The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity

The Second Book on the Life of Holy Radegund (De uita sanctae Radegundis liber II, BHL 7049, CPL 1053)

Summary

(Prologue) Baudonivia addresses Abbess Dedimia and the 'all the congregation of the glorious Lady Radegund' (omni congregationi gloriosi dominae Redegundis), who have enjoined her to write this work (iniungitis mihi opus agere): she states that she will not repeat what the 'apostolic man' Bishop (Venantius) Fortunatus has already said (non ea quae uir apostolicus Fortunatus episcopus de beatae uitae composuit iteramus).

(1) On Radegund's background and her marriage to King Chlothar. (2) How she ordered a pagan temple to be burnt down. (3) How she left the king and retired to the villa he had given her at Saix, where she had a vision of a 'ship in the shape of a man, with men sitting on all its limbs, and herself on its knee' (uidit in uisu nauem in hominis specie et in totis membris eius sedentes homines, se uero in eius genu sedentem). (4) How she imposed greater austerities on herself after she heard that the king wished to take her back, and sought the prayers of the holy man Iohannes of Chinon (S01254), (5) and, with Chlothar's arrangement (ordinatio), founded for herself the monastery at Poitiers, (6) before hearing through messengers that he had come to Tours with his son Sigibert, 'as if for the sake of devotion, so that he might easily come to Poitiers to take his queen' (aduenit quasi deuotionis causa, quo facilius Pictauis accederet, ut suam reginam acciperet).

(7) How Radegund wrote a letter to Bishop Germanus of Paris to protect her, who 'weeping, prostrated himself at the king's feet before the tomb of the blessed *Martin' (bishop of Tours, ob. 397, S00050), asking him not to go to Tours; how the king in turn then 'prostrated himself before the threshold of Saint Martin at the feet of the apostolic man Germanus, asking that he might seek for him the forgiveness of blessed Radegund' (uir... lacrimans prosternit se pedibus regis ante sepulchrum beati Martini... rex... prosternit se et ille ante limina sancti Martini pedibus apostolici uiri Germani, rogat, ut sic pro ipso ueniam peteret beatae Radegundi); how the king's 'wicked counsellors' (mali consiliarii) then defecated their own intestines in the manner of Arius, as divine punishment for opposing the 'blessed queen' (ultio diuina... qui contra beatam reginam egerunt); and how Germanus then went to Poitiers and prostrated himself before Radegund's feet in the monastery's oratory dedicated to *Mary (mother of Christ, S00033), and pleaded on the king's behalf.

(8-9) On Radegund's humility, piety and austerities as abbess. (10) On a cask of wine at her monastery which miraculously never emptied, and how she sought to keep peace between the kings. (11) How she healed the eye of the matrona Mammezo, who came to see her in the monastery and invoked her name (inuocatio nominis sui). (12) On the servant Vinoberga, who sat on the queen's throne (cathedra beatae reginae) after her death, and was set aflame, but who was later healed of her burns by praying for Radegund's mercy.

(13) On Radegund's efforts to collect 'the relics of all the saints' (reliquias sanctorum omnium). How, when still at Saix, she received from the priest Magnus relics of *Andrew (the Apostle, S00288) and many other unnamed *saints, which she placed over an altar: later, when she fell asleep after keeping vigil before them, the voice of 'a most dazzling man' (uir splendidissimus) told her that "there are gathered here not only all the relics which the priest Magnus brought, but all of those which you had collected at the villa of Athies" (non istae solum reliquiae quas presbiter Magnus adtulit, hic sunt tantum, sed quantas in Adtegia uilla congregasti, totae hic conuenerunt).

(14) How, after she had entered the monastery, 'with her most faithful requests she brought together a multitude of saints of so great a size, as the East bears witness, and the North, South and West profess' (quantum multitudinem sanctorum fidelissimis precibus congregauit, hoc oriens testatur, aquilo, auster uel occidents profitetur). How, on her behalf, the priest Reovalis obtained for her the finger of *Mamas (presumably the martyr of Caesarea in Cappadocia, S00436) in Jerusalem (for this story, see E08221).

(15) How the uir inluster Leo was healed of a blindness (caligo) when he slept on the saint's hairshirt (cilicium) in her oratory dedicated to Mary, prompting him to found a basilica for Lady Radegund, for which he gave one 100 solidi.

(16) How, after gathering the relics of saints (post congregatas sanctorum reliquias), Radegund sought to follow the example of *Helena (empress and mother of Constantine, S00185), and petitioned from King Sigibert that he ask the emperor for the wood of Christ's cross; and how Radegund gave no gifts (munera) to the emperor, but 'sent her messengers in the company of the saints whom she ceaselessly invoked' (comitatu sanctorum, quos incessabiliter inuocabat, missos suos direxit): 'but she obtained what she desired – to have residing in one place the blessed wood of the Lord's cross embellished with gold and gems, and the relics of many saints kept in the East' (sed quod sua uota poscebant obtinuit, ut beatum lignum crucis Domini ex auro et gemmis ornatum et multas sanctorum reliquias, quas Oriens retinebat, uno residens loco se habere). How there were those who obstructed the delivery by the imperial legates of this 'wood... with its congregation of saints' (lignum.... cum congregatione sanctorum), during which time Radegund had the cross and relics kept safe in a men's monastery in Tours, where priests sang psalms (in Turonico suo in monasterio uirorum quod condidit, ut et ipsum saluaret, ibi cum psallentio sacerdotum crucem Domini uel pignora sanctorum commendauit). How the cross and relics were at last interred in Radegund's monastery on the king's orders, and how Radegund entrusted the monastery into the protection (commendauit monasterium) of the kings and the 'most serene' Lady Brunhild.

(17) How Radegund sent the emperor 'a simple robe' (simplex uestimentum) as a return gift; and how, sailing there, her messengers almost drowned in a storm before they were saved by invoking her name. Baudonivia remarks that, 'by her invocation, not only Lady Radegund's own people, but all are set free by her power... wherever she is invoked, she kindly listens' (ad eius inuocationem non tantum sui, sed omnes sunt liberati per uirtutem ipsius dominae Radegundis... Ubicumque inuocata fuerit, benigne exaudit). (18) How one of her nuns once saw her drive away a million goat-like demons by making the sign of the cross. (19) How 'birds and beasts obeyed her' (ei aues et bestiae oboediunt).

(20) On Radegund's foreknowledge of her own death; (21) her community's grief when this took place; (22) and their belief that she was taken to heaven by angels. (23) How Bishop Gregory of Tours, who wrote about Radegund in his book of miracles (E00370, E02769), brought her to the monastery's basilica of Saint Mary for burial, (23) whereupon a blind woman was healed. (24) How an argument about whether or not the candles held at the funeral by a circle of attendants, which bore their names (liberae, quae ante eam cereos portauerunt, totae in gyro sepulchri adstabant. Unaquaeque in suo cereo suum nomen dabat scriptum), should be placed within the tomb (in eius sanctum sepulchrum mitti deberent) was miraculously resolved when one fell in. (25) How Abbo, an abbot of Burgundy, was healed at Radegund's tomb of a toothache that nearly killed him.

(26) How 'it is the custom on the feast of the blessed *Hilary (bishop of Poitiers, ob. 367, S00183) to leave the monasteries which are close by around here, in order to celebrate vigils up to the middle of the night, and then after midnight for each abbot to return with his brothers to his own monastery to celebrate the liturgy' (mos est festiuitatem beati Hilarii reliquis monasteriis circumcirca proximis, quae sunt ibi, usque mediam noctem uigilias celebrare, de media nocte unusquisque abbas cum suis fratribus ad suum reuertitur monasterium cursum celebrare): these vigils take place in the episcopal basilica (in beati antistitis basilica uigilauerunt). How, once on this occasion, some demoniacs were healed at Hilary's basilica, and others at Radegund's, because 'just as they were equals in grace, so are they revealed to be equal in power' (sicut aequalis gratiae erant, ita aequalis et uirtus ostenderetur).

(27) How the infirm are healed by cups of water, into which are dipped the end of a cloth kept at Radegund's tomb by its guardian (pallam subteriorem custos eiusdem sacri sepulchri intinxit in calice aquae): miracles are worked there daily.


Text: Krusch 1888
Summary and translations: B. Savill

Service for the saint
Other liturgical acts and ceremonies

Saint’s feast

Cult building - oratory
Cult building - independent (church)
Cult building - monastic
Altar
Burial site of a saint - tomb/grave

Prayer/supplication/invocation
Bequests, donations, gifts and offerings
Visiting graves and shrines
Vigils
Construction of cult buildings
Composing and translating saint-related texts
Visiting/veneration of living saint
Ceremonies at burial of a saint

Miracle during lifetime
Miracle after death
Punishing miracle
Miracle with animals and plants
Healing diseases and disabilities
Exorcism
Revelation of hidden knowledge (past, present and future)
Material support (supply of food, water, drink, money)

Unspecified relic
Contact relic - saint’s possession and clothes
Contact relic - cloth
Contact relic - water and other liquids
Bodily relic - arm/hand/finger
Transfer/presence of relics from distant countries
Bodily relic - entire body

Women
Ecclesiastics - bishops
Ecclesiastics - lesser clergy
Ecclesiastics - abbots
Ecclesiastics - monks/nuns/hermits
Monarchs and their family

Considerations about the hierarchy of saints

Source

Discussion

Bibliography