Augustine of Hippo, in his treatise On the sole baptism, refers to the Roman practice of commemorating all the bishops of the city whose episcopate was irreproachable, and mentions specifically *Stephanus (bishop and martyr of Rome, S00205). Written in Latin, probably in Hippo (Numidia, central North Africa), 410/411.
E01900
Literary - Other
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo, On the Sole Baptism 14.23
Augustine deals with the issue of rebaptism, which he considers to be inspired by the devil. In this context he has to explain why Bishop Stephanus of Rome is commemorated in that city in spite of the fact that he rebaptised heretics. He puts this question in the following way:
Sed uolo mihi soluat iste quaestionem, quandoquidem, cum Romanae ecclesiae per ordinem commemoraret episcopos, inter eos commemorauit et Stephanum, quos episcopatum inlibatum gessisse confessus est.
'But let me solve this question of why the church of Rome, which commemorates its subsequent bishops, whose episcopate is believed to be irreproachable, commemorates among them also Stephanus.'
Text: Petschening 1910, 23.
Translation and Summary: Robert Wiśniewski.
Saint’s feast
Source
Augustine of Hippo was born in 354 in the north African city of Thagaste. He received an education in rhetoric at Carthage, and after a period teaching there moved to Rome, and then in 384 to a public professorship of rhetoric in Milan. In these early years of adulthood Augustine was a Manichaean, but then got disillusioned with this religion, and in Milan in 386, largely under the influence of Ambrose, bishop of the city, he converted to Christianity, and was baptised by Ambrose in 387. Returning to Africa in 388, he was ordained a priest in 391 at Hippo Regius (in the province of Numidia), and rapidly acquired a reputation as a preacher. In 395 he became bishop of Hippo, which he remained until his death in 430. Details of his early life were recorded by Augustine himself in his Confessions, and shortly after his death a pupil and long-time friend, Possidius, wrote his Life, focused on Augustine as an effective Christian writer, polemicist and bishop (E00073).Amongst his many writings, the most informative on the cult of saints are his numerous Sermons, the City of God, and a treatise On the Care of the Dead. The Sermons tell us which saints (primarily African, but with some from abroad) received attention in Hippo, Carthage and elsewhere, and provide occasional details of miracles and cult practices. The City of God records the distribution, and subsequent miracles, of the relics of saint Stephen, after they arrived in Africa from Palestine in around 420. On the Care of the Dead, discusses the possible advantages of burial ad sanctos (in other words, close to a saint), and theorises on the link between the saints who dwell in heaven and their corporeal remains buried in their graves. In these works, and others, Augustine reveals his own particular beliefs about the saints, their relics and their miracles.
This treatise was written against the Donatists, shortly before the Conference of Carthage in 411, which put an end to the official existence of their Church.
Discussion
This is interesting evidence that Augustine was aware of the list of bishops commemorated (though not necessarily venerated) in Rome.Bibliography
Edition:Petschenig, M., Augustinus, De unico baptismo (Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, 53; Vienna: Tempsky, 1910), 3-34.
Robert Wiśniewski
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00205 | Stephanus, bishop and martyr of Rome, with many companions | Stephanus | Certain |
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