Pope Martin I, in a letter of 649/50 to Amandus, bishop of Maastricht (north-east Gaul), refers to relics of unnamed saints that he is giving the bishop. Written in Latin in Rome.
Evidence ID
E06881
Type of Evidence
Documentary texts - Letters
Pope Martin I, Letter to Amandus ('Fraternitatis tuae studio', JE 2059/JH ?3357)
At the conclusion of the letter, most of which deals with other matters:
Reliquias uero sanctorum, de quibus praesentium lator nobis ammonuit, dare praecipimus [...]
'We have given instructions to give the relics of saints, about which the bearer of the present [letters] asked ...'
Text: Riedinger 1984, 424.
Translation: Frances Trzeciak.
RelicsUnspecified relic
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Unspecified relic
Transfer, translation and deposition of relics
Transfer/presence of relics from distant countries
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Ecclesiastics - Popes
Source
This letter has survived by two routes. It is appended to manuscripts of the Latin version of the acts of the Lateran Synod of 649, held to condemn the doctrine of Monotheletism which had been adopted in the Eastern Empire (see e.g. E08045). Martin sent a copy of these to Amandus together with this letter, and they and the letter were subsequently copied together (on this aspect of the letter, see Price et al. 2014, 78-80). The other route of transmission is via the Carolingian author Milo of Saint-Amand (ob. 872) who wrote a Life of Amandus in verse (BHL 333), to which he appended some additional material related to Amandus, known as the Suppletio (BHL 339), including this letter. Jaffé-Herbers (JH) indicates doubt about the letter's authenticity (signified by the question mark in its JH number): this is because the editor of the Acts of the Lateran Synod, Riedinger, argued that the letter was written in Greek and that the extant text is a translation. His argument is effectively countered by Price et al. 2014, 391-2.The letter is not dated, but it was written in the aftermath of the Lateran synod, which took place in October 649.
Discussion
Amandus (c. 590-c. 676), the missionary bishop of Maastricht (S00735), had written to Pope Martin (649-655) in a non-extant letter, complaining that some of his clergy had lapsed into sin and expressing a wish to retire from his see, as well as requesting relics and books. Martin's reply indicates that relics were sent (he was unable to send the books), and tries to dissuade Amandus from resigning, though in fact he did so shortly afterwards. Much of the letter is devoted to explaining the papal position in the Monothelete controversy, which had put the papacy in conflict with the East Roman emperor; Martin sends Amandus a copy of the acts of the recent synod held on the issue at the Lateran and asks him to circulate them to other bishops and hold a synod to endorse the papal position.The letter's reference to relics is very brief and without detail, but it should be seen in the light of our other sources about Amandus, such as his Vita antiqua (E06269), the probably 8th c. Vita prima (BHL 332), and the Life of Gertrude of Nivelles (E06317). These show that Amandus had a role in the foundation of at least three monasteries, for which he would no doubt have sought relics, and relate that he twice visited Rome himself and brought back relics. In line with papal practice in this period, the relics sent to him by Martin are likely to have been contact relics such as pieces of cloth which had been in contact with the tomb of St Peter (sanctuaria).
Bibliography
Editions and translations:Riedinger, R., Concilium Lateranense a. 649 celebratum (Acta Conciliorum Oecumenicorum II/1; Berlin, 1984), 422-424.
Krusch, B., Passiones vitaeque sanctorum aevi Merovingici III (Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores Rerum Merovingicarum 5; Hannover and Leipzig, 1910), 452-456.
Patrologia Latina 87, 135-138.
English translation in Price et al. 2014 (below), 408-412.
Further reading:
Jaffé, P., revised K. Herbers et al., Regesta pontificum Romanorum: Ab condita ecclesia ad annum post Christum natum MCXCVIII, 3rd ed. (Göttingen, 2016- ). [= JH]
Price, R., with P. Booth and C. Cubitt, The Acts of the Lateran Synod of 649 (Translated Texts for Historians 61; Liverpool, 2014).
Record Created By
David Lambert, Frances Trzeciak
Date of Entry
20/09/2022
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00518 | Saints, unnamed | Certain |
|---|
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