Sulpicius Severus, in his Dialogues (2.13) on *Martin (ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397, S00050), recounts how Martin often conversed with a number of major saints in heaven: *Agnes (virgin and martyr of Rome, S00097), *Thekla (follower of the Apostle Paul, S00092), *Mary (Mother of Christ, S00033), and the Apostles *Peter and *Paul (S00036 and S00008), and also how he knew demons by name. Written in Latin in Primuliacum (south-west Gaul), c. 404-406.
E00257
Literary - Hagiographical - Other saint-related texts
Sulpicius Severus
Sulpicius Severus, Dialogues 2.13.1-6
Gallus, the narrator of this section of the Dialogues, describes an experience that he and Sulpicius Severus witnessed together:
Ceterum hoc, quod dicturus sum, Sulpici, hoc te – me autem intuebatur – teste perhibeo. Quodam die ego et iste Sulpicius pro foribus illius excubantes iam per aliquot horas cum silentio sedebamus, ingenti horrore et tremore, ac si ante angeli tabernaculum mandatas excubias duceremus, cum quidem nos, clauso cellulae suae ostio, ibi esse nesciret. Interim conloquentium murmur audimus et mox horrore quodam circumfundimur ac stupore, nec ignorare potuimus nescio quid fuisse diuinum. Post duas fere horas ad nos Martinus egreditur: ac tum eum iste Sulpicius, sicut apud eum nemo familiarius loquebatur, coepit orare, ut pie quaerentibus indicaret, quid illud diuini fuisset horroris, quod fatebamur nos ambo sensisse, uel cum quibus fuisset in cellula conlocutus: tenuem enim nos scilicet et uix intellectum sermocinantium sonum pro foribus audisse. Tum ille diu multum que cunctatus - sed nihil erat quod ei Sulpicius non extorqueret inuito: incredibiliora forte dicturus sum, sed Christo teste non mentior, nisi quisquam est tam sacrilegus, ut Martinum aestimet fuisse mentitum. Dicam, inquit, uobis, sed uos nulli quaeso dicatis: Agnes, Thecla et Maria me cum fuerunt, referebat autem nobis uultum adque habitum singularum. Nec uero illo tantum die, sed frequenter se ab eis confessus est uisitari: Petrum etiam et Paulum Apostolos uideri a se saepius non negauit. iam uero daemones, prout ad eum quisque uenisset, suis nominibus increpabat. Mercurium maxime patiebatur infestum, Iouem brutum adque hebetem esse dicebat.
'"But in what I am now about to narrate, I possess you, Sulpicius" (here he looked at me) as a fellow witness. One day, I and Sulpicius there were watching before Martin's door, and had already sat in silence for several hours. We did so with deep reverence and awe, as if we were carrying out a watch prescribed to us before the tent of an angel; while, all the time, the door of his cell being closed, he did not know that we were there. Meanwhile, we heard the sound of people conversing, and by and by we were filled with a kind of awe and amazement, for we could not help perceiving that something divine was going on. After nearly two hours, Martin comes out to us; and then our friend Sulpicius (for no one was accustomed to speak to him more familiarly) began to entreat him to make known to us, piously enquiring on the subject, what meant that sort of divine awe which we confessed we had both felt, and with whom he had been conversing in his cell. We added that, as we stood before the door, we had undoubtedly heard a feeble sound of people talking, but had scarcely understood it. Then he after a long delay (but there was really nothing which Sulpicius could not extort from him even against his will: I am about to relate things somewhat difficult of belief, but, as Christ is my witness, I lie not, unless any one is so impious as to think that Martin himself lied) said: "I will tell you, but I beg you will not speak of it to any one else. Agnes, Thecla, and Mary were there with me." He proceeded to describe to us the face and general aspect of each. And he acknowledged that, not merely on that day, but frequently, he received visits from them. Nor did he deny that Peter also and Paul, the Apostles, were pretty frequently seen by him. Moreover, he was in the habit of rebuking the demons by their special names, according as they severally came to him. He found Mercury a cause of special annoyance, while he said that Jupiter was stupid and doltish.'
Text: Fontaine 2006.
Translation: Roberts 1894, modified.
Uncertainty/scepticism/rejection of a saint
Considerations about the hierarchy of saints
Non Liturgical ActivityOral transmission of saint-related stories
MiraclesApparition, vision, dream, revelation
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Ecclesiastics - monks/nuns/hermits
Theorising on SanctityConsiderations about the hierarchy of saints
Source
Sulpicius Severus was a well-educated aristocrat who, after a career in the law, converted to the ascetic life under the influence of Martin, founding a monastic community on his estate of Primuliacum in Aquitania. He was a friend and close associate of Paulinus of Nola, from whose letters most of our knowledge of Sulpicius' life derives.In c. 404/406, some years after the saint's death in 397, Sulpicius wrote the Dialogues about Martin (also known as the Gallus). They claim to be a record of two days of friendly conversation held in Sulpicius' community by a small group of monks from his own circle and from the circle of Martin (for an overview, see E00845).
The Dialogues constitute the final part of Sulpicius' writings about Martin, following the Life (for which, see E00692) and three letters (E00635, E00691, E00693). These texts all present Martin as a perfect monk and bishop, and great miracle-worker. Sulpicius argues that there is no contradiction between being a good bishop and a monk, and even that only a monk makes a good bishop. This apology was needed, since ascetic monasticism was a novel and controversial idea, and the Gallic episcopacy was generally reluctant to accept it. The Dialogues emphasise that Martin surpassed even the famous monks of Egypt - he performed greater miracles living in more difficult condition, for he was living in a hostile environment and was deprived of the luxury of solitude. For an overview of the Dialogues, see E00845.
[Sulpicius also wrote a Chronicle which describes in detail the doctrinal disputes of the fourth century and includes an account of Martin's involvement in the debates around Priscillian; but it does not add to the image of Martin as a saint.]
Discussion
This story, as recounted here by one of the three interlocutors in the Dialogues, the monk Gallus, was witnessed by Sulpicius Severus himself, who earnestly stresses its veracity. The visions and miracles described in Martin's life raised doubts and sneers which Sulpicius tried to answer in his Dialogues and letters (see E00691, E00845). The Dialogues constitute the final part of Sulpicius' writings about Martin, following the Life (for which, see E00692) and three letters (E00635, E00691, E00693).The identity of the saints who visited Martin is interesting for three reasons. First, they are all women. Second, this is the earliest evidence of the spread beyond the Alps of the cult of Thekla, the companion of Paul (whose shrine was in Seleucia in Asia Minor), and of Agnes, a martyr at Rome. Third, though both Thekla and Agnes were renowned saints, it is curious that Mary, almost certainly the mother of Jesus, was not singled out in any way. Later Mary would certainly be raised to a higher, unique, status.
Bibliography
Edition, French translation and commentary:Fontaine, J., Sulpice Sévère, Gallus. Dialogues sur les «vertus» de saint Martin (Sources Chrétiennes 510; Paris: Cerf, 2006).
English translations:
Hoare, F.R., The Western Fathers, being the Lives of SS. Martin of Tours, Ambrose, Augustine of Hippo, Honoratus of Arles and Germanus of Auxerre (London: Sheed and Ward, 1954), 68-144.
Roberts, A., Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers. Second Series, vol. 11 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1894).
Further reading:
Stancliffe, C., Saint Martin and his Hagiographer: Miracle and History in Sulpicius Severus (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1983).
Vogüé, A. de, Histoire littéraire du mouvement monastique dans l'antiquité. Vol. 4 (Paris: Cerf, 1997), 19-91.
Robert Wiśniewski
14/01/2015
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00008 | Paul, the Apostle | Paulus | Certain | S00033 | Mary, Mother of Christ | Maria | Certain | S00036 | Peter, the Apostle | Petrus | Certain | S00050 | Martin, ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397 | Martinus | Certain | S00092 | Thekla, follower of the Apostle Paul | Thecla | Certain | S00097 | Agnes, virgin and martyr of Rome | Agnes | Certain |
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