Internet Medieval Sourcebook
Saints' Lives
Editor: Paul Halsall
The Internet Medieval Sourcebook is located at
the
Fordham University Center for
Medieval Studies.
Guide to Contents
The structure of this section of the Sourcebook is as follows. You can browse
through the entire list, or jump directly to the part that interests you by selecting the
underlined links.
- Main Page
will take you back to Internet Medieval Sourcebook main page.
- Selected Sources will take you to
the index of selected and excerpted medieval sources.
- Full Text Sources will take you to the
page on non-hagiographal full etexts.
SAINTS' LIVES
Introduction
Saints' lives are a major resource for anyone concerned with the history of the late
ancient world, Byzantium, or the Latin Middle ages. Just as whole genres of ancient
literature vanished or diminished, the genre of hagiography became a major form of
literary production. Such saints' lives - or vitae - survive in astonishing
numbers. Careful reading of them reveals, as one might expect, a great deal about the
religious life of the periods that produced them. Frequently, however, such lives are also our best sources for basic social and cultural history. They provide information
on, among other things:- details of daily life; food and drink; organization of local
rural and urban society; the impact of commerce; gender relations; class relations; and
even, on occasion, specific dates for military and political history. This page's goal is to present ancient, Byzantine, and medieval hagiographic original
texts - in translation and otherwise - along with basic data on the cult of saints.
Modern Christians, especially Orthodox Christians, still read such lives for their
religious value. They will find some of these texts profitable for that goal. But the
emphasis here is on the historical understanding of the texts and the cult of
saints. [The word cult, by the way, is a technical term referring to the religious
practices surrounding devotion to saints.]
Web Sites for Hagiography
- WEB Christian
Hagiography including Guide to Useful Websites [At Bollandists]
The web site of the Bollandists, a society within the Jesuits which for three centuries
has lead the way in the scientific investigation of hagiography and the cult of the
saints.
-
WEB Hagiography Site [At ORB archive] [Internet Archive version here]
Web site by Thomas Head (RIP) one of the leading experts on Western Hagiography. Excellent bibliographies, and an incipient
encyclopedia of hagiography.
- WEB Hagiography Sourcebook [At Univ.Kiel] [Internet Archive version here]
A
list of websites rather than anything new at the actual site.
- WEB The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity: from its origins to circa AD 700, across the entire Christian world Database [At Oxford]
The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity (CSLA) database.
The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity database is making readily accessible and searchable as much as possible of the early evidence for the cult of Christian saints (up to around AD 700), with key texts presented in their original language, all with English translation and brief contextual commentary. Project funding ended on 31 December 2018, but the process of uploading, checking, editing, and releasing entries is continuing]
- WEB Dumbarton Oaks Hagiography Database [At Dumbarton Oaks]
The online version of the Dumbarton Oaks Hagiography Database, originally released in 1998 as a set of floppy disks, has two sections. The introduction contains general information about the project and bio-bibliographical introductions to each of the saints of the eighth to tenth centuries included in the project. The database itself is divided into three sections: a list of saints, a list of authors, and a search of citations. The Greek texts that the database has been permitted to reproduce either in their entirety or in sections may be accessed through the saint list (entire texts) or search citations (partial texts).
- WEB St. Pachomias Library [Orthodox Christian Site]
-
WEB Ökumenisches Heiligenlexikon [Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints]
A very valuable German-language website on the study of the saints. Among other resources it contains an digital version of the Acta Sanctorum
- WEB The
Military Martyrs [Was at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
A web site by David Woods focused on the military martyrs.
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Non-Christian Biography
Hagiography is not "biography" as such, but the genres clearly overlap. A
number of classical authors wrote "lives" which greatly influenced later
Christian hagiographical writings. Moreover, the accounts of the Jewish martyrs under the
Seleucids provided important themes to Christian writers.
-
Philostratus: Life of Apollonius
of Tyana, c. 220 CE [At Livius.org]
Extended extracts from the Loeb version. The comparison with the Gospel is striking.
- Diogenes Laërtius: The Lives
and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers Book VI: The Cynics [Antisthenes, Diogenes,
Monimus, Onesicritus, Crates, Metrocles, Hipparchia, Menippus, Menedemus.]
- Diogenes Laërtius: The Lives
and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers: Book VII: The Stoics [Zeno, Ariston, Herillus,
Dionysius, Cleanthes, Sphaerus, Chrysippus]
- Diogenes Laërtius: The Lives and
Opinions of Eminent Philosophers The Sceptics: Life of Pyrrho
- Plutarch (46-120 CE): Parallel Lives,
(complete in English), Arthur Clough's translation. [At Project Gutenberg].
- Suetonius: Lives of the Caesars [complete]
- Suetonius: De Viris Illustris, c. 106-113
C.E.
- The Life of Adam and Eve: The
Biblical Story in Judaism and Christianity, [At Virginia] [Internet Archive version here ]
An extended web project on the text of the Vita of Adam and Eve on Latin, Greek, Armenian,
Slavic, and Georgian, as well as discussion in medieval commentaries.
- Fourth Book of Maccabees: The Death of the Maccabees circa. 63 BCE-70CE [RSV]
This book is in an "Appendix" of Greek Orthodox Bibles (although not part of the
Latin Church's deuterocanonica). Its account of the persecution the Maccabees
influenced later martyrdom accounts in many ways. The Maccabees and their mother were
celebrated as saints in Orthodox churches.
-
St. Jerome: De Viris Illustribus,
or On Illustrious Men [At New Advent][From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
Jerome discusses both pagan and Christian figures. He gives biographical information which
is clearly distinct from hagiographic genres.
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I: Apostolic Era Saints
The following texts - all accounts of the martyrdoms of the apostles - are
apocryphal. See Vol. 8 of Ante-Nicene Fathers for further notes and details.
Jump Back to Contents
II: Early Christian Martyrs
LATIN AND GREEK
- The
Martyrdom of Polycarp, 2nd century.
See also
Catholic Encyclopedia:
POLYCARP, SAINT
One of the earliest surviving genuine passion accounts. Polykarp was a bishop of Smyrna
and had known people who had known the apostles.
- Martyrdom of Ignatius of Antioch,
2nd Century. [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- John Chrysostom: Homily on
Ignatius of Antioch. [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
The homily begins with a notable assertion of the equality of the sexes in sainthood.
- John Chrysostom (c.347-407): Homily on Babylas [At New Advent]
[From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
-
John Chrysostom (c.347-407): On Eutropius the
Eunuch, Patrician and Consul - Homily 1 and Homily 2 [At New Advent]
- The Passion of St. Saturninus and Preface, trans by Andrew Eastbourne [At Tertullian] [Internet Archive version here]
- Perpetua: The Passion of SS. Perpetua and Felicity.
The Latin Original is
available [At The Latin Library]
. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Sts.
Felicitas and Perpretua; and
Peter Dronke's
Discussion of Perpetua [At Internet Archive, from Millersville]
This text is composed, in part, of Perpetua's own account of her trial, and of her
visions. It is thus among the earliest of all texts ascribed to a Christian woman.
According to Thomas Heffernan [Sacred Biography, (New York: Oxford UP, 1988), 190]
this text also sees the earliest use of the topos of Christ, the Bridegroom of the
saint. Perpetua is "the wife (matrona) of Christ, the beloved of God" (17:2)
- Eusebius: Ecclesiastical History: Martyrdom
of St. Domnina and Daughters. [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
A text, and a story, which has always been problematic - the saint and her daughters drown
themselves rather than submit to rape.
- Eusesbius: History of the Martyrs of Palestine trans by William Cureton (1861) [At Tertullian] [Internet Archive version here]
- Eusesbius: Encomium of the Martyrs W. Wright, "The Encomium of the Martyrs," Journal of Sacred Literature, 4th series vol. 5 (1864), pp.403-408 (Syriac text with introduction by B.H.Cowper); 4th series vol. 6 (1864-5), pp.129-133 (English translation and introduction by B.H.COWPER) [At Tertullian] [Internet Archive version here]
- Martyrdom of Justin, Chariton,
and other Roman Martyrs [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
An account of a martyrdom drawn from the legal proceedings against the martyrs.
- Acts of Xanthippe, Polyxena and Rebecca. [From Ante-Nicene
and Nicene Fathers Series]
- The Persecution & Martyrdoms of Lyons In 177 A.D.: The Letter of the Churches of Vienna and Lyons to
the Churches of Asia and Phrygia including the story of the Blessed Blandina.
-
Gregory of Tours (539-594): Polyeuktos
the Martyr, d. c. 259, from De gloria martyrum.. [Latin and English] [At Internet Archive, from Todd
Parment's Polyeuktos page]
The page also contains a
Latin
Version of his Martydom from Acta Sanctorum, February II, 651-52. Also
available, via the link above, are a number of maps, diagrams, and pictures of the
exacavation of the sixth-century Church of St. Polyeuktos in Constantinople.
- Martyrdom of St. Januarius
As San Gennaro, the patron saint of Naples, and whose liquefying blood remains the
occasion of intense concern. See also
Mike Epstein: Spectroscopy of the
Januarius Blood [At ASU]
- The Passion of the Scillitan Martyrs. [From Ante-Nicene
and Nicene Fathers Series]
-
Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): The First Homily on the Forty Martyrs of Sebasteia, trans Casimir McCambly, [At Lectio Divina] [Internet Archive version here]
- Leo I: Sermon 85: On St
Laurence, [At New Advent]
St. Laurence was broiled to death. Hence he became patron saint of cooks. [His churches
typically have a griddle rather than a cross on top.]
- Martyrdom of the Holy Confessors
Shamuna, Guria, and Habib. [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
This is the version by Symeon Metaphrastes.
- Pontius the Deacon: The Life and
Passion of Cyprian. [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Prudentius. Peristephanon.
Book 3: Panting for God. [At Electronic Antiquity] [Internet Archive version here] [
Complete text available in Latin at The Latin Library]
SYRIAC, COPTIC and OTHER ORIENTAL
-
John of Ephesus,Lives of the Eastern Saints. trans. E.W. Brooks, (Paris:
Firmin-Didot et Cie, 1923-26) [Internet Archive]
- Severus, Bishop of Al-Ushmunain: Life
of the Apostle and Evangelist Mark, (Severus, fl. ca. AD 955 - 987), trans. from
Arabic, [At St. Pachomius Library]
- Acts of Sharbil. [At New
Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Martyrdom of Habib translated from Syriac
- Martyrdom of Habib the Deacon.
[At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Homily on Habib the Martyr.
[At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Homily on Guria and Shamuna.
[At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Moses of Chorene. [At New
Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Bardesan. [At New Advent]
[From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- The Martyrdom of Barsamya.
[At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
-
The Genuine Acts of Peter of
Alexandria. [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Martyrdom of Peter of Alexandria, translated from
Latin
- Martyrdom of St. Pelagia of Ceasarea, translated from
Ge'ez
- Texts Relating to Saint Mena Of Egypt And Canons Of Nicaea, trans. E.W. Budge. 1909 [Internet Archive]
- St Michael the Archangel, Coptic texts, trans. E.W. Budge. 1894 [Internet Archive]
- George of Lydda, the patron saint of England, Ethiopic texts, trans. E.W. Budge. 1930 [Internet Archive]
-
Ethiopian Synaxarion Notice: St.
Pisentius of Qift, trans. E.W. Budge., [At St. Pachomius Library]
MILITARY MARTYRS
- St. Andrew the General [The Passion
of St. Andrew the General (BHG 118)] [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
- St. Callistratus [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
- Armenian Passion of St. Callistratus BHO 185
St. Christopher [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Demetrius of Thessalonica [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
- The Passion (BHL 2122) and Miracles (BHL 2123) of St. Demetrius by Anastasius the
Librarian BHL 2122-23
Ss. Emeterius and Chelidonius [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
Ss. Fidelis, Exantus, and Carpophorus [The Passion of Ss. Fidelis, Exantus, and Carpophorus (BHL 2922)][Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Florian [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. George [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Luxurius [The Passion of Ss.
Luxurius, Camerinus and Cisellus (BHL 5092)][Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Maurice and the Theban Legion [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
- The Passion of St. Maurice and the Theban Legion BHL 5740
St. Maximilian of Tebessa [The
Passion of St. Maximilian of Tebessa (BHL 5813)][Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Marcellus of Tingis [The
Passion of St. Marcellus (BHL 5255a)][Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Menas [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Mercurius [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
- The Passion of St. Mercurius BHG 1274
- Other Sources [Malalas on
Mercurius and the Emperor Julian "the Apostate"]
Ss. Sergius and Bacchus [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
The Passion of
Sergius and Bacchus. [At CMU] Translated by John Boswell from the Greek "Passio antiquior SS. Sergii et Bacchi Graece nunc primum edita," AnalBoll 14 (Brussels, 1895), 373-395. This text is apparently the Greek original of the Latin passion beginning "Imperante Maximiano tyranne, multus error hominum genus possederat," printed in the Acta sanctorum, October 7, 865-79. [Internet Archive version here]
St. Theagenes of Parium [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
- The Passion of St. Theagenes of Parium BHG 2416
- The Passion of St. Theagenes BHL 8106
- The Passion of St. Theagenes BHL 8107
St. Theodore the Recruit [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
- Latin Passion: The Passion of St. Theodore the Recruit BHL 8077
- Coptic Passion: The Passion of
St. Theodore the General and St. Theodore the Eastern (Translation by Winstedt (1910),
73-133)]
- Armenian Passion of St. Theodore the General BHO 1168
- Other Sources
Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): In Praise of Theodore, Great
Martyr, trans Casimir McCambly, [At Lectio Divina] [Internet Archive version here]
St. Typasius the Veteran [The
Passion of St. Typasius (BHL 8354)] [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Varus [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
St. Victor of Milan The Passion of
St. Victor (BHL 8580)][Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
The 60 Martys of Gaza [Was at Military Saints at UCC.IE, now Internet Archive]
RISE OF THE CULT OF SAINTS IN THE WEST
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III: Early Monks [Eastern]
Jump Back to Contents
IV: Patristic Era Saints
- Mark the Deacon: Life of Porphyry of Gaza, 5th
Century.
A fascinating account of the Christian destruction of Paganism in Gaza.
- Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): Life of Macrina,
trans. W.K. Lowther Clarke.
One of the most important lives of a female saint. This is an account of Gregory's
strongminded sister, Macrina (c.327-379)
-
Gregory of Nyssa
(c.335-d.c.395): Index. [At Lectio Divina] [Internet Archive version here][See also Catholic Encyclopedia: SAINT GREGORY
OF NYSSA
-
Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): Eulogy for Basil The Great,
trans Casimir McCambly [At Lectio Divina] [Internet Archive version here]
- Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): Panegyric for Basil The Great,
[At New Advent]
- Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): Funeral Oration for the Empress
Flaccilla, trans Casimir McCambly [At Lectio Divina] [Internet Archive version here]
-
Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): Funeral Oration on Meletius,
trans Casimir McCambly [At Lectio Divina] [Internet Archive version here]
-
Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): Life of Gregory the Wonderworker,
trans Casimir McCambly [At Lectio Divina] [Internet Archive version here]
- Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-d.c.395): Funeral Oration on Meletius [At
New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Gregory Nazianzus: Oration 21: On Athanasius
See
Encyclopeadia Britannica
(9th ed): Athanasius
- Gregory Nazianzus: Oration 18: On His Father
- Gregory Nazianzus: Oration: On His Sister Gorgonia
- Gregory Nazianzus: Oration 7: On His Brother
Caesarius
- Palladius: Dialogue on the life of St. John Chrysostom with Introduction, trans by Herbert Moore (1921) [At Tertullian]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Confessions, Trans Edward Pusey
[From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series][At CCEL]. The Latin Text is also
online [At Internet Archive]. Oulter's
Translation is also available in PDF and format [At CCEL].
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Confessions Trans Edward Pusey [At Internet Archive].
-
Possidius: Life St. Augustine,
Full Text in English [At Tertullian]; A machine translation of the first 13 chapters is also
available.
- Ps.-Amphilochius of Iconium: On the Circumcision and Basil [BHG 262], trans. Andrew Jacobs (5th or 6th Cent) [Internet Archive version here]
Jump Back to Contents
V: Byzantine Saints
- Eusebius of Caesarea: Life of the Blessed Emperor
Constantine, 4th Century [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
The Emperor Constantine - who legalised Christianity - is a saint in the Orthodox church.
This single act overcame, for later generations, his violent public and private life and
death as an Arian.
- Life of the Emperor Constantine the Great, Great among the Saints and the Equal of the Apostles [Vita Constantini e cod. Patm. 179, s. XII-XIII, f.4-25 (BHG 365n)]. The ‘Halkin’ Life of Constantine in English translated by Mark Vermes. [At Roger Pearse] [Internet archive version here]
- Eusebius of Caesarea: Oration in Praise of
Constantine, 4th Century [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Evagrius Ponticus: St. Simeon Stylites from Ecclesiastical
History, I.13,
- The Life of Daniel the Stylite, full text,, the
fifth-century saint who spent 33 years on a pillar in Constantinople. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Stylites
The first and most famous "pillar saint" was St. Symeon Stylites. But Symeon's
base was in Syria. Daniel, based in Constantinople, exercised enormous religious power.
- Life of Matrona of Perge, d.c. 510-515, trans Khalifa
Ben Nasser, [full text of Metaphrastic Life: selections from Vita Prima],
An example of a "transvestite" saint who was also a historical figure.
- The Life of Theodore of Sykeon.
This Life of seventh-century saint is a major source for Byzantine rural and social
history, as well as about the development of the cult of saints. Theodore's devotion to
St. George is especially noteworthy in this text.
- Leontius: The Life of John the Almsgiver, 7th
Century.
The 7th-century Patriarch of Alexandria just before the Arab Conquest was later taken as
patron by the Order of knights Hospitallers. As such he was the only Byzantine era saint
to achieve popularity in the Western middle ages.
- Passion of the Sixty Martyrs of Gaza at the Hands of the Saracens, 17 Dec 638 CE, trans Kenneth Baxter Wolf and students.
- John of Damascus: Barlaam and
Ioasaph Translation: G. Woodward & H. Mattingly [At OMACL]
Also various formats here [at Project Gutenberg]
The story is, in fact, a Christianization of the story of the Buddha, who lived about 500
years BCE. Josaphat is a Greek mis-rendition of the Sanskrit Bodhisattva -
not so much a Byzantine saint, but a saint with a Byzantine vita. See also
Catholic Encyclopedia: John
Damascene
- Life of St. Mary of Egypt from the Canon of St.
Andrew of Crete. See also
Catholic
Encyclopedia: Saint Mary of Egypt
- Life of Irene, Abbess of the Convent of
Chrysobalanton, trans. Jan Olof Rosenqvist
- Lennart Rydén: The Life of St Andrew the Fool: Vol. 1: Introduction, Testimonies and Nachleben. Indices [Internet Archive backup here] and The Life of St Andrew the Fool Vol. 2: Text, Translation and Notes. Appendices [Internet Archive backup here] full text [At Uppsala]
- Life of Mary the Younger, d.c. 903, trans Paul
Halsall, [First five chapters, and concluding prayer]
- Life of St. Thomaïs of Lesbos trans Paul Halsall (introduction and translation) in Holy Women of Byzantium: Ten Saints’ Lives in English Translation, edited by Alice-Mary Talbot, Washington: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, 1996. 291-322 [PDF]
- The Life of St. Thomaïs of Lesbos, full text in
Greek [Unicode]
-
Nestor: The Martyrdom of Boris and
Gleb, d. 1015, [Was At Durham now Internet Archive]
Important Russian saints.
- The Life of Lazaros of Mt. Galesion: An
Eleventh-Century Pillar Saint [Was At DO now Internet Archive]
A good part of the published translation. In PDF Format
-
Gregory Palamas: On Unceasing
Prayer, from the Life of St. Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Salonica, Wonderworker (this is taken from the comments of St. Nikodemos of the Holy Mountain, editor of the
Philokalia) [At Palamas Page] [Internet Archive version here]
- The Translation of Saint Nicholas from Myra to Bari [Greek Anonymous],
13th Century MS,
The story of the sacred theft of the relics of St. Nicholas from Myra in 1087.
- Gregory of Constantinople: Life of St. Romylos, 14th
Century
- Life of Sergius of Radonezh (c.1314-1392), f.d. Sept. 25 [Was At Durham, now Internet Archive]
-
The Life of St. Kosmas Aitolos, with his Teaching and Letters, 1714-1779. Trans by Nomikos Vaporis, [Was At St. Mary of Egypt now Internet Archive]
This text has the Antisemitic aspects of Kosmos' life and works removed.
- Holy Women of Byzantium: Ten Saints' Lives
in English Translation, ed. Alice-Mary Talbot [At Internet Archive]
Complete texts of translations of female saints lives.
The texts are all in a single PDF for the enitre vook or EPUB form. The former individual PDFs are no longer available.
-
Front Matter, General Introduction,
Acknowledgemets, List of Abbreviations
- A. Nuns Disguised as Monks
-
1. Life of St. Mary/Marinos / translated
by Nicholas Constas
-
2. Life of St. Matrona of Perge / Jeffrey
Featherstone and Cyril Mango
- B. Female Solitaries
-
3. Life of St. Mary of Egypt / Maria
Kouli
-
4. Life of St. Theoktiste of Lesbos /
Angela C. Hero
- C. Cenobitic Nuns
-
5. Life of St. Elisabeth the Wonderworker / Valerie Karras
-
6. Life of St. Athanasia of Aegina / Lee
Francis Sherry
-
7. Life of St. Theodora of Thessalonike /
Alice-Mary Talbot
- D. Pious Housewives
-
8. Life of St. Mary the Younger /
Angeliki E. Laiou
-
9. Life of St. Thomaïs of Lesbos / Paul
Halsall
-
E. A Saintly Empress
- 10. Life of St. Theodora of Arta /
Alice-Mary Talbot
-
Indexes / 122 k
Index of People and Places; General Index; Index of Notable Greek Words
Jump Back to Contents
VI: Western Europe: Original Lives
EARLY MEDIEVAL
- Sulpicius Severus (c.363-c.425): Life of
St. Martin of Tours, [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series], See also
Catholic
Encyclopedia: Martin of Tours. St Martin of Tours was one of the most universally celebrated saints in the Western Church.
- Andre Mertens: The Old English Lives of St Martin of Tours Edition and Study (Published by Universitätsverlag Göttingen 2017 (Open Access)
- Miracle of St Martin, Bishop of Tours, trans. W.L. North from the edition of I.V.D.G.
“Miraculum S. Martini Episcopi Turonensis.” Analecta Bollandiana 21 (1902): 403-404. [At Carleton] [Internet Archive version here]
- Eugippius (c. 460 –c. 535): Life of Saint Severinus of Noricum (c.410-482). [At Tertullian] [Internet Archive version here]
- Gregory I (Dialogos) (r.590-604): Second Dialogue
(Life of St. Benedict). [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Gregory I (Dialogos) (r.590-604): Gregory I (Dialogos):
Second Dialogue (Life of St. Scholastica). [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- The Most Ancient Life of St Gregory the
Great, by a monk or nun at Whitby, 713 [at Julian Site] [internet Archive version here]
- Bede (673-735): Gregory the Great, from the Ecclesiastical
History.
- Bede (673-735), following Paulinus: The Life of the Holy Confessor Saint Felix, trans J.A. Giles [Wikisource]
- Dado of Rouen: The Life of Eligius, 588-660, trans, Jo
Ann McNamara.
- Gregory of Tours (539-594): Eight Books of Miracles,
Selections.
- Gregory of Tours (539-594): Gregory of Tours: Life
of St. Gall, from Lives of the Fathers
- Bede (673-735): The Life of Cuthbert.
Cuthbert was, for a short time, bishop of Lindesfarne. In death he became perhaps the most
celebated saint in Northern England.
- Bede (673-735): The Lives of the Abbots of Weremouth
and Jarrow.
A series of very short lives. Bede here effectively provides a good deal of local history.
- Slavonic Life of Constantine (Vita Constantini) (late 9th Century) [At UFL] [Internet Archive version here]
Earliest text written in Old Church Slavoni, was composed some time between Constantine's death in 862 and December 885.
CAROLINGIAN ERA (9th-10th Centuries)
- Huneberc of Heidenheim: The Hodoeporican of St. Willibald,
8th Century
- Huneberc of Heidenheim. Prologue
to the Hodoeporicon of St. Willibald. c. 750-75CE. Alternate trans. by Thomas Head
- Willibald: The Life of St. Boniface
- The Correspondence of St. Boniface
- Texts about St. Boniface See also Catholic Encyclopedia: St Boniface
- Alcuin: The Life of Willibrord, c.796
-
Alcuin: The Life of St. Vedastus, bishop of Arras, trans. Mark Lasnier, [Was At Mt. Holyoke now here].
Commentary by Lynn
Nelson is also available.
- Die Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum (The Conversion of the Bavarians and Carantanians) inc. Life of St Rupert, trans. Jonathan Couser, late 8th/early 9th centuries.
- The Life of Otto, apostle of Pomerania, 1060-1139, by Ebo and Herbordus [tr. by]
Charles H. Robinson, D. D. (London, Society for promoting Christian knowledge; New York,
The Macmillan company, 1920.) [Internet Archive]
- Eigil: Life of Sturm, early 9th Century
- Einhard: The Life of Charlemagne . The
Latin text of the
Vita
Karoli Magni is also available [At the Latin Library].
Charlemagne was celebrated as a saint, but this is not a saint's life in the usual
meaning of the term.
- Rudolf of Fulda: Life of Leoba, c. 836
- Rimbert: The Life of Anskar, the Apostle of the North,
801-865. See also
Catholic
Encyclopedia: St Anschar
- Rimbert: The Life of Anskar, the Apostle of the North,
801-865. PDF [Internet Archive]
- Abbo of Fleury: The Martyrdom of St. Edmund, King
of East Anglia, 870, trans. Kenneth Cultler
- Ælfric: St. Edmund, King and Martyr [Wikisource]
- The Life of Liutberga, 9th Century, trans, Jo Ann
McNamara.
- Bertholdus of Micy. Life of St. Maximinus excerpts on the story of the founding abbot of Micy, located near
Orléans, composed in the early ninth century. Trans. by Thomas Head
- The Life of Lebuin, 10th Century
- Letaldus of Micy. Journey of the Relics of St. Junianus, including a description of the Peace Council of Charroux
in 989. Trans. by Thomas Head
- Ademar of Chabanne's Chronicle: Discovery of the Head of John the Baptist, 1016. trans. by Thomas Head
- Andrew of Fleury. Miracles of St. Benedict. Trans. by Thomas Head [At ORB]
A description of the Peace League of Bourges and its campaign in 1038.
- Anonymous. Life of St. Gregory of Nicopolis. Excerpts on his burial, Early 11th Cent. trans. by Thomas Head
[At ORB]
- Ebo (d. 1163): The Life of Otto, Apostle of Pomerania, Bishop of Bamberg (1060-1139), trabs Charles H. Robinson [At Internet Archive]
- Peter Damian. Life of Romuald.
excerpts on his relics. Late 11th Cent. trans. by Thomas Head [At ORB]
- Hugh of Fleury. Life, Translation, and Miracles of St. Sacerdos: Prologue, Trans. by Thomas Head [At ORB]
Discussing his methodology as a hagiographer and historian reconstructing the life of a
long dead saint.
- Leyenda de Santiago (translated by William Granger Ryan).[Was At UCLA now Internet Archive]
HIGH MIDDLE AGES (11th-13th Centuries)
- Two Lives of SS. Rupert (Robert), Apostle to Austria,
and Erenruda (Erentraud)
- Ailnoth of Canterbury (12th Century): The Deeds of King Svend-Magnus and his Sons and the Passion of the Most Glorious Cnut, King and Martyr (Gesta Swenomagni regis et filiorum eius et passio gloriosissimi Canuti regis et martyris), trans Laura Gazzoli
- The Fable of the Monk and the Bird, 12/13th Century AD
from Knud Laward (Kiel University S.H. 8A 8) [with his advanced Latin class students]
- The Life of Burchard Bishop of Worms, trans.
William North, 1025
The famous canonist was also a saint (with a limited cult, but a feast day of August
20th).
- A History of Norway and the Passion and Miracles of the Blessed Óláfr, trans. Devra Kunin and Carl Phelpstead, transls, (London: Viking Society for Northern Research, 2001) [At VNSRweb] [Internet Archive version here]
- The Life of King Edward the Confessor.
[At Cambridge]
Visual presentation of Cambridge University Library MS. Ee.3.59 which "contains the
only copy of an illustrated Anglo-Norman verse Life of St Edward the Confessor, written in
England probably in the later 1230s or early 1240s, and preserved in this manuscript,
executed c. 1250-60.
- Turgot, Bishop of St Andrews (d.1115): Life of St Margart, Queen of Scotland, trans 1884, full text [Internet Archive]
- The Life of San Isidro of Madrid (d. pre-1192), trans Kenneth Baxter Wolf
- Reginald of Durham: Life of St. Goderic, a 12th
century merchant.
- Two Accounts of the Early Career of St. Bernard, c.
1150
Contains excerpts from William of St. Thierry: Life of St. Bernard, c. 1140, and The
Acta Sanctorum of Arnold of Bonneval & Geoffrey of Clairvaux, c. 1153
- St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153): Life of St. Malachy of Armagh (1094-1148), trans Hugh Jackson Lawlor (1920) [At Project Gutenberg]
- Edward Grim: The Murder of Becket, Dec. 29, 1170 from Vita S. Thomae, Cantuariensis Archepiscopi et Martyris trans. Dawn Marie Hayes
[dms0603@is2.nyu.edu], See also
Catholic
Encyclopedia: Thomas Becket
- Thomas of Monmouth: The Life and Miracles of
St. William of Norwich, 1144, excerpts.
One of the major accusations against Jews of the charge that they killed Christian
children. This blood-libel was the center of a number of saint's cults.
- Bishop Hartvic: The Life of King Stephen of Hungary, was written under King Coloman (1096-1116) [At UFL] [Internet Acrhive version here]
- Rufino: The Life of Raymond "the Palmer" of Piacenza d. 1200, trans Kenneth Baxter Wolf
- St. Francis
- St. Dominic
- Dominican Order: The
Lives of the Brethren of the Order of Preachers, 1206-59 [At Dominican Central]
- St. Dominic: Biographical
Documents, edited with an Introduction By Francis C. Lehner, O.P. [At Dominican
Central]
- Jordan of Saxony: Livret sur les orignes de l'Ordre
des Prêcheurs [text file] d'après la traduction du frère Marie-Humbert Vicaire,
o.p., parue dans l'ouvrage Saint Dominique et ses frères. Évangile ou croisade, coll.
Chrétiens de tous les temps, n° 19, (Paris : éditions du Cerf, 1967). [In French]
. See also
Catholic Encyclopedia:
St. Dominic.
- Jordan of Saxony: Handbook on the Origins of the Order
of Preachers, a machine translation of the previous item.
- Jean de Joinville: Memoirs of St. Louis Not exactly hagiography, but the life of King Louis IXas a pious man.
- Life of St Zita of Lucca (c.1218-78), trans Kenneth Baxter Wolf.
- Fra Giovanni di Coppo, The Legend of the Holy Fina, Virgin of Santo Gimignano. and here trans Mildred Mansield 1908 [At Internet Archive]
- Jacques De Vitry: Life of Mary of Oignies in Latin [At Umilta]
- Jacques De Vitry: Life of Mary
of Oignies, full text in Latin, ed. Margot King [Was At Peregrina Press's Matrologia
Latina site now Internet Archive]
- Thomas de Cantimpré:
Vita Lutgardis Virgine in Aquiriae Brabantia in Latin, [At Intratext] and Liber I, Liber II and Liber III in Latin [Was At Peregrina Press's Matrologia
Latina site now Internet Archive]
Lutgard was born at Tongres in 1182. D, at Aywieres, 1246. Feast. June 16. She was a
mystic, and, for the last eleven years of her life, blind. [DOS]
LATE MIDDLE AGES
- John Lydgate: The Lives of Ss. Edmund and Fremund, 15th century, [British Library]
-
Archbishop Richard le Scrope,
d. 1405. [Was At CUA now Internet Archive]
[This page has been created not only as an archive of textual and pictorial materials
pertaining to Archbishop Scrope, but also as an experiment to see how emerging
technologies might serve the purposes of interdisciplinary projects in medieval studies.
In short, Hyper/Hagiography is intended as a model of one way in which students of
ecclesiastical, political, and literary history might developinterdisciplinary hypermedia
sites relevant to their own research interests.]
- St. Bridget of Sweden: Revelations to the Popes,
d. 1373, Latin edition by Arne Jönsson, [and Microsoft
Word Version],
-
Heliga Birgittas: Uppenbarelser,
[Revelations of St. Bridget], in Swedish [At Göteborg University]
- The Life and Doctrine of Saint Catherine of Genoa [At CCEL]
Includes a Life, The Spiritual Dialogue, and Treatise on Purgatory, all from a 1874, 1907
English version. It is unclear from the etext if this Life is a translation of the Libro
de la vita mirabile e dottrina santa de la beta Caterinetta da Genoa, or a modern
work.
- Transcript of Trial of Joan of Arc, 1431
Joan was not canonized until the 20th century.
- Sieur Louis de Conte: Personal Recollections of
Joan of Arc [in fact, a fictional account by Mark Twain]
- Image and Story of Anderl von Rinn: A Blood Libel Saint,
supposedly 1462, but the cult is 17th-century.
- A Legend of the Austrian Tyrol: St. Kümmernis
A female saint who grows a beard (a variant of the St Liberata, St. Uncumber, St Wilgefortis legends.)
- Life, Acts, and Miracles of Sergius of Radonezh, (c.1314-1392). [Was At Univ.Durham, now at Internet Archive]
PILGRIMAGE IN THE MIDDLE AGES
- The Itinerary of the Anonymous Pilgrim of Bordeaux (Itinerarium Burdigalense) - 333 CE.
[At Internet Archive, was at Christus Rex]
- Bordeaux Pilgrim 333 CE, Latin [At Andrew Jacobs] [Internet Archive version here]
- Egeria: Description of the
Liturgical Year in Jerusalem: Translation 4th Century [At Oxford]
- Egeria: Travelogue,
Translated by M.L. McClure, The Pilgrimage of Etheria, (New York, 1915) [At Internet Archive, was at Yale]
- Egeria: The Pilgrimage of Etheria, ed. and trans M.L. McClure and C. L. Feltoe, London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1919. [At CCEL]
- Piacenza Pilgrim, 570 CE, Latin [At Andrew Jacobs] [Internet Archive version here]
- Sophronius Patriarch of Jerusalem. Two Poems on the Holy City (Anacreontica XIX and XX) - ca. 600 A.D. [Was At Christus Rex now Internet Archive]
- Arculf, as related by Saint Adamnan (c.624 - September 23, 704 CE): De Locis Sanctis (On the Holy
Land), 670 CE [At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
A description of the East told to him by a Frank bishop Arculf, whose ship was driven
ashore near Iona on the way back from Jerusalem.
- Bede. Ecclesiastical
History of the English People, Book V [Chapters 15-17 summarize Adamnan's Locis
Sanctis]
- Huneberc of Heidenheim: The
Hodoeporican of St. Willibald, 8th Century
The Hodoeporicon is the only narrative extant of a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the
eighth century, forming a bridge between the works of Adaman/Arculf (670).
- Rimbert: The Life of Anskar,
the Apostle of the North, 801-865
- Nasir-i-Khusraw (1046-1052): Book
of Travels (Safarnama) [At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Anonymous. A Miracle of St. Maximinus, c. 1050-75. Trans. by Thomas Head
Description of the pilgrimage and miraculous cure of a single individual.
-
Daniel (1106-1107): The
Pilgrimage of the Russian Abbot Daniel in the Holy Land, 1106-1107 A.D., annotated by
Sir C. W.Wislon (London, 1895) [At Holy Fire]
- John of Plano Carpini: The
Journey of Friar John of Plano de Carpini (1245-1247)
- Margery Kempe: The Book of Margery
Kempe: Pilgrimage to Jerusalem. excerpts.[At luminarium.org]
- Anonymous: Guide-book
to Palestine. (c. 1350). Translated by. J. H. Barnard. London: Palestine
Pilgrims Text Society, 1894. [At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1340-1400): Prologue to the Canterbury Tales, text file in original language.
The stories revolve around a pilgrimage to Canterbury.
- Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1340-1400): Canterbury Tales:
The Prologue [Parallel Texts] , [uses Tables], (c.1380)
- Margery Kempe (1413-1415): Book
of Margery Kempe. (Text--Butler-Bowden translation of Chapter 26-34, 37-41)[At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- John Poloner (1422): Description
of the Holy Land (c. 1421), based on the translation of Aubrey Stewart from the Tobler
text. London, 1894. [At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Felix Fabri (1480 & 1483-84): The Book of the Wanderings of Felix
Fabri (Circa 1480-1483 A.D.) trans. Aubrey Stewart. 2 vols. London: Palestine
Pilgrims' Text Society, 1896 [At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Pietro Casola (1494): Canon
Pietro Casola's Pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the Year 1494. trans. Mary Margaret Newett.
Manchester: The University Press, 1907. [At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- WEB Traveling to Jerusalem [At Internet Archive was at Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
A great site that focuses on vistors' accounts of Jerusalem. Includes
many of the texts published by the Palestine Pilgrims Text Society.
MEDIEVAL CRITIQUES OF THE
CULT OF SAINTS
Jump Back to Contents
VII: Western Europe: Latin/Vernacular Versions of Older
Saints' Lives
- Chardri: The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus, a translation
by Tony Devaney Morinelli of an Anglo-Norman version of the Seven Sleepers legend.
- The Life of Julian the Hospitaller, a translation by
Tony Devaney Morinelli of the Medieval French verse version.
-
Thomas de Cantimpré: The Life of Christina Mirabilis, in Latin, [Was At Peregrina Press's Matrologia Latina site, now Internet Archive]
- Theodoric of St. Eucharius. Discovery of the Relics of St. Celsus in Trier in 978, excerpts. Trans. by Thomas Head
-
Jacobus de Voragine/William Caxton: The Life of Saint Cecilia. trans by Caxton (1483) from Jacobus de Voragine: Golden Legend. [Was at Catholic Forum, now Internet Archive]
Cecilia is the Patron saint of music in the west.
-
Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1340-1400): The Life of Saint Cecilia (The Second Nun's Tale), c. 1380, [Modernized English, At Internet Archive]. The original
Middle English interleaved with Modern English Translation is also available [At Internet Archive]. Chaucer's account is based on
the Golden Legend.
Jump Back to Contents
VIII: Celtic Saints (Irish and Scottish)
-
WEB Celt: Irish Texts Page. The CELT Corpus of Electronic Texts at UCC, contains a number of hagiographical texts in Irish Gaelic
[with translations into English where indicated]
- St. Patrick (5th Century): Confession [At
CCEL] See also
Catholic
Encyclopedia: St. Patrick.
-
Fiacc: Hymn
on Life of St. Patrick [At St. Pachomius Library]
- The Latin & Irish Lives of Ciaran (Saint Ciarán of Clonmacnoise (c. 516 – c. 549)), trans.Robert Alexander Stewart Macalister (1921) [Project Gutenberg]
- Adamnan: Life of St. Columba and Latin Text: Book I and Book II, cc.1-30. An English/Latin side-by-side version,
[Was At Utah now at Internet Archive]
St. Columba, who established the monastery at Iona, was one of the most famous of the
Irish missionary saints.
- Jocelyn, a monk of Furness: The Life
of Kentigern (Mungo), translated by Cynthia Whidden Green
- Ancient Lives of Scottish Saints, trans W.M. Metcalfe 1845 [At Internet Archive]
St, Ninian vy Ailred of Rievaux; St Columbia by Cuimine the Fair; St. Columba by Adamnan; St. Sevanus; St. Margaret, Queen of Scotland, by Turgot; St. Magnus
- The Life of St. Declan of Ardmore [Electronic
Transcription 1997 Dennis McCarthy]
- Jonas the Monk: Life of St. Columban, d. 615. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Abbey and
Diocese of Bobbio
Columban represents the extension of the Irish missionary enterprise to continental
Europe. This Life is especially interesting for its account of his interraction
with animals. It also provides information on Merovingian royal politics of the the
period.
-
WEB Uist Saints: Early Christianity in Uist
This project seeks to take the first steps towards a better understanding of early Christianity in Uist, focusing primarily on place-names and archaeological evidence. On the basis of an initial survey of the material, 45 sites have been identified as of potential interest.
- The Life of St Cainnech of Aghaboe [Also known as St Kenneth] Translation and notes by Gilbert Márkus PDF [Internet Archive version here] [At Uist Saints]
- Lives of the Welsh Saints, trans. G.H. Doble, G. H. (1984) [At Internet Archive]
St.
Dubriciusl St. Iltut; St. Paulinus; St. Teilo; and St Oudoceus.
- Caradoc of Llancarfan: The Life of Gildas,1130-1150.
Jump Back to Contents
IX: Metaphrastes and The Golden Legend
Historians interested in the "real lives" of individual saints value the
earliest texts above all others. But for assessing the cult of saints in Byzantium and in
Western Europe, two rewritten collections of saints' lives dominate the manuscript record.
There are about 700 surviving manuscripts of the 10th-century Byzantine
"re-phraser" St. Symeon Metaphrastes. As a result his work dominates the later
Byzantine conception of sanctity. Jacobus de Voragine, writing about 1260, achieved a
similar dominance in later western hagiographical literature - about 900 manuscripts of his Golden Legend survive. From 1470 to 1530 it was also the most
often printed book in Europe. This section of the Saints' Lives page will list online
translations, or texts, of Lives from these two major collections.
RESOURCES
- Symeon Metaphrastes
- Jacobus de Voragine (1230-1298): The Golden Legend
- Jacobus de Voragine (1230-1298): The Golden Legend (Aurea Legenda) 1275, As englished by William Caxton, 1483
The full text of the 7 volume Temple Classics edition, available in large volume
files, and individual feast/saint files.
- Jacobus de Voragine (1230-1298): The Golden Legend (Aurea Legenda) 1275. Same text as previous item, but with individual files for each saint. [Was at Catholic Forum, now Internet Archive]
- Jacobus de Voragine (1230-1298): The Golden Legend:
Index
A list of the saints lives contained in collection.
- Pieter van Os (September 1, 1490). Legenda aurea sanctorum, sive Lombardica historia.(in Latin and German). Vol. II. Archived
- Jacobus de Voragine [AtWikipedia]
-
Sandra Miesel: The Golden Legend (Review) Catholic Twin Circle, November 6, 1994 [At EWTN]
- Information on J. Ryan's Translation of the Golden Legend [At Princeton UP]
TEXTS
- Symeon Metaphrastes
- Jacobus de Voragine, The Golden Legend (Aurea Legenda) 1275, As Englished by William Caxton, 1483
The full text of the 7 volume Temple Classics edition, available in large volume files,
and individual feast/saint files.
- Jacobus de Voragine (1230-1298): The Golden Legend: Texts on Web
Texts in Voragine's order, numbering following William Ryan, (Princeton: 1993)
- In English
- Leyenda de Santiago (translated by William Granger Ryan).[Was At UCLA now Internet Archive]
-
Jacobus de Voragine/William Caxton: The Life of Saint Cecilia. trans by Caxton (1483) from Jacobus de Voragine: Golden Legend. [Was at Catholic Forum, now Internet Archive]
Cecilia is the Patron saint of music in the west.
-
Legend of Saint Catherine of
Alexandria (translated by William Granger Ryan) [At TEAMS]
- In Latin
-
2. St. Andrew,
Apostle, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
3. St. Nicholas,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
4. St. Lucy, in
Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
7. St. Anastasia,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
11. St Thomas
Apostle, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
12. St. Silvester,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
15. St. Paul the
Hermit, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
18. St. Macarius,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
21. St. Anthony
Abbot, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
23. St. Sebastian,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
25. St. Vincent,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
30. St. Julian,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
38. St. Blasius,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
57. St. Ambrose,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
58. St. George,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
62. A Virgin of
Antioch, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
84. St. Marina,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
94. St. Alexis,
Homo Dei, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
96. St. Mary
Magdalene, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
99. St. James the
Great, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
100. St.
Christopher, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
101. Seven
Sleepers of Ephesus, in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
149. St. Francis,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
-
Judas Iscariot,
in Latin [At The Latin Library]
Jump Back to Contents
X: Post-Medieval Saints
With the advent of printing, and the massive increase in available source material of
all types, hagiography after the middle ages becomes less central to historians
researching non-religious topics. It remains of interest, however, for religious history. But the nature of hagiography also changes. For ancient, Byzantine, and early Western
Medieval saints, the Life often provided the unique data on the saint. When the
popes took control, especially after the mid-thirteenth century, and increasingly
formalized the process of canonization, the nature of available materials about a
saint changed. Catholic saints (as also, in a less methodical way Orthodox saints) now
acquired at dossier organized as a legal brief.
- William Roper: The Life
of Sir Thomas More
This is not exactly a saint's life, since Thomas More was not canonized until 1935.
-
Teresa of Avila: Life,
available from CCEL/Wheaton College in various formats [At CCEL]
- John Vianney, (Known as the Curé d'Ars): Biographical Sketch, See:
- Bernardette Soubirous: My Name is Bernardette, 1858, [At EWTN]
Supposedly a sort of oral autobiography. See also Report on Her Body [At EWTN]
- Bernardette Soubirous: Bishop's Commission Report, 1862, [Was At Catholic Online now Internet Archive]
-
Lourdes: Cure of Amelie
Hebert, Cure of
Catharine Lapeyre, Cure
of Pierre De Rudder, all translated from 'Medical Proof of the Miraculous', by E. Le
Bac [At Internet Archive, from Apana]
Modern miracle stories.
- Thérèse of Lisieux: Modern Account of Her Life, [At EWTN]
- Thérèse of Lisieux: Extracts from her Writings, [At EWTN]
-
Thérèse of Lisieux: Histoire
d'une âme, full text, in French, [At Livres Mystiques]
- Thérèse of Lisieux: Pius XI: Homily at the Canonization of St. Thérèse, 17 May 1925, [At EWTN]
The file also includes the bull of canonization Vehementer exultamus hodie
-
Congregation for the Causes of Saints: Decrees regarding the
Canonization of the servants of God, Jacinta Marto and Francisco Marto, 1989 [At
Internet Archive, from Apana] [Canonised 13 May 2017]
The visionaries at Fatima.
- Francis Johnston: Alexandrina [At EWTN]
This is not a medieval saint's life but an account of a modern Catholic saint which
demonstrates a certain continuity. The conservative Catholic website which presents this
life describes it as follows - A somewhat unusual life of a pain-wracked bed-ridden
cripple who took Fatima to heart and dedicated her life to making reparation for the sins
of men. Miraculous aspects : re-lived the passion of Christ numerous times, spent 6 weeks
under hostile 24 hour supervision in a hospital eating and drinking nothing and suffered
no weight loss and no ill-effects, lived 13 years without food or drink!
- Dorothy Day [At Catholic Worker]
Dorothy Day is not canonized, but the founder of the Catholic Worker movement has one of
the most prominent cults among modern Catholic progressives.
- Blessed Mother Maria Skobtsova [At GoArch]
An Orthodox nun killed during the holocaust at the Ravensbruck camp.
Jump Back to Contents
XI: Modern Lives of Medieval Saints
With the following texts, available on the net, I have not been able to ascertain who
wrote them, or when. As a result, they are listed as "modern" texts.
- Vitae Patrum [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
The Vitae Patrum is in Latin and dates from 1628. It was compiled by Heribert Rosweyde SJ from ancient sources dating from the third and fourth centuries, written either in Latin or Greek. The site here is based on translations by Benedict Baker (d. 2004)
- The Life of St Paul, the first hermit by Jerome, presbyter & divine [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum, Book II By Rufinus of Aquileia [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum, Book III by Rufinus of Aquileia, Presbyter [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum, Book IV By Severus Sulpitius and John Cassian Excerpts from Dialogue 1 of Severus Sulpitius and from the Institutes and Conferences of John Cassian [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum Book V By an Unknown Greek Author, translated into Latin by Pelagius the Deacon [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum, Book VI [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum Book V By a Greek Author, translated by Paschasius into Latin [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- Prologue of Palladius, Bishop of Helenopoleos In the Eighth Book of the Vitae Patrum Known as the Lausiac History. Life of Isidore and Xenodochus; Dorotheus of Thebes; Acts of Potamianea; Didymus the Blind; Alexandra [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum, Book IX By Theodoretus, bishop of Cyrus Translated into Latin by Gentianus Hervetus, Jacob of Nisibis [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- De Vitis Patrum, Book X By John Moschus Translated into Latin by Ambrosius Camaldulensis [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- Appendix 3 to Vitae Patrum Sayings of the Egyptian Fathers By an unknown Greek author Translated into Latin by Bishop Martin Dumiensis, 6th century [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- text [At Vita Patrum] [Internet Archive version here]
- The Life Of St. Cecilia: From Ms. Ashmole 43 And MS. Cotton Tiberius E. VII, ed. Bertha Dickinson (1898) [Internet Archive]
Edition of the some Middle English texts about the Roman martyr St. Cecilia.
- Saint Bishoy: The Beloved of Our Good Savior [Was At Pharos, now Internet Archive]
- SS. Cyril and Methodius [At
carpatho-rusyn.org] Internet archive version here]
-
Lives of the Saints: Great-martyr George the Trophy-bearer [Was At Antiochian.org, now Internet Archive]
-
The Life of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker [At St. Nicholas]
-
Life of Markella of Chios,
(date uncertain), [At St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox]
It is unclear if this is a modern or old [how old] life of Markella. The sexual
overtones of the text, are, however, intense as she flees the incestuous lust of her father..
Jump Back to Contents
Appendix I: Aspects of Sainthood: Modern Discussions
For basic information on many individual saints, see:
- WEB Catholic Encyclopedia [At New Advent] Published in 1907 but with often very good scholarship in ist historical and hagiographical articles.
- WEB EWTN SAINTS.
This site has a library of 6000 plus files, accessible via search engine. It Includes
substantial parts of Alban Butler's Lives of the Saints but also a fair amount of purely devotional material.
CANONIZATION Canonization procedures varied over the centuries, and from one Christian Church to
another. The Roman Catholic situation is summarized as follows:
"In the first six centuries of the Church, the sanctity, at first of martyrs, then
of confessors of the faith, and later of those of heroic Christian virtue and of those
exemplary in their apostolic zeal for the Church -- doctors, bishops, missionaries -- was
so acclaimed by the vox populi of the faithful. From the sixth to the tenth century the
definitive pronouncement of approval on the part of the local bishop gradually became a
necessary culmination of a process of inquiry into the validity of such a veneration, the
cult of doulia on the part of the faithful. Canonization has By 973 formal approval of the
Roman Pontiff was deemed a matter of greater prestige for the veneration of a venerated
saint, St. Udalricus. Under Gregory IX (1234) papal canonization became the only and
exclusive legitimate form of inquiry into the saints' lives and miracles according to
newly established procedural formes and canonical processes. In 1588 Pope Sixtus V, by his Immensa Aeterni Dei, entrusted the process of papal canonization to the
Congregation of Rites. In 1642 Urban VIII ordered all the decrees and studies of
canonizations during his own pontificate to be published in one volume -- and a century
later, Benedict XIV systematized in a clear and definitive manner the basic expectations
of heroic virtue and the indispensable requirements of the canonical processes according
to the evidences of the Congregation of Rites. Pius X (1914) divided this Congregation
into two sections: one, the liturgical section, and the other assigned entirely to the
causes for canonization. In 1930, Pius XI established the historical section devoted to
the critical-historical scrutiny of the evidences put forth in the causes for
canonization."
[from a critical book on Hans Kung by Joseph F. Costanzo S.J.: On the net at https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/historical-credibility-of-hans-kung-10078]
In 1917, the formal procedure was incorporated in the Church's Code of Canon Law. In
1982, Pope John Paul II introduced a new simplified process. After a rigorous examination
of a candidate's life, work and writings, undertaken by the Postulator of the Cause, the
Pope accepts that the Servant of God has practised the Christian virtues in a heroic
degree, and declares them Venerable, the first of three steps on the road of
sainthood.Following a physical miracle, such as an unexplained healing, the candidate is
Beatified by the Pope, and declared Blessed. A further physical miracle is required before
the person is Canonised and declared a Saint of the Church.
[Info supplied by The British Royal Mail, 27 Feb., 1997.
CALENDARS
HISTORY OF SAINTHOOD
- Tom Head--Original Essays [At Orb Archive site] Clear introductory essays on the subject of saints and hagiography.
- Hippolyte Delehaye: The Legends of the Saints: An
Introduction to Hagiography (1907)
The full text of a classic work.
- Catholic Encyclopedia: The
Roman Catacombs.
- Stefania Falasca: The Humble
Splendor of the First Witnesses: The Catacombs of Saint Callixtus in Rome, [At EWTN]
Pious, but still informative, account of the the third century Pope Zephyrinus' entrusting
the administration of the Church of Rome's first cemetery to his deacon, Callixtus.
- Francis Weiser: Handbook of
Christian Feasts and Customs, Part 3 is on The History of the Veneration of Saints.
[At Bellarmine] [Internet Archive Version here]
This might be compared with the views of McCabe in the following item.
- Joseph McCabe (1867-1955): The
Story of Religious Controversy: Chapter 15: Legends of Saints and Martyrs [At
infidels.org] [Internet Archive Version here]
McCabe, a former Franciscan, became an extremely prolific writer in support of atheism and
against all religion, especially Catholicism. His "rationalism" can now be seen
for the ideology it was. His account of saints and sainthood reflects the rationalist
view, a view which was unable to see the value of either the texts, or the religious
culture that produced them. He ended up being as intolerent and blinkered as those he
criticized.
-
Laurent Terrade: Hilarius
of Arles Life of Honoratus, [Was At Ecole, now Internet Archive]
- A discussion on life of a fifth-century bishop, Honoratus. The Sermo de Vita Sancti
Honorati was probably delivered to the Christians of Arles in 430 by Hilarius
(401-449).
- Hippolyte Delehaye: The Legends of the Saints: An
Introduction to Hagiography (1907)
The full text of a classic work.
- Susan Ashbrook Harvey: Sacred
Bonding: Mothers and Daughters in Early Syriac Hagiography, Journal of Early
Christian Studies 4.1 (1996) 27-56, [At Johns Hopkins Press, now Internet Archive]
-
Jeffrey Conrad: Egyptian
and Syrian Asceticism in Late Antiquity: A Comparative Study of the Ascetic Idea in the
Late Roman Empire during the Fourth and Fifth Centuries. [At Syriac Studies] [Internet Archive version here]
- Nonna Verna Harrison: The
- Feminine Man in Late Antique Ascetic Piety, Union Seminary Quarterly Review
48:3-4 [internet Archive]
-
Margaret Kenny: Distinguishing
between dreams and visions in ninth-century hagiography, Gouden Hoorn, Volume
4, issue 1 (summer 1996) [At Gouden Hoorn]
- Paul Halsall: Wedded to Christ: Nuptiality and Gender Reversal in the Lives of Byzantine Male Saints, Byzantine Studies Conference, Wisconsin, 26-28 September 1997, updated version [PDF]
- Paul Halsall: Male-Bonding: Homosexuality and Friendship in Byzantine Saint's Lives. Queer Middle AgesConference, New York, November 6, 1998 [PDF]
- Paul Halsall: Men's Bodies, Women's Souls: Sanctity and Gender in Byzantium. PhD Dissertation, Fordham University, New York, 1999 [PDF]
- Kenneth Baxter: Christian
Martyrs in Muslim Spain-(Cambridge University Press, 1988) [At Libro]
- Sandra Miesel: The Golden Legend
(Review) Catholic Twin Circle, November 6, 1994 [At EWTN]
- Evelyn Underhill: Mysticism:
A Study in the Nature and Development of Spritual Consciousness [At CCEL]
The full text of a classic work.
- Catholic Encyclopedia: The
Bollandists.
The history of the scholalry society within the Jesuits which created the modern study of
saints and hagiography, and in the process established many of the conventions of
scientific historical study in general.
RELICS
- A Gazetter of Relic and Miraculous Images Modern list of locations of relics of Catholic saints.
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Relics.
- Biblical Texts Related to Veneration of Relics and Comments by Christian Theologians
- St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430): On Miracles. From City of God, Book XXII, chap 8.
- St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430): The Reception of the Relics of St Stephen, Book XXII, chap 8.
- St Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica III, 25, 6: The
adoration of the relics of saints
- A Modern Relic
Certificate, 1952
For the bones of St. George.
- Medieval
Attitudes Towards Dismemberment of the Body [Bynum, C. W. Fragmentation and Redemption: Essays on Gender and the Human Body in Medieval Religion. New York: Zone Books, 1991. pp. 265-96.[Was at Brown, now Internet Archive]
- Mike Epstein: Electroscopy of
St. Januarius Blood. [At ASU]
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Oil of
the Saints.
- Jessica A. Browner: "Viking"
Pilgrimage to the Holy Land fram! fram! cristmenn, crossmenn, konungsmenn! (Oláfs
saga helga, ch. 224.). Essays in History 34 (1992)
- Sacred Relics. [Buddhist
views?]
WOMEN AND SANCTITY
- Lina Eckenstein: Women Under
Monasticism, Chapters on Saint-Lore and Convent Life Between A.D. 500 and A.D. 1500.
(New York: Russell and Russell, 1963), chaps. 4, 6, 7, 9 [Was At Yale now Internet Archive]
- Kevin Corrigan: Syncletica
and Macrina: Two Early Lives of Women Saints, Vox Benedictina 6/3 (1989)
241-256. [Was At Peregrina Press's Matrologia Latina site now at Internet Archive]
-
Onnie Duvall: Radegund
of Poitiers (ca. 518-587), [At ORB]. See also Alex Perkins:
Life of Radegund, [Was At
Cambridge now at Internet Archive]
-
Margot H. King: The
Desert Mothers: A Survey of the Feminine Anchoretic Tradition in Western Europe, [Was At Peregrina Press's Matrologia Latina site now at Internet Archive]
-
Margot H. King: The
Desert Mothers Revisited: The Mothers of the Diocese of Liège, [Was At Peregrina Press's Matrologia Latina site now at Internet Archive]
-
Abby Stoner: Sisters
Between:Gender and the Medieval Beguines [Was At sfsu.edu now at Internet Archive]
- Katherine Gill: Open
Monasteries for Women in Late Medieval and Early Modern Italy: Two Roman Examples [At
Monastic Matrix] [Internet Archive version here. Necessary because Monastic Matrix has been among the least stable of medieval websites in maintaining consistent URL locations.
Part of
Matrix - A Collection of Resources for
the Study of Women's Religious Communities, 500-1500 [At St Andrews, but has been very unreliable in maintaining a consistent URL] [Internet Archive backup here]
Jump Back to Contents
APPENDIX II: Mystical Writings by, or Ascribed to,
Saints
These are links only to mystical writings by saints. For writings by the Church
Fathers, most of whom are considered as saints, see the Medieval
Sourcebook: Full Texts page.
-
Clement: Second
Epistle, c. 150, (Attributed). [At Early Christian Writings]
-
Ignatius of Antioch (d. c. 107): Index.
[At Early Christian Writings]
- Polycarp of Smryna (c.69- c.155): Epistle,
c. 130. [At Early Christian Writings]
- Zosimus: Concerning the Life of the Blessed, from Vol X
of Ante-Nicene Fathers series
-
St. Wulfstan, Bishop of Chicester: Sermo Lupi ad Anglos, c. 1014,
full text, in Latin and English. [Was At FSU now Internet Archive]
-
St. Gertrud of Helfta: Herald
of Divine Grace: Book 1 and Book 2, full text in Latin
[At Peregrina Press's Matrologia Latina site]
- Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 - 1153): On Loving of God.[At
CCEL]
- Catherine of Siena (1347-1380): Dialogue, 1370. [At CCEL] See
also Catholic Encyclopedia:
Catherine of Siena, Saint
- Julian of Norwich (1343-1443): Revelations
of Divine Love, 1371 [At CCEL] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Juliana of
Norwich.
- The Cloud of Unknowing, 15th
century, trans Evelyn Underhill, [At CCEL]
- Catherine of Genoa (1447-1510): Treatise
on Purgatory.[At EWTN]
-
John of Ruysbroeck (1293-1381): The Adornment of
Spiritual Marriage, [At CCEL]
-
Thomas à Kempis (c.1380-1471) :The Imitation of Christ,
modern translation, [At CCEL]
-
Thomas à Kempis (c.1380-1471): The Imitation of Christ,
translated by William Benham [Project Gutenberg Release #1653]
- The Cell of Self-Knowledge.
Seven Early English Mystical Treatises, [At CCEL]
- Walter Hilton (d.1396): Treatise
Written to A Devout Man.[At CCEL]
-
Johannes Tauler: The
Inner Way [At CCEL]
-
St. John of the Cross: Spiritual Canticle of
the Soul. [At CCEL]
-
St. John of the Cross: Dark Night of the
Soul [At CCEL]
-
St. John of the Cross: Ascent of Mount Carmel [At CCEL]
-
St. John of the Cross: Collected Works [At Internet Archive]
-
St. Teresa of Avila [Information,
At CCEL]
-
St. Theresa of Avila: The Life.
[At CCEL]
-
St. Theresa of Avila: The Way of
Perfection. [At CCEL]
-
St. Theresa of Avila: The
Interior Castle. [At CCEL]
Jump Back to Contents
APPENDIX III: Saintly Miscellany
There are quite a number of web sites which are of interest for studying the saints and
hagiograph-hese sites often contain first rate source material, but they intermix it
with a good deal of overtly modern religious commentary. They are listed here - with an
indication of their value - but need to be used with care by those engaging in
scholarship.
-
Paul Halsall. Saints, Sainthood, and Society. Syllabus and Additional Resources for a class taught in 2005. [At Internet Archive]
- Encyclopedia Coptica
With a great deal of information on Coptic Christianity, and some on Coptic saints.
- The Roman
Martyrology Version up to Benedict XIV's revisions in 18th Century. In Latin
- Catholic Online Saints [At
catholic.org]
Extensive, but mostly short, entries in what amounts to an online Dictionary of Saints.
Not entirely reliable - it does not always make clear, for instance, that there may be
many martyrs with the same name.
- Catholic Information Network: Saints and
Martyrs. [At catholic.org]
Extensive, but mostly short, entries in what amounts to an online Dictionary of Saints.
Uses many texts from Alban Butler.
- The Celtic Saints. [At
gol.com]
from Edward C. Sellner: Wisdom of the Celtic Saints
-
Celtic and Old English Saints of
the Orthodox Church. [At Internet Archive]
-
Calendar of Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual and Transgendered Saints.
- Genealogy of
Popes and Saints [At Internet Archive] Attempts to show the family relationships of medieval saints and popes.
APPENDIX IV: Bibliographies
NOTES: copyrighted means the text is not available for free distribution. Links to files at other site are indicated by [At some indication of the site name or
location]. No indication means that the text file is local. WEB indicates a link to one of
small number of high quality web sites which provide either more texts or an especially
valuable overview.
The Internet Medieval Sourcebook is part of the Internet History Sourcebooks Project. The Internet History Sourcebooks Project is located at the History Department of Fordham University, New York. The Internet
Medieval Sourcebook, and other medieval components of the project, are located at
the Fordham University Center
for Medieval Studies.The IHSP recognizes the contribution of Fordham University, the
Fordham University History Department, and the Fordham Center for Medieval Studies in
providing web space and server support for the project. The IHSP is a project independent of Fordham University.
Although the IHSP seeks to follow all applicable copyright law, Fordham University is not
the institutional owner, and is not liable as the result of any legal action.
© Site Concept and Design: Paul Halsall created 26 Jan 1996: latest revision 4 October 2024 [CV]
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