Chapter 20. Events relating to St

The Librarians of the Apostolic See, compiled at an early date in Eome, a chronicle of the Eoman belonged to the third century. Since then we have examined the marble more attentively, and it seems impossible to date it so far back. The inscription is still quite beautiful, but the inferiority of the letters is such that it must have been engraven after the reign of Constantine, probably during the latter part of the fourth century, and perhaps in the beginning of the fifth. Our learned friend, M. le Chevalier de Rossi, is of the same opinion. Before proceeding further, we must speak of a monument in the cubiculum of the Catacombs of St. Sebastian. It bears this inscription :

SANCTO MARTYRI MAXIMO.

Many have supposed it to be the sepulchral inscription of St. Maximus, but it is not. This marble is simply a detached fragment of the upper part of a Christian sarcophagus. We have examples of these large marble sarcophagi, ornamented with symbolical bas reliefs, with the portrait of the deceased in the centre, and an inscription above, in honor of the martyr under whose protection he wished to repose. The thickness and dimensions of the stone of which we speak, and the traces it still bears of having adhered to a solid mass of the same material, take away all doubt of its origin.

Pontiffs, more extensive and full of incidents than that written in the fourth century, and ending with the pontificate of Liberius. This second chronicle has been preserved, and extends to Felix IV., who occupied the Holy See from 526 to 530.

It served as a basis for the famous biography of the Popes, so long attributed to Anastasius, the librarian, who merely continued it.* If we examine this precious document, which dates back to the first half of the sixth century, we shall find therein the following passage relating to St. Urban. " He baptized a number of persons, among others Valerian, husband of Cecilia; and many of those whom he instructed, received the crown of martyrdom."f Thus the official tradition of the Koman Church, as well as the Liturgy, placed, in the pontificate of St. Urban, the events related in the Acts of St. Cecilia, and confirmed these recitals as far as was compatible with the extreme brevity of a chronicle so concise as that of Felix IV. The Church of the holy martyr, although deprived of the relics of its glorious patroness, continued to be venerated by the faithful.

It was greatly honored in 530, when its Titulary Cardinal, Boniface Sigisvult, or Sigisband, was elevated to the Apostolic See, as successor of Felix IV., under the name of Boniface 114 In later years, the Basilica of St. Cecilia frequently enjoyed this honor.

The ftoman Pontiffs were in the habit of celebrating the Holy Sacrifice in this church, on the mar-

• Origines de l'Eglise Romaine, vol. i, page 191-249.

t Hie sua traditione multos convertit ad baptisma, etiam Valerianum sponsum S. Caecilise, et multi martyrio coronati sunt per ejus doetrinam. Chronique de Felix IV., in Urbano.

X Ciaooonius. Vita) Ronianorum Pontificuni, Tome i. page 358.

L78 LIFE OF SAINT CECILIA.

tyr's festival. In the year 540, this solemnity was interrupted by an attack upon the person of the Vicar of Jesus Christ.

The Emperor Justinian, in one of the outbreaks of his theological mania, published his famous edict against the " three chapters." He formed the design of forcing Pope Yigilius to confirm, by apostoiic authority, the edict which was causing so much trouble in the Eastern Churches. His design was to seize the Pontiff, and carry him off to Constantinople. Anthemius, an officer of Theodora, wife of Justinian, was charged with the execution of this project. He was ordered by the Emperor, to seize the Pontiff wherever he could meet him, excepting at St. Peter's, which he consented to respect as the inviolable asylum of the head of Christianity.

On the 22d of November, Feast of St. Cecilia, Vigilius, according to custom, went to celebrate the^ Holy Sacrifice in the church of the martyr. The concourse of people was great, as this day was also the anniversary of Vigilius7 episcopal consecration, or of his exaltation to the chair of St. Peter. The Pope, following the example of his predecessors, was engaged in distributing largesses to the people. The emissary from Byzantium succeeded in eluding the vigilance of the faithful; and, by a bold stroke, the Pontiff was seized and carried to the banks of the Tiber, which flows near the church. He was placed on board a vessel, and in spite of the cries and moans of the people, taken away from Eome. His absence lasted during seven of the most stormy years of his troubled pontificate.*

• Anastas. In Vigilio. Pagi. Breviarum Pontificum Romaiiorum, Tome i. page 295.

Pelagius succeeded liim in the Apostolic chair, but was soon followed by John III., who governed the Church, until 572. The Liber Pontificalis remarks of this Pope, that : " He venerated the cemeteries of the holy martyrs, and restored many defaced monuments to their original state."* This passage of the Papal chronicle leads us back to the Catacombs, which had been cruelly ravaged thirty years before the pontificate of John III. The sleep of the martyrs had been disturbed by the barbarians; the noise of military arms had been heard even beneath the sacred vaults where the conquerors of Pagan Home reposed in peace. In 586, under the pontificate of St. Silverius, Rome had been besieged during an entire year, by the Goths under Vitiges. Not satisfied with destroying-}- the magnificent aqueducts, which, flowing over the Appian, Latin, and Tiburtine Ways, had, for centuries, supplied Rome with water, these barbarians had also descended into the cemeteries, and, with sacrilegious hands, had demolished the decorations with which the Pontiffs and faithful had embellished the sacred crypts. They had vented their blind and impious rage even upon the inscriptions placed near the martyrs' tombs.

The pontificate of Vigilius was too stormy to permit him to repair such devastations. We have, nevertheless, a proof of the interest he took in this pious work, in the inscription which is still extant, relating to three holy martyrs whose Damasian epitaph had been destroyed by the Goths. These mar-

• Hie amavit et restauravit Ccemeteria sanctorum niartyruni. Anastas. in Joanne iii.

f Proeop. do bello Gothico. Lib. ii. cap. iii.

tyrs were Vitalis, Martial, and Alexander, and the following is the inscription found on the monument substituted by Vigilius, for that broken by the barbarians: "When the Goths encamped beneath the walls of Eome, in their senseless triumph, ignorant of the overthrow which awaited them, they began by declaring war against the Saints. In their sacrilegious insolence, they overthrew the tombs consecrated to these martyrs, from the earliest ages. Damasus, divinely inspired, had proclaimed them worthy of veneration, and had composed verses in their honor. But although the sacred marble which bore this inscription has been broken, it is not just that their memory should perish forever. Therefore, Pope Vigilius, whose heart was deeply afflicted at such an outrage, repaired the sepulchres, after the enemy had been driven from Kome."*

We have every reason to suppose that the Cemeteries of the Appian, suffered very much at this time from the insults of the barbarians, who had so brutally destroyed the aqueduct of this Way. After the defeat of Vitiges, the Goths again besieged Eome under the command of Totila. They must have naturally

• Dum peritura GetsB posuissent castra sub urbe,

Moverunt Sanctis bella nefanda prius. Istaque sacrilegeverterunt corde sepulchra

Martyribus quondam rite sacrata piis. Quos monstrante Deo, Damasus sibi Papa probatos

Affixo monuit carmine jure coli. Sed periit titulus confracto marmore sanctus,

Nee tamen bis iterum posse latere fuit. Diruta Vigilius nam mox bsec Papa gemiscens,

Hostibus expulsis, omne novavit opus. Gruter (Inscript. antiq. tome iii, page mclxxi. 4)

wished to search these immense subterranean galleries, either to seek treasures, or in the hope of finding some secret entrance into the city. Their Arian fury was at this time exercised against the Catholic sanctuaries, and the most precious monuments of antiquity were exposed to their violence. It is certain, that in the VIII. century, Cecilia's tomb had no longer any precise inscription, since the Lombards vainly sought the Virgin's body that they might carry it away. We may, therefore, conclude, with sufficient probability, that this marble was destroyed by the Goths in the VI. century, and that it was not renewed because the faithful were so well acquainted with the locality of the martyr's tomb. The pious zeal of Pope Vigilius with regard to the three martyrs, of whom we have just spoken, refers principally to the rebuilding of their sepulchres, to which he added a new inscription. We have no proof that either he, or his successors, undertook the restoration of all those which had been defaced. The faithful of Eome, who at this time, frequently visited the cemeteries, had not forgotten the tombs of the principal martyrs ; the work undertaken by John III. must therefore have been principally the consolidation of the galleries and halls, and the restoration of the sepulchres injured by the barbarians.

We learn from the Liber Pontificalis, that under this Pontiff, divine service was not only still performed in the sacred crypts, on the days commemorating the triumph of the Martyrs, but that the Holy Sacrifice was offered there regularly every week John III. ordained that the Lateran Church should furnish the bread, wine, and lights, required every Sunday for the holy functions.*

This pious Pontiff displayed on another occasion his confidence in the protection of the holy martyrs.

The Eomans, annoyed by the presence of Narses in Italy, where he represented the authority of the Emperor Justinian, formed a cabal to oblige this great general to abandon the government of the peninsula. They even went so far as to write to the Emperor that they preferred the tyranny of the Lombards to that of Narses. The latter, wounded by the ingratitude of the Eomans, retired to Campania, and in his indignation invited the Lombards to take possession of a city which had so ill requited his services. In reality, this intrigue had been plotted by the schismatics of Italy, who never ceased protesting against the V. General Council whose authority Justin, as a Catholic prince, sustained, John III. trembled for his country, and hastened to Narses. He succeeded in inducing him to return to Eome ; but the Pontiff had become odious to the party whose designs he had frustrated. On his return, instead of going to the Lateran Palace, he concealed himself, as Urban had formerly done, under the shadows of the martyrs' tombs. He chose that part of the Cemetery of Pretextatus, which, in honor of the husband and brother of Cecilia, was called the Cemetery of Saints Tiburtius and Valerian.f Over the funereal galleries, where

• Instituit ut oblationes et amulse, vel luminaria, per eadem Ccemeteria omni die Dominico de Lateranis minis trarentur. Anastas. in Joanne iii.

f Tunc sanctissimus Joannes Papa retinuit se in Coemeterio sanctorum Tiburtii et Valeriani. Anastas. In Joanne iii.

the Pontiff came to learn patience from the example of the holy martyrs, rose the Church of which we have spoken, surrounded by several buildings for the accommodation of the priests and different functionaries. John III. resided some time in this obscure retreat. He celebrated the divine Mysteries sometimes in the Church, and sometimes in the subterranean chapels ; and the Popes' Chronicle adds that he even consecrated several Bishops while concealed in the cemetery.*

At the same time, about the year 570, the holy Archbishop of Eavenna, Agnellus, finished the mosaics of the superb church, erected, under the title of St. Apollinaris, by the great king Theodoric.f We may even attribute this splendid embellishment to that munificent prince who died about the year 526. However this may be, this vast groupings of mosaics is of great interest in our history, because, of all the monuments which Christian art dedicated to the memory of St, Cecilia, it is the most ancient which has been preserved to our own days. It represents the following picture :

"A band of twenty-five martyrs advance towards our Saviour, to present him the crown they hold in their hands, whilst twenty-two Saints direct their steps towards the Mother of Christ, who holds her divine Son upon her knees. The name of each virgin is written above her head : St. Cecilia is placed between Lucy and Eulalia. They are all standing

• Habitavit ibi multo tempore, ut etiam episcopos ibidem consecraret. Anastas. in Joanne iii.

f " Vid Ciampini. Vetera Monimenta, tome ii, page 100." The Mosaic is engraven in full upon several plates.

dressed in rich and elegant costumes, and holding crowns in their hands. According to the style of the Byzantine mosaics, a tree is placed between each figure, to indicate that those represented, inhabit the garden of heaven." The sixth century closed during the pontificate of St. Gregory the Great, who occupied the Holy See, until the fourth j^ear of the following century. This illustrious Pontiff arranged the Liturgy in its present form, and gave to the office of St. Cecilia the prominent place it occupies. A fearful contagion having desolated Rome in 590, Gregory, in order to avert the anger of God, ordered seven processions, which were to commence from seven different churches, and all to repair to the Basilica of St. Mary Major, the last invariable refuge of the faithful in such calamities. The first procession, which was that of the clerks, advanced from the Church of St. John Lateran ; the second, composed of laymen, from that of St. Marcellus ; the third, of monks, from the church of Sts. John and Paul ; the fourth, that of the religious, from the church of Sts. Cosmas and Damian ; the fifth, that of married women, from the church of St. Stephen; the sixth, that of widows, from the church of St. Vitaiis; and, finally, the seventh, composed of the poor, and of children, from the church of Cecilia.*

• Litania Clericorum exeat ab Ecclesia beati Joannis Baptistse. Litania virorum, ab Ecclesia beati Martyris Marcelli. Litania monacliorum, ab Ecclesia martyrum Joannis et Pauli. Litania ancillarmn Dei, ab Ecclesia beatorum martyrum Cosmae et Damiani. Litania feminarum conjugatarnm, ab Ecclesia beati primi martyris Stephani. Litania viduarum, ab Ecclesia beati martyris Vitaiis. Litania pauperum et infantium, ab Ecclesia beata? martyris Caecilise. Oratio ad pi eb em, de mortalitate. S. Gregorii opp., tome v, page 278. Edit GaUiccioli.

The Pontiff thus placed under the protection of the martyr, the feeble and the suffering, to whom, during lier life, she was so devoted. The Lord heard the supplications of his people, and through the intercession of the Queen of Heaven, the exterminating Angel was commanded to sheathe his sword.

The Basilica of St. Cecilia seems to have been rebuilt and rededicated under Gregory's Pontificate. At least, we may draw this conclusion from the famous charter of St. Paschal, of which we shall soon speak.*

It is not surprising that towards the close of the sixth century, this edifice needed repairing, and the fact recorded in the charter of St. Paschal, connects the name of St. Gregory in a particular manner with, the Church of the great Martyr. Moreover, this fact is confirmed by the very expressions of St. Paschal, which are to be read in every copy of his charter, and in which he declares that he has nominated St. Gregory as one of the patrons of the monastery which he erected near the Church of St. Cecilia.

A last fact relative to the homage paid by St. Gregory the Great, to St. Cecilia, may be found in the present he sent to Theodolinda, the Queen of the Lombards, of several vials containing oil from the lamps which burned in the cemetery of the martyrs.

It is well known how great was the paternal affection of the Pontiff towards this princess, w^ho remained true to her faith in the midst of an Arian

• " Titulus quern pise devotionis affectu sanctus Papa primus Gregorius doctor eximius dicaverat." Sec the text of this char* ter, with this important version, in Bosio, Acta S. Ccicili(Py p. 44, and in Laderchi, p. 204.

10*

court, and who had the happiness of converting her nation to Catholicity. His intention in sending her these vials of holy oil, was, that she might unite with the faithful of Eome in venerating the martyrs. To facilitate this, he sent her at the same time a topographical index of the different Saints from whose lamps the oil was taken, that so she might picture more vividly to herself the sacred ways of Christian Eome. This valuable list, written upon parchment, is still preserved in the Church of St. John the Baptist at Monza. The names of the Saints are frequently grouped together according to the locality of their tombs in the crypts. This order was also indicated upon each vial by means of small labels, most of which are still preserved, either fastened to the bottles or detached from them. In most cases the oil taken from lamps belonging to several tombs,. was mingled in one vial. That relating to our illustrious Martyr bears the following inscription :

SCA. SAPIENTIA^ SCA SPES. SCA FIDES. SCA

CARITAS. SCA CAECILIA. SCS TARSICIVS. SCS CORNILIVS. ET MVLTA MILLIA SCORVM.

This inscription at once carries us back to the Appian Way. We find in it the names of four celebrated Eoman Saints, St. Sophia with her three daughters, Faith, Hope, and Charity, who like their mother obtained the crown of martyrdom.* The place of their sepulture was not positively known, but this monument proves to us that it was upon the right side of the Appian Way. On the parchment, these Saints are placed between Saints Sotera and Cecilia, who were incontestibly a short distance from each * Acta SS. Augusti. Tome i. Die 1° Augusti.

other in the same region of the Callistus Cemetery ; ' hence we find their names in the same inscription with that of the glorious Martyr in whom we are so deeply interested. After these four names, comes that of Cecilia, followed by that of Tarsicius, who, as we have said, reposed near her in the cemetery of Sixtus ; St. Cornelius is the next mentioned ; his tomb, recently discovered upon the Appian, forms another proof .of our assertion; and the number of martyrs mentioned later, confirms all we find in the guidebooks relative to the Cemetery of Callistus. We have, therefore, a monument of the Gregorian period respecting St. Cecilia. This modest vial has been preserved for centuries, and a portion of the oil it contains was taken, during the pontificate of St. Gregory, from a lamp which burned near the virgin's tomb. The crypt of Cecilia and Sixtus has since been laid waste ; the monuments and lamps have disappeared ; Cecilia's body has been carried to Eome ; the subterranean vaults, formerly the object of such ardent veneration, have been silent and desolate for centuries, whilst the vial still exists, and is a proof of the veneration of the Eomans of the sixth century towards this spouse of Christ. But this is not all. Another vial in the treasury of Monza, containing oil from the lamps which burned near the tombs of Cecilia's husband and brother, bears the following inscription :

SCI SEBASTIANI. SCS EVTYCIVS. SCS QVIR1NVS.

SCS VALERIANVS. SCS TIBVRT1VS. S. MAXI

MVS. SCS VRBANVS. SCS IANVARIVS.

Here we again find the many groups of martyrs we described as reposing at the extremity of the Callistus Cemetery, upon the right of the Appian: Sebastian,

Eutychius, and Quirinus. Next follow three heroes, Valerian, Tiburtius, and Maximus, who were buried ■upon the left side of the Appian. Sts. Urban and Januarius, whose tombs were situated in the same region, are very naturally added to the preceding. Here again a fragile vial, preserved by the piety of the faithful, serves, at the present day, to prove the faith and confidence reposed by the Christians of Eome and the Queen of the Lombards, in the noble heroes whose memory we have celebrated. These bottles were carried to Theodolinda by a person named John, who signed the parchment upon which they are described, without adding any titles to his signature, but those of sinner, wretched and unworthy.45. Before concluding this chapter, we will mention a circumstance which refers at least indirectly to our history. St. Eulogius, Patriarch of Alexandria, wrote to St. Gregory, begging that he would send him a copy of the Deeds of the Martyrs, formerly collected by Eusebius. The holy Pope answered that he knew of no Acts of the Martyrs compiled by Eusebius, except those which are still found in his Ecclesiastical History. UI know of no other," adds the Pontiff, j

• Marini. Papiri diplomatici. N. cxliii. f" Nulla in Archivio." Moretti observes with reason that, these words of St. Gregory should he understood in a relative, not in an absolute sense : pauca quccdam. The holy Pope had just told the Patriarch of Alexandria that the Roman Church possessed a book containing the names of nearly all the Martyrs pene omnium Martyrum, meaning the Martyrology ; it is very evident that there is no proportion between the number of Acts now extant, and that of the Martyrs whose names we know. Were the Acts of St. Cecilia to be found among the authentic collection of which St. Gregory speaks ? There is no doubt of it ; otherwise the Roman Church would not have taken from them the hymna consecrated to this Martyr upon her festival.

either in the Archives of our Church or in the Eoman Libraries, unless it be a small number contained in a simple volume.' "