Paulinus of Nola, in one of his poems (Natalicium 11), describes the translation to Constantinople of the relics of *Timothy (the disciple of Paul, S00466) and *Andrew (the Apostle, S00288), attributing this to a desire by Constantine to provide the city with protectors as great as those of Rome; the poem also tells how, at this time, small fragments of these relics were detached and distributed; some are housed and venerated at the shrine of *Felix (priest and confessor of Nola, S00000) at Cimitile/Nola (southern Italy). Written in Latin at Nola, c. 405.
E05132
Literary - Poems
Literary - Hagiographical - Other saint-related texts
Paulinus of Nola
Paulinus of Nola, Natalicium 11, verses 329-363, [AD 405]
Paulinus describes the translation of the relics of Timothy and Andrew to Constantinople (see E04767 for the broad context of this account). This translation Paulinus attributes to Constantine, and the emperor's wish to emulate in his new city the protection offered to Rome by Peter and Paul:
Ut apostolica muniret moenia laetus (line 335)
Corporibus; tunc Andream devexit Achivis
Timotheumque Asia: geminis ita turribus exstat
Constantinopolis magnae caput aemula Romae,
Verius hoc similis Romanis culmine muris
Quod Petrum Paulumque pari Deus ambitione (340)
Compensavit ei, meruit quia sumere Pauli
Discipulum cum fratre Petri. . . .
'. . . so that he could happily defend his walls with the bodies of apostles. He then removed Andrew from the Greeks and Timothy from Asia; and so Constantinople now stands with twin towers, vying to match the hegemony of great Rome through the eminence that God bestowed on her, for He counterbalanced Peter and Paul with a protection as great, since Constantinople gained the disciple of Paul and the brother of Peter.'
These relics effected miracles at the places where they stopped on the journey. When they arrived at their destination, the couriers were encouraged to take fragments of the relics with them:
Inde igitur suadente fide data copia fidis (line 353)
Tunc comitum studiis, quaedam ut sibi pignora vellent
Ossibus e sanctis merito decerpere fructu,
Ut quasi mercedem officii pretiumque laboris
Praesidia ad privata domum sibi quisque referrent.
Ex illo sacri cineres quasi semina vitae
Diversis sunt sparsa locis, quaque osse minuto
De modica sacri stipe corporis exiguus ros (360)
Decidit in gentes, illic pia gratia fontes
Et fluvios vitae generavit gutta favillae;
Inde in nos etiam stillavit copia Christi
Dives et in minimis, nam nos quoque sumpsimus istic
Carnis apostolicae sacra pignora pulvere parvo (365)
Quae sanctus, nostri dominusque paterque cubilis,
Et custos animae, nostrae et tutela salutis,
Felix vicina sibi comminus aede recepit
Quae reliquis eius aetate recentior aulis
Exiguos cineres et magnos servat honores, (370)
Servaturque magis custodibus ipsa patronis;
Hence therefore, encouraged by faith, an opportunity [was] given then to the faithful labours of the escorts, that they might wish to break off (vellent . . . decerpere) from the holy bones some relics (quaedam pignora) for themselves as a deserved reward (merito fructu); so that, like a payment for office and a wage for labour, each should bring home private protection (praesidia privata) for himself. As a result, the sacred ashes have been scattered over different areas like life-giving seeds. Wherever a drop of dew has fallen on men in the shape of a particle of bone, the tiny gift from a consecrated body, holy grace has brought forth fountains in that place, and the tiny drops of ashes have begotten rivers of life. From this source Christ's abundance, so rich in its tiniest forms, has fallen on us also; for we too have received, in the form of a fragment of dust, the sacred tokens of the apostles' flesh. Saint Felix, lord and father of our lodging, guardian of our soul, protector of our salvation, has accepted these in the neighbouring shrine close by. This church, which is newer than the others, preserves the great distinction of these tiny ashes, and is itself more securely preserved by its patron guardians.'
Text: Dolveck 2015.
Translation: Walsh 1975, changed in lines 353-7 (with the help of David Lambert), in order to offer a more literal translation of this section of the text.
Summary: Frances Trzeciak.
Miracle after death
Unspecified miracle
Miraculous protection - of people and their property
RelicsBodily relic - entire body
Bodily relic - corporeal ashes/dust
Division of relics
Bodily relic - bones and teeth
Division of relics
Transfer, translation and deposition of relics
Transfer/presence of relics from distant countries
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - lesser clergy
Theorising on SanctityConsiderations about the validity of cult forms
Source
The Natalicia are a series of poems which were composed by Paulinus of Nola (ob. 431), to be delivered annually on Felix’s feast day (14 January) between 395 and 408. These poems were written and delivered before Paulinus became bishop of Nola. Natalicium 1 was composed in Spain whilst the rest of the poems were written and delivered at Nola. They provide an insight into the development of the cult of Felix in Nola under Paulinus. They are often understood in the classical tradition of ‘birthday poems’ – in this case Felix’s birthday being the day he was reborn in heaven. Yet Roberts (2010) has argued they equally incorporate tropes from epideictic poetry and speeches delivered at public festivals. Additionally, Nat. 3 and 4 – sometimes called the Vita Felicis – draw on hagiographic tropes.The Natalicia have been re-edited in their original order by Dolveck (2015), the numbering we follow. A concordance with the numbering of Wilhelm Hartel's earlier edition (1894) is offered below:
Natalicium 1 (395) - Carmen 12
Natalicium 2 (396) - Carmen 13
Natalicium 3 (397) - Carmen 14
Natalicium 4 (398) - Carmen 15
Natalicium 5 (399) - Carmen 16
Natalicium 6 (400) - Carmen 18
Natalicium 7 (401) - Carmen 23
Natalicium 8 (402) - Carmen 26
Natalicium 9 (403) - Carmen 27
Natalicium 10 (404) - Carmen 28
Natalicium 11 (405) - Carmen 19
Natalicium 12 (406) - Carmen 20
Natalicium 13 (407) - Carmen 21
Natalicium 14 (408) - Carmen 29
Discussion
Here Paulinus dates the translation to Constantinople of the bodies of Andrew and Timothy to the reign of Constantine, not to that of Constantius II; Paulinus' testimony is, however, late and cannot be used in the argument as to when this translation actually took place.A particularly striking of this account is Paulinus' statement that the emissaries bearing the holy bodies to Constantinople were encouraged to detach small pieces from them as relics. The division and distribution of both corporeal and contact relics was a practice Paulinus eagerly took part in. For example, fragmentary relics of various apostles and martyrs (including Andrew) rested in altars in the basilica complex at Nola/Cimitile and the church founded by Paulinus in Funda/Fondi (southern Italy) (see E05104 and E04768). Many of these were sent by friends and contacts. For example relics of Gervasius and Protasius - whose full body relics rested in Milan - were sent to Paulinus by Ambrose of Milan (ob. 397). Similarly, he received a fragment of the True Cross from Melania the Elder. He then sent a splinter of this relic to his correspondent, Sulpicus Severus, so it could be placed in his church at Primuliacum (modern day Prémillac) in southern Gaul (see E02995).
Bibliography
EditionDolveck, F., Carmina, Paulini Nolani (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina 21; Turnhout: Brepols, 2015), 293–493.
Translation
Walsh, P.G., The Poems of Paulinus of Nola (Ancient Christian Writers 40; New York: Newman Press, 1975) 73-105, 114-201, 209-220, 254-307.
Further Reading
Moliner, M., "La basilique funéraire de la rue Malaval à Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône)," Gallia: Archéologie de la France antique 69:2 (2012), 131-36.
Mratschek, S., "Multis enim notissima est sanctitas loci: Paulinus and the Gradual Rise of Nola as a Center of Christian Hospitality," Journal of Early Christian Studies, 9:4 (2001), 511-53.
Trout, D., Paulinus of Nola: Life, Letters and Poems (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999).
Roberts, M., "Rhetoric and the Natalicia of Paulinus of Nola," Quaderni Urbinati di Cultura Classica, 95:2 (2010), 53-69.
Frances Trzeciak
26/01/2018
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00000 | Felix, priest and confessor of Nola | Felix | Certain | S00008 | Paul, the Apostle | Paulus | Certain | S00036 | Peter, the Apostle | Petrus | Certain | S00288 | Andrew, the Apostle | Andreas | Certain | S00466 | Timothy, the disciple of Paul the Apostle | Timotheus | Certain |
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