletian, which resulted in both Artemisia and her mother Saint Serena converting to Christianity, the second was Jobias, the daughter of Shapur II of Persia, which led to the conversion of the Kings entire household. The Tridentine Calendar included the feast day of Cyriacus, Largus and Smaragdus on 8 August as a Semidouble, in 1955 this rank was lowered to that of Simple. Saint Cyriacus is venerated as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and it is claimed his relics were moved to Santa Maria in Via Lata in Rome, and the abbey of St Cyriaque in Altorf in Alsace. The Church of Saint Cyriacus in the Baths of Diocletian, was dedicated to this martyr, the tituli were commonly named after their patron, often a lay patron in the early centuries, Cyriac in Greek signifies simply patron. The titulus was suppressed in 1477 by Pope Sixtus IV in favor of Saints Ciro, in 1493, Pope Alexander VI restored the name of S. Ciriaco. The title was suppressed in 1587 by Pope Sixtus V. St Cyriacus is the saint of the Italian city of Cirié. There were monasteries dedicated to St Cyriacus in the now destroyed Arab village of Majdal Yaba in Israel, the residents of both these villages venerated him during the Byzantine era. On St Cyriacus feast day,8 August 1899, a category four hurricane made landfall on the island of Puerto Rico and was named after him and it was known as the Hurricane San Ciriaco
18.
Saint Eustace
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Saint Eustace, also known as Eustachius or Eustathius in Latin, St. Esthak in India, or Sh. Staka in Albania, is revered as a Christian martyr and soldier saint, Legend places him in the 2nd century AD. A martyr of that name is venerated as a saint in the Anglican Church and he is commemorated by the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church on September 20. According to legend, prior to his conversion to Christianity Eustace was a Roman general named Placidus, while hunting a stag in Tivoli near Rome, Placidus saw a vision of a crucifix lodged between the stags antlers. He was immediately converted, had himself and his family baptized, like Job, Eustace lamented but did not lose his faith. He was then restored to his former prestige and reunited with his family. However, the Catholic Church rejects this story as completely false, the opening part of this legend, up to Eustaces martyrdom, is a variant of a popular tale in chivalric romance, the Man Tried By Fate. Except for an exemplum in Gesta Romanorum, all such tales are highly developed romances, a distant Indian origin for elements in the Eustace legend has been proposed. The veneration of Eustace originated in the Byzantine church, in the West, an early-medieval church dedicated to him that existed in Rome is mentioned in a letter of Pope Gregory II. An early depiction of Eustace, the earliest one noted in the Duchy of Burgundy, is carved on a Romanesque capital at Vézelay Abbey, the story of Eustace was popularized in Jacobus de Voragines Golden Legend. As with many saints, there is no evidence for Eustaces existence. Elements of his story have been re-attributed to other saints, notably the Belgian Saint Hubert, Saint Eustaces feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is September 20, as is indicated in the Roman Martyrology. However, his feast is observed by Roman Catholics who follow the pre-1970 Roman Calendar. Eustace became known as a saint of hunters and firefighters. He is one of the saints of Madrid, Spain. The island of Sint Eustatius in the Caribbean Netherlands is named after him, the dAfflitto, one of the oldest princely families in Italy, claim to be direct descendants of Saint Eustace. The novels The Herb of Grace by British author Elizabeth Goudge and it has also inspired the film Imagination. The saints cross-and-stag symbol is featured on bottles of Jägermeister, a German alcoholic digestif and this is related to his status as patron of hunters, a Jägermeister was a senior foresters and gamekeeper in the German civil service until 1934, prior to the drinks introduction in 1935
19.
Saint George
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Saint George, according to legend, was a Roman soldier of Syrian origin and officer in the Guard of Roman emperor Diocletian, who ordered his death for failing to recant his Christian faith. As a Christian martyr, he became one of the most venerated saints in Christianity. In hagiography, as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and one of the most prominent military saints, he is immortalised in the myth of Saint George and his memorial, Saint Georges Day, is traditionally celebrated on April 23. Numerous countries, cities, professions and organisations claim Saint George as their patron, accounts differ regarding whether George was born in Cappadocia or Syria Palaestina, but agree that he was raised at least partly in Lydda. There is little information on the life of Saint George. Two stories tell of his possible origins, one says that he was born in the region of Cappadocia, which is now located in central Turkey. Georges parents were both Christian, and they brought him up to be a Christian and his father died when he was fourteen, and his mother took George back to her homeland of Palestine. At seventeen, he joined the Roman army, a second story says that Georges father came from Cappadocia. His mother was from Lydda, in Palestine, and George was born in Lydda, both of his parents were from noble Syrian families and gave him the Greek name of Georgios. Georges father had been an officer in the Roman army, so George joined the Roman army as soon as he could, an earlier work by Eusebius, Church history, written in the 4th century, contributed to the legend but did not name George or provide significant detail. A critical edition of a Syriac Acta of Saint George, accompanied by an annotated English translation, was published by E. W. Brooks in 1925. Pope Gelasius I stated that George was among those whose names are justly reverenced among men. The traditional legends have offered a narration of Georges encounter with a dragon. The modern legend that follows below is synthesised from early and late hagiographical sources, chief among the legendary sources about the saint is the Golden Legend, which remains the most familiar version in English owing to William Caxtons 15th-century translation. At the age of 14, George lost his father, a few years later, George then decided to go to Nicomedia and present himself to Diocletian to apply for a career as a soldier. Diocletian welcomed him with arms, as he had known his father. By his late twenties, George was promoted to the rank of military tribune, however, George objected, and with the courage of his faith, approached the Emperor and ruler. Diocletian was upset, not wanting to lose his best tribune, but George loudly renounced the Emperors edict, and in front of his fellow soldiers and tribunes he claimed himself to be a Christian
20.
Margaret the Virgin
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Her historical existence has been questioned by Rome. She was declared apocryphal by Pope Gelasius I in 494, and she was reputed to have promised very powerful indulgences to those who wrote or read her life, or invoked her intercessions, these no doubt helped the spread of her cultus. According to the version of the story in Golden Legend, she was a native of Antioch and her mother having died soon after her birth, Margaret was nursed by a Christian woman five or six leagues from Antioch. Having embraced Christianity and consecrated her virginity to God, Margaret was disowned by her father, adopted by her nurse, olybrius, Governor of the Roman Diocese of the East, asked to marry her, but with the demand that she renounce Christianity. Upon her refusal, she was tortured, during which various miraculous incidents occurred. One of these involved being swallowed by Satan in the shape of a dragon, the Golden Legend describes this last incident as apocryphal and not to be taken seriously. She was put to death in AD304, as Saint Marina, she is associated with the sea, which may in turn point to an older goddess tradition, reflecting the pagan divinity, Aphrodite. The Eastern Orthodox Church knows Margaret as Saint Marina, and celebrates her feast day on July 17 and she has been identified with Saint Pelagia, Marina being the Latin equivalent of the Greek Pelagia who—according to her hagiography by James, the deacon of Heliopolis—had been known as Margarita. We possess no historical documents on Saint Margaret as distinct from Saint Pelagia, the Greek Marina came from Antioch in Pisidia, but this distinction was lost in the West. Some consider her a saint of pregnancy. In art, she is usually pictured escaping from, or standing above and she is recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, being listed as such in the Roman Martyrology for July 20. Margaret is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, and is one of the saints who spoke to Joan of Arc, Saint Marina the Monk and Saint Pelagia, both of whom are sometimes conflated or confused with Margaret Acta Sanctorum, July, v. 24—45 Bibliotheca hagiographica. 5303—53r3 Frances Arnold-Forster, Studies in Church Dedications, i and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. article name needed
21.
Pope Nicholas V
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Pope Nicholas V, born Tommaso Parentucelli, was Pope from 6 March 1447 until his death. Pope Eugene made him a cardinal in 1446 after successful trips to Italy and Germany, and he took his name Nicholas in memory of his obligations to Niccolò Albergati. The Pontificate of Nicholas saw the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks, by the Concordat of Vienna he secured the recognition of papal rights over bishoprics and benefices. He also brought about the submission of the last of the antipopes, Felix V, a key figure in the Roman Renaissance, Nicholas sought to make Rome the home of literature and art. He strengthened fortifications, restored aqueducts, and rebuilt many churches, the glories of the Leonine City, the Vatican, and the Basilica of St. Peter must be considered part of his legacy. His mother, Andreola Bosi of Fivizzano, married Bartolomeo Parentucelli, a physician who practiced medicine in Sarzana, the Lunigiana region had long been fought over by competing Tuscan, Ligurian and Milanese forces. His father died while he was young, Parentucelli later became a tutor, in Florence, to the families of the Strozzi and Albizzi, where he met the leading humanist scholars. He studied at Bologna and Florence, gaining a degree in theology in 1422 and he was able to collect books, for which he had an intellectuals passion, wherever he went. Some of them survive with his marginal annotations and he attended the Council of Florence and in 1444, when his patron died, he was appointed Bishop of Bologna in his place. Civic disorders at Bologna were prolonged, so Pope Eugene IV soon named him as one of the legates sent to Frankfurt. He was to assist in negotiating an understanding between the Papal States and the Holy Roman Empire, regarding undercutting or at least containing the reforming decrees of the Council of Basel. His successful diplomacy gained him the reward, on his return to Rome, at the papal conclave of 1447 he was elected Pope in succession to Eugene IV on 6 March. He took the name Nicholas in honour of his early benefactor, the eight scant years of his pontificate were important in the political, scientific, and literary history of the world. In March 1452 he crowned Frederick III as Holy Roman Emperor in St. Peters, within the city of Rome, Nicholas introduced the fresh spirit of the Renaissance. His plans were of embellishing the city with new monuments worthy of the capital of the Christian world and his first care was practical, to reinforce the citys fortifications, cleaning and even paving some main streets and restoring the water supply. The end of ancient Rome is sometimes dated from the destruction of its magnificent array of aqueducts by 6th-century invaders, in the Middle Ages Romans depended for water on wells and cisterns, and the poor dipped their water from the yellow Tiber. The Aqua Virgo aqueduct, originally constructed by Agrippa, was restored by Nicholas and emptied into a basin that Leon Battista Alberti designed. But the works on which Nicholas especially set his heart were the rebuilding of the Vatican, the Borgo district, and St Peters Basilica, under the generous patronage of Nicholas, humanism made rapid strides as well
22.
Indulgence
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In the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, an indulgence is a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for sins. It may reduce the temporal punishment after death, in the state or process of purification called Purgatory and this temporal punishment would not be considered time, as Purgatory, like Heaven and Hell, is said to exist outside of time. The recipient of an indulgence must perform an action to receive it and this is most often the saying of a specified prayer, but may also include the visiting of a particular place, or the performance of specific good works. They draw on the Treasury of Merit accumulated by Christs superabundantly meritorious sacrifice on the cross and they are granted for specific good works and prayers in proportion to the devotion with which those good works are performed or prayers recited. By the late Middle Ages, the abuse of indulgences, mainly through commercialization, had become a problem which the Church recognized but was unable to restrain effectively. Indulgences were from the beginning of the Protestant Reformation a target of attacks by Martin Luther, eventually the Catholic Counter-Reformation curbed the excesses, but indulgences continue to play a role in modern Catholic religious life. Reforms in the 20th century largely abolished the quantification of indulgences and these days or years were meant to represent the equivalent of time spent in penance, although it was widely taken to mean time spent in Purgatory. The reforms also reduced the number of indulgences granted for visiting particular churches. When a person sins, he acquires certain liabilities, the liability of guilt, a mortal sin is equivalent to refusing friendship with God and communion with the only source of eternal life. The loss of life with God, and the eternal death of hell that is the effect of this rejection, is called the eternal punishment of sin. The Sacrament of Penance removes the guilt and the liability of eternal punishment related to mortal sin, though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow, though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. The forgiveness of sin and restoration of communion with God entail the remission of the punishment of sin. The process of sanctification and interior renewal requires not only forgiveness from the guilt of sin and this purification process gives rise to temporal punishment, because, not involving a total rejection of God, it is not eternal and can be expiated. While patiently bearing sufferings and trials of all kinds and, when the day comes, serenely facing death, the Christian must strive to accept this temporal punishment of sin as a grace. He should strive by works of mercy and charity, as well as by prayer, the temporal punishment that follows sin is thus undergone either during life on earth or in purgatory. Indulgences are a help towards achieving this purification, an indulgence does not forgive the guilt of sin, nor does it provide release from the eternal punishment associated with unforgiven mortal sins. Similarly, an indulgence is not a permit to commit sin, ordinarily, forgiveness of mortal sins is obtained through Confession. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, The treasury of the Church is the value, which can never be exhausted
23.
Pope John Paul II
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Pope Saint John Paul II, born Karol Józef Wojtyła, was Pope from 1978 to 2005. He is called by some Catholics Saint John Paul the Great and he was elected by the second Papal conclave of 1978, which was called after Pope John Paul I, who had been elected in August after the death of Pope Paul VI, died after thirty-three days. Cardinal Wojtyła was elected on the day of the conclave. John Paul II is recognised as helping to end Communist rule in his native Poland, John Paul II significantly improved the Catholic Churchs relations with Judaism, Islam, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Anglican Communion. He upheld the Churchs teachings on such matters as artificial contraception and the ordination of women and he was one of the most travelled world leaders in history, visiting 129 countries during his pontificate. By the time of his death, he had named most of the College of Cardinals, consecrated or co-consecrated a large number of the worlds bishops, a key goal of his papacy was to transform and reposition the Catholic Church. His wish was to place his Church at the heart of a new alliance that would bring together Jews, Muslims. He was the second longest-serving pope in history after Pope Pius IX. Born in Poland, John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope since the Dutch Pope Adrian VI, John Paul IIs cause for canonisation commenced in 2005 one month after his death with the traditional five-year waiting period waived. A second miracle attributed to John Paul IIs intercession was approved on 2 July 2013, John Paul II was canonised on 27 April 2014, together with Pope John XXIII. On 11 September 2014, Pope Francis added John Paul IIs optional memorial feast day to the worldwide General Roman Calendar of saints, in response to worldwide requests. It is traditional to celebrate saints feast days on the anniversary of their deaths, Karol Józef Wojtyła was born in the Polish town of Wadowice. He was the youngest of three born to Karol Wojtyła, an ethnic Pole, and Emilia Kaczorowska, whose mothers maiden surname was Scholz. Emilia, who was a schoolteacher, died in childbirth in 1929 when Wojtyła was eight years old and his elder sister Olga had died before his birth, but he was close to his brother Edmund, nicknamed Mundek, who was 13 years his senior. Edmunds work as a physician led to his death from scarlet fever. As a boy, Wojtyła was athletic, often playing football as goalkeeper, during his childhood, Wojtyła had contact with Wadowices large Jewish community. School football games were organised between teams of Jews and Catholics, and Wojtyła often played on the Jewish side. I remember that at least a third of my classmates at school in Wadowice were Jews
24.
Joan of Arc
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Joan of Arc, nicknamed The Maid of Orléans, is considered a heroine of France for her role during the Lancastrian phase of the Hundred Years War and was canonized as a Roman Catholic saint. Joan of Arc was born to Jacques dArc and Isabelle Romée, the uncrowned King Charles VII sent Joan to the siege of Orléans as part of a relief mission. She gained prominence after the siege was lifted nine days later. Several additional swift victories led to Charles VIIs coronation at Reims and this long-awaited event boosted French morale and paved the way for the final French victory. On 23 May 1430, she was captured at Compiègne by the Burgundian faction and she was later handed over to the English and put on trial by the pro-English Bishop of Beauvais Pierre Cauchon on a variety of charges. After Cauchon declared her guilty she was burned at the stake on 30 May 1431, in 1456, an inquisitorial court authorized by Pope Callixtus III examined the trial, debunked the charges against her, pronounced her innocent, and declared her a martyr. In the 16th century she became a symbol of the Catholic League and she was beatified in 1909 and canonized in 1920. Cultural depictions of her have continued in films, theater, television, video games, music, the Hundred Years War had begun in 1337 as an inheritance dispute over the French throne, interspersed with occasional periods of relative peace. Nearly all the fighting had taken place in France, and the English armys use of chevauchée tactics had devastated the economy, the French population had not recovered to its size previous to the Black Death of the mid-14th century, and its merchants were isolated from foreign markets. Prior to the appearance of Joan of Arc, the English had nearly achieved their goal of a monarchy under English control. In the words of DeVries, The kingdom of France was not even a shadow of its thirteenth-century prototype, the French king at the time of Joans birth, Charles VI, suffered from bouts of insanity and was often unable to rule. The kings brother Louis, Duke of Orléans, and the kings cousin John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, quarreled over the regency of France and the guardianship of the royal children. This dispute included accusations that Louis was having an affair with the queen, Isabeau of Bavaria. The conflict climaxed with the assassination of the Duke of Orléans in 1407 on the orders of the Duke of Burgundy, the young Charles of Orléans succeeded his father as duke and was placed in the custody of his father-in-law, the Count of Armagnac. Their faction became known as the Armagnac faction, and the party led by the Duke of Burgundy was called the Burgundian faction. In 1418 Paris was taken by the Burgundians, who massacred the Count of Armagnac, the future French king, Charles VII, assumed the title of Dauphin—the heir to the throne—at the age of fourteen, after all four of his older brothers had died in succession. His first significant official act was to conclude a treaty with the Duke of Burgundy in 1419. This ended in disaster when Armagnac partisans assassinated John the Fearless during a meeting under Charless guarantee of protection, the new duke of Burgundy, Philip the Good, blamed Charles for the murder and entered into an alliance with the English
25.
General Roman Calendar as in 1954
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The following is a list of the feast days of the General Roman Calendar as it was in 1954. The changes that the latter Pope made are indicated in General Roman Calendar of Pope Pius XII and they included the institution of two feasts in May, St. Joseph the Workman was added on May 1 as a Double of the I Class, requiring the transfer of Ss. Angela Merici, but not the commemoration of St. Petronilla, a total of fifteen Octaves – all those except Easter, Pentecost, and Christmas – were also suppressed in the reform of 1955. Five years later, Pope John XXIII made a revision with the motu proprio Rubricarum instructum of July 23,1960. The General Roman Calendar was again revised in 1969, in connection with the revision of the Roman Missal, for its current state, see General Roman Calendar. The Offices of these feasts are arranged in the Breviary. The rank of feast days determines which Mass is said when two feast days coincide on the one day, as well as when a feast day falls on Sundays or certain other privileged days. On ferias and many feast days of simple rank, the celebrant was permitted to substitute a Mass of his own such as a votive Mass. What the original meaning of the double may have been is not entirely certain. Some think that the festivals were thus styled because the antiphons before and after the psalms were doubled. Hence such days were known as doubles, Pope Pius X simplified matters considerably in his 1911 reform of the Roman Breviary. In the case of occurrence the lower-ranking feast day could become a commemoration within the celebration of the higher-ranking one, further retouches were made by Pope Pius XII in 1955, Pope John XXIII in 1960, and Pope Paul VI in 1969. Sundays were divided into greater and lesser Sundays, with the greater Sundays being further divided into two classes. The Greater Sundays of the I class were the I Sunday of Advent, the four Sundays of Lent, Passion Sunday, Palm Sunday, Easter Sunday, Low Sunday, and Pentecost. No feast day whatsoever could be celebrated on days, although they admitted commemorations except on Easter. Greater Sundays of the II class permitted the celebration of Doubles of the I Class only, and consisted of the other three Sundays in Advent and the three pre-Lenten Sundays. All other Sundays, were lesser Sundays or Sundays per annum, the Sunday within the Octave of the Nativity was a special case, due to the fixed date of Christmas and the high rank of the feast days following it. If December 29,30, or 31 were a Sunday, before the reform of Pope St Pius X in 1911, ordinary Doubles took precedence over most of the Semidouble Sundays, resulting in many of the Sunday Masses rarely being said
26.
General Roman Calendar of Pope Pius XII
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The changes made by Pope Pius XII thus remained unaltered for only five years. Sundays previously celebrated in the Semi-Double rite were raised to the Double rite, an impeded Sunday Office and Mass was to be neither anticipated nor resumed. A feast or title or any mystery of Our Lord falling on a Sunday per annum was thenceforth to take the place of the Sunday, the Vigil of the Nativity of the Lord and the vigil of Pentecost were privileged vigils. All other vigils, including those marked in particular calendars, were suppressed, only the Octaves of Easter, Christmas and Pentecost were to be celebrated, all others occurring either in the universal or in particular calendars were suppressed. The days within the Easter and Pentecost octaves were raised to the Double rite, had precedence over all feasts, but the days of the Octave of Christmas, although of the Double rite, continued to be celebrated as before. From 2 to 5 January, unless some feast occurred, the Office was to be of the current feria in the simple rite, the Mass was to be the same as that of 1 January but without the Credo and the special Communicantes. On 13 January the Commemoration of the Baptism of our Lord was to be celebrated in the double rite, using for the Office. But if 13 January occurred on Sunday, the Office and Mass were to be those of the Feast of the Holy Family without any commemoration of the Baptism of Our Lord. The days of the suppressed Octaves of Corpus Christi and the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus became feriae per annum, saints feasts previously celebrated in the Semi-Double rite were to be treated as Simple feasts, and those previously celebrated in the Simple rite were reduced to a commemoration. By a separate decree of the same year 1955, Pope Pius XII instituted the feast of Saint Joseph the Worker on 1 May. He also instituted the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen on 31 May, to room for it
27.
General Roman Calendar of 1960
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This article lists the feast days of the General Roman Calendar as reformed on 23 July 1960 by Pope John XXIIIs motu proprio Rubricarum instructum. Rubricarum instructum replaced the former classifications of Doubles, Semidoubles, and Simples with I, II, and III class feasts and commemorations. It removed a few feasts, in particular duplications such as the Feast of the Cross, the Chair of Peter, Saint Peter, Saint John the Evangelist, Saint Michael, see General Roman Calendar of Pope Pius XII. Feasts previously ranked as doubles of the I class were reclassified as feasts of the I class, feasts previously ranked as doubles of the II class were reclassified as feasts of the II class. Feasts previously ranked as doubles, doubles, and simples were reclassified as feasts of the III class. Feasts that had formerly been ranked as simples and had reduced to commemorations in Pius XIIs 1955 revision of the calendar remained commemorations. The Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Passiontide, and Low Sunday were classified as Sundays of the I class, All other Sundays of the year—excluding those perpetually impeded by feasts of the I class—became Sundays of the II class. Ash Wednesday, the ferias of Holy Week, the Paschal Triduum, the ferias of Advent, excluding 17–23 December, were ranked as ferias of the III class, as were the ferias of Lent and Passiontide. The remaining ferias of the year were classified ferias of the IV class, the following feasts were reduced to commemorations, St. George Martyr Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel St. Alexis Confessor Ss. Cyriacus, Largus, and Smaragdus Martyrs The Impression of the Sacred Stigmata of St. Francis Confessor Ss, sergius, Bacchus, Marcellus, and Apuleius Martyrs was transferred from 7 to 8 October. 1, Octave of the Nativity of the Lord, I class,5, Commemoration of St. Telesphorus Pope and Martyr, Comm. 6, On the Epiphany of the Lord, I class,11, Commemoration of St. Hyginus Pope and Martyr, Comm. 13, On the Commemoration of the Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ,14, St. Hilary Bishop, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church, III class, Com. of St. Felix Priest and Martyr. 15, St. Paul first hermit, Confessor, III class,16, St. Marcellus I Pope and Martyr, III class. 17, St. Anthony Abbot, III class,18, Commemoration of St. Prisca Virgin and Martyr, Comm. Marius, Martha, Audifax, and Abachum Martyrs, Comm, fabian Pope and Sebastian Martyrs, III class. 21, St. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr, III class 22, Vincent and Anastasius Martyrs, III class. 23, St. Raymund of Peñafort Confessor, III class, Com. of St. Emerentiana Virgin,24, St. Timothy Bishop and Martyr, III class
28.
Four Holy Marshals
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The Four Holy Marshals are four saints venerated in the Rhineland, especially at Cologne, Liège, Aachen, and Eifel. They are conceived as standing particularly close to throne of God and their joint veneration is comparable to that of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, who are also venerated in the Rhineland. They are considered “marshals of God” and were invoked against diseases, evidence of their cult is testified by documentation dating from 1478, however, the joint cult of these four saints may have existed earlier. The cult reached its point in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. There were churches dedicated to them at Hüngersdorf, Schleiden, the four saints are, In terms of protection over animals, Anthony as the patron of pigs, Cornelius cattle, Hubertus dogs, and Quirinus horses. In addition, each saint has its own place of special veneration, Anthony was venerated at Cologne, Hubertus at St-Hubert in the Ardennes, Cornelius at Aachen. Fourteen Holy Helpers Military saint Vier heilige Marschälle Das war Papst Cornelius Einer der vier hl, Marschälle Der Heilige mit dem Horn/Beschützer des Hornviehs Helfer bei der Kornelkrankheit Verehrung und Bräuche Der Raub der vier heiligen Marschälle http, //www. cornelissen. de/cor_pap1. htm
29.
Quirinus of Neuss
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Saint Quirinus of Neuss, sometimes called Quirinus of Rome is venerated as a martyr and saint of the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. His cult was centered at Neuss in Germany, though he was a Roman martyr, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia, a Roman martyr named Quirinus was buried in the Catacomb of Prætextatus on the Via Appia. The Martyrologium Hieronymianum mentions Quirinus name and place of burial, the Itineraries to the graves of the Roman martyrs also mention these two pieces of information. The Martyrologium Hieronymianum assigns him under the feast day of April 30, Quirinus is introduced into the legendary Acts of Sts. Alexander and Balbina, where it is said he was a tribune and he is said to have been decapitated in 116. Legends make him a Roman tribune who was ordered with executing Alexander, Eventius, and Theodolus, Quirinus converted to Christianity, however, after witnessing miracles performed by these three saints, and he was baptized along with his daughter Balbina. He was then martyred on March 30 by being decapitated and was then buried catacomb of Prætextatus on the Via Appia. Ado took the name from these Acts and put it in his Martyrology under date of March 30, on which day it is now also found in the Roman Martyrology. For April 30, the Roman Martyrology states, “Item Romae in coemetério Praetextáti via Appia, sancti Quirini mártyris, qui tribúnus confessiónem fídei martyrio coronávit. ”According to a document from Cologne dating from 1485, Quirinus body was donated in 1050 by Pope Leo IX to an abbess of Neuss named Gepa. In this way the relics came to the Romanesque Church of St. Quirinus at Neuss which still exists, a statue of Quirinus sits atop the church. Inhabitants of that city invoked him for aid during Siege of Neuss by Charles the Bold that occurred in 1474-5 and his cult spread to Cologne, Alsace, Scandinavia, western Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy, where he became the patron saint of Correggio. Numerous wells and springs were dedicated to him, and he was invoked against the plague, smallpox. Pilgrims to Neuss sought the Quirinuswasser from the Quirinusbrunnen, a farmers saying associated with Quirinus feast day of March 30 was Wie der Quirin, so der Sommer. Quirinus, along with Hubertus, Cornelius and Anthony, was venerated as one of the Four Holy Marshals in the Rhineland, portraits of Quirinus and of St. Valentine appear at the top of the recto of the Nuremberg Chronicles. Walter Bader, St Quirinus zu Neuss,2000, ISBN 3-87909-692-9 Helmut Wessels, Neuss und St. Quirin zu Fuß
30.
Saint Anthony the Great
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Saint Anthony or Antony was a Christian monk from Egypt, revered since his death as a saint. He is distinguished from other saints named Anthony by various epithets, Anthony the Great, Anthony of Egypt, Anthony the Abbot, Anthony of the Desert, Anthony the Anchorite, and Anthony of Thebes. For his importance among the Desert Fathers and to all later Christian monasticism and his feast day is celebrated on January 17 among the Orthodox and Catholic churches and on Tobi 22 in the Egyptian calendar used by the Coptic Church. The biography of Anthonys life by Athanasius of Alexandria helped to spread the concept of Christian monasticism and he is often erroneously considered the first Christian monk, but as his biography and other sources make clear, there were many ascetics before him. Anthony was, however, the first to go into the wilderness, Anthony is appealed to against infectious diseases, particularly skin diseases. In the past, many afflictions, including ergotism, erysipelas. Anthony was born in Coma in Lower Egypt in AD251 to wealthy landowner parents, when he was about 18 years old, his parents died and left him with the care of his unmarried sister. Shortly thereafter, he decided to follow the Evangelical counsel of Jesus which reads, If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven. Anthony gave away some of his familys lands to his neighbors, sold the remaining property and he then left to live an ascetic life, placing his sister with a group of Christian virgins, a sort of proto-convent. For the next fifteen years, Anthony remained in the area, there are various legends associating Anthony with pigs, one is that he worked as a swineherd during this period. Anthony is sometimes considered the first monk, and the first to initiate solitary desertification, philo opined that this class of persons may be met with in many places, for both Greece and barbarian countries want to enjoy whatever is perfectly good. Christian ascetics such as Thecla had likewise retreated to isolated locations at the outskirts of cities, Anthony is notable for having decided to surpass this tradition and headed out into the desert proper. He left for the alkaline Nitrian Desert on the edge of the Western Desert about 95 km west of Alexandria and he remained there for 13 years. According to Athanasius, the devil fought Anthony by afflicting him with boredom, laziness, and the phantoms of women, after that, he moved to a tomb, where he resided and closed the door on himself, depending on some local villagers who brought him food. When the devil perceived his ascetic life and his worship, he was envious and beat him mercilessly. When his friends from the village came to visit him and found him in this condition. After he recovered, he made an effort and went back into the desert to a farther mountain by the Nile called Pispir. There he lived strictly enclosed in an old abandoned Roman fort for some 20 years, according to Athanasius, the devil again resumed his war against Anthony, only this time the phantoms were in the form of wild beasts, wolves, lions, snakes, and scorpions
31.
Pope Cornelius
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Pope Cornelius was the Bishop of Rome from 6 or 13 March 251 to his martyrdom in 253. Many Christians refused and were martyred, while others partook in the sacrifices in order to save their own lives, two schools of thought arose after the persecution. Under this philosophy, the way to re-enter the church would be re-baptism. The opposing side, including Cornelius and Cyprian the Bishop of Carthage, instead they thought that the sinners should only need to show contrition and true repentance to be welcomed back into the church. In hopes that Christianity would fade away, Decius prevented the election of a new pope, however, soon afterwards Decius was forced to leave the area to fight the invading Goths and while he was away the elections for pope were held. In the 14 months without a pope, the leading candidate, Novatian believed that he would be elected, however Cornelius was unwillingly elected the twenty-first pope in March 251. Novatian was very angry not only that he was not elected pope and he thus proclaimed himself the antipope to Cornelius, driving a schism through the church. Corneliuss next action was to convene a synod of 60 bishops to restate himself as the rightful pope, also addressed in the synod was that Christians who stopped practising during Emperor Deciuss persecution could receive communion only after doing penance. The verdict of the synod was sent to the Christian bishops, most notably the bishop of Antioch, the letters that Cornelius sent to surrounding bishops provide knowledge of the size of the church during the period. His letters also inform that Cornelius had a staff of over 150 clergy members, from these numbers, it has been estimated that there were at least 50,000 Christians in Rome during the papacy of Pope Cornelius. In June 251, Decius was killed in battle with the Goths, persecution began again in June 252, and Pope Cornelius was exiled to Centumcellae, Italy, where he died in June 253. The Liberian catalogue lists his death as being from the hardships of banishment, however, later sources claim he was beheaded. Cornelius is not buried in the chapel of the popes, but in a catacomb. This suggests that Cornelius did not come from a wealthy family. A letter from Cornelius while in exile mentions an office of exorcist in the church for the first time, canon law has since then required each diocese to have an exorcist. St. Cornelius is not mentioned much in most texts, when he is referenced, it seems to be in conjunction with his anti-pope Novatian, who eventually founded his own church with his own bishops, his predecessor St Fabian, or his successor St. Lucius. His papacy was short, reigning two years, three months, and ten days, and little was probably circulated at the due to the persecution in Christian centers. Over time, St. Cornelius seems to have been overlooked and passed over for other great Catholic popes whose papacies lasted longer, had political power
32.
Hubertus
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Saint Hubertus or Hubert became Bishop of Liège in 708 AD. He was a Christian saint who was the saint of hunters, mathematicians, opticians. Known as the Apostle of the Ardennes, he was called upon, until the early 20th century, Saint Hubertus was widely venerated during the Middle Ages. The iconography of his legend is entangled with the legend of Saint Eustace, the Bollandists published seven early lives of Hubertus, the first of these was the work of a contemporary, though it is very sparing of details. He died 30 May 727 AD in or near a place called Fura, in the later Middle Ages this place was identified as Tervuren near Brussels, Belgium, but recent scholarship considers Voeren/Fourons, between Maastricht and Liège, the likelier place. His feast day is November 3, Saint Hubertus was born about the year 656. He was the eldest son of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, as a youth, Hubert was sent to the Neustrian court of Theuderic III at Paris, where his charm and agreeable address led to his investment with the dignity of count of the palace. Like many nobles of the time, Hubert was addicted to the chase, meanwhile, the tyrannical conduct of Ebroin, mayor of the Neustrian palace, caused a general emigration of the nobles and others to the court of Austrasia at Metz. Hubert soon followed them and was welcomed by Pippin of Heristal, mayor of the palace. About this time Hubert married Floribanne, daughter of Dagobert, Count of Leuven and their son Floribert of Liège would later become bishop of Liège, for bishoprics were all but accounted fiefs heritable in the great families of the Merovingian kingdoms. He nearly died at the age of 10 from fever and his wife died giving birth to their son, and Hubert retreated from the court, withdrew into the forested Ardennes, and gave himself up entirely to hunting. But a great spiritual revolution was imminent, on Good Friday morning, when the faithful were crowding the churches, Hubert sallied forth to the chase. Hubert dismounted, prostrated himself and said, Lord, what wouldst Thou have me do and he received the answer, Go and seek Lambert, and he will instruct you. The story of the hart appears first in one of the later legendary hagiographies and has been appropriated from the legend of Saint Eustace or Placidus and it was first attributed to St. Hubert in the 15th century. Saint Hubertus is honored among sport-hunters as the originator of hunting behavior. During Huberts religious vision, the Hirsch is said to have lectured Hubertus into holding animals in higher regard, for example, the hunter ought to only shoot when a humane, clean and quick kill is assured. He ought shoot only old stags past their prime breeding years, further, one ought never shoot a female with young in tow to assure the young deer have a mother to guide them to food during the winter. Such is the legacy of Hubert who still today is taught and held in regard in the extensive
33.
Agathius
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Saint Agathius, also known as Achatius or Agathonas or Acacius of Byzantium, according to Christian tradition, was a Cappadocian Greek centurion of the imperial army, martyred around 304. The date of his martyrdom is traditionally May 8, when his feast is observed, constantine the Great built a church in his honour. His relics were translated ca.630 to a spring at Squillace, close by the Vivarium and he was known in Squillace as San Agario. A relic of his arm was brought to Guardavalle in 1584 by the bishop of Squillace, Marcello Sirleto, relics from Squillace were also brought to Cuenca and Ávila in Spain, where he is known as San Acato. St. St. Achatius is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers or Auxiliary Saints
34.
Catherine of Alexandria
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According to her hagiography, she was both a princess and a noted scholar, who became a Christian around the age of fourteen, and converted hundreds of people to Christianity. She was martyred around the age of 18, over 1,100 years following her martyrdom, Saint Joan of Arc identified Catherine as one of the Saints who appeared to her and counselled her. The Eastern Orthodox Church venerates her as a Great Martyr, in the Catholic Church she is traditionally revered as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. In 1969 the Catholic Church removed her feast day from the General Roman Calendar, however, in 2002, her feast was restored to the General Roman Calendar as an optional memorial. According to the narrative, Catherine was the daughter of Constus. From a young age she devoted herself to study, a vision of the Madonna and Child persuaded her to become a Christian. When the persecutions began under Maxentius, she went to the emperor, the emperor summoned fifty of the best pagan philosophers and orators to dispute with her, hoping that they would refute her pro-Christian arguments, but Catherine won the debate. Several of her adversaries, conquered by her eloquence, declared themselves Christians and were at once put to death, upon the failure of Maxentius to make Catherine yield by way of torture, he tried to win the beautiful and wise princess over by proposing marriage. The saint refused, declaring that her spouse was Jesus Christ, the furious emperor condemned Catherine to death on a spiked breaking wheel, but, at her touch, it shattered. A tradition dating to about 800 states that carried her corpse to Mount Sinai. Her body was discovered around the year 800 at Mount Sinai, with hair still growing, in the 6th century, the Eastern Emperor Justinian had established what is now Saint Catherines Monastery in Egypt. Although Eusebius did not name the woman, she had identified with Dorothea of Alexandria. It is also referred to as Saint Helens Chapel, the main church was built between 548 and 565, and the monastery became a major pilgrimage site for devotees of Catherine and the other relics and sacred sites there. Saint Catherines Monastery survives, and is a repository of early Christian art, architecture and illuminated manuscripts that remains open to tourists. The site is sacred to Christianity and Islam, there is no evidence that Katherine herself was a historical figure and she may well have been a composite drawn from memories of women persecuted for their faith. Many aspects of her Passio are clearly legendary and conform to well-known hagiographical topoi, rufinus states that her first name was Dorothea, and that at her christening she acquired the name Aikaterina, a name that signifies her pure, clean and uncontaminated nature. There are several pilgrimage narratives that chronicle the journey to Mount Sinai, most notably those of John Mandeville, however, the monastery at Mount Sinai was the best-known site of Catherine pilgrimage, but was also the most difficult to reach. The most prominent Western shrine was the monastery in Rouen that claimed to house Catherines fingers and it was not alone in the west, however, accompanied by many, scattered shrines and altars dedicated to Catherine, which existed throughout France and England
35.
Gastrointestinal tract
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Gastrointestinal is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the stomach and intestines. A tract is a collection of related anatomic structures or a series of connected body organs, the mouth, oesophagus, stomach, and intestines are part of the human alimentary canal. All bilaterians have a gastrointestinal tract, also called a gut or an alimentary canal and this is a tube that transfers food to the organs of digestion. In large bilaterians, the gastrointestinal tract generally also has an exit, some small bilaterians have no anus and dispose of solid wastes by other means. The gastrointestinal tract contains thousands of different bacteria in their gut flora, the human gastrointestinal tract consists of the esophagus, stomach, and intestines, and is divided into the upper and lower gastrointestinal tracts. In contrast, the digestive system comprises the gastrointestinal tract plus the accessory organs of digestion. The tract may also be divided into foregut, midgut, and hindgut, the whole human GI tract is about nine metres long at autopsy. The GI tract releases hormones from enzymes to help regulate the digestive process, the structure and function can be described both as gross anatomy and as microscopic anatomy or histology. The tract itself is divided into upper and lower tracts, the upper gastrointestinal tract consists of the buccal cavity, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, and duodenum. The exact demarcation between the upper and lower tracts is the muscle of the duodenum. Upon dissection, the duodenum may appear to be an organ, but it is divided into four segments based upon function, location. The four segments of the duodenum are as follows, bulb, descending, horizontal, the suspensory muscle attaches the superior border of the ascending duodenum to the diaphragm. The suspensory muscle is an important anatomical landmark which shows the division between the duodenum and the jejunum, the first and second parts of the small intestine. This is a muscle which is derived from the embryonic mesoderm. The lower gastrointestinal tract includes most of the intestine and all of the large intestine. In humans, the intestine is further subdivided into the duodenum, jejunum and ileum while the large intestine is subdivided into the cecum, colon, rectum. The small intestine begins at the duodenum, which receives food from the stomach and it is a tubular structure, usually between 6 and 7 m long. The area of the human, adult small intestinal mucosa is about 30 m2 and its main function is to absorb the products of digestion into the bloodstream
36.
Domestication
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Charles Darwin recognized the small number of traits that made domestic species different from their wild ancestors. There is a difference between domestic and wild populations. The dog was the first domesticated vertebrate, and was established across Eurasia before the end of the Late Pleistocene era, well before cultivation and before the domestication of other animals. Among birds, the domestic species today is the chicken, important for meat and eggs, though economically valuable poultry include the turkey, guineafowl. Birds are also kept as cagebirds, from songbirds to parrots. The longest established invertebrate domesticates are the bee and the silkworm. Terrestrial snails are raised for food, while species from several phyla are kept for research, the domestication of plants began at least 12,000 years ago with cereals in the Middle East, and the bottle gourd in Asia. Agriculture developed in at least 11 different centres around the world, domesticating different crops, Domestication means belonging to the house. Animals domesticated for home companionship are usually called pets, while those domesticated for food or work are called livestock or farm animals and this definition recognizes both the biological and the cultural components of the domestication process and the impacts on both humans and the domesticated animals and plants. All past definitions of domestication have included a relationship between humans with plants and animals, but their differences lay in who was considered as the partner in the relationship. This new definition recognizes a mutualistic relationship in both partners gain benefits. Domestication has vastly enhanced the reproductive output of crop plants, livestock, Domestication syndrome is the suite of phenotypic traits arising during domestication that distinguish crops from their wild ancestors. The domestication of animals is the relationship between animals with the humans who have influence on their care and reproduction. Charles Darwin recognized the small number of traits that made domestic species different from their wild ancestors, there is a genetic difference between domestic and wild populations. Domestication should not be confused with taming, the beginnings of animal domestication involved a protracted coevolutionary process with multiple stages along different pathways. The dog was the first domesticant, and was established across Eurasia before the end of the Late Pleistocene era, well before cultivation and before the domestication of other animals. Humans did not intend to domesticate animals from, or at least they did not envision a domesticated animal resulting from, in both of these cases, humans became entangled with these species as the relationship between them, and the human role in their survival and reproduction, intensified. Although the directed pathway proceeded from capture to taming, the two pathways are not as goal-oriented and archaeological records suggest that they take place over much longer time frames
37.
Confession (religion)
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‹See Tfd› Confession, in many religions, is the acknowledgment of ones sins or wrongs. Buddhism has been from its primarily a tradition of renunciation. Within the monastic framework of the regular confession of wrongdoing to superiors is mandatory. In the sutras of the Pali Canon Bhikkhus confessed their wrongdoing to the Buddha himself and that part of the Pali Canon called the Vinaya requires that monks confess their individual sins before the bi-weekly convening for the recitation of the Patimokkha. In Catholic teaching, the Sacrament of Penance is the method of the Church by which men and women may confess sins committed after baptism and have them absolved by a priest. Although it is not mandatory, the Catholic rite is usually conducted within a confessional box and this sacrament is known by many names, including penance, reconciliation and confession. For the Catholic Church, the intent of this sacrament is to provide healing for the soul as well as to regain the grace of God, in theological terms, the priest acts in persona Christi and receives from the Church the power of jurisdiction over the penitent. The Catholic Church teaches that sacramental confession requires three acts on the part of the penitent, contrition, disclosure of the sins, the basic form of confession has not changed for centuries, although at one time confessions were made publicly. Typically, the penitent begins sacramental confession by saying, Bless me Father and it has been since my last confession. The penitent must then confess what he/she believes to be grave and mortal sins, the sinner may also confess venial sins, this is especially recommended if the penitent has no mortal sins to confess. According to the Catechism, without being strictly necessary, confession of faults is nevertheless strongly recommended by the Church. Indeed the regular confession of our venial sins helps us form our conscience, fight against evil tendencies, let ourselves be healed by Christ, by receiving more frequently through this sacrament the gift of the Fathers Mercy, we are spurred to be merciful as He is merciful. When Christs faithful strive to confess all the sins that they can remember, as a result, even mortal sins which the penitent inadvertently forgot are forgiven if the confession was good. In general, Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Christians choose an individual to trust as his or her spiritual guide. In most cases this is the parish priest, but may be a starets or any individual, male or female and this person is often referred to as ones spiritual father or spiritual mother. Once chosen, the turns to his spiritual guide for advice on his or her spiritual development, confessing sins. What is confessed to ones spiritual guide is protected by the seal as would be any priest hearing a confession. While one does not have to be a priest to hear confession, Confession does not take place in a confessional, but normally in the main part of the church itself, usually before an analogion set up near the iconostasion
38.
Margaret of Antioch
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Her historical existence has been questioned by Rome. She was declared apocryphal by Pope Gelasius I in 494, and she was reputed to have promised very powerful indulgences to those who wrote or read her life, or invoked her intercessions, these no doubt helped the spread of her cultus. According to the version of the story in Golden Legend, she was a native of Antioch and her mother having died soon after her birth, Margaret was nursed by a Christian woman five or six leagues from Antioch. Having embraced Christianity and consecrated her virginity to God, Margaret was disowned by her father, adopted by her nurse, olybrius, Governor of the Roman Diocese of the East, asked to marry her, but with the demand that she renounce Christianity. Upon her refusal, she was tortured, during which various miraculous incidents occurred. One of these involved being swallowed by Satan in the shape of a dragon, the Golden Legend describes this last incident as apocryphal and not to be taken seriously. She was put to death in AD304, as Saint Marina, she is associated with the sea, which may in turn point to an older goddess tradition, reflecting the pagan divinity, Aphrodite. The Eastern Orthodox Church knows Margaret as Saint Marina, and celebrates her feast day on July 17 and she has been identified with Saint Pelagia, Marina being the Latin equivalent of the Greek Pelagia who—according to her hagiography by James, the deacon of Heliopolis—had been known as Margarita. We possess no historical documents on Saint Margaret as distinct from Saint Pelagia, the Greek Marina came from Antioch in Pisidia, but this distinction was lost in the West. Some consider her a saint of pregnancy. In art, she is usually pictured escaping from, or standing above and she is recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, being listed as such in the Roman Martyrology for July 20. Margaret is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, and is one of the saints who spoke to Joan of Arc, Saint Marina the Monk and Saint Pelagia, both of whom are sometimes conflated or confused with Margaret Acta Sanctorum, July, v. 24—45 Bibliotheca hagiographica. 5303—53r3 Frances Arnold-Forster, Studies in Church Dedications, i and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. article name needed
39.
Historical figure
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A historical figure is a famous person in history, such as Alexander the Great, Gandhi, Hirohito, Bismarck, Washington, Napoleon or Mandela. The significance of such figures in human progress has been debated, some think they play a crucial role, while others say they have little impact on the broad currents of thought and social change. The concept is used in the sense that the person really existed in the past. However, the legends that can grow up around historical figures may be hard to distinguish from fact, sources are often incomplete and may be inaccurate, particularly those from early periods of history. Without a body of documents, the more subtle aspects of personality of a historical figure can only be deduced. With historical figures who were religious figures attempts to separate fact from belief may be controversial. In education, presenting information as if it were being told by a figure may give it greater impact. Since classical times, students have been asked to put themselves in the place of a figure as a way of bringing history to life. Historical figures are represented in fiction, where fact and fancy are combined. Galls anecdotal account of Charlemagne, De Carolo Magno, more recently there has been a tendency once again for authors to freely depart from the facts when they conflict with their creative goals. The significance of historical figures has long been the subject of debate by philosophers, Hegel considered that world-historical figures played a pivotal role in human progress, but felt that they were bound to emerge when change was needed. Thomas Carlyle saw the study of such as Muhammad, William Shakespeare. Herbert Spencer, a believer in evolution and in the universality of natural law. The German philosopher Hegel defined the concept of the world-historical figure, to him, Napoleon was such a figure. Hegel proposed that a world-historical figure essentially posed a challenge, or thesis, eventually a synthesis would resolve the conflict. Hegel viewed Julius Caesar as a historical figure, who appeared at a stage when Rome had grown to the point it could no longer continue as a republican city state but had to become an empire. In Hegels view, Socrates broke down social harmony by questioning the meaning of concepts like justice, eventually, the Athenians quite rightly condemned Socrates to death. But they could not stop the evolution of thought that Socrates had begun and they die early like Alexander, they are murdered, like Caesar, transported to St. Helena, like Napoleon
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Anthony the Great
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Saint Anthony or Antony was a Christian monk from Egypt, revered since his death as a saint. He is distinguished from other saints named Anthony by various epithets, Anthony the Great, Anthony of Egypt, Anthony the Abbot, Anthony of the Desert, Anthony the Anchorite, and Anthony of Thebes. For his importance among the Desert Fathers and to all later Christian monasticism and his feast day is celebrated on January 17 among the Orthodox and Catholic churches and on Tobi 22 in the Egyptian calendar used by the Coptic Church. The biography of Anthonys life by Athanasius of Alexandria helped to spread the concept of Christian monasticism and he is often erroneously considered the first Christian monk, but as his biography and other sources make clear, there were many ascetics before him. Anthony was, however, the first to go into the wilderness, Anthony is appealed to against infectious diseases, particularly skin diseases. In the past, many afflictions, including ergotism, erysipelas. Anthony was born in Coma in Lower Egypt in AD251 to wealthy landowner parents, when he was about 18 years old, his parents died and left him with the care of his unmarried sister. Shortly thereafter, he decided to follow the Evangelical counsel of Jesus which reads, If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven. Anthony gave away some of his familys lands to his neighbors, sold the remaining property and he then left to live an ascetic life, placing his sister with a group of Christian virgins, a sort of proto-convent. For the next fifteen years, Anthony remained in the area, there are various legends associating Anthony with pigs, one is that he worked as a swineherd during this period. Anthony is sometimes considered the first monk, and the first to initiate solitary desertification, philo opined that this class of persons may be met with in many places, for both Greece and barbarian countries want to enjoy whatever is perfectly good. Christian ascetics such as Thecla had likewise retreated to isolated locations at the outskirts of cities, Anthony is notable for having decided to surpass this tradition and headed out into the desert proper. He left for the alkaline Nitrian Desert on the edge of the Western Desert about 95 km west of Alexandria and he remained there for 13 years. According to Athanasius, the devil fought Anthony by afflicting him with boredom, laziness, and the phantoms of women, after that, he moved to a tomb, where he resided and closed the door on himself, depending on some local villagers who brought him food. When the devil perceived his ascetic life and his worship, he was envious and beat him mercilessly. When his friends from the village came to visit him and found him in this condition. After he recovered, he made an effort and went back into the desert to a farther mountain by the Nile called Pispir. There he lived strictly enclosed in an old abandoned Roman fort for some 20 years, according to Athanasius, the devil again resumed his war against Anthony, only this time the phantoms were in the form of wild beasts, wolves, lions, snakes, and scorpions
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Leonard of Noblac
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Leonard of Noblac, is a Frankish saint closely associated with the town and abbey of Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, in Haute-Vienne, in the Limousin of France. According to the romance that accrued to his name, recorded in an 11th-century vita, Leonard was a Frankish noble in the court of Clovis I and he was converted to Christianity along with the king, at Christmas 496, by Saint Remigius, Bishop of Reims. Leonard asked Clovis to grant him personally the right to liberate prisoners whom he would find worthy of it, then, according to his legend, Leonard became a hermit in the forest of Limousin, where he gathered a number of followers. Through his prayers the queen of the Franks was safely delivered of a male child and it is likely that the toponym was derived from the Latin family name Nobilius and the common Celtic element -ac, simply denoting a place. There he founded the abbey of Noblac, around which a village grew, according to legend, prisoners who invoked him from their cells saw their chains break before their eyes. Many came to him afterwards, bringing their heavy chains and irons to offer them in homage. A considerable number remained with him, and he gave them part of his vast forest to clear and make ready for the labours of the fields. Bohemond, a leader of the First Crusade, subsequently visited the Abbey of Noblac. Bohemonds example inspired many similar gifts, enabling the Romanesque church, about the same time Noblac was becoming a stage in the pilgrimage route that led towards Santiago de Compostela. Leonards cult spread through all of Western Europe, in England, with its connections to the region. Leonard was venerated in Scotland, the Low Countries, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, particularly in Bavaria, and also in Bohemia, Poland, pilgrims and patronage flowed to Saint-Leonard de Noblac. Leonard or Lienard became one of the most venerated saints of the late Middle Ages and his intercession was credited with miracles for the release of prisoners, women in labour and the diseases of cattle. His feast day is November 6, when he is honoured with a festival at Bad Tölz and he is honoured by the parish of Kirkop, Malta on the third Sunday of every August. The growing tide of pilgrims passing on their way to Santiago inspired romances to publicize more than one locally venerated saint along the pilgrim routes, Saint Martial is another example of a saint of the Limousin whose dramatic vita helped attract pilgrims to his shrine. A history of the commune, written by the antiquary and historian of the Limousin. Today Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, Haute-Vienne, population 4766 in 1999, is one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites connected with the routes to Santiago and it retains the Romanesque collegial church and its belltower,52 m tall. Its old houses follow a medieval street pattern, with many streets converging in a space by the former abbey church. In the 19th century, a papermill and a porcelain manufactory were added to its commerce, no longer attracting visitors as a stop on the route to Santiago, it is now attracting them as an overnight stop on the Tour de France
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Saint Nicholas
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Saint Nicholas, also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century Christian saint and Greek Bishop of Myra, in Asia Minor. Because of the miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker. The historical Saint Nicholas is commemorated and revered among Anglican, Catholic, Lutheran, in addition, some Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, and other Reformed churches have been named in honor of Saint Nicholas. Saint Nicholas is the saint of sailors, merchants, archers, repentant thieves, children, brewers, pawnbrokers. The historical Saint Nicholas, as known from history, He was born at Patara. In his youth he made a pilgrimage to Egypt and the Palestine area, shortly after his return he became Bishop of Myra and was later cast into prison during the persecution of Diocletian. He was released after the accession of Constantine and was present at the Council of Nicaea, in 1087, Italian merchants took his body from Myra, bringing it to Bari in Italy. Nicholas was born in Asia Minor in the Roman Empire, to a Greek family during the century in the city of Patara. He lived in Myra, Lycia, at a time when the region was Greek in its heritage, culture and he was the only son of wealthy Christian parents named Epiphanius and Johanna according to some accounts and Theophanes and Nonna according to others. He was very religious from an age and according to legend. His wealthy parents died in an epidemic while Nicholas was still young and he tonsured the young Nicholas as a reader and later ordained him a presbyter. In the year AD305, several monks from Anatolia in Asia Minor came to the Holy Land to Beit Jala, Judea and this was before St. Sava’s Monastery was founded in the desert east of Bethlehem on the Kidron Gorge near the Dead Sea. These monks lived on the mountain overlooking Bethlehem in a few caves, in the years 312–315, St. Nicholas lived there and came as a pilgrim to visit the Holy Sepulchre, Golgotha, Bethlehem, and many other sites in the Holy Land. The Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church is located on the site of his cave in Beit Jala where today there are stories about Nicholas still handed down from generation to generation. A text written in his own hand is still in the care of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, in 317 he returned to Asia Minor and was soon thereafter consecrated bishop in Myra. In 325, he was one of many bishops to answer the request of Constantine and appear at the First Council of Nicaea, there, Nicholas was a staunch anti-Arian, defender of the Orthodox Christian position, and one of the bishops who signed the Nicene Creed. Tradition has it that he became so angry with the heretic Arius during the Council that he struck him in the face. The modern city of Demre, Turkey is built near the ruins of the home town of ancient Myra
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Saint Sebastian
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Saint Sebastian was an early Christian saint and martyr. According to Christian belief, he was killed during the Roman emperor Diocletians persecution of Christians and he is commonly depicted in art and literature tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows. Despite this being the most common depiction of Sebastian, he was, according to legend. Shortly afterwards he went to Diocletian to warn him about his sins and he is venerated in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. The details of Saint Sebastians martyrdom were first spoken of by 4th -century bishop Ambrose of Milan, Ambrose stated that Sebastian came from Milan and that he was already venerated there at that time. Saint Sebastian is a male saint, especially among athletes. In 283, Sebastian entered the army in Rome under Emperor Carinus to assist the martyrs, because of his courage he became one of the captains of the Praetorian Guards under Diocletian and Maximian, who were unaware that he was a Christian. According to tradition, Marcus and Marcellian were twin brothers from a family and were deacons. Both brothers married, and they resided in Rome with their wives, the brothers refused to sacrifice to the Roman gods and were arrested. They were visited by their parents Tranquillinus and Martia in prison, Sebastian succeeded in converting Tranquillinus and Martia, as well as Saint Tiburtius, the son of Chromatius, the local prefect. Another official, Nicostratus, and his wife Zoe were also converted and it has been said that Zoe had been a mute for six years, however, she made known to Sebastian her desire to be converted to Christianity. As soon as she had, her returned to her. Nicostratus then brought the rest of the prisoners, these 16 persons were converted by Sebastian, Chromatius and Tiburtius converted, Chromatius set all of his prisoners free from jail, resigned his position, and retired to the country in Campania. Marcus and Marcellian, after being concealed by a Christian named Castulus, were martyred, as were Nicostratus, Zoe. Sebastian had prudently concealed his faith, but in 286 was detected, Diocletian reproached him for his supposed betrayal, and he commanded him to be led to a field and there to be bound to a stake so that certain archers from Mauritania would shoot arrows at him. And the archers shot at him till he was as full of arrows as an urchin is full of pricks, miraculously, the arrows did not kill him. The widow of Castulus, Irene of Rome, went to retrieve his body to bury it and she brought him back to her house and nursed him back to health. Sebastian later stood by a staircase where the emperor was to pass, Sebastian was said to be a defense against the plague
