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The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity


from its origins to circa AD 700, across the entire Christian world


The short Life of *Sergius (bishop of Rome, ob. 701, S00897) in the Liber Pontificalis, written in Latin in Rome soon after his death, mentions various places in Rome dedicated to saints: the titular church of *Susanna (martyr of Rome, S00892); the oratory of *Silvester (bishop of Rome, S00397) at the Lateran palace; the oratory of *Caesarius (martyr of Terracina, S00893) within the imperial palace; and the city-gate of *Peter (the Apostle, S00036); it also records Sergius' burial at St. Peter's on 8 September.

Evidence ID

E01701

Type of Evidence

Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)

Major author/Major anonymous work

Liber Pontificalis

Liber Pontificalis 86

Sergius, natione Syrus Anthiochiae regionis, ortus ex patre Tiberio in Panormo Sycilie, sedit ann. XIII m. VIII d. XXIII.
Hic Romam veniens sub sancte memoriae Adeodato pontifice, inter clerum Romanae ecclesiae connumeratus est, et quia studiosus erat et capax in officio cantelenae, priori cantorum pro doctrina est traditus. Et acolotus factus per ordinem ascendens a sanctae memoriae Leone pontifice in titulo sancte Susannae, qui et Duas domos vocatur, presbiter ordinatus est. 

Hic tempore presbiteratus sui inpigre per cimiteria diversa missarum sollemnia celebrabat. Post septennium vero defuncto beate memoriae Conone apostolicae sedis praesule, ut fieri assolet, populus Romane urbis in duas partes divisus est; et una quidem pars elegit Theodorum archipresbiterum, alia vero Paschalem archidiaconum. Et quidem Theodorus archipresbiter cum populo, qui ei favebat, praeveniens interiorem partem patriarchii tenuit; Paschalis vero exteriorem partem ab oratorio sancti Silvestri et basilicam domus Iuliae, quae super campum respicit, occupavit. Cumque unus alio locum non cederet, sed utrique inmaniter perdurarent, ut unus alium superaret, inito consilio primati iudicum et exercitus Romane militiae vel cleri, si dici est, plurima pars et praesertim sacerdotum atque civium multitudo ad sacrum palatium perrexerunt. Et diu pertractantes, quid fieri deberet qualiterve duorum altercantium electorum sopiretur intentio, deo annuente in personam denominati Sergii venerabilis tunc presbiteri concordantes se contulerunt eumque de medio populi tollentes in oraculum beati Caesarii Christi martyris, quod est intro suprascriptum palatium, introduxerunt, et exinde in Lateranense episcopio cum laude adclamationibus deduxerunt.


'Sergius of Syrian origin from the region of Antioch, born to his father Tiberius at Panormus in Sicily, held the see 13
years 8 months 23 days. He came to Rome under the pontiff Adeodatus of holy memory and was numbered among the clergy of the Roman church; because he was studious and competent in the task of chanting, he was handed over to the precentor for education. He became an acolyte, rose through the ranks, and was ordained by the pontiff Leo of holy memory as priest for the titular church of saint
Susanna, called Duae domus.

In the period of his priesthood he celebrated the ceremonies of mass without stinting in the different cemeteries. But after seven years, when Conon of blessed memory, prelate of the apostolic see, died [in 687], the Roman people as usually happens divided into two factions, and while one elected the archpriest Theodorus, the other elected the archdeacon Paschalis. Now Theodorus and his supporters got to the patriarchate first and occupied its inner areas, while Paschalis held the outer parts, from the oratory of saint
Silvester and the basilica of the house of Julius, which overlooks the square. Since neither would give way to the other, but each ferociously continued trying to dislodge the other, the dignitaries of the judges, the army of the Roman soldiery, the majority (if it may be said) of the clergy and particularly of the sacerdotes, and a crowd of the citizens, adopted a plan and made their way to the imperial palace. For a long time they discussed what should be done and how the struggle between the two elected rivals should be settled. It was God’s will that with one mind they should settle on the person of the above named Sergius, then a venerable priest. Taking him from the midst of the people, they brought him into the oratory of Christ’s martyr the blessed Caesarius, which is inside the imperial palace, and from there they led him to the Lateran episcopium with praise and acclamation.'

....

Much later, during conflict with the emperor in Constantinople over doctrine:

Exercitus autem Ravennatis ingressus per portam beati Petri apostoli cum armis et turba in Lateranense episcopio venit, pontificem videre estuans, quem fama vulgante per nocte sublatum et in navigio missum fuisse cognoverant.

'The army of Ravenna entered the city by
St Peter’s Gate with weapons, and the crowd came to the Lateran Episcopium, burning to see the pontiff whom they understood from a rumour that was going around had been smuggled out by night and put on a ship.'

....

After the incident above (which ends well for Sergius), the Life lists his many works of embellishment and repair in churches in and around Rome - for which see E01729.

Qui sepultus est in basilica beati Petri apostoli VI id. septemb. indictione XIIII, Tiberio Augusto.

'He was buried in the basilica of the blessed Peter on 8 September in the 14th indiction, while Tiberius was emperor.'


Text: Duchesne 1887, 371-376.
Translation: Davis 2010, 80-85, lightly modified.

Cult Places

Cult building - independent (church)
Cult building - dependent (chapel, baptistery, etc.)

Places Named after Saint

Gates, bridges and roads

Non Liturgical Activity

Burial ad sanctos

Protagonists in Cult and Narratives

Ecclesiastics - bishops
Ecclesiastics - lesser clergy
Soldiers
Crowds

Source

The Liber Pontificalis consists of a series of very short lives of popes. The preface attributes it to pope Damasus (366-384), but this attribution is obviously false. According to Louis Duchesne, the first modern editor of the Liber Pontificalis, the original series of lives was written in Rome by an anonymous author, probably a member of the lesser clergy, in the 530s, and contained the lives from *Peter the Apostle to Felix IV (ob. 530). Shortly after, before 546, the text was re-edited by another anonymous author and only this edition survives. The first edition, however, can be reconstituted on the basis of its two epitomes (and the second edition). The second edition started to be continued systematically from the time of pope Honorius (625–638). It should be noted that Theodor Mommsen dated both editions of the Liber Pontificalis to the 7th century, but his opinion is widely rejected and the commonly accepted dating is that of Duchesne.

For the pre-Constantinian period (before 312), the credibility of the
Liber Pontificalis is very low. The chronology is confused, and details concerning the personal lives, decisions and ordinations of the bishops of Rome at best reflect what people in the 6th century trusted to be true, at worst are a pure invention of the author. The situation changes with the later lives. Already the information of 4th-century papal foundations and offerings are generally trustworthy. The early 6th-century evidence, based on the author's first hand knowledge is even better, though still imperfect.

Discussion

The titular church of saint Susanna (Santa Susanna alle Terme di Diocleziano) is located on the Quirinal Hill.

The oratory of St Sergius was part of the Lateran complex.

The oratory of St Caesarius was within the imperial palace on the Palatine, first reliably recorded in 603 (see E06448). Its origins and precise location are fully discussed by Augenti.

The gate of St Peter is the ancient Porta Cornelia.


Bibliography

Edition:
Duchesne, L., Le Liber pontificalis. 2 vols (Paris: E. Thorin, 1886-1892) (with substantial introduction and commentary).

Translation:
Davis, R., The Book of Pontiffs (Liber Pontificalis) (Translated Texts for Historians 6; 3rd ed.; Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2010).

Further reading:
Augenti, A., Il Palatino nel medio evo. Archeologia e topografia (secoli VI-XIII) (Roma 1996), 41-42 and 50-52.

Krautheimer, R.,
Corpus Basilicarum Christianarum Romae: The early Christian Basilicas of Rome (IV–IX Centuries), (Vatican City 1937–1977).

Brandenburg, H.,
Ancient churches of Rome from the fourth to the seventh century: the dawn of Christian architecture in the West, (Turnhout 2005).


Record Created By

Robert Wiśniewski

Date of Entry

Related Saint Records
IDNameName in SourceIdentity
S00036Peter, the ApostlePetrusCertain
S00397Silvester, bishop of Rome, ob. 336SilvesterCertain
S00892Susanna, virgin and martyr of RomeSusannaCertain
S00893Caesarius and his companions Julianus, Felix and Eusebius, martyrs of TerracinaCaesariusCertain
S00897Sergius, bishop of Rome, ob. 701SergiusCertain


Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Robert Wiśniewski, Cult of Saints, E01701 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01701