The Latin Life of *Memmius (first bishop of Châlons-en-Champagne, S01285) tells how Memmius was sent from Rome by *Peter (the Apostle, S00036) to preach in Gaul, together with *Dionysius (bishop and martyr of Paris, S00349), *Eucharius (bishop of Trier, 00469), *Sixtus and Sinicius (first bishops of Reims, S02452; Sinicius identified in the Life as bishop of Soissons), and Savinianus, first bishop of Sens, six further unnamed bishops, and two deacons. When one of these dies on the journey, Memmius brings him back to life by placing St Peter's garment on his body. Miracles performed by Memmius at Châlons are described, by which he overcomes pagan opposition to his presence, and is established as bishop; he is joined by his sister, Poma, who also performs miracles. After eighty years as bishop of Châlons, he dies and is buried in a church there, where miracles continue at his tomb. Written in Latin, presumably in Châlons (northern Gaul), at an uncertain date, no later than the 9th c. Full text, and full English translation.
E07577
Literary - Hagiographical - Lives
Life of Saint Memmius (Vita sancti Memmii, BHL 5907)
(1.) Igitur beatissimus Mimius episcopus, nobilis genere, de civitate Roma oriundus fuit. Sed cum a sancto Petro apostolo in episcopum benedictus fuisset, ad partes Galliarum ad prædicandum verbum Dei missus est, una cum fratribus suis sancto Dionysio, futuro Parisiensi episcopo, & sancto Xestio Remensium episcopo, & sancto Euchario Treverensi episcopo, & sancto Saviniano Senonis episcopo, & sancto Senecio Suessionis episcopo, & aliis sex episcopis, & Donatiano diacono, & Domitiano subdiacono, qui quasi ex uno utero in Christo fratres esse noscuntur. Hi, Domino imperante, adprædictas partes directi fuerunt, & cum accepta ordinatione Pontifices velociter festinassent, & Roma indecem & octo millibus ad mansionem divertissent; contigit unum ex officialibus S. Mimii, Domitianum scilicet subdiaconum, qui a beato Petro apostolo cum ipso fuerat ad officium prædicandi destinatus, defunctum fuisse.
(2.) Sed cum beatissimus Mimius ipsius subdiaconi solatium ad officium sibi cognovisset deesse: eo sepulto, continue ad sanctum Petrum reversus, lacrymabiliter ita suggessit, dicens: Domine sanctissime magister, cognoscat sanctitas tua, Domitianum subdiaconum, quem mecum ad verbum Domini gentibus prædicandum direxeras, in itinere modo fuisse defunctum. Quod cum beatissimus Petrus audisset, cui a Domino potestas ligandi ac solvendi data esse dignoscitur, divina inspiratione permotus, beato Mimio episcopo fiducialiter respondit, dicens: Noli, frater, contristari de transitu filii nostri, sed accipe vestimentum meum, & revertere ad locum sepulturæ eius, & super corpusculum eius impone; ita dicens: Imperat tibi Dominus Iesus Christus & magister noster sanctus Petrus, ut qualiter tibi mandavit, mecum ad verbum Domini gentibus prædicandum ambulare non tardes, ut lumen Dominicum per nos omnibus pateat.
(3.) Accepta igitur oratione beati Petri apostoli, cum ad locum ipsum ubi defunctus fuerat, pervenisset, & super corpusculum eius vestimentum beati Pontificis imposuisset, auxiliante Domino, continuo surrexit incolumis, qui mortuus iacebat in pulvere. Tunc ait ad eum sanctus Mimius: Surge frater Domitiane, eamus ad locum ubi a sancto Magistro nostro sumus destinati, & ad civitatem Catalaunicam recto itinere properemus. Multas quidem virtutes per servos suos Dominus eo tempore in itinere dignatus est ostendere. Recipiebant enim debiles gressum, cæci visum,surdi auditum, & in qualibet infirmitate positi beati Mimii precibus continuo ad pristinam sanitatem perveniebant. Cumque iam ad dictam civitatem Catalaunis, ubi directi fuerant, accessissent, & ipsos propter gentilitatis errorem, quo premebatur, noluissent accipere, divina inspiratione permotus, cum silentio ad speluncam deserti, quæ vocabatur Buxeria, a civitate fere milliario uno distantem ire destinavit, ubi die ac nocte vigilabat, & orationibus vacabat: implevit autem ibi circulum anni.
(4.) Postea vero contigit ut quidam nobilis puer in fluviolo, qui est ad portam ipsius civitatis, nomine Nauta, fati munus implesset, & cum hoc parentibus nuntiatum fuisset, & super corpusculum ipsius defuncti planctum validissimum excitarent, audientes beatum Mimium virtutes assiduas in spelunca operantem, ad eius præsentiam devote accesserunt, lacrimabiliter postulantes, ut filium eorum suis orationibus sibi redderet incolumem. Beatus vero Mimius eorum gemitibus compatiens, genibus provolutis in terra, Domino fusis precibus supplicavit, ut puerum eis redderet vivum, & populus in errore gentilitatis positus adfidei cognitionem perveniret. Beatissimus itaque vir, petitione a Domino obtenta, surrexit de pulvere & puerum astantibus parentibus vivum & incolumem suscitavit de morte.
(5.) Qui continuo Beatissimi gratia, lavacrum expetiit sacri fontis, & dum parentes ipsius pueri tantam virtutem per servum Dei factam vidissent, postulaverunt a sacerdote, ut cum dignis honoribus ad civitatem Catalaunicam, ubi ipsum antea propter gentilitatis errorem reciperenoluerant, ad pontificalem cathedram accederet. Et dum ipsum cum summa diligentia congregata multitudo populi ad ipsam civitatem adduceret, ad portam civitatis obviam habuit leprosos tres, & cæcos similiter. Quibus in nomine sanctæ Trinitatis imposuit Crucis vexillum, & ad pristinam sanitatem ipsos statim perduxit. Ingressusque civitatem occurrit ei quidam homo dæmonium habens, quem continuo similiter ad sanitatem pristinam revocavit.
(6.) Postea vero omni tempore vitæ suæ eleemosyna, ieiuniis, vigiliis insistens, omnem populum Catalaunicæ civitatis divinis eruditionibus, ut bonus pastor assidue gubernavit. Igitur dum ad speluncam, ubi fuerat antea conversatus; quadam die ad orationem venisset, invenit quemdam hominem claudum in grabato iacentem, quem orationibus suis sanum reddidit & currentem. Et dum fama beati Mimii in omnem terram auctore Domino, coram omnibus divulgaretur, completo septimo episcopatus sui anno, germana ejus, nomine sancta Poma, ipsum expetiit. Quam cum digno honore recepit, & postea tempore vitæ suæ, ut decuit gubernavit. Illa vero mortuos suscitavit, ægrotos curavit.
(7.) Et ita beatus Mimius pontifex episcopatum suum octoginta annis rexit, ut apostolatum suum divina pietas ei duplicaret in corpore, quem fidelem servum probaverat in fide. Qui obiit Nonas Augusti, & sepultus est in oppido civitatis, ubi antea fuerat conversatus, ubi etiam digna basilica, ut decuit ipsum, in altum noscitur ædificata fastigium. Postea vero in eius locum S. Donatianus & Domitianus subdiaconus, quem mortuum ordinatione sancti Petri suscitaverat, qui etiam cum ipso fuerant ad prædicandum directi, episcopatum in sua Catalaunica civitate in pace acceperunt. Ad cuius beati Mimii sepulcrum multas virtutes assidue divina pietas dignata est ostendere, ubi recipiunt cæci visum, debiles gressus, surdi auditum, & dæmonia fugantur, & qualibet infirmitate oppressi ibidem cum fide integra postulantes, continuo pristinam recipiunt sanitatem. Regnante Domino nostro Iesu Christo, cui est honor & gloria in secula seculorum. Amen
'(1.) The most blessed bishop Memmius was born of noble family in Rome. When he had been blessed as bishop by the holy apostle Peter, he was sent to preach the Word of God in the regions of Gaul. He was accompanied by his brothers [in Christ], who were also to become holy bishops: Dionysius, of Paris; Sestius, of Reims; Eucharius, of Trier; Savinianus, of Senon; Senecius, of Soissons and six other bishops. Also with him were the deacon, Donatianus and the subdeacon, Domitianus. They were known as brothers in Christ, as if born from the same womb. At the Lord’s command, these men were allotted to their respective regions. Having accepted ordination, the bishops had made great haste and had stopped at a lodging, eighteen miles from Rome. While there, it so happened that one of Memmius’ staff, namely the subdeacon Domitianus, died. He had been marked out by the blessed apostle Peter for the duty of preaching with Memmius.
(2.) When the most blessed Memmius realised that he would no longer have Domitianus’ help in his task, he buried him and immediately returned to the apostle Peter. He tearfully made this report: “Most holy Lord and Master, Your Holiness should be aware that the subdeacon Domitianus, whom you appointed to help me in preaching the Word of the Lord to the pagans, has recently died on the journey.” When the most blessed Peter, to whom the Lord had given the power of discernment to bind or loose, heard the news, divinely inspired, he gave this confident reply to the blessed bishop Memmius: “Do not be saddened, brother, at the passing of our son, but take this garment of mine, return to the place of his burial and place it on top of the corpse, saying as you do so, ‘The Lord Jesus Christ and our holy master Peter command you, just as he ordered you before, not to delay in walking with me, to preach the Word of the Lord to the pagans, so that the light of Resurrection might shine, through us, for everyone.’ “
(3.) After hearing the speech of the blessed apostle Peter, Memmius returned to the place where Domitianus had died. He placed the blessed pontiff’s garment on top of his corpse. With the Lord’s help, Domitianus, who had been lying dead in the dust, got up at once, safe and sound. Then the holy Memmius said to him: “Rise, brother Domitianus and let us go to the place allotted to us by our holy Master and let us hurry directly to the town of Châlons.” The Lord saw fit to display many miracles through his servants on that journey. Cripples recovered the ability to walk, the blind their sight, the deaf their hearing. Whatever their affliction, people were immediately restored to their former health by the prayers of Memmius. When they reached their appointed destination, Châlons, the citizens, due to the error of their pagan ways, to which they were in thrall, did not wish to receive them. Therefore Memmius, prompted by heaven, decided to retire to a cave in the silent wilderness called Buxeria, about a mile from the town. There he kept vigil day and night, opening himself to prayer. He spent a whole year there.
(4.) Subsequently, a well-born child called Nauta, drowned in the river by the city gate of Châlons. When his parents were informed, they grieved long and hard over their son’s body. Hearing that the blessed Memmius was performing constant miracles in his cave, they faithfully made their way into his presence and tearfully requested that, by his prayers, he might return their son to them, unharmed. The blessed Memmius, pitying their lamentations, threw himself on his knees and poured forth prayers to the Lord, that he might return the boy to them alive and also that the local population, stuck in pagan ignorance, might come to knowledge of the faith. The Lord answered his prayer and the most blessed Memmius raised the boy from the dust and restored him from death, as his parents looked on.
(5.) In thankfulness to the saint, the boy immediately sought the sacred water of baptism. His parents, having witnessed the amazing miracle accomplished through the servant of God, demanded that the bishop should enter the town of Châlons, which had previously refused to receive him because of its pagan ignorance, with all appropriate honour and assume the episcopal chair. A crowd gathered and started to lead Memmius into the city, taking the utmost care. At the gate of the city he met three lepers and three blind men. He placed the sign of the Cross upon them, in the name of the Holy Trinity and immediately restored them to their original health. As he entered the town a man, possessed by demons came up to him. Memmius immediately restored him, as well, to his former health.
(6.) Subsequently, in every moment of the rest of his life, he constantly guided the whole populace of Châlons, as a good shepherd should, with sacred learning; diligent in dispensing alms, fasting and holding vigils. One day, he came to the cave, where he had once lived, to pray. There he found a cripple lying on a pallet. By his prayers he cured him and made him able to run. The repute of the blessed Memmius spread everywhere, with the Lord’s help, and became known to all. In the seventh year of his episcopate, his sister, the blessed Poma, sought him out. He received her with honour and ruled fittingly for the rest of his life. She too brought the dead back to life and cured the sick.
(7.) Memmius ruled as bishop for eighty years. Divine grace, having deemed him a loyal servant in the faith, granted him double the normal span of time in his apostolate. He died on the 5th of August and was buried in the outskirts of the town, [in the cave] where he had once lived. There, a lofty, well-known basilica now stands, a suitable and deserved honour for the man. Subsequently Donatianus and the sub-deacon Domitianus, whom Memmius had raised from the dead at Saint Peter’s command, and who had been sent forth with him to preach the Word of God, succeeded him in peace as bishops of Châlons. Divine grace has thought it worthy to display many miracles at Memmius’ tomb. There the blind see, the lame walk, the deaf hear and demons are put to flight and anyone who asks for healing, with a sincere faith, immediately regains his health, whatever his affliction. With Our Lord Jesus Christ reigning, to whom is glory and honour for ever. Amen.'
Text: Acta Sanctorum, Aug. II, 11-12.
Translation: Philip Beagon.
Cult building - independent (church)
Burial site of a saint - tomb/grave
Non Liturgical ActivityComposing and translating saint-related texts
MiraclesMiracle during lifetime
Miracle after death
Miracles causing conversion
Healing diseases and disabilities
Power over life and death
RelicsContact relic - saint’s possession and clothes
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Family
Women
Source
There is no material in the Life of Memmius, nor any external evidence, that allows it to be dated precisely. It was dated to the 9th century by Levison in the preface (Levison 1910, 363) to his edition of the Inventio Memmii (E06475), which recounts the discovery of Memmius' relics in 677 (Levison did not produce an edition of the Life). It was also dated to the 9th century by van der Straeten 1974, 299, and the 9th or 10th century by Beaujard 2006, 60. However, some scholars have proposed a date contemporary with, or earlier than, the Inventio (which in all its extant manuscripts is transmitted as an appendix to the Life). Levison himself subsequently changed his mind and suggested that the Life might date from the 7th century (Levison 1948, p. 21, n. 1). More recently, the Life has been dated to the 7th century by Hans Hubert Anton (Anton 2007, 61).The case for a later date has been reasserted by Damien Kempf and Klaus Krönert. They argue that until the 9th century only one or two particularly powerful sees claimed to have been founded by disciples of the apostles, such as Arles in the 5th century or Paris in the 6th, and that it was only in the Carolingian period that relatively insignificant sees such as Châlons began to make such claims (Kempf and Krönert 2017, 7, 14, 22-3). They date the Life to the very early 9th century, on the grounds that the original version of the text appears to have been written in Latin whose grammar and spelling reflect the practices of the period before the Carolingian educational reform (Kempf and Krönert 2017, 23-4). This is not evident in the Acta Sanctorum edition, in which the Latin has been regularised.
The probable terminus ante quem for the Life is 868, when a priest at Châlons named Theudoin wrote to the hagiographer Almannus of Hautvillers, commissioning him to write a new version (MGH, Epistolae Karolini Aevi 4, p. 170). Theudoin referred to an existing Life of Memmius, which he described to as 'almost reduced to fragments by lengthy age and neglect' (diuturna vetustate et negligentia velut in pittaciis habetur paene consumta) – the description is presumably of the copy belonging to the church at Châlons. While it is not absolutely certain that Theudoin was referring to the extant Life, no other version is known to have existed. The version of the Life produced by Almannus is extant (BHL 5909); a third version, of uncertain date but later than that of Almannus, was published by Joseph van der Straeten in 1974.
The three earliest surviving manuscripts (five later ones are listed in BHLms) are Zürich, Zentralbibliothek, ms. C 10i, fol. 157r-157v (9th-10th c.); Brussels, KBR, ms. 7984 (3191), fol. 158v-160v (9th-10th c.); Paris, BnF, Lat. 17002, fol. 39v-40r (11th c.). The last manuscript, though not the earliest, is the one identified by Kempf and Krönert as preserving the original Latin of the text.
Discussion
Memmius (PCBE 4, p. 1321) is recorded as the first bishop of the Civitas Catalaunica, present-day Châlons-en-Champagne (until 1998 Châlons-sur-Marne). He appears at the head of lists of bishops of Châlons, of which the earliest to survive dates from the 10th century (Duchesne, vol. 3, 92-3); his cult is attested from the late 6th century by Gregory of Tours (E02678) and the Martyrologium Hieronymianum (E04908). His episcopate has generally been dated to the 4th century, on the basis that he is separated by only six names on the episcopal list from individuals who are attested in other sources and are known to have lived in the mid 5th century (Levison 1910, 363; Duchesne, vol. 3, 95; van der Straeten 1974, 297; Kempf and Krönert 2017, 16).The Life of Memmius is formulaic, and there is no reason to believe that its content has any resemblance to the life of the historical Memmius. Some details may represent local traditions at Châlons, such as the resurrection of the drowned boy Nauta, which is the only event in the Life that corresponds to Gregory of Tours' reference to a resurrection miracle by Memmius (Gregory is unlikely to have been referring to the resurrection of the deacon Domitianus, for reasons explained below). Also notable is the statement that Memmius was joined by his sister Poma, to whom miracles are attributed in her own right. This is not something usual in episcopal Lives and may reflect a local tradition or some local memorial to Poma such as an epitaph. There is no evidence that Poma received cult in the pre-700 period.
The greater part of the Life reflects the concerns of its author, presumably a cleric or monk at Châlons: in particular, Memmius' life is pushed back to make him a contemporary of St Peter, and thus provide an apostolic pedigree for the church at Châlons. He is depicted as part of a group of missionary bishops sent from Rome to found different sees in Gaul: a common scenario in Gallic texts from the 6th century onwards, though with little consistency as to which founding bishops were supposed to have belonged to the group (see e.g. E01530, E01614, E02582, E06296): in this case Dionysius of Paris, Eucharius of Trier, Sixtus and Sinicius of Reims/Soissons, and Savinianus of Sens.
It has been noted at least since Levison (1910, 364) that the structure and content of the Life of Memmius closely parallel the Life of Martialis of Limoges (E07607). Anton 2007, 61-2, has argued that the Life of Memmius was directly modelled on that of Martialis; cf. also van der Straeten 1974, 303-6. The early parts of the Lives of Memmius and Martialis, until they arrive in their respective cities, parallel each other almost exactly (for a summary of the Life of Martialis, see Duchesne, vol. 2, 106-7): each receives his mission from St Peter at Rome, sets out as part of a group of missionaries, has a companion die on the journey, returns to Rome and brings his companion back to life with the help of an object provided by Peter. The only difference is that in the Life of Memmius this is a garment, and in the Life of Martialis a staff. This part of the story, including the resurrection of Domitianus, is therefore not an independent tradition. The figures of the deacons Donatianus and Domitianus, who then go on in turn to succeed Memmius as bishop, may well be based on nothing more than the author's knowledge that these were the names of Memmius' successors.
The church where Memmius was buried was some distance outside the walls of the town: according to the Life in the place where he had lived as a hermit before gaining admission to the town. This would have been the church later visited by Gregory of Tours, and where the events described in the Inventio Memmii took place. See Vieillard-Troiekouroff 1976, 268-9; Beaujard 2006, 65.
Bibliography
Editions:Acta Sanctorum, Aug. II (Antwerp, 1733), 11-12.
Further reading:
Anton, H.H., "Neue Studien zu Trier im frühen und hohen Mittelalter: Zum Trierer Hagiographischen Corpus und zu den Bischofsviten," Rheinische Vierteljahrsblätter, 71 (2007), 43-83.
Beaujard, B., "Châlons-en-Champagne," in: L. Pietri et al., Topographie chrétienne des cités de la Gaule, vol. 14: Province ecclésiastique de Reims (Belgica Secunda) (Paris, 2006), 59-66.
Duchesne, L., Fastes épiscopaux de l'ancienne Gaule, 3 vols. (Paris, 1894-1915).
Kempf, D., and Krönert, K., "La vie de saint Memmie de Châlons et les légendes apostoliques des diocèses de Gaule au début du IXe siècle," Revue d'histoire de l'Église de France 103 (2017), 5-25.
Levison, W., preface to Inventio Memmii episcopi Catalaunensis, in: Passiones vitaeque sanctorum aevi Merovingici III (Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores rerum Merovingicarum 5; Hannover and Leipzig, 1910), 363-365.
Levison, W., "Die Anfänge Rheinischer Bistümer in der Legende," in: Idem, Aus Rheinischer und Fränkischer Frühzeit (Düsseldorf, 1948), 7-28; originally published: Annalen des historischen Vereins für den Niederrhein 116 (1930), 5-28.
Straeten, J. van der, "Vie inédite de S. Memmie, premier évêque de Châlons-sur-Marne," Analecta Bollandiana 92 (1974), 297-319.
Vieillard-Troiekouroff, M., Les monuments religieux de la Gaule d'après les oeuvres de Grégoire de Tours (Paris, 1976).
Philip Beagon (translation), David Lambert (discussion)
07/06/2019
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00036 | Peter, the Apostle | Petrus | Certain | S00349 | Dionysius/Denis, bishop and martyr of Paris, and his companions Rusticus and Eleutherius | Dionysius | Certain | S00469 | Eucharius, bishop of Trier, ob. 250/300 | Eucharius | Certain | S01285 | Memmius, first bishop of Châlons-en-Champagne | Mimius | Certain | S02452 | Sixtus and Sinicius, first bishops of Reims | Xestius, Senecius | Certain |
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