According to lemmas in medieval manuscripts, several sermons of Augustine of Hippo, in which no specific saints are mentioned, were delivered in the cult places of various martyrs in Carthage at various moments between 391 and 430.
E01942
Literary - Sermons/Homilies
Augustine of Hippo, Sermones
Sermon 13. Lemma:
Sermo habitus ad mensam sancti Cypriani VI kl. Iun. de psalmo ubi dicit 'Erudimini omnes qui iudicatis terram'
'Sermon delivered at the altar of saint Cyprian on the 6th day before the kalends of June (27 May) on the psalm in which he says: Take counsel all you who judge the earth.'
Sermon 14. Lemma:
Sermo habitus Carthagine in Basilica Novarum die Dominica de versu psalmi 'Tibi derelictus est pauper pupillo tu eris adiutor'.
'Sermon delivered in Carthage in the Basilica Novarum, on the verse of the psalm: 'To thee is the poor man left: thou wilt be a helper to the orphan.'
Sermon 15. Lemma:
Sermo habitus in regione tertia in Basilica Petri Carthagine de versu psalmi 'Domine dilexi decorem domus tue'
'Sermon delivered in the third region, in the Basilica of Peter in Carthage, on the verse of the psalm Lord, I have loved the glory of your house'.
Sermon 16A. Lemma:
Sermo habitus in Basilica Maiorum die Dominica XIIII Kal. Iul. De responsorio psalmi tricesimi octavi 'Exaudi orationem meam et precem meam Domine' et de muliere in adulterio deprehensa.
'Sermon delivered in the Basilica Maiorum on the fourteenth day before the Kalends of June (19 May). On the responsory of Psalm 38 Hear my prayer, O Lord, and let my cry come unto thee, and on the women caught in adultery.
Sermon 25A. Lemma:
Sermo sancti Augustini habitus in Basilica Maiorum de responsio psalmi XCIII 'Beatus homo quem tu erudieris Domine, et ex lege tua docueris eum, ut mitiges eum a diebus malignis. Donec fodiatur peccatori fovea'.
'Sermon of St Augustine delivered in the Basilica Maiorum on the responsory of Psalm 103: Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O Lord, and whom you teach out of your law, to give him rest from days of trouble, until a pit is dug for the wicked'.
Sermon 34. Lemma:
Sermo habitus Carthagine Ad Maiores de responsorio psalmi CXLIX 'Cantate Domino canticum novum'.
'Sermon deliverd in Carthage, Ad Maiores on the responsory of Psalm 149 Sing to the Lord a new song.'
Sermon 48. Lemma:
Sermo habitus die dominica in Basilica Celerinae de verbis Micheae prophetae ubi dicitur 'Quid dignum offeram Domino curvem genu Deo excelso et cetera'.
Sermon delivered on the Lord's day in the Basilica of Celerina on the words of the prophet Micah: What shall I offer to the Lord, and how shall bow myself before the high God?
Sermon 49. Lemma:
Sermo habitus ad mensam sancti Cypriani die dominica de verbis Micheae prophetae 'Quid dignum offeram Domino', quomodo servanda sit iustitia et quomodo diligenda misericordia.
'Sermon delivered at the altar of saint Cyprian on the Lord's day, on the words of the prophet Micah What shall I offer to the Lord, on how we should serve justice and love mercy.'
Text: C. Lambot.
Translation: Robert Wiśniewski.
Sermon/homily
Cult PlacesCult building - independent (church)
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.
The lemmas, although known only from medieval manuscripts, are unlikely to be invented at a later date outside Africa. The following dating of the sermons has been proposed:
Sermo 13: Kunzelman, 1931, p. 466 - 412-416; Lambot, 1961, p. 175 - 418. 27 May - the feast of *Cyprian, in the basilica at the place of his martyrdom.
Sermon 14: 418 - Lambot, 1961, p. 184
Sermon 15: probably 418 - Lambot, 1961, p. 192
Sermon 16A: 18 June 411 - Kunzelmann, 1931, p. 502
Sermon 34: No date has been proposed.
Sermons 48-49: preached on two consecutive Sundays, date unknown.
Discussion
Sermon 13 and 49 - The Mensa Cypriani commemorated the place of *Cyprian's burial.
Sermon 14 - the Basilica Novarum was a place of the veneration of the Scillitan martyrs.
Sermon 15 - the Basilica Petri in the 'third region' of Carthage is not identified.
Sermons 16 A, 25 A and 34 - the Basilica Maiorum contained the tombs of *Perpetua and Felicitas, as attested by Victor of Vita, see E01969
Sermon 48 - the Basilica Celerinae in which Augustine also preached Sermon 174 and his Enarratio in Ps 99, is mentioned by Victor of Vita (History of the Persecution I.9; E01969), where it seems to be the same church as that of the Scillitan marytrs. It is not certain whether the name Celerina commemorates a martyr (possibly *Celerina, martyr of Carthage, S03073, mentioned by Cyprian), or the basilica's founder.
Bibliography
EditionLambot, C., Sermones de Vetere Testamento (1-50) (Corpus Christianorum. Series Latina, 41; Turnhout, 1961).
Further reading
Kunzelmann, A., Die Chronologie der Sermones des hl. Augustinus, Vatican, 1931.
Robert Wiśniewski
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00009 | Perpetua, Felicitas and their companions, martyrs of Carthage | Certain | S00411 | Cyprian, bishop and martyr of Carthage | Certain | S00913 | Scillitan Martyrs, martyrs in Carthage from Scillium | Certain | S03073 | Celerina, Laurentius and Egnatius, martyrs of Carthage | Celerina | Uncertain |
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