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5TH HAGIOTHECA CONFERENCE
Church Reforms and the Cult of Saints
Programme & Abstracts
Conference organized by
Croatian Hagiography Society „Hagiotheca‟
University of Zadar
University of Turku - Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies
University of Tampere - Hagiographica Septentrionalia
UNIVERSITY OF ZADAR
Zadar, 17-21 September 2014
Programme
Wednesday, 17 September 2014
18.00-19.00 Conference desk – Church of St Dominic
Registration
19.00-21.00 Church of St Dominic
Introductory remarks on the behalf of
Hagiotheca
University of Zadar
Turku Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies
Keynote lecture
Daniel Bornstein (Washington University, St. Louis)
Saints of the Observant Reform
Wine reception offered by Turku Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies
Thursday, 18 September
8.00-9.00 Conference desk, University of Zadar, Department of History (Main Hall)
Registration
9.00-11.00
SESSION 1 (Late Antiquity)
Marianne Sághy (Central European University, Budapest)
Reforming the Cult of the Saints in the Late Antique Latin West
Andra Jugănaru (Central European University, Budapest)
Family Saints and Monastic Reform: The Cult of the “Kindred Martyrs” in Basil of
Caesarea and Gregory of Nyssa
SESSION 2 (Early Medieval Episcopal Reforms)
Rachel S. Anderson (Grand Valley State University, Allendale)
“We have departed a little from the path:” Narrative Digressions as Rhetorical
Strategy in Byrhtferth of Ramsey‟s Vita Oswaldi
3
Ortwin Huysmans (Catholic University of Louvain)
Strategic Translations and Territorial Expansion in Late Tenth-Century Reims: The
Reforms of Archbishop Adalbero of Reims (969-989)
COFEE BREAK
11.30-13.00
SESSION 3 (Byzantium and the East)
Ana Mišković (University of Zadar)
St Donatus and the Impact of the Church Reform in Zadar
Sebastián Salvadó (Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim)
The Liturgy of Saints and the Augustinian Reform of the Latin Patriarchate of
Jerusalem (1114-1149)
Diana Atanassova (Sofia University 'St. Kliment Ohridski')
Menologia, Typica, and Hagiographic Canon in the South Slavic Literary Tradition
LUNCH BREAK (organised visit to the Archaeological Museum)
15.00-17.00
SESSION 4 (Canonisation and Reform)
Christian Krötzl (University of Tampere)
Reforming Canonization, Reforming Sainthood? The Papacy and the Shaping of
New Rules in the Twelfth and the Thirteenth Centuries
Sari Katajala-Peltomaa (University of Tampere)
Devotion and Intimacy in the Nordic Canonization Processes at the Eve of
Reformation
SESSION 5 (Canonisation and Regional Patterns)
Sara E. Ellis Nilsson (University of Gothenburg)
Responding to Reform: The Creation and Modification of Regional Saints in
Scandinavia
Lauri Hirvonen (University of Helsinki)
The Cult of St Erik of Sweden and Elaboration of the Cult by the Archbishopric of
Uppsala During the Late Thirteenth Century
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COFEE BREAK
17.30-18.30
SESSION 6
Nancy Caciola (University of California, San Diego)
Magic, Miracles, Medicine, and Mummies: The Reservation of Postmortem Power to
the Holy Dead
Leigh Ann Craig (Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond)
In Signum Exitus: Discernment of Spirit in Fifteenth-Century Saintly Exorcisms
19.00-20.00 Chapel of St Demetrius
Book launch
Cuius Patrocinio Tota Gaudet Regio. Saints' Cults and the Dynamics of Regional
Cohesion. Proceedings of the 4th Hagiography Conference organized by Croatian
Hagiography Society 'Hagiotheca' and CULTSYMBOLS project with OTKA Saints
Project. Dubrovnik, 18-21 October, 2012. Ed. Stanislava Kuzmová, Ana
Marinković, and Trpimir Vedriš. Zagreb: Hagiotheca, 2014.
Wine reception offered by HAGIOTHECA
5
Friday, 19 September
8.00-9.00 Conference desk – University of Zadar, Department of History (Main
Hall)
Registration
9.00-11.00
SESSION 7 (Gregorian Reform)
Edina Bozoky (University of Poitiers - Centre d‟Etudes supérieures de civilisation
médiévale)
Cult of Saints and Relics in the Reformist Actions of Pope Leo IX
Igor S. Filippov (Moscow State University)
French Saints of the Eleventh Century Never Officially Recognized by Rome
Emanuela Elba (University of Bari)
Cult of Saints and Images in the Shadow of Rome: Notes on the Iconographic Cycle
of the Bronze Door of Monte Sant‟Angelo
Teemu Immonen (University of Turku – Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
St Aemilian's Enigma: The Ties Between Monte Cassino and San Millán de la
Cogolla in the Late Eleventh Century
COFEE BREAK
11.30-13.00
SESSION 8 (Observant Reform I)
Gábor Klaniczay (Central European University, Budapest)
Franciscan and Dominican Observant reform movements and the cult of the saints
Renate Blumenfeld-Kosinski (University of Pittsburgh)
Sainte Colette de Corbie (1381-1447): Zealous Reformer, Belated Saint
Kateřina Čadková (Institute of Historical Sciences, University of Pardubice)
The Role of St Catherine of Siena in Dominican Reform Practice: Some Historical
Reviews
LUNCH BREAK
6
14.30-16.00
SESSION 9 (Observant Reform II)
Marika Räsänen (University of Turku - Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
Relics and Reform: Early Dominican Reformers Handling St Thomas Aquinas‟
Remains
Donal Cooper (University of Cambridge)
San Bernardino alter Franciscus: Reform and Retrospection in Fifteenth-Century
Franciscan Art
Denise Zaru (University of Lausanne)
Dominican Observance and the Cult of Saints in Sixteenth-Century Venice
COFFEE BREAK
16.30-18.00
SESSION 10 (Late Medieval Reforms in Central-East Europe I)
Reima Välimäki (University of Turku – Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
Quia Waldenses non laudant Beatam Mariam: Polemics Against Waldensians and the
Cult of Virgin Mary in Southern Germany and Bohemia (1390-1410)
Emőke Nagy (Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest – Babeş-Bolyai University, ClujNapoca)
Controversal Aspects of St Anne's Cult at the Dawn of the Reformation
Piotr Kołpak (Jagiellonian University, Kraków)
Patron Saints of the Polish Kingdom in the Polish Church Reforms and Activities in
the Fifteenth Century
COFFEE BREAK
18.30-19.30
SESSION 11 (Late Medieval Reforms in Central-East Europe II)
Petr Jokeš (Jagiellonian University, Kraków)
Cults of Saints in the Czech Lands on the Eve of Hussite Revolution (An Example of
Patron Saints in the Southern Part of the Diocese of Olomouc)
7
Sigita Maslauskaitė-Mažylienė (Church Heritage Museum, Vilnius)
Catholic Church Reformation and the Cult of St Casimir
Saturday, 20 September
9.00-10.30
SESSION 12 (Models of Personal Reform)
Mathilde van Dijk (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)
The Essence of Imitation: Saints and Self-Reform in the Late Medieval Low
Countries
Dubravka Dulibić-Paljar (University of Pula „Juraj Dobrila‟)
Virginity Discourse and Female Asceticism in Marulić's Institucija and Evanđelistar
Meri Heinonen (University of Turku - Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
St Birgitta of Sweden and the Reform of Dominican Nuns in Teutonia
COFFEE BREAK
11.00-12.30
SESSION 13 (Lutheran Reformation and the Cult of Saints)
Katherine A. Krick (Durham University)
England‟s Destruction of Their Saints
Ellie Pridgeon (University of Leicester)
St Christopher Wall Painting: The Reformation and the Destruction of Imagery in
England and Wales
Maria Crăciun (Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca)
Saints in the Church and in the Prayers of Mankind: Attitudes Towards „God‟s
Creatures” in Early Modern Transylvania
BREAK
12.45-14.15
SESSION 14 (Tridentine Impact on the Cult of the Saints)
Ivan Missoni (University of Zagreb)
The Impact of the Tridentine Reform on the Performance of Croatian Passion Plays
Teodora Shek Brnardić (Croatian Institute of History, Zagreb)
8
St Francis Xavier (1506-1552), Apostle of India and Japan, and the Construction of
Sanctity in the Post-Tridentine Period
Robert Holjevac (Croatian Institute of History, Zagreb)
Three Martyrs from Košice in the Light of the Catholic-Protestant Interreligious
Clashes and the Thirty Years' War
LUNCH BREAK
15.30-18.00
Zadar city walk (Episcopal complex, Museum of Sacral Art)
18.00-19.00 Main Hall
FINAL DISCUSSION
Wine reception
Sunday, 21 October
Excursion (TBA)
9
10
Abstracts
Rachel S. Anderson (Grand Valley State University, Allendale)
[email protected]
“We have departed a little from the path:” Narrative Digressions as Rhetorical
Strategy in Byrhtferth of Ramsey’s Vita Oswaldi
The tenth century Benedictine Reform of Anglo-Saxon England was led by a
powerful trio of bishops who all became elevated to sanctity as a direct result of their
reformist work. Of these three reformers, namely St Dunstan of Glastonbury (later
Archbishop of Canterbury), St Æthelwold of Abingdon and St Oswald of Ramsey
(later Archbishop of York), the political and economic context of Bishop Oswald‟s
efforts have been largely overlooked by scholars. This paper will examine the textual
hagiographic genesis of Oswald‟s sanctity, namely the Vita Oswaldi by the Ramsey
monk Byrhtferth, as a way of contextualizing Oswald‟s reputation as a reforming
bishop. Of particular interest is neither Oswald‟s virtues nor the miracles confirming
his sanctity. Rather, Byrhtferth is not simply writing about Oswald. In elaborate
narrative digressions he promotes the sanctity of other contemporary figures, such as
Oswald‟s predecessor as Archbishop of York, his uncle Oda, and the young King
Edward, martyred in 978, as well as provides frequent descriptions of royal pomp
and ceremony at King Edgar‟s court.
This paper, which builds off my previous work showing Byrhtferth‟s use of
the St Kenelm of Winchcombe legend to fashion St Edward‟s narrative of sanctity,
will continue this examination by looking at the Vita Oswaldi as a whole. I will show
how his elaborate narrative digressions disclose an ambitious scheme to establish an
ideology of sanctity that connects the tenets of the Benedictine reform to the
economic interests of both his East Anglian benefactors and the royal court. This
complex reading of Byrhtferth‟s hagiographic project thus further explores the
religious, political and economic dimensions of his rhetorical framework.
11
Diana Atanassova (Sofia University 'St. Kliment Ohridski')
[email protected]
Menologia, Typica, and Hagiographic Canon in the South Slavic Literary
Tradition
The most wide-spread collections with hagiographic text in the South Slavic milieu
were menologia (traditionally called in Slavic scholarship “četi-minei”, i.e. “monthly
reading”). They consisted of saint‟s lives and eulogies, arranged in calendar order. Not
being liturgical books per se, menologia nevertheless were used in the everyday life
and rituals of the monastic community, related to liturgy. They were comprised of
texts for the so-called community reading, happening at the Orthros/ morning service
(liturgical) and in dining rooms (non-liturgical) – both were practices regulated and
normalised by the monastic orders (typica). Thus we may call this reading
institutionalised, mainly because it was a medieval practice directed by monastic
orders.
My study is built on the hypothesis that the inclusion or the exclusion of a
particular text in the South Slavic menologia (“četi-minei”) and the subsequent
consolidation or decline of the respective saint‟s veneration depended on the typica‟s
prescriptions. In the XII-th century the changes in the Byzantine society brought
about church reform, part of which was the Jerusalem typicon. In the XIV-th century
the Jerusalem typicon became the primary regulative document in the South Slavic
context.
Thus the main objective of my study will be to explore the correlation
between the contents of the so-called old “četi-minei” (translations form the X-th
century, but preserved in copies from the XIV-th century onward) and the new ones,
translated in accordance with the newly introduced regulations, on the one hand,
and the reading prescriptions coming from the typica in use, on the other. I suggest
that the normative nature of the typicon was a major factor in the formation of a body
of texts, which were a kind of hagiographic canon, wide-spread in the South Slavic
tradition for long period of time.
12
Renate Blumenfeld-Kosinski (University of Pittsburgh)
[email protected]
Sainte Colette de Corbie (1381-1447): Zealous Reformer, Belated Saint
Although Sainte Colette was one of the most zealous reformers of the Franciscan
Order and was considered by many to be a holy woman during her lifetime she was
not canonized until 1807. While historical and political events played a role in this
360-year delay, there were also problematic elements in Colette‟s career that
influenced her afterlife, the development of her cult, and the efforts that were made
over centuries to canonize her. In this brief paper I examine several of these
elements:
 Colette‟s authorizing vision in which Saint Francis, dragging her into the celestial
court, commanded her to reform the Franciscan Order. There are interesting
differences between the versions recounted by her biographers Pierre de Vaux
and Sister Perrine. I also analyze views of this vision in later canonization
inquests.
 Obstacles to Colette‟s reforming mission: local/urban (for example in Dôle); male
resistance to a female reformer; accusations of sorcery in the context of 15 th-c.
developments in this area; her involvement with the problematic pope Benedict
XIII during the Great Schism of the Western Church.
 The different stages of the canonization proceedings (including the famous letter
by the English king Henry VIII in 1513): to which extent did her identity as a
reformer hinder or promote these proceedings? Finally I look at the 1807 bull of
canonization in order to identify the elements that emphasize – or downplay -the relationship between sanctity and reform.
13
Daniel Bornstein (Washington University, St. Louis)
[email protected]
Saints of the Observant Reform (keynote lecture)
The Renaissance was not a great age of holiness. In the 140 years between the
opening of the Great Schism in 1378 and the beginning of Luther‟s Reformation in
1517, only a handful of saints were created. Among that select few, as historians
have often noted, those linked with the Observant reform stand out both for their
number and their quality: one thinks immediately of Catherine of Siena and
Antoninus of Florence among the Dominicans, and Bernardino of Siena among the
Franciscans. This talk invites further reflection on the relationship between sanctity
and the Observance by widening the focus of attention to include the considerably
larger group of men and women who were closely connected with the Observant
reforms and celebrated for their holiness both during their lifetimes and immediately
after their deaths, yet never received official recognition as saints or only did so after
the passage of several centuries, in a very different religious and political climate.
14
Edina Bozoky (University of Poitiers - Centre d‟Etudes supérieures de civilisation
médiévale)
[email protected]
Cult of Saints and Relics in the Reformist Actions of Pope Leo IX
The pre-Gregorian pope Leo IX (1002-1054: pope 1049-1054), previously bishop of
Toul (1026-1049), undertook important reforms of monasteries and of the secular
Church. His hagiographical life, written by pseudo-Wibert and others, underlines his
close relationship with the saints. While travelling for the reform‟s causes in
Germany and France, he dedicated a great number of churches and altars (about
thirty, including Metz, Besançon, Andlau and other churches in Alsace, Reichenau,
Hesse, and Donauwörth) and translated and distributed saints‟ relics, including
Remy, bishop of Reims; Gerard, bishop of Toul; Wolfgang, bishop of Regensburg;
and Richarde of Andlau.
The aim of this paper is to examine firstly the role of saints‟ visions and
miracles in the Life of Leo IX; secondly, the part of his interventions in the cult of
saints and relics to strengthen his reformist politics; and, thirdly, the meaning of his
own miracles.
15
Nancy Caciola (University of California, San Diego)
[email protected]
Magic, Miracles, Medicine, and Mummies: The Reservation of Postmortem
Power to the Holy Dead
The Little List of Superstitions and Pagan Customs complains, “the people pretend that
the dead of any kind are saints.” This eighth-century text provides an excellent point
of entry into an issue of continuing contestation until the end of the Middle Ages:
What is the difference between the bodies of the ordinary and the saintly dead? The
Church struggled to reserve postmortem power exclusively for the saints, but in fact
the holy dead represented only one kind of powerful cadaver. Side by side with
devotion to the saints lay a broader set of presuppositions about the potential power
and lingering vitality of other kinds of corpses – most particularly the bodies of those
who died before their time.
In the context of the Saxon missions it seems likely that the author of the
Indiculus had in mind the widespread Northern European belief that the dead lived
on as corporeal revenants. Those who perished prematurely often were thought to
remain conscious and active afterwards; the task for Christian teachers was to instill
the idea that only the saints possessed any postmortem consciousness and power. In a
somewhat different vein, the uses of preserved body parts for either magic or miracle
represents another area of cultural contestation around the powers of the dead. On
the one hand, the Church successfully fostered the cult of saints‟ relics, which was
experienced by the ordinary faithful primarily as a source of personal healing. Yet
other curative customs involved recourse to bodies of a different sort. The
prescription of ground mummy in various healing compounds and medicaments
represents such an alternate usage of preserved bodies for healing. And, in the
proscribed world of magical grimoires, the hands of executed criminals were said to
possess special powers that could be harnessed by the savvy necromancer. Many
bodies could be perceived as powerful.
Thus, one ongoing project in the history of Christian acculturations and
reform movements in the Middle Ages was to set apart saints from other kinds of
dead folk. Yet the power of the prematurely dead continued to exert a fascination in
various corners of medieval culture.
16
Donal Cooper (University of Cambridge)
[email protected]
San Bernardino alter Franciscus: Reform and Retrospection in FifteenthCentury Franciscan Art
In terms of iconography, the cult of San Bernardino of Siena was one of the most
dynamic and successful in fifteenth-century Italy, and played a key role in forging a
distinctive artistic identity for the burgeoning Franciscan Observant movement.
Recent scholarship has emphasized the innovative aspects of Bernardino‟s cult, with
particular concern given to the portrait-like qualities of his images. In this sense
Bernardino‟s cult is often seen to possess a certain degree of modernity in step with
broader developments in contemporary painting (realism, an emphasis on the
individual). The conservative elements of Bernardino‟s iconography have received
less attention but were, I will argue, just as significant in the visual promulgation of
his cult. In particular, the Observants sought to cast Bernardino as a new Saint
Francis, appropriating a number of long-standing attributes from the Order‟s
founder. This paper examines Bernardino‟s visual cult in Quattrocento Italy, and
compares a number of Bernardino‟s iconographic attributes with earlier imagery of
Saint Francis. Parallels links are explored between Franciscan texts on San
Bernardino and established traditions of Franciscan hagiography. The resulting
balance between old and new is set against a wider tension between innovation and
reaction in the art and architecture of the Observant reform, as the new movement
sought to present its prodigious growth as a return to the Order‟s thirteenth-century
origins.
17
Maria Crăciun (Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca)
[email protected]
Saints in the Church and in the Prayers of Mankind: Attitudes Towards
“God’s Creatures” in Early Modern Transylvania
Starting from an analysis of the information provided by church orders, where saints
are mentioned as “creatures,” as opposed to Jesus who is both Godly and sole saviour
of mankind, this paper wishes to explore the veneration of saints in the Lutheran
community of early modern Transylvania. If one considers the issue of the cult of
saints after the Saxon community adopted the Reformation, one is slightly confused
by the apparent contradiction between the guidelines provided by church orders, the
decrees of the synods of the Lutheran church and visitation records, on the one hand,
and the presence of saints in the decoration of the altars in Lutheran churches, on the
other. While the decisions of the clergy are clear in their wish to eliminate the
veneration of saints from Lutheran worship, images of saints continue to appear on
old as well as new furnishings within the church. A closer look at the visual evidence
may serve to refine this view and suggest that the veneration of saints was
discouraged not only by ecclesiastical prescriptions but also by visual means, by
removing their images from the ecclesiastical space. In this sense a comparison
between images of saints on medieval furnishings, particularly altarpieces, with
depictions of saints on so-called new furnishings, produced after the reformation of
the Saxon community, could lead to a better understanding of the place of saints in
Protestant worship. It can also help one define a specific Lutheran Pantheon and
delve into the motives for retaining some saints while expelling others. Finally, the
paper will tentatively address the issue of devotion to saints and its longevity in a
Lutheran context.
18
Leigh Ann Craig (Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond)
[email protected]
In Signum Exitus: Discernment of Spirit in Fifteenth-Century Saintly
Exorcisms
The “long fifteenth century” (c. 1380 to c. 1520) witnessed no single Christian
reform, but rather a far-ranging and complex conversation about paths towards
Christian reform both institutional and personal, including the Observant monastic
reforms, the Conciliarist movement, and the development of and responses to several
forms of lay-led and quasi-heretical Christian devotion. This paper will trace the
effects of one such reformist impulse – the movement towards clerical discernment of
spirit – as it played out in devotion to the cult of the saints.
Leading theologians such as Jean Gerson (1363-1429) argued that the
difficult and theologically- laden work of discerning the source of visions should be a
matter for ordained clergy alone; simultaneously, manuals of exorcism which
reserved the role of discerner of spirits and of exorcist to ordained clergy alone were
circulated widely. Even so, nonclerical exorcisms continued to be carried out via layled appeals to the intercesson of saints. The tensions between lay veneration of the
saints and the fresh emphasis on clerical authority in discernment can be seen in an
increasing complexity of fifteenth century miracles of saintly exorcism. In order to
justify these nonclerical and lay-led exorcism rituals, the miracles record a process of
discernment – that is, an initial diagnosis of an indwelling possession – which
becomes more skeptical, more detailed, and more concretely physical, mirroring the
discernments of exorcism manuals. Miracle stories also begin to incorporate subtle
gradations of demonic attack, so that the discernment of demonic possession
becomes less a question of “yes” or “no” and more a question of “to what degree and
in what capacity?” Finally, miracle stories also placed fresh emphasis on direct
interaction with the saint-exorcist, a notable exception in a period when the ritual
focus on relics and shrines was fading from narratives describing other kinds of
miraculous cures.
19
Kateřina Čadková (Institute of Historical Sciences, University of Pardubice)
[email protected]
The Role of St Catherine of Siena in Dominican Reform Practice: Some
Historical Reviews
The paper will be based on my research for my doctoral thesis (defended at the end
of 2011). The sanctity of Catherine of Siena shall be discussed, especialy the
construction of her sainthood in the few decades after her death (1380-1417).
Firstly, I would like to evaluate how much that process was possibly influenced by
the flowering of observance, and what kind of role Catherine could possibly play in
the support of the idea of reform. The apt features of her model of sainthood that
correspond with the ideal of an observant saint will be researched and compared with
other (better?) candidates for sanctity, her contemporaries. The personal interest and
motivation of her hagiographers (expressed or non-expressed) that could lead
Catherine‟s model to being emulated will be discussed. Secondly, the question of
synchronicity between the beginning of the reform period and the official
recognition of the Dominican third order (1405) should come into question. Inspired
by the study of Chiara Mercuri on the Franciscan order (“Santita e propaganda”,
1999) I will examine how Catherine‟s Dominican hagiographers are connected with
both streams, and how these connections influence the construction of Catherine‟s
sanctity. This examination should shed particular light on the texts of Tommaso
d´Antonio da Siena and his contemporaries.
20
Mathilde van Dijk (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)
[email protected]
The Essence of Imitation: Saints and Self-Reform in the Late Medieval Low
Countries
This paper discusses the appropriation of Early Church saints in the Late Middle
Ages, particularly in reformist circles in the Low Countries. In addition to Christ
himself, reformers such as the adherents of the devotio moderna and the Carthusians
put these forward as the models for the truly pious, i.e. the people who wanted to
regain the original perfection of humankind before the Fall. In the Low Countries,
reformist activity by Carthusians and Modern Devout led to an unprecedented
growth of new versions of the lives of Early Church saints such as martyrs, Desert
Fathers and figures close to Christ such as Saint Anne. These showed the believers
how to imitate Him in a feasible way, adapted to individual possibilities, such as
differences in character or between religious and secular lifestyles. Moreover, Early
Church saints showed that it could be feasible to imitate Christ in a context very
different from His. It did not need to be literal: for instance the Desert Fathers were
seen as His best imitators after persecution stopped, however different their lives
were from the Saviour‟s. Apparently, they were seen as touching the essence of what
being like Christ meant.
I shall investigate what Carthusians and Modern Devout defined as being
the essence of becoming like Christ. How did they describe traditional saints in such
a way that they could function as models for different target groups, such as
religious men and women and secular layfolk in the cities? How did they actually
practice imitation, as can be gleaned from different sources such as biographies,
letters, or treatises?
21
Dubravka Dulibić-Paljar (University of Pula 'Juraj Dobrila')
[email protected]
Virginity Discourse and Female Asceticism in Marulić's De Institutione and
Evangelistarium
Marulić's moral theological work De institutione bene vivendi per exempla sanctorum
(1506) is a compilation of holy examples. The majority of Marulić's examples come
from two textual sources: New Testament and Old Testament, and medieval
hagiography (martyrs, virgin martyrs, desert saints, desert virgins, etc). Martyrs and
virgin martyrs are frequently represented. Theological examination interprets
Marulić's orientation toward martyrdom as the dominant model of sainthood. A
tendency toward ascetic and monastic spirituality may be seen through his personal
inclination toward the spiritual movement devotio moderna (of the ascetic Italian
type), authentic Franciscan spirituality, and his popular religiousness as a result of his
the humanistic theological predilection toward Biblical theology and patristics.
Through his instuctions and advice about the instructive ascetic practice of
Christian virtue, given through examples of saints' lives and accompanying
commentaries, De institutione speaks especially to ascetic female readers (virgins and
widows). In this, Marulić's practical moral narrative does not develop a systematic
conceptualization of virginty, while in the Evangelistarium (1516), a moral and
theological work complementary to the De institutione, virginity is elaborated upon
extensively, mostly according to the seventh chapter of 1 Corinthians and Jerome's
ascetic exegesis on virginity. Based on this, the intention of this paper is to focus on
the discourse of virginity and female asceticism in Marulić's moral and theological
works (De institutione i Evangelistarium). Specifically, this paper will examine Marulić's
exemplification of the hagiographic legends about virgin martyrs and desert virgins
in De institutione. I am especially interested in the manner in which De institutione
represents the phenomenon of gender transformation characteristic of these early types
of female sanctity.
22
Emanuela Elba (University of Bari)
[email protected]
Cult of Saints and Images in the Shadow of Rome: Notes on the Iconographic
Cycle of the Bronze Door of Monte Sant’Angelo
During the 11th century the sanctuary of St Michael in Monte Sant‟Angelo became
one of the most frequented places of worship throughout the Mediterranean.
Fundamental to this was the presence of the port of the nearby town of Siponto,
which has been considered as one of the main hubs of Mediterranean trade since
ancient times. The appointment as Archbishop of Siponto of the Benedectine monk
Gerardo, who was very close to Gregory VII, contributed to the dense network of
relations between the Apulian diocese and the environments of the Reformation,
related both to the Benedictine monks of Monte Cassino and the Church of Rome.
Gerardo, directly appointed by the Pope himself, was also designated as papal
delegate in Dalmatia; this helped to keep alive the relationship among the papacy,
the dioceses and the Benedictine monasteries of the region. We know that he stood
out for his interest in art and promoted a number of relevant interventions, probably
including the commissioning of the bronze door of the Basilica of Gargano, made in
Constantinople following the example of the door that the abbot Desiderius had
commissioned for the abbey of Monte Cassino shortly before. The analysis of some of
the scenes from the iconographic cycle on the bronze door of Gargano helps
underline the profound implications that connected the bishop to reformist ideas,
and to confirm his involvement in the design of the door. On the basis of these
observations, this paper also aims to validate the thesis according to which the
bishop Gerardo was the greatest promoter of reformist ideas over the Adriatic sea,
thanks to the support of the Benedictine monks and their culture, in particular the
written one.
23
Sara E. Ellis Nilsson (University of Gothenburg)
[email protected]
Responding to Reform: The Creation and Modification of Regional Saints in
Scandinavia
If not daily fare for the medieval Christian Church, calls to reform in one way or
another were made on a regular basis. This spirit of diversity was brought to
Scandinavia during the Christianization. In fact, the establishment of ecclesiastical
institutions in Scandinavia took place during a time of popes, anti-popes, conflict
and church reform in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Despite reforms which
granted the papacy more power, popes did not initially claim an exclusive right to
the canonization of saints. However, by the late-twelfth century and Augustine III‟s
pontificate, the papal strategy in expanding its authority also encompassed
canonizations, seeking to make them an exclusive papal privilege. Finally, in 1234,
the Decretals of Gregory IX stated that the right of canonization was reserved for
the pope, anchored in canon law.
How was this progression of reform reflected in the cults of new saints in
Scandinavia? When did the Scandinavian bishoprics adhere to the new procedures
and why were there discrepancies? In order to illuminate the situation in
Scandinavia, this paper will compare several native saints whose cults emerged from
the late-eleventh to thirteenth centuries in Denmark and Sweden. These include
Knud the Holy, Theodgarus, Erik of Sweden, Sigfrid and Elin of Skövde. The
intricacies and discrepancies in seeking papal approval for these saints in the twelfth
and thirteenth centuries will be considered. Moreover, a discussion of the apparent
lack of early interest in the Swedish dioceses in seeking papal approval of new cults
will be presented in relation to assumptions of the opposite in Denmark, as well as to
the early-thirteenth century reform. Finally, the situation in about 1300, in which
these saints were modified and shaped into objects of papal approval through the
composition or modification of their offices will be examined.
24
Igor S. Filippov (Moscow State University)
[email protected]
French Saints of the Eleventh Century Never Officially Recognized by Rome
It is a well-known fact that on the eve of and during the Gregorian Reform a
considerable number of high-positioned clerics regarded as saints by their
communities were not officially canonized by Rome despite the impressive efforts of
these communities and their lay entourages. In some cases we have at our disposal
important proofs of these efforts: Vitae, chronicles, letters, hymns, etc.
In trying to understand why certain clerics were canonized whereas others
were denied this honor we are usually faced with two mutually exclusive
explanations: 1) true saints should be distinguished from venerable people who were
not really saints; 2) canonization depended on the ability of particular religious
communities and their secular supporters to argue their cause at the Saint See and
was therefore the result of political pressure and intrigue.
The comparison of particular cases when canonization was granted or
denied proves that the conformity of a candidate to established criteria of sanctity
was not necessarily the crucial issue and nor did political intrigue play a decisive role.
Often enough one is inclined to think that the key to the riddle should be sought in
the different cultural perceptions of sanctity common to different religious
communities and national or regional ecclesiastical milieus.
Studying the Lives of several 11th century Gallic saints, notably those of
Abbo of Fleury, Fulcran of Lodeve, Guillaume of Volpiano, and Ysarn of Marseille,
we clearly see how the model of sanctity which they exhibited was different from the
model of sanctity promulgated by the Gregorian papacy. The image of a learned
abbot or bishop, a good preceptor for his monks or clerics, of a good councilor to
members of regional secular elite, of someone who lived an honorable and pious life
and had undisputable merits in the eyes of the Church – while being a great lord,
reflected the idea of sanctity which crystallized during the previous century
dominated by the phenomenon of Cluny. But times changed; the centre of the
Reform moved to Rome where, as in most of Italy, the perception of sanctity was
quite different and which was now seriously influenced by German attitudes. The
emphasis was increasingly placed on the spirituality of the saint, on his militantism
for the glory of the Church which quite often pushed him into open conflict with
secular power due to the miracles he performed, especially after his death. The Gallic
clergy accepted this model rather quickly but problems were inevitable.
25
Meri Heinonen (University of Turku - Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
[email protected]
St Birgitta of Sweden and the Reform of Dominican Nuns in Teutonia
St Birgitta of Sweden (1303-1373) had been canonized already in 1391, but the
canonization was confirmed in 1415 and 1419; furthermore, her Revelations were still
debated in the Council of Basel and found to be orthodox in 1436. Birgitta‟s fame
spread rapidly through Europe after her death, but she was a controversial saint. Not
everybody accepted her Revelations. Also her Rule for the Ordo Sancti Salvatoris was
rather original: one of its central goals was to guarantee proper pastoral care for the
nuns of the order. However, when the Dominicans of Teutonia founded their first
reformed convent for the Dominican nuns in 1397 in Schönensteinbach, it was
dedicated to St Birgitta. According to Johannes Meyer, the name was given by the
pope Boniface IX who had also canonized Birgitta. The interest in Birgitta within
the Dominican reform movement was though not only accidental. In addition to
Schönensteinbach, e.g. the convent of St Katharina in Nuremberg owned “Leben
und Wunderwerke St. Birgitten”. Furthermore, Werner Williams-Krapp has
suggested that the anonymous “Sendbrief zur wahren Heiligkeit Birgittas von
Schweden” might have been written by a Dominican friar from Nuremberg. In my
paper, I will discuss the meaning of St Birgitta for the reformed Dominican nuns of
Teutonia by looking not only at the manuscript distribution but also at the content
of texts that discussed Birgitta. What kind of model might Birgitta have been for
the reformed nuns and why also did Dominican friars want to use her as an example
for nuns under their guidance?
26
Lauri Hirvonen (University of Helsinki)
[email protected]
The Cult of St Erik of Sweden and Elaboration of the Cult by the
Archbishopric of Uppsala During the Late Thirteenth Century
I will discuss in my paper the formation of the cult of Saint Erik of Sweden in the
latter part of the thirteenth century. St Erik was a Swedish king who was murdered
at Uppsala around 1160. He had attained the status of a saint by the start of the
thirteenth century. His cult remained a very local phenomenon until the second half
of the thirteenth century when the archdiocese of Uppsala started to promote the
cult. A rhymed office for St Erik was composed under Dominican influence and his
miracles were collected under strong aristocratic influence. The cult spread to other
Swedish dioceses very quickly after the completion of the office judging by
palaeographic evidence supplied by thirteenth century breviaries and antiphonals.
The writing of the office and miracle collection coincides with the formation of
distinct Swedish diocesan liturgies, an influx of Dominican ideas, a drastic reduction
of feasts of saints, often of English origin, and the promulgation of cults of local
Swedish saints within the church province of Uppsala during the last third of the
thirteenth century and early fourteenth century. The liturgy of the Danish
archbishopric of Lund had been very visible in liturgies of Swedish dioceses but its
importance diminished during the latter thirteenth century. My paper will show how
the elaboration of the cult of Saint Erik relates to this reformation of diocesan
liturgies in Sweden, or what could be called the birth of Swedish liturgies and what
kind of ecclesiastic, mendicant, and lay influence contributed to the process. As such,
my paper will contribute to the discussion of the importance of mendicants in liturgy
during the High Middle Ages and supply an example of how the cult of a saint was
used to strengthen local diocesan identity.
27
Robert Holjevac (Croatian Institute of History, Zagreb)
[email protected]
Three Martyrs from Košice in the Light of the Catholic-Protestant
Interreligious Clashes and the Thirty Years' War
In my approach I would like to present three Catholic priests and martyrs from the
first quarter of the the 17th century, as well as examine the conditions in which they
lived their lives. These three Catholic priests, Marko Križevčanin, Stjepan Pongrac,
and Melkior Grodecki, were of different nationalities. Thus I would like to stress the
unity of the church in contrast to the disunity of the European continent during the
begining of The Thirty Years' War. This disunity of Europe was caused by the
disunity of Christianity. The causes and the roots of the poor political and religious
conditions went deep into the 15th century, so therefore I will observe the period
before the Reformation. So I want to take a short look at the period of the 15th and
the 16th century. When “Reformatio et capite et in membris” of the Catholic church
failed in the 15th century, the 16th century brought the Reformation with all its
consequences. One such consequence, in the 16th and the 17th century, concerned
the Catholic cult of the saints and their veneration. As a part of the introduction to
our three Catholic martys I'd like to talk about the idea of worshipping saints from
one of the texts of Marco Antonius de Dominis. He lived at the same time as our
three martyrs and thus it could be very interesting to compare all of them.
28
Ortwin Huysmans (Catholic University of Louvain)
[email protected]
Strategic Translations and Territorial Expansion in Late Tenth-Century
Reims: The Reforms of Archbishop Adalbero of Reims (969-989)
Monastic reform in tenth and early eleventh century West-Francia and Lotharingia
served the interests of the leading aristocratic families in many ways. First, the more
strict application of the Rule of St-Benedict was believed to significantly increase the
efficacy of the monks‟ prayers. Secondly, the reform of a religious house bolstered the
spiritual prestige of its secular or ecclesiastic instigator. More importantly, however,
these reforms often went hand in hand with territorial expansion or the consolidation
of earlier conquests. In a region subjected to unceasing aristocratic competition,
foundations or takeovers of strategically positioned abbeys were common methods to
secure a family‟s continuous hold on certain localities. Therefore, lay and episcopal
interventions in the internal affairs of monasteries somehow had to be legitimized,
preferably with religious arguments.
The cult of saints perfectly addressed this need. The proliferation of
hagiographic literature (miracula, inventiones and translationes) in tenth century
Champagne and Lotharingia should also be seen at the backdrop th the many
monastic reforms in the region. In this paper, I want to discuss the case of
Archbishop Adalbero of Reims. Originating from an illustrious and upwardly mobile
family in Ardenne, he struggled to combine his pastoral and familial duties during
his twenty year episcopacy. Research on the region‟s topography and political
constellation however, revealed that his monastic reforms coincided with the
territorial strategies of his brother, Count Godfrey of Verdun (d. 1002). These
reforms were accompanied by the translation of relics and often by the miraculous
intercession of saints. Therefore, I will investigate the motives behind Adalbero‟s
translation of relics. These could include the justification of his own interventions or
the defamation of a territorial rival, who had allegedly fallen out of the saint‟s grace.
In addition, I will examine how medieval authors covered up expansive strategies
behind reform by integrating hagiographical elements in their accounts.
29
Teemu Immonen (University of Turku - Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
[email protected]
St Aemilian's Enigma: The Ties between Monte Cassino and San Millán de la
Cogolla in the Late 11th Century
In the archives of Monte Cassino, there is a manuscript containing the Life of an
Iberic hermit saint Aemilian written by Bishop Braulion of Zaragoza (d. 631). The
body of the saint was buried in the monastery of San Millán de la Cogolla, a very
important pilgrimage site in the County of Barcelona. Though the cult of St
Aemilian was popular in Spain, his Life in the Cassinese manuscript is the only
known version of this text outside the Iberian Peninsula. The manuscript was
probably copied at San Liberatore a Maiella, a Cassinese dependency in Abruzzo, in
the eleventh century. In my paper, I ask how the Life of St Aemilian ended up in a
Cassinese monastery and what the copying of the text reveals about the relationship
between Monte Cassino and San Millán de la Cogolla.
30
Petr Jokeš (Jagiellonian University, Kraków)
[email protected]
Cults of Saints in the Czech Lands on the Eve of Hussite Revolution (An
Example of Patron Saints in the Southern Part of the Diocese of Olomouc)
The question of the origins of the Hussite revolution is one of the most important
problems in the field of Czech late medieval history. Factors such as the difficult
economic and social situation at the end of XIV and beginning of XV century, the
unfortunate governance of King Wenceslas IV, the black death (this epidemic
peaked in the Czech kingdom later than in most European countries), etc. are often
discussed.
Changes to the intellectual, spiritual, and religious situation that happened
in Czech society during the second half of XIV century are also very relevant. These
changes were often related to the activities of King and Emperor Charles IV, such as
the foundation of Prague University, making Prague and the Czech kingdom the
centre of the Holy Roman Empire or – concerning spiritual and religious life –
Charles‟s passion for collecting relics, his introduction of new cults (e. g. St
Sigismund) and generally privileging the Catholic Church.
This paper addresses a disbursement of around 450 parochial churches and
local chapels located in the southern part of the medieval diocese of Olomouc (in
Moravia, bordering with Bohemia, Austria and Hungary) and focuses on the
following questions: Were the changes of pre-Hussite time reflected on the field of
patron saints (new cults, changes of intensity of existing cults)? If they were, does it
show major religious sensitivities or an existence of some other specific phenomena in
the Czech kingdom before the revolution? Finally, what was the situation in the
Czech kingdom in comparison to the situation in other European countries?
31
Andra Jugănaru (Central European University, Budapest)
[email protected]
Family Saints and Monastic Reform: The Cult of the “Kindred Martyrs” in
Basil of Caesarea and Gregory of Nyssa
In the mid 340s, Basil the Elder‟s widow, Emmelia, and her children, Macrina the
Younger, Gregory of Nyssa, Basil of Caesarea, and Peter of Sebasteia, began to
transform their pious household in Annisa into a “family” double monastery. This
house-monastery, obviously, lacked holy relics. By 350, however, Emmelia had
obtained precious remains: the ashes of the relics of the Forty Martyrs of Sebasteia.
More than a bunch of unknown heroes of the faith, these martyrs were very close to
the entire family who all practiced a strong spiritual veneration of them. Emmelia
created a martyrion on her family estate with the relics of her husband and of several
ancestors: her forefather, who died as a martyr probably during the persecutions of
Decius, and her mother-in-law, Macrina the Elder, who endured persecutions during
the rule of Maximinus Daia. Later on, Emmelia and Macrina the Younger were
buried in the same place. Thus, the family mausoleum and the shrine of the Forty
Martyrs was the same. Meanwhile, both Basil of Caesarea and Gregory of Nyssa
referred to the Forty Martyrs in various letters, homilies, and sermons. In the first
written “monastic reform” of Cappadocia, the Asketikon, Basil also mentioned the
martyrs of Sebasteia.
Following the new paradigms of the work of Kim Bowes, the main
question with regards to the cult of the Forty Martyrs buried in the Annisa martyrion
is the extent to which their cult was public or private. How did the cult of the
martyrs evolve in Cappadocia, in line with the transformations of Emmelia‟s pious
household? What role did her family martyrs have in this evolution? On the other
hand, how did Basil and Gregory use this cult in their spiritual guidance of the
Cappadocian ascetics? As a consequence, how did Near-Eastern monasteries
approach the cult of the martyrs? These are the main questions that this paper seeks
to answer, by analyzing several works of Basil and Gregory, from the different stages
of the Asketikon, to letters, homilies on the Forty Martyrs, and The Life of Saint
Macrina.
32
Sari Katajala-Peltomaa (University of Tampere)
[email protected]
Devotion and Intimacy in the Nordic Canonization Processes on the Eve of
Reformation
Affective elements are seen as typical of late medieval religiosity; personal
commitment, compassion to Christ‟s passion, and emotions are features that ascribe
not only religious but also lay devotional practices. This is evident, for example, in
the invocations recorded in canonization processes of later Middle Ages, particularly
in southern Europe; the laity‟s depositions emphasize personal ties to the intercessor
and emotional devotion. In the current scholarship, the importance of inner
religiosity and personal commitment are seen as intrinsic to the new religious
movements of the late Middle Ages, like devotio moderna, which, in turn, is
traditionally seen as contributing to the reformation ideas in Northern Europe. On
the other hand, active regional cults of saints and the ritual practices inherent to
them are often linked to the successful resistance of the Protestant Reformation.
This paper seeks to explore the laity‟s interaction with the particularly
personal and emotional commitment to saints in Northern Europe at the eve of the
Reformation. What kind of affective elements, personal commitment and even
intimacy with a heavenly intercessor can be found in Northern material? Evidence
from Northern canonization processes (AD 1373-1484) are compared to the
southern cases and findings are reflected against the instructive material from the
Reformation era, specifically from the 15th and 16th centuries. My hypothesis,
based on my earlier research, is that elements of affective religiosity and individual
relationship, even intimacy with the heavenly patron, which are typical in southern
parts of Europe, are largely missing in earlier Scandinavian processes but gradually
emerge in the later ones. These practices were met with ridicule by the Lutheran
clergy, but, nonetheless, some of them continued for centuries.
33
Gábor Klaniczay (Central European University, Budapest)
[email protected]
Franciscan and Dominican Observant Reform Movements and the Cult of the
Saints
Papal canonization activity, and with it papal promotion of the cult of saints, was
seriously slowed by the Great Schism; it did not regain its vigor during the two great
councils of Constance and Basel, either. Renewal came only in the 1440s and 1450s,
and the canonization of two important saints of the Observance, Bernardino of Siena
(1450) and Vincent Ferrer (1455), had an important role in this new vigor. Starting
from this observation, this paper would like to present an overview of three aspects
of how Franciscan and Dominican adherents related to the cult of saints (in general
or of their own saints, in particular). I will first consider the vicissitudes of the long
canonization campaign of Catherine of Siena (its relation to Dominican observance,
the activities of Raymond of Capua and Tommaso Caffarini in this respect, and then
the late fifteenth-century debates on the representation of the stigmata of Catherine,
and the group of “Savonarola‟s women” striving for its recognition). Second, I will
consider the activities of Bernardino and John of Capistran in connection with the
cult of saints, namely their use of the image of St Francis, and subsequently, by
Capistran, the successful promotion of the cult of Bernardino. I will also pay
attention to their more rationalistic approach to miracles, stigmata, and the
supernatural and their focus on the pedagogy of sainthood. Finally, I will attempt an
overview of how the Franciscan and the Dominican Observants (up to Bernardino of
Feltre and Girolamo Savonarola) developed a new strategy of converting the laity by
moral teaching, their influence upon urban legislation, and I will inquire as to what
new roles were assigned by them to the cult of saints (including newly emerging
related cults, such as that of Saint Anne).
34
Piotr Kołpak (Jagiellonian University, Kraków)
[email protected]
Patron Saints of the Polish Kingdom in the Polish Church Reforms and
Activities in the Fifteenth Century
In the reign of the first Jagiellonians, the Church in the Polish lands faced new
problems resulting from the arrival of the new dynasty and the expansion of the
country with vast Lithuanian lands. Firstly, the Church had to deal with the new
rulers, then Christianize the last great pagan country (Lithuania), and finally, solve
the problem of the penetration of the Czech Hussite movement into Polish lands.
One of the most visible elements of these changes was, of course, the cult of saints,
and the most "politically engaged" was the group of patron saints of Polish
Kingdom.
The cult of four medieval patron saints of the Kingdom of Poland (Saints
Adalbert, Stanislaus, Wenceslaus and Florianus) was initiated at the turn of the 14th
and 15th centuries. Although there are indications that some of these saints were
already worshiped as patrons of the state, the synodal statues of the Krakow‟s
diocese (1436) stress their importance and prestige and the commemoration of St
Florianus was raised to one that “other patron saints of the Kingdom, i.e. martyrs
Adalbert, Stanislaus and Wenceslaus” held. Despite the fact that it only concerned
Krakow‟s diocese, it undeniably reflected broader tendencies related to the
propagation of the cult of patron saints, whose programme was formulated in the
15th century in the milieu of Krakow‟s Cathedral. Furthermore, the idea of four
patrons pointed to Krakow as the capital of the state in opposition to the older
centers of Piast‟s state (Gniezno and Poznan).
Christianization of Lithuania needed a patron saint. Jagiello used St
Stanislaw‟s name as the patrocinium of Vilnius Cathedral. From the chronicles of Jan
Dlugosz we also know that the name of this particular saint was one of the most
popular names among newly-baptized Lithuanians. Another example of the cult of
patron saints of the Polish Kingdom was their struggle with the Czech Hussite
movement. Emphasizing the role of St Wenceslaus, Bishop of Krakow Zbigniew
Oleśnicki could claim to be the defender of threatened Czech saints. What is
especially interesting is the Tractatus contra Quattuor articulos Hussitarum which was
preserved in the codex from the Jagiellonian Library (ms 1217), in which the patron
saints of the Polish Kingdom have taken an important place.
35
Katherine A. Krick (Durham University)
[email protected]
England’s Destruction of Their Saints
In September 1538, the complex relationship between medieval English people and
the saints of the Catholic Church changed permanently. At that time, Henry VIII
decreed that Thomas Becket was to be erased from the religious life of England. He
was no longer to be worshiped as a saint; his relics at Canterbury Cathedral were
destroyed; his very name was erased from service books.
This paper seeks to investigate the role of saints in the popular religion of
the Church in England and how that role was affected by the introduction of reform
impulses. In particular, this paper will show how the influence of saints was
impacted by the state through the purging of saints from Church calendars.
The course of England‟s Reformation was reflected in the service books of
the time, particularly in the calendars of books such as Books of Hours and Missals.
The most evident change was in the erasure of Becket and, later, the word „Pope‟.
However, the relationship between England and the saints was further modified by
the state in 1549. The purge of the entire English Church calendar of saints came
with the introduction of the Book of Common Prayer, printed in March and decreed
for exclusive use by Edward VI in June of that year.
For medieval society in England, this purge of the calendar of their saints
resulted in a significant change in their religious lives. No longer did they have the
comfort and protection of their saints – they were expected to communicate directly
with God. The patron saints of their livelihoods and personalities were expunged.
And how medieval people kept track of the date was significantly altered. The
Reformation in England expelled the saints from the island and resulted in
considerable changes to the religious and daily lives of medieval people.
36
Christian Krötzl (University of Tampere)
[email protected]
Reforming Canonization, Reforming Sainthood? The Papacy and the Shaping
of New Rules in the Twelfth and the Thirteenth Centuries
The process of canonization underwent profound changes during the second half of
the 12th and throughout the 13th century. A visible outcome was the introduction of
the papal prerogative on canonization matters into the collection of Decretales issued
by Gregorius IX in 1234. The procedures of truth-finding as well as the typological
structure of vita, miracles and miracle collections underwent significant changes.
There has been some scholarly debate on the underlying reasons and on the resulting
consequences, but the picture is still far from conclusive. What was the interest of
the papacy in reforming and modifying the earlier procedures? Was it a conscious
move? Was there any real interest, or was it only a way of reacting and adapting to
circumstances? The growing weight of the Fama in the legal procedure of
canonization was a central feature, which has been noted, but not yet put fully into a
wider context. It affected profoundly the ways of collecting evidence and of truthfinding. Was it rather a bureaucratic reform introduced „from above‟, to serve the
legal and administrative needs of church and papacy, or could it be related to wider
changes in society?
37
Sigita Maslauskaitė-Mažylienė (Church Heritage Museum, Vilnius)
[email protected]
Catholic Church Reformation and the Cult of St Casimir
The reform of the Catholic Church in the fifteenth century served as one of the most
significant factors to advance the cult of Saint Casimir (1458–1484) from the famous
Jagiellon (Gediminid) dynasty. On 7 November 1602, Pope Clement VIII
announced the brief Quae ad sanctorum, which consisted of the authorization to
celebrate the liturgical feast of St Casimir in Poland and Lithuania. The latter event
crowned the canonization process of Prince Casimir, which had been developing
under complicated historical circumstances during 16th century.
It is possible to assert that a new stage of the history of Catholic sainthood,
which started with the Council of Trent (1545–1563), sought to demonstrate the
vitality of the Catholic Church and its ability to renew itself, as well as to offer new,
more relevant models of sainthood to Christians and spiritual leaders. The Catholic
Church sought a universal renewal of Catholic life, which required the reformation of
not only the church hierarchy, but also of Catholic leaders. As a result, persons of
royal origin, raised to the glory of the altar, were mostly seen surrounded by their
fruitful deeds and heroic virtues, as it was understood in those times. The changes in
Christian life had a great impact on the cult of St Casimir and its artistic expressions.
Moreover, the cult of “the patron of the state” and “the provider of
families” was zealously promoted by the royal Vasa dynasty, as St Casimir was their
relative, intercessor, and bearer of the royal insignia. The glory of his sainthood
confirmed that the Jagiellon dynasty had become established among the ranks of the
holy rulers of the Christian Europe, and praised the devotion, diligence, and loyalty
to the Catholic doctrine of the renewed dynasty of Catholic rulers. The best-known
monument dedicated to the patron and endowed by the Vasas, i.e. the royal Chapel
of St Casimir in the Vilnius Cathedral, held “the whitest bones, the most precious
reliquiae, and the holiest relics” of the saint and the patron of the state.
The main themes in the iconographic tradition of St Casimir (e.g. disdain
for the world, development of virtues, asceticism, diligence in church ceremonies,
acts of love towards one‟s neighbours, loyalty to the Roman Catholic Church,
contemplation on the sufferings of Christ, the cult of the Mother of God, and
unbloody martyrdom) comprise an integral part of the church art of the Catholic
Reformation.
38
Ivan Missoni (University of Zagreb)
[email protected]
The Impact of the Tridentine Reform on the Performance of Croatian Passion
Plays
I would like to propose a paper in which I will ponder the role of late medieval
Croatian passion plays as means of strengthening and transmitting Marian piety and
adoration among the faithful in light of Tridentine religious reform. Along with
versified lamentations, called Planctus Mariae, these plays were performed annually
during Holy Week, stirring religious emotions and thus prompting the gathered
audience into heartfelt participation in Christ's Passion.
Owing to the Church's efforts to entirely renew religious life while offering
moralistic and didactic education, accompanied with spiritual nourishment, in the
second half of the 16th and early 17th century the Croatian religious drama reached
its pinnacle. Their texts flourished, especially on the island of Hvar, where the local
bishop, Petar Cedulin, committed to enhancing the literary and cultural edification
of his diocese, commissioned a well-known morality play written by Stefano Tucci,
''Christus Iudex'', to be translated from Latin by the native nobleman Juraj Žuvetić,
so that it could be performed on stage. It is also perhaps not by chance that the
largest and the only cyclic Croatian passion play, ''Muka spasitelja našega'' was
created in 1556, thereby chronologically coinciding with the convening of the
Council of Trent.
Yet, the attitude of the Church toward religious dramas remained largely
contentious: as the records indicate, a number of bans were issued prohibiting their
performances, apparently out of fear that they evoked laughter and brawling rather
than solemn devotion. However, if we delve deeper into these restrictive practices,
we discern an attempt of the Church hierarchy to clamp down not only on clerical
orders, but also on lay confraternities, perceiving their piety as somewhat reformlike. Was the Church ultimately successful in ousting passion plays from consecrated
ground? My research will attempt to answer this question.
39
Ana Mišković (University of Zadar)
[email protected]
St Donatus and the Impact of the Church Reform in Zadar
St Donatus was the bishop of Zadar at the begining of the 9th century and,
according to the chronotaxis of the bishops of Zadar and visual depictions of his
image, his episcopate was probably of long standing. For the many goods he
provided for the Church of Zadar he became one of the town's patrons and the local
saint. He played a significant role in the establishing of peace on Dalmatian
territory, since he was, together with the archon Paul, a mediator between the
Frankish and the Byzantine rule which both resorted to the Adriatic coast. That is
the reason why he visited both one of the residences of the Frankish ruler and also
the capital of the Byzantine Empire. At that time, i.e. from the second half of the
eighth century as a terminus post quem, a significant liturgical reform was in progress
in the territory of Byzantium and it concerned the processional entrance to the
sanctuary, i. e. the bringing of the eucharsitic gifts to the altar. The previous
function of the sacristy in Constantinople was thus divided in two separate
functions, one for the space of prothesis and the other for that of diaconicon, both built
at the rear of the church, surrounding the sanctuary. This same building intervention
may be seen as well in the episcopal complex in Zadar at the time of St Donatus.
The early Christian sacristy which was situated next to the facade of the Zadar
cathedral was readjusted into an early medieval cistern, while completely new spaces
of smallish pastophoriae were built around the apse with the purpose of incorporating
in itself the function of the sacristy. The question arises as to whether the impact of
the Byzantine reform St Donatus may have witnessed in Byzantium during his
sojourn may be recognized in this renovation of the episcopal complex in Zadar and
can we thus reconstruct the elements of the Byzantine rite in the regions subjected
to the Roman Church? My reflections on this subject would contribute to our
knowledge of the complex situation of the bivalent cultural and liturgical qualities
existant in Zadar since early Christian times.
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Emőke Nagy (Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest - Babeş-Bolyai University, ClujNapoca)
[email protected]
Controversal Aspects of St Anne's Cult at the Dawn of the Reformation
Saint Anne was the subject of a number of debates over the course of the Middle
Ages, and she was perceived differently in different places and times. She became an
important fertility patron; she even developed into a central figure in the family of
Christ. The flourishing period of the Saint's cult, based on the historical evidence,
was during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries before the Reformation.
Her cult was approved officially only by its introduction into the Roman calendar in
1481 by the Franciscan Pope Sixtus IV. Her cult was the most widespread in
German-speaking areas. The cult of Saint Anne had a very special character in the
late medieval times. This attribute based on her legend - the so called trinubium
legend from the ninth century - underlined the matriarchal figure of Anne as the
grandmother of Christ and Christ's cousins, the apostles.
How does one of the most well-known legends of Saint Anne, the
anonymous observant Franciscan‟s Legenda sanctissime matrone Anne (Leipzig, 1498),
reflect this latter aspect of the cult? What are the debated aspects of the cult
described by the Franciscan friar? As the legend was widespread in German-speaking
areas, we can compare the practical information concerning devotion towards the
saint with the devotional images on Saint Anne integrating textual sources
(woodcuts). Further, by analysing German humanist Johannes Veghe's sermon on
Saint Anne we can examine another point of view on the Saint's cult. The
dissemaination of the humanists' writings on Saint Anne contributed enormously to
the spread of Anne's late-medieval cult in the view of Angelika Dörfler-Dierken. Yet
German scholars have not yet approached the subject by comparing texts and
images of the Saint's cult. Therefore an analysis from the point of view of the
debated aspects of the cult and its basic motifs, attributes presented in the abovementioned sources, is more than welcome.
Moreover, we can ask what are the signs of the decline of Anne's latemedieval cult? How does Martin Luther's influence impact the cult of the saint? And
why were sources related to Saint Anne's cult prohibieted suddenly by the council of
Trident? Finally, how did these developments influence the devotion toward the
saint in later history?
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Ellie Pridgeon (University of Leicester)
[email protected]
St Christopher Wall Painting: The Reformation and the Destruction of
Imagery in England and Wales
This paper will examine the destruction of imagery during the Reformation, focusing
on the under-researched field of St Christopher wall paintings in English and Welsh
churches. His cult, which appeared in England from the mid-thirteenth century,
was primarily visual, frequently manifesting itself through the medium of wall
painting. This paper will use primary sources such as churchwardens‟ accounts to
illustrate how in response to Henry VIII‟s strategic 1547 Injunctions, murals were
deliberately destroyed by whitewashing or „blotting out‟ by reformers and
parishioners alike. Visual evidence extracted from the current corpus of over 400
extant and lost St Christopher wall paintings demonstrates how alternative types of
surface damage such as „scratching‟ were also inflicted.
This paper will consider the various functions of St Christopher up to the
Reformation (c.1250 to c.1530), and examine how individual viewers may have
interacted with his image within the church setting. It is likely that by the fifteenth
century, the vast majority of urban and rural churches (as well as some abbeys and
cathedrals) would have possessed a mural image of the saint, whose chief function
was as a talismanic protector against sudden death, illness and everyday hardship.
The critical attitude of writers such as Erasmus towards the cult of St Christopher
(which was supressed at the Reformation) will also be assessed, as well as the place of
saints in the chronology of church reform.
42
Marika Räsänen (University of Turku - Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
[email protected]
Relics and Reform: Early Dominican Reformers Handling St Thomas
Aquinas’ Remains
In 1368 Pope Urban V ordered Thomas Aquinas‟ corpse and head to be transported
from southern Italy to the Dominican convent of Toulouse, France. On the
Dominican side, the organisers of the translation of Thomas‟ relics were Elias
Raymondus, the Master of the Order of Preachers, and Stephanus of Cumba, the
provincial of the Roman province. Both were eager reformers of the Order. Pope
Urban V lent his support to the reform and the reformers. According to Historia
translationis corporis s. Thomae, Elias and Stephanus prepared the escort of Thomas‟
remains as the pope had ordered. Another source tells us that the relic escort passed
through Orvieto and took the opportunity to visit the local convent. The convent of
Orvieto had, at a very early date, largely embraced ideas for reform. Considering the
above-mentioned issues, one tends necessarily to make an assumption that the
stopover visit was intended to connect Thomas‟ translation to the need for
contemporary reform in the convent of Orvieto. In my paper, I will discuss acts of
the early Dominican reformers in regard to the issue of the transportation of
Thomas‟ remains. A principal question concerns the probable use and significance of
the remains as a medium and symbol of reform in the whole Order.
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Sebastián Salvadó (Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim)
[email protected]
The Liturgy of Saints and the Augustinian Reform of the Latin Patriarchate
of Jerusalem (1114-1149)
The following study explores the role saints' cults played in the Augustinian reform
of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. In 1114 the Latin Patriarch Arnulf of
Chocques managed to push through the reform of the Frankish clergy of the Holy
Sepulchre. Scholars such as Bernard Hamilton and Rudolf Hiestand have
traditionally discussed the adoption of the Augustinian rule in terms of the
Patriarch‟s attempt to control an unruly clergy, often negligent of their ecclesiastical
duties. This paper seeks to expand the ramifications of this reform, and draw
attention, through an analysis of liturgy, to the role of saints in Jerusalem‟s newly
formed Augustinian community.
With the Augustinian reform followed a standardization of the liturgical
rite of Jerusalem‟s Latin patriarchate. The normalization of the canons‟ daily
religious life entailed the careful composition of a devotional milieu reflective of their
new spiritual ideals. Through the study of the liturgy in the Jerusalem Sacramentary
(Rome, Bib. Angelica, Ms. 477) and the Jerusalem Ordinal (Rome, Bib. Apost. Vat.,
Ms. Barb. 659), I provide a first glimpse into the role the cult of saints, such as
Augustine, Martin, and the newly instituted office of the Patriarchs, played in the
reformation movement. The resultant study, focusing on the patriarchate up to the
year 1149, suggests how the crafting of Jerusalem‟s carefully curated cult of saints
reflects not only Augustinian ideals, but also the broader aspirations related to the
Crusader‟s role in the Holy Land.
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Marianne Sághy (Central European University, Budapest)
[email protected]
Reforming the Cult of the Saints in the Late Antique Latin West
Forgotten martyrs, fake martyrs, unknown martyrs, rediscovered martyrs, privatized
martyrs: these are just a sample of the many problems late-antique bishops were
confronted with in their dealings with the saints. This paper contends that the period
between the fourth and the sixth century was, perhaps, the most important age of
reform in the entire history of the Christian cult of the saints, when novel cults were
created, old cults suppressed and existing cults were revamped.
Peter Brown argued that the fourth-century reform, led by the new
episcopal elite, consisted above all in stopping the privatization of the saints and
making their cults public. This paper fine-tunes this thesis by reviewing the reform
actions of bishops Damasus of Rome, Ambrose of Milan, Gaudentius of Brescia,
Vigilius of Trent, Augustine of Hippo, Martin of Tours, Victricius of Rouen,
Gregory the Great and Gregory of Tours in cemeteries, churches and homes. These
bishops did link the saints to their own churches, but did not ban family or private
devotion. The transformation of the cult from material to spiritual veneration was
suggested by Augustine alone. Bishops were happy to keep memorial traditions of
banqueting at holy graves, or the honoring of saintly relics at home, even when they
were not able to control them. What they proposed, instead, was the insertion of
saints‟ relics into the altars of the newly built churches, thus linking tomb and altar.
Closely connected with Nicene Catholicism, the revamping of the cult of the saints
was a pronounced resistance to Arianism and it gave a vigorous boost to orthodox
community-building. It prompted theologians to rethink questions of intercession,
patronage and communio sanctorum. The large-scale donations of holy relics by reform
bishops established new, Catholic networks of saints in the Late Roman Empire and
beyond.
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Teodora Shek Brnardić (Croatian Institute of History, Zagreb)
[email protected]
St Francis Xavier (1506-1552), Apostle of India and Japan, and the
Construction of Sanctity in the Post-Tridentine Period
After the Council of Trent, the Catholic Church's campaign focused on the
canonization of saints who would exemplify doctrinal purity and heroic virtue more
than the performance of miraculous deeds. The construction of sanctity became an
increasingly elaborate and centralized process. By controlling the type of saint
venerated, the Church hoped to further control the spiritual activity of its faithful.
After a hiatus of 65 years, papal canonization was resumed in 1588 and the Sacred
Congregation of Rites and Ceremonies was founded. It was charged with the
canonization of saints, who had to exhibit heroism as embodied in Christ's Passion
not only in the struggle against their own nature, but also in combat with the Devil
and other adversaries of the Church, including heretics and infidels. The concept of
heroic virtue was first applied in the process of the great Counter-Reformation figures,
that is, Teresa of Avila, Ignatius of Loyola, Filippo Neri and Francis Xavier,
canonized in 1622.
In this paper, the spreading of the cult of Saint Francis Xavier, the first
Jesuit missionary, and the promotion of his heroic virtue through the Society of Jesus
in the Croatian Kingdoms will be discussed. His veneration flourished especially in
the second half of the seventeenth century in a shrine near Zagreb, which remained
an important pilgrimage destination until the dissolution of the Order. Different
manifestations of popular piety towards Saint Francis Xavier will be presented, based
on the reports of the manuscript Historia Collegii Societatis JESU, in monte Graeco
Zagrabiae siti, 1628-1772, as well as hagiographic narratives, which had to be
actively appropriated by the Jesuit students and members of Marian congregations.
46
Reima Välimäki (University of Turku - Centre for Medieval and Early Modern
Studies)
[email protected]
Quia Waldenses non laudant Beatam Mariam: Polemics against Waldensians
and the Cult of the Virgin Mary in Southern Germany and Bohemia (13901410)
The persecution of German Waldensians at the turn of the fifteenth century created
the last significant output of polemical literature defining the border between
Catholic Christianity and the Waldensians, who had proved to be one of the most
persistent of the medieval counter-religions. The most extensive treatise prompted
by these prosecutions was the tractate Cum dormirent homines, written in 1395 by
inquisitor and Celestine provincial Petrus Zwicker. The importance of this text is
emphasised through its German translation as part of a massive catechism by Ulrich
von Pottenstein in the first decade of the fifteenth century, but the sections on heresy
in the latter text have been mostly overlooked by scholars.
A part of Waldensian criticism against what they perceived to be corrupt in
the late medieval Church was the denial of any mediating power of the saints and
the Virgin Mary. This in turn provoked polemicists to write extensive apologies of
the Marian devotion and the cult of saints. These texts not only refuted heretical
propositions but also defined and strengthened acceptable forms of devotion. This is
especially true for a text such as Ulrich von Pottenstein‟s catechism, intended for the
education of the devout laity. My paper discusses the arguments defending the cult
of the Virgin against Waldensian propositions in relation to Marian devotion and
reform at the turn of the fifteenth-century. On the one hand one should take into
consideration the feast of the Visitation, confirmed by Boniface IX in 1389. A
driving force behind the feast was the archbishop of Prague, Johann von Jenstein
(1378-1394) who also promoted the persecution of Waldensians and tried to initiate
devotional reform in his archdiocese. On the other hand I relate the defence of Mary
and the saints to the increased importance they acquired in the religious life of the
late fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. I will pay special attention to the role of the
Virgin in the late medieval Frömmigkeitstheologie, a form of literature occupying a
place between academic theology and practical guidelines for pious life (cf. esp.
Hamm 2011; Mossman 2010).
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Denise Zaru (University of Lausanne)
[email protected]
Dominican Observance and the Cult of Saints in Sixteenth-Century Venice
The Dominican Observance – contrary to the Franciscan Observance – was a reform
promoted by the highest authority of the Order and supported by the papacy.
Venice was the first Italian city where the Dominican Observance was introduced in
1391 by Giovanni Dominici (1356-1419) sent by the general master Raymond of
Capua to reform the existing houses of the Order, San Domenico di Castello and
then SS. Giovanni e Paolo. After him came Tommaso Caffarini da Siena (1350-1434)
who played a crucial role in the dissemination of the cult of Saint Catherine of Siena.
As shown by many studies, the promotion of her cult was strongly connected in the
first half of the 15th century with the development of the Dominican Third Order,
the Mantellate, and the notion of „imitable sanctity‟.
My paper will focus on a later period and will take into consideration not
only the cult of Saint Catherine of Siena but also the cult of another Dominican saint
canonized in 1523, the Florentine archbishop Saint Antoninus. By analyzing the
iconography of two paintings - Fra Bartolommeo‟s Ecstasy of Saint Catherine of Siena
(1509) and Lorenzo Lottos‟s Saint Antoninus Giving the Alms (1542), I will show how
th
these two saints are used in 16 century in Venice to promote in a very different
manner a central value of the Dominican Observance: the caritas. Moreover, the
commission of these two works testifies how important the cult of Dominican Saints
was when it came to defend and spread Observant values. Fra Bartolommeo‟s
painting testifies how Saint Catherine of Siena became a devotional model for divine
love in a Savonarolian context, whereas Saint Antoninus became a model for social
charity and was used to promote reform in the Conventual community of SS.
Giovanni e Paolo who was strongly opposed to such reform.
48