The Lives of the Saints, Volume II (of 16): February

After suffering extreme hunger and thirst, with other hardships, during an imprisonment of many months, the confessors were brought before the president, and made a glorious confession. The edict of Valerian condemned only bishops, priests, and deacons to death. The false friends of Flavian maintained before the judge that he was not a deacon, and, consequently, was not comprehended in the emperor's decree; whereupon, though he protested that he was one, he was not then condemned; but the rest were sentenced to death. They walked cheerfully to the place of execution, and each of them gave exhortations to the people. Lucius, who was naturally mild and modest, was a little dejected on account of a sickness he had contracted in prison; he, therefore, went before the rest, accompanied by only a few persons, lest he should be oppressed by the crowd, and so not have the honour of spilling his blood. Some cried out to him, "Remember us." "Do you also," said he, "remember me." Julian and Victoricus exhorted the brethren to peace, and recommended to their care the whole body of the clergy, especially those who had undergone the hardships of imprisonment. Montanus, who was endued with great strength, both of body and mind, cried out, "He that sacrificeth to any God but the true one shall be utterly destroyed." This he often repeated. He also checked the pride and wicked obstinacy of the heretics, telling them that they might discern the true Church by the multitude of its martyrs. Like a true disciple of S. Cyprian, and a zealous lover of discipline, he exhorted those that had fallen not to be over hasty, but fully to accomplish their penance. He exhorted the virgins to preserve their purity, and to honour the bishops, and all the bishops to abide in concord. When the executioner was ready to give the stroke, he prayed aloud to God that Flavian, who had been reprieved at the people's request, might follow them on the third day. And, to express his assurance that his prayer was heard, he rent in pieces the handkerchief with which his eyes were to be covered, and ordered one-half of it to be reserved for Flavian, and desired that a place might be kept for him where he was to be buried, that they might not be separated even in the grave. Flavian, seeing his crown delayed, made it the object of his ardent desires and prayers. And as his mother kept close by his side, with the constancy of the mother of the holy Maccabees, and with longing desire to see him glorify God by death, he said to her, "Thou knowest, mother, how much I have longed to enjoy the happiness of dying by martyrdom." In one of the two nights during which he survived, he was favoured with a vision, in which one said to him, "Why dost thou grieve? Twice hast thou been a confessor, and thou shalt suffer martyrdom by the sword." On the third day he was ordered to be brought before the governor. Here it appeared how much he was beloved by the people, for they endeavoured by all means to save his life. They cried out to the judge that he was no deacon; but he affirmed that he was. A centurion presented a billet, which set forth that he was not. The judge accused him of lying, to procure his own death. He answered, "Is that probable? are not they rather guilty of an untruth who say the contrary?" The people demanded that he might be tortured, in hopes he would recall his confession on the rack; but the judge condemned him to be beheaded. The sentence filled him with joy, and he was conducted to the place of execution, accompanied by a great multitude, and by many priests. A shower dispersed the infidels, and the martyr was led into a house till the storm was passed, and there he had an opportunity of taking his last leave of the faithful, without the presence of any heathen spectators. He told them that in a vision he had asked Cyprian whether the stroke of death is painful, and that the martyr answered, "The body feels no pain when the soul gives itself entirely to God." At the place of execution, he prayed for the peace of the Church and the union of the brethren. Having done speaking, he bound his eyes with that half of the handkerchief which Montanus had ordered to be kept for him, and, kneeling in prayer, received the last stroke. Although he suffered two days after the others, the whole glorious company receives commemoration together on one day.

S. SERGIUS, M(A.D. 304.)

[Roman and German Martyrologies, and those of Bede, Usuardus, Ado, &c. Authority: – The Acts, apparently not in their original form, but trustworthy.]

S. Sergius lived a retired, hermit life, near Cæsarea, in Cappadocia. When he heard of the breaking out of persecution, under the Emperors Diocletian and Maximian, his zeal led him to come into the city, and appear before Sapricius, the governor, and proclaim his abhorrence of the gods of Rome. The governor at once ordered him to execution.

His relics were translated to Ubeda, in the diocese of Taragona, in Spain.

S. PRÆTEXTATUS OF ROUEN, B. M(A.D. 586.)

[Roman Martyrology. Authority: – S. Gregory of Tours, Hist. Franc. lib. ix. c. 39, 42, and the zealous champion of Prætextatus in the Council of Paris.]

On the death of Clothair, sole king of the Franks, (a. d. 561), his dominions were divided amongst his four sons, Charibert, who became king of Paris and the adjacent country; Guntram, of Orleans; Chilperic, of Soissons; and Sigebert, of Austrasia. The reign of Charibert was unattended by any important event; he died at the expiration of eleven years from the date of his accession, leaving an only daughter, Bertha, who married Ethelbert, king of Kent, and converted him to Christianity. The brothers Sigebert and Chilperic were engaged in bloody wars with each other. Sigebert had espoused Brunhild, daughter of Athanagild, king of the Visigoths. Chilperic was married at three several periods to as many wives: first, to Audovera, by whom he had three sons; Theodebert, Meroveus, and Clovis; secondly, to Gailesuinth, sister of Brunhild, by whom he had a daughter. During the lifetime of his second queen, Chilperic became enamoured of Fredegund, and his passion led him to put Gailesuinth to death, and elevate her rival to the throne. This barbarous action induced Sigebert to take up arms against his brother, urged thereto by the vehement Brunhild, desirous of revenging the murder of her sister; and a destructive war ensued, in the course of which Chilperic and his guilty consort were driven from their country, and became exiles in a foreign land.

At no very distant interval of time, in 575, Sigebert was assassinated by the directions of his unnatural brother. Brunhild, his widow, sued for protection to Meroveus, son of Chilperic by his first wife, who was at Rouen, where Chilperic had imprisoned her. Meroveus, dreading the power of Fredegund, who wished to secure the succession to the crown for her son, took up arms against his father, and making common cause with Brunhild, his aunt, married her.

At that time, Prætextatus was bishop of Rouen. His position was difficult. The insurgent son had made Rouen his head-quarters, and expected, or exacted contributions from the Church, which Prætextatus was unwilling to grant, but which the prince was strong enough to obtain. To make the case more difficult, Meroveus was the spiritual son of this bishop, that is, Prætextatus had baptized him, and this spiritual relationship was then regarded as a sacred and dear tie. Chilperic heard exaggerated accounts of what the bishop had done, and hastily concluding that Prætextatus was privy to the revolt of Meroveus, ordered a council of prelates to meet in Paris, to try and sentence Prætextatus either to have his episcopal habit rent in twain, and to have Psalm cviii. (A. V. 109), said over him, in token that his bishopric was taken from him, or that he should be excommunicated. Prætextatus was first charged by the king with having broken the canons by marrying Meroveus to his aunt, and with having fomented rebellion by giving large contributions to the prince. The bishop denied both charges. The king in person pressed the charge. S. Gregory, bishop of Tours, who gives us a full account of the affair, and Aetius, archdeacon of Paris, were the only two who had courage to take the part of the bishop, on whose destruction the king was resolved. Gregory steadfastly refused to condemn Prætextatus on charges which could not be substantiated. Then the king sent for him privately, and endeavoured by flattery to break his resolution, but in vain. Then bursting out in a passion, he exclaimed, "Hah! bishop, you who have to dispense justice, will not show justice to me. True, by my faith! is the proverb, Hawks will not peck out hawks' een. Here is a collation I had prepared for you," pointing to a table on which were roast fowl and other delicacies. Gregory refused to eat, till the king had sworn that he would not violate the laws of the realm and the canons of the Church, by forcing the council to condemn an innocent man. After that he took, so he tells us, some bread, and even a little wine; and so departed. That night queen Fredegund sent to his lodgings a large sum of money, in hopes of bribing him to consent to the sentence on Prætextatus, but Gregory refused the bribe.

The king next raked up another charge against the bishop of Rouen, of having stolen some handsome birds he valued at three thousand sous, but this charge broke down also. Then some false friend urged Prætextatus to deliver the bishops who tried him from their perilous predicament, by confessing himself guilty, assuring him that this would satisfy the king, who would not press further punishment on him. Prætextatus was weak enough to yield to this treacherous advice,66 and thus to remove it out of the power of his two defenders to maintain their opposition to the majority. The bishop of Rouen was at once condemned and banished to a little island off Coutances, probably Jersey.

The ferocious Fredegund now cleared the way for her own son to the throne of her husband, by causing Meroveus, Theodobert, and Clovis, the sons of Chilperic by his first wife, Audovera, to be put to death. The only remaining obstacle to the accession of her child, was Chilperic, her husband; but that impediment was speedily removed by his assassination, (584), after which his son ascended the vacant throne. On the death of Chilperic, Prætextatus returned to Rouen, with the sanction of Guntram, second son of Clothair, king of Soissons, much against the wishes of Fredegund. A council was assembled at Macon, and the Bishop of Rouen was reinstated, against the protest of Fredegund, who asserted that it was indecent to overthrow the sentence of deprivation pronounced against him by forty-five bishops. In 586 the queen was at Rouen, where words passed between her and Prætextatus. Seeing him on her arrival, she greeted him with, "The time is coming when thou shalt revisit the place of thine exile." "I was a bishop always, whether in exile or out of exile," answered Prætextatus; "and a bishop I shall remain; but as for thee, thou shalt not for ever enjoy thy crown;" and then he earnestly besought her to abandon her wicked life, and seek reconciliation with God. This was shortly before Easter. On Easter morning he went after midnight to the church to sing Matins; he precented the antiphons, and then during the psalms rested in his seat; an assassin, sent by the queen, approached at this time, and stabbed him under the armpit. He rose with a cry, and staggered to the altar, on which he placed his hands, dabbled with blood, and received the Holy Sacrament. He was then carried to his bed, where he died. His death took place on April 14th, 586; but Feb. 24th is observed in his honour, as being probably the day of his translation.

S. ETHELBERT, K. C(A.D. 616.)

[Roman, Ancient Anglican and German Martyrologies, that of Usuardus, &c. Authority: – Bede, lib. i. c. 11-15, 25, 26; lib. ii. c. 5.]

S. Ethelbert was son and successor of Irmenric, king of Kent, and great grandson of Hengist, the first of the Saxon conquerors of Britain. He reigned for thirty-six years over the oldest kingdom of the Heptarchy – that of Kent – and gained over all the other Saxon kings and princes, even to the confines of Northumbria, that kind of military supremacy which was attached to the title of Bretwalda, or temporary chief of the Saxon Confederation. His wife was Bertha, daughter of Charibert, son of Clovis, king of France; a Christian princess, who brought over with her as chaplain, one Lethard or Liudhard, of Senlis, a bishop, who exercised his ministry in a church formerly built, in Roman times, near the walls of Canterbury, and dedicated to S. Martin. Tradition records the gentle and lovable virtues of queen Bertha, but little is known of her life; she has left but a brief and uncertain illumination on those distant and dark horizons, over which she sits like a star, the herald of the sun. Her example and the virtues of Liudhard probably did much to break up the ground in the heart of Ethelbert; but his conversion was reserved for the coming and preaching of S. Augustine and his companions, the missioners sent from Rome by Gregory the Great. These landed first in the Isle of Thanet, which joins close to the east part of Kent, and thence they sent a message to king Ethelbert, saying why they had come into his land. The king sent word back to them to stay in the isle till he fully made up his mind how to treat them; and he gave orders that they should be well taken care of in the meanwhile. After some days he came himself into the isle, and bade them come and tell him what they had to say. He sat under an oak, and received them in the open air, for he would not meet them in a house, as he thought they might be wizards, and they might use some charm or spell, which, according to the superstition of the time, was held to be powerless out of doors. So they came, carrying a silver cross, and a picture of Our Lord painted on a wooden panel, chanting in procession the litanies in use at Rome, in the solemn and touching strains which they had learnt from Gregory, their spiritual father, and the father of religious music. At their head marched Augustine, whose lofty stature and patrician presence attracted every eye, for, like Saul, "he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders and upwards."67 The king, surrounded by a great number of his followers, received them graciously, and made them sit down before him. After having listened to the address which they delivered to him and to the assembly, he gave them a loyal, sincere, and, as we should say in these days, truly liberal answer. "You make fair speeches and promises," he said, "but all this is to me new and uncertain. I cannot all at once put faith in what you tell me, and abandon all that I, with my whole nation, have for so long a time held sacred. But since you have come from so far away to impart to us what you yourselves, by what I see, believe to be the truth and the supreme good, we shall do you no hurt, but, on the contrary, shall show you all hospitality, and shall take care to furnish you with the means of living. We shall not hinder you from preaching your religion, and you may convert whom you can." So he gave them a house to dwell in, in the royal city of Canterbury, and he let them preach openly to the people, of whom they quickly brought some over to the faith, moved by the innocence of their lives, and the sweetness of their heavenly doctrine, which was confirmed by miracles. They were given, as Bede tells us, the Church of S. Martin in which "to sing, to pray, to say mass, to preach, and to baptize." But it was not long before the king also submitted to the truth, and was baptized; and before the year was out, there was added to the Church more than ten thousand souls. It was on Whitsun-Day, in the year of grace, 497, that the English king entered into the unity of the Holy Church of Christ Since the conversion of Constantine, excepting that of Clovis, there had not been any event of greater moment in the annals of Christendom. Then the king told Augustine and his companions that they might build new churches, and repair the old ones which Christians had used before the Saxons invaded England, and drove the ancient Church into Cornwall and Wales. Ethelbert, faithful to the last to that noble respect for the individual conscience, of which he had given proof even before he was a Christian, was unwilling to constrain anyone to change his religion. He allowed himself to show no preference, save a deeper love for those who, baptized like himself, became his fellow-citizens in the heavenly kingdom. The Saxon king had learnt from the Italian monks that no constraint is compatible with the service of Christ.68 It was not to unite England to the Roman Church, but it was in order to tear her from it, a thousand years after this, that another king, and another queen, Henry VIII., and his cruel daughter Elizabeth, had to employ torture and the gallows.

From the time of his conversion, Ethelbert behaved for the twenty remaining years of his life, as became a good king and a good Christian. He gave his royal palace in Canterbury for the use of the archbishop, founded Christ Church in Canterbury, S. Andrew's in Rochester, S. Paul's in London, and built and endowed the abbey and church of SS. Peter and Paul without the walls of Canterbury, commonly called S. Augustine's; and was instrumental in bringing over to the faith of Christ, Sebert, king of the East Saxons, with his people, and Redwald, king of the East Angles. The former remained true to Christ till his death; but Redwald returned, at least in part, to the worship of Thor and Wodin. Ethelbert died in the year 616, and was buried in the Church of SS. Peter and Paul, near the body of his devout queen Bertha, and the holy prelate Liuthard. A light was always kept burning before his tomb by our pious ancestors.

Liuthard of Senlis, the chaplain of queen Bertha, is also commemorated on this day.

February 25

SS. Victorinus, Victor, and Comp., MM. in Egypt, a. d. 284.

SS. Ananias, P. M., Peter, and Seven Soldiers, MM. in Phœnicia, circ. a. d. 298.

S. Cæsarius, C. in Bithynia, circ. a. d. 369.

S. Felix III., Pope of Rome, a. d. 492.

S. Aldetrudis, V. Abss. of Maubeuge, end of 7th cent.

S. Walburga, V. Abss. of Heidenheim, about a. d. 780.

S. Tarasius, Patr. of Constantinople, a. d. 806.

S. Gerlandus, B. of Girgenti, Sicily, a. d. 1101.

B. Robert of Arbrissel, Founder of the Order of Fontevrault, a. d. 1117.

S. Avertanus, O. M. C. in Tuscany, 16th cent.

SS. VICTORINUS, VICTOR, AND COM., MM(A.D. 284.)

[Roman Martyrology, and those of Bede, Ado, &c. But the ancient Roman Martyrology, bearing the name of S. Jerome, on Feb. 24th. By the Greeks commemorated on Jan, 31st and April 5th. A mere epitome of their Acts was all that was known to Bollandus, as contained in the Menæa and Martyrologies; but Assemani has since recovered the genuine Acts in Chaldaic.]

VICTORINUS, Victor, Nicephorus, Claudian, Dioscorus,69 Serapion, and Papias, were citizens of Corinth, and had witnessed a good confession before Tertius, the proconsul, in 249. They then passed into Egypt, for what reason is not stated, and were again called upon to confess Christ, in the reign of Numerian, in Diospolis, capital of the Thebaid, in 284, under Sabinus, the governor. After the governor had tried the constancy of the martyrs with the rack and scourge, he caused Victorinus to be thrown into a great marble mortar. The executioners began by pounding his extremities, saying to him, at every stroke, "Spare thy life, Victorinus, by abjuring thy new God." But, as he continued to maintain his steadfastness, by order of Sabinus they crushed his head and chest. Victor was threatened with the same death. He pointed to the mortar, stained with the blood and brains of his companions, and said, calmly, "My salvation and my true joy await me there!" He was immediately cast into it, and pounded to death. Nicephorus was impatient of delay, and leaped of his own accord into the mortar. He met with the same fate. Sabinus caused Claudian, the fourth, to be chopped to pieces, and his bleeding joints to be thrown at the feet of the survivors. He expired, after his feet, hands, arms, legs, and thighs had been cut off. The governor then, pointing to the mangled limbs and bleeding trunk, said to the three who remained, "It concerns you to escape this punishment; I do not compel you to suffer." The martyrs replied, with one accord, "We desire of thee to bid us suffer by the most excruciating pains thou canst devise, for never will we break our fidelity to God, and deny Jesus Christ, our Saviour, for He is our God, from whom we have our being, and to whom alone we aspire."

The tyrant then condemned Dioscorus to be roasted to death; Serapion was suspended by his heels and decapitated; and Papias was cast into the sea with a stone attached to his neck, and drowned.

This happened on Feb. 25th, on which day these martyrs are commemorated in the Western Martyrologies; but the Greek Menæa and the Menology of the Emperor Basil Porphyrogenitus honour them on January 31st, the day of their confession at Corinth.

SS. ANANIAS, P., AND COMP., MM(ABOUT A.D. 298.)

[Greek Menæa, on Feb. 26th; Martyrology of Ado on Feb. 25th. Inserted in many of the later Western Martyrologies, but in none of the earlier ones except that of Ado. Authority: – The notices in the Martyrologies, and an ancient MS. Acts of these saints found in the Monastery of Gladbach, which is, however, of very doubtful value.]

S. Ananias was a priest in Phœnicia, who was put to a terrible death by the governor for his testimony to the truth. After having been scourged till his back was a mass of wounds, salt and vinegar were rubbed into the exposed and bleeding flesh, and he was wrapped in a horse-hair garment so as still further to inflame and irritate the wounds. In prison he converted the gaoler, Peter. He was brought forth again, and slowly scorched on a grate over live coals; then salt was again applied to his sores, and the charred flesh was then cut off with a fish-slice. Peter was also exposed to a slow fire, and was then, with the priest, and seven believing soldiers, cast into the sea and drowned.

S. CÆSARIUS, C(ABOUT A.D. 369.)

[Roman Martyrology. Greek Menæa on March 9th. Authority: – His life, written by his brother, S. Gregory Nazianzen.]

S. Cæsarius was given by his parents an excellent education, and, being a man of great natural parts, he soon distinguished himself for his accomplishments in all the known sciences. He became one of the first physicians of his day, and was urged by the Emperor Constantius to reside in the imperial city, but declined to do so. Julian the Apostate nominated him his first physician, and loaded him with marks of favour, without, however, being able to shake his Christian constancy. Jovian, who succeeded Julian, also honoured him, and finding that, moved by the remonstrances of his father and brother, Cæsarius had thrown up his appointment at the court of the Apostate, he recalled him. Valens created him keeper of the privy purse, and treasurer of Bithynia. A narrow escape in an earthquake at Nicæa, in 368, when almost all the chief men of that city were killed, moved him to renounce the world. He died shortly after, and was buried with great solemnity, his parents assisting at the funeral with lighted tapers in their hands, and his brother, S. Gregory, Bishop of Nazianzus, preaching his funeral oration.

S. ALDETRUDIS, V. ABSS(END OF 7TH CENT.)

[Molanus, Wyon, Miræus, Menardus, Bollandus, &c., on this day; some other hagiographers on March 15th. Authority: – An ancient life, part of which formed the lections of the Breviary for the Collegiate Church of Mons, founded by S. Waldetrudis.]

The Abbey of Maubeuge, in France, on the Sambre, near the confines of Belgium, was founded by S. Aldegund (Jan. 30th), sister of S. Waldetrudis (April 9th), wife of S. Vincent, a count, (July 14th), and aunt of the two holy daughters of this pious couple, S. Aldetrudis and S. Madelbertha (Sept. 7th), who succeeded Aldegund as abbesses of Maubeuge. Aldetrudis was brought up by her saintly parents to tread the path of light and life from her earliest infancy. She chose the religious life, and entered the house founded and governed by her aunt, whom she succeeded. One little incident of her life has retained its hold on the popular memory, and is sometimes represented in art. Determined not to waste the precious wax from the altar and other candles, Aldetrudis melted up all the scrapings, drippings, and ends of the tapers in a large pot on the fire, but, when it was melted, the wax caught fire. Aldetrudis, thinking there was danger from the blaze, and not wishing to lose the wax, boldly caught the pot from the fire with both her hands, and placed it on the stone floor. The legend adds that though some of the melted wax ran over her hands she was not burnt.