Caesarius, bishop of Arles, in his Sermons 219 and 220, celebrates the feast of *Stephen (the First Martyr, S00020). Written in Latin at Arles (southern Gaul), 503/542.
Evidence ID
E07570
Type of Evidence
Literary - Sermons/Homilies
Major author/Major anonymous work
Caesarius of Arles
Sermon 219, In natale Sancti Stephani
Brief summary:
Caesarius opens with a reference to the reading from Acts on Stephen’s martyrdom, which the congregation has just heard. In his sermon, Stephen is praised above all for praying for his persecutors; Caesarius encourages his congregation to forgive their enemies, as Stephen had.
Sermon 220, In diem Sancti Stephani
Very brief summary:
This sermon too is focused on Stephen forgiving his persecutors and praying for them.
Text: Morin 1953.
Summary: Bryan Ward-Perkins.
Liturgical ActivitiesService for the saint
Festivals
Service for the saint
Sermon/homily
FestivalsSaint’s feast
Source
After an early career as an ascetic monk, first at the island monastery of Lérins, Caesarius became bishop of Arles in 503, and held this post, through many political vicissitudes, until his death in 542 (for his Life see E06283).Caesarius acquired a considerable reputation as a preacher, delivering sermons in a straightforward style and language, with limited use of rhetorical effects; most of his sermons address issues of Christian morality and practice, and the handful that he delivered on the feast days of saints are often concerned with proper behaviour at their festivals. His sermons were popular, and are widely attested in the manuscript tradition.
Germain Morin, the most recent collector and editor of his sermons, attributed nearly 250, in whole or in part, to Caesarius; many, according to Morin, are reworkings of earlier sermons, with additions by Caesarius. Although Morin's attributions are not always certain, we have accepted them without question, since to look into this issue is beyond the scope of our project. Morin divided the sermons into five groups: sermons or admonitions on various topics (1-80), sermons on Scripture (81-186), seasonal sermons (187-213), sermons on the saints and feast days (214-232), and sermons to monks (233-238).
Bibliography
Edition:Morin, G., Sancti Caesarii Arelatensis sermones, pars altera (Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 104; Turnhout: Brepols, 1953), 867-870 and 871-873.
Translation:
Mueller, M.M., Caesarius of Arles, Sermons, vol. 3 (Fathers of the Church 66; Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 1973), 127-132 and 132-134.
Further reading:
Klingshirn, W.E., Caesarius of Arles: The Making of a Christian Community in Late Antique Gaul (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994).
Record Created By
Bryan Ward-Perkins
Date of Entry
20/05/2019
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00030 | Stephen, the First Martyr | Certain |
|---|
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