Chapter 15. Martyrdom of St

Scarcely a month elapsed before Urban was summoned to the tribunal of Almachius. The Pontiff had been discovered with two priests and three deacons in a grotto where he had been concealed ; for it had been impossible for him to remain long in Cecilia's palace. The prefect's officers, disconcerted at not finding in the palace the treasures they expected, and ignorant of Cecilia's donations to the poor, accused Urban of having received immense sums to secure them from confiscation. Cupidity rendered the search more active, and the Pontiff was finally discovered and arrested.

11 Is this," said Almachius, " that Urban, that seducer, who has already been twice condemned, and whom the Christians have made their Pope?"*

" Yes," replied the holy Pontiff, " It is I who have seduced men from the paths of iniquity, and have led them into the way of truth."f

" Is that the way of truth," retorted Almachius, " in which the gods are not honored, nor the princes obeyed V>%

• Nonne iste est Urbanus seductor, qui jam semel et iterum damnatus est, quern Christiani sibi Papam fecerunt ? Laderchi Acta S. Urbani.

f Ego seduco homines, ut viam iniquitatis relinquant, et ad viam veritatis deveniant. Ibid.

X 0 via veritatis, qure nee Deos colit, nee Principes ob tempo rat. Ibid,

"No," said Urban, " I do not honor your gods any more than I fear your princes. Do what you have to do."*

The venerable old man was cast into prison with his companions, and during the night, some Christians, who had bribed with gold the jailor, Anolinus, came to visit him, and to give him proofs of their filial veneration.

St. Urban, accompanied by his priests and deacons, appeared a second time before the prefect. Almachius at first manifested a little moderation, the result of the uneasiness which he experienced at having so violently persecuted the Christians. l l Cease your obstinacy/' he said, "and sacrifice, to the gods. Already five thousand men have perished in consequence of your seductions.f You are responsible for them."

" They have not perished as you imagine, wretched man," replied Urban, " but have ascended gloriously to the kingom of heaven."

"Yes," said the prefect, "it was this vain hope

• Nee Deos tuos colo, nee principes tuos timeo ; fac quod facturus es. Acta S. UrbanL f The Acts of St. Urban, from which we gather these details, have not, doubtless, the same authority as those of St. Cecilia, but there is a tone of candor and truth throughout them which does not permit us to reject them with disdain, as many critics have done. The most serious objection to them occurs in this passage, as it is incredible that 5000 persons should have been martyred for the faith in Rome, in so short a time, and by the orders of a prefect. But this can be easily explained as being an error of the copyist. The manuscripts frequently passed through so many hands that mistakes might easily be made in figures, and it certainly seems unjust to reject the whole account merely for a fault which can be so easily explained.

which so woefully seduced Cecilia, her husband, and her brother-in-law ; it was this hope which made them count as nothing the brilliant existence that awaited them on earth. At their death, they left you immense treasures — you must restore them."*

By these words, the judge betrayed his cupidity. Urban, disdaining to answer the accusation, contented himself with saying: " Foolish man! rather render homage to your Creator; for those of whom you speak, gave up their lives, after distributing their fortunes to the poor."f

" Cease this audacity if you wish to live ; otherwise you shall perish."

"None can perish," said Urban, " but those who by their faith or works, displease the Creator."

The prefect then addressed the two priests : "And are you of the same opinion ?"

"All the counsels of our Father are wise," they replied ; " but wisdom will not enter into a perverted soul.":]:

"I see," replied Almachius, you are worse than your master, decrepit and foolish as he is. Are you not ashamed, miserable wretches, to persevere in your insolence, after so many condemnations ?"§

• Hac vana spe inducta Csecilia cum sponso suo et cognato, omnem gloriam perdiderunt, et immensum tibi dimiserunt thesaurum, quern te nunc exhibere oportet. Ada S. Urbani.

f Stulte, agnosce creatorem pro quo illi sua omnia pauperisms erogantes, mori exoptaverunt. Ibid.

\ Patris nostri monita per omnia sunt salubria, sed inmalevolam animam non intrat sapiential Ibid.

§ Ut video deteriores elfecti estisquam delirus senexmagister vester ; sed miseri non erubescitis, qui toties damnati prcescriptionibus in impudentia perduratis. Ibid.

lie then commanded them to be scourged with loaded whips. The order was executed in his presence, and the two confessors, during the blows, repeated: "Lord! we thank Thee."

Almachius, enraged at their constancy, cried out in a voice trembling with passion :

"They must be protected by some enchantment, or they could not still resist our orders."

" It is you," said Urban, " who have become like your gods ; for you have ears and hear not ; eyes and see not."*

" What ! do you dare to insult the gods !" cried the prefect; "your head shall be the forfeit of your audacity ; I swear it by the gods and goddesses."

" If you wish to judge for yourself how much respect the gods merit, read their history. As to our God, He has created all things, and He strengthens us by these words : ' Fear not those who kill the body, for they cannot kill the soul.' "

"I understand," said Almachius, "you are old, and for this reason you look upon death as a rest ; you are jealous of these young men ; you persuade them to sacrifice their lives, because your own is nearly at an end."

One of the priests, indignant at this outrage, interrupted the prefect : " Your words are evident falsehoods," he said. " Our Father, from his youth, has always regarded Jesus Christ as his life, and death as a gain. More than once he has confessed Christ, and exposed his life for the flock confided to his care."f

• Immo tu miser Diis tuis similis es effectus, aures liabens, et non audiens, oculos, et non videns. Acta S. Urbani.

t Manifesto mentiris ; patri enim nostro, et in juventute

Almachius ordered the old man and his companions to be re-conducted to prison. Here they were again visited by the Christians, and the jailor, Anolinus, was so impressed by the veneration and homage paid to the venerable old man, that he was converted to the faith, baptized by St. Urban, and soon after paid with his life the honor of being enrolled among the soldiers of Christ.

A short time after, the martyrs were again summoned before Almachius, who ordered that they should be conducted to the Pagus Triopius, where he hoped they would consent to offer incense to the idol of Jupiter.* A critic of our day, has remarked with some reason, that the prefect's motive in choosing a Pagus of the Appian Way for the holy Pontiffs trial, was to give greater publicity to his apostasy, if he abjured Christianity so near the place where he had exercised his ministry ; or more solemnity to his execution, should he refuse to sacrifice to the gods, in a region so frequented by the Christians.!

The Confessors rejected with horror the proposal that they should offer incense to the idols, and were, in consequence, so cruelly beaten, that Lucian, one of the deacons, expired under the blows of the executioner. Finally, on the eighth of the calends of June, three days later, Almachius sent the confessors to a temple of Diana, % ordering the soldiers to behead

Christus vivere fuit, et mori lucrum ; multoties quippo pro eo Confessor effectus, animam suam pro ejus ovibus posuit. Ibid,

• Ducite eos ad templum juxta Pagum, et vol saorinoent Deo inagno Jovi, vel multiplicibus macerentur supplieiis. Acta S. Urbani.

\ Riccy. Dell' antico pago Leinonio. Rome, 1802, page 104.

J The Acts of St. Urban do not specify the locality of this them if they refused to offer sacrifice. On the way, Urban thus exhorted his companions: "It is the Lord who calls us ; He who has said : c Come to me, all ye that labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you.' Until now, we have known the Lord only as in a glass, and as an enigma ; behold the moment when we go to see Him face to face.7'*

When they entered the temple, the martyrs said to the executioners: "Finish your work. It is useless to propose to us an action which you know we scorn." They insisted, however ; and upon the martyrs' refusal, led them out of the temple and beheaded them. Fabian, Callistus, and Ammonius, three Christian tribunes, who had visited the Pontiff* in prison, caused the bodies of the martyrs to be carried to the cemetery of Pretextatus.f

A more honorable sepulture was reserved for St. Urban, in return for that which in his paternal tenderness he had prepared for Cecilia. Marmenia, the wife of the prefect's Vicar, had embraced Christianity immediately after the martyrdom of St. Urban. Having learned through the priest, Fortunatus, who had baptized her, the place where the bodies of St. Urban and his companions had been deposited, she temple ; it may have been in the interior of the city. Had it been on the Nomentana road, as we conjectured in our first edition, in consequence of some remarks, in the martyrology attributed to St. Jerome, it is probable the Acts would not have omitted to mention the circumstance.

• Ecce nos Dominus vocat inquiens : Venite ad me omnes quilaboratis et onerati estis, et ego reficiam vos. Hactenus eum vide mus quasi per speculum, et in aenigmate ; prcesto autem est, ut videamus eum facie ad faciem. Acta S. Urbani.

t Acta S. Urbani.

caused these sacred remains to be removed to her villa, which was situated upon the left side of the Appian Way, near a villa built by Vespasian, above the cemetery of Pretextatus, not far from the tombs of Valerian, Tiburtius and Maximus. She ordered a crypt to be excavated, in which she placed a sepulchre, closed by a slab of precious marble, the interior of the tomb being also lined with marble. Here, Marmenia placed the bodies of St. Urban and his companions, after anointing them with perfumes. This crypt was afterwards enlarged, and converted into a vast cubiculum, solidly built, and of quadrangular dimensions.* In one of the manuscripts of the Acts of St. Urban, this cubiculum is described as being situated in the upper story of the Catacombs.f

St. Urban had occupied the Holy See eight years, eleven months and twelve days. He was succeeded by Pontianus, who governed in peace for several years. The return of Alexander Severus restored tranquillity to the Church of Rome ; at least the violence of Alrnachius does not seem to have been

• Levaverunt hide cum magno honore glebas almas, et adduxerunt eas in domum Marmenia, quae erat extra palatium Vespasiani Augusti, sita prope columnas, in qua sepulcrum B. Marmenia miro jussit modeponi : quod etiam marmoreis tabulis ex omni parte conglutinans contexit parietem, in quo recondiderunt cum aromatibus corpus Beatissimi Urbani et Mamiliani Fresbyteri, et desuper sacrum tumulum miro lapide operiri curaverunt : super quod ingens antrum fabricari fecerunt, quadratum et iirmissimae fabrics), etc. Acta S. Urbani, f Corpus autem B. Urbani Papa? et Martyris, ibidem in superiori camaculo condiderunt. Acta SS, Mali, ad dium xxv. page 13. This circumstance is also found in an ancient manuscript of the Vatican Basilica from which Laderchi has extracted abridged Acts of St. Urban.

13*

■»

prolonged beyond this epoch. The impressions of the Emperor when he was made acquainted with the prefect's conduct, are not known. The historians of Alexander were little interested in the Christians, and, moreover, they generally passed over in silence facts which merely referred to the magistrates. It is to be supposed that this prince, who detested cruelty, blamed the excesses of the prefect, but it does not appear that he expressed in any other way his displeasure at the judicial murder of Cecilia and the two patricians. However this may have been, the system followed under the reign of Alexander with regard to the sovereign Pontiffs, was soon carried out in the case of Pontianus. This saintly Pope had to suffer persecution on account of his ministry; he was not condemned to death, like his predecessors, Sts. Urban and Callistus, but an order emanating from the imperial court, exiled him to the isle of Buccinia,* one of the wildest on the southern coast of Sardinia.

Alexander did not long survive this act of injustice. How frequently we see in history, and even in our own day, the judgments of God visited upon princes who seemed personally favorable to His church, but who, forgetful of the future, and of justice, neglected to break the chains which others had forged for the Spouse of Christ. These princes thought that in lightening her fetters, they had fulfilled their duty. They did not foresee that, after their death, those chains would be riveted more firmly than ever upon that Church which they ought not only * Anastas. in Pontiano.

to have loved and venerated as Christians, but to have protected and delivered as kings.

Alexander had scarcely entered upon the thirteenth year of his reign, and the twenty sixth of his age, when he was assassinated at Mayence by his own soldiers, leaving the empire to Julius Verus Maximinus, one of the chiefs of his army. This man is suspected of having been the author of the sedition in which the unfortunate prince and his Mother, Julia Mammaea, lost their lives.