Valerius, hermit of Bierzo (north-west Hispania), in his Replicatio sermonum, mentions the construction of a basilica in Bierzo, dedicated to a martyr Felix (probably the martyr of Gerona, S00408), on the mountain in which a pagan shrine stood before; all in Valerius' lifetime. Written in Latin, near the end of the 7th century.
E01798
Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)
Valerius of Bierzo, Replicatio sermonum
1. Cumque in excelsi montis cacumine stulta populi sacrilega caecitatis dementia profana daemonum delubra impie atque insipienter paganorum ritu excoleret, fidelium Christianorum ope tandem probosa obscenitas destruitur, opeque omnipotentis Domini in nomine sancti Felicis martyris basilica construitur. Hic vero locus, licet, ut supra declaratur, sit summae necessitudinis penuria occupatus, sed ex fidei integritate poscentibus cita exauditio in orationibus impetratur.
'Although on the top of a mountain height people in the stupid and wicked madness of their blindness were impiously and foolishly venerating unholy shrines of demons according to pagan rites, this outrageous obscenity was finally destroyed by the help of faithful Christians, and with the aid of the almighty Lord a basilica was built in the name of saint Felix the martyr. Although this is a place straitened, as is stated above, by the misery of utter necessity, nonetheless here a speedy hearing is granted to those who ask in complete faith.'
Text and Translation: Aherne 1949: 114-115.
Cult building - independent (church)
Non Liturgical ActivityConstruction of cult buildings
Appropriation of older cult sites
MiraclesMiracle after death
Unspecified miracle
Theorising on SanctityRelationships with pagan practices
Source
Replicatio sermonum is the second part the Ordo querimoniae, an autobiographical trilogy written by the hermit Valerius from the region of Bierzo in the northern Iberian Peninsula. He relates his sufferings, attacks of the devil, and conflicts he was involved in during his monastic life. The exact dates of Valerius' life and the composition of his works cannot be established; it can only be said that he lived and worked in roughly the second half of the seventh century.Bibliography
Edition and translation:Aherne, C.M., Valerio of Bierzo, an Ascetic of the Late Visigothic Period (diss. Washington D.C. 1949) 68-109.
Marta Szada / Robert Wiśniewski
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00408 | Felix, martyr of Gerona | Felix | Certain |
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