Julia of Corsica
Palm of martyrdom, crucifix | |
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Patronage | Corsica; Livorno; torture victims; pathologies of the hands and the feet |
Julia of Corsica (
Julia is included in most summary lives of the saints. The details of those lives vary, but a few basic accounts emerge, portraying biographical data and events that are not reconcilable. Various theories accounting for the differences have been proposed. The quintessential icon of Saint Julia derives from the testimony of Victor Vitensis, contemporaneous Bishop of Africa. It is supported by physical evidence: the relics, a small collection of human bone fragments, are where historical events subsequent to the story say they ought to be, at the former Church of Santa Giulia in Brescia, Italy, now part of the city museum.
Account by Victor Vitensis
The editions
The main written evidence of the events for which Julia became venerated as a saint is the account of
Many editions of his work came out but the one considered most authoritative and complete was compiled and edited by the
The story
Vitensis states that the story[4] was acquired as the result of an inquiry "in those days" of the "elders" about the life of Julia and what she had done to become a martyr. Evidently at the time of the inquiry she was already popularly known as a martyr. The informants asserted that they had heard of her "from their parents".
Julia was a
Vitensis says that she served "a fleshly master" but she followed Ephesians 6:6 and Colossians 3:22. Even though he was a pagan[5] he admired so great a virtue in service. When her own duties were done and she was granted the servant's time off, she spent her spare time either in reading or insisting on praying. She grew pale and thin from fasting despite the threats and blandishments of her master, but her mind, intent on Heaven, fed daily on God's words.
Eusebius, a citizen (
While they were celebrating by becoming intoxicated and Julia was sighing deeply for their error it was announced to Felix by his satellites that there was a girl in the ship who derided the worship of the gods. This "son of the serpent" asked Eusebius, "Why did not all who are with you come down to worship our gods? I heard that there is a girl who derides the names of our gods." Eusebius replied "I was not successful in moving the girl from the superstition of the Christians nor was I able to bring her to our religion by threatening. If she were not necessary because of her most faithful service I would already have had her tortured."
Then Felix Saxo gave him some options: "Either compel her to give offerings to our gods, or give her to me in exchange for whichever four of my handmaidens please you, or for the price that was set for her." Eusebius replied: "If you wanted to give me all your property it would not come to the value of her service."
Who Felix Saxo was either to offer such options or to allow Eusebius to refuse them is explained in another of Ruinart's footnotes. He offers variants and additional information from other manuscripts: he was a major, or "magistrate" among the sacrificers, a princeps or "chief man" quod forte praecipuus esset loci illius, "who happened to be in charge of the place", perhaps Cap Corse. Ferrarius in his "Catalog of the Saints of Italy" calls him Felix Tribunus, which is in fact a full explanation. He had the tribunician power, which would have made him a high-level magistrate, perhaps even provincial governor.
The "Saxo" part of the name appears out of context, as it is also the Latin for "Saxon." Ruinart suggests Sago for Sagona (or Sagone as it is still sometimes listed on the map), a vanished ancient town of western Corsica, the former port of Vico, Corse-du-Sud, in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ajaccio. Apparently the Romans had given the tribunate to a native Corsican.
As to why he did not just take the girl by eminent domain, Vitensis gives the answer by calling Eusebius civis. The penalty for disrespecting the rights of Roman citizens was severe, and the girl was the property of Eusebius. He could do as he liked with her. However, disrespecting the state gods was a crime punishable by death, which the magistrate could only overlook at his own risk.
Having gotten counsel the "most poisonous serpent" prepared the banquet, where Eusebius became intoxicated and fell into a deep sleep. Straightway "a raging mob of gentiles" boarded the ship and placed Julia on the shore. Felix said: "Sacrifice to the gods, girl. I will give your master as much as he likes and dissolve the bond of your state." The tribunician power included manumission. However, Julia replied:[6]
"Libertas mea Christi servitium est, cui ego quotidie pura mente deservio. Ceterum istum vestrum errorem non solum non veneror, verum etiam detestor."
"My liberty is the service of Christ, whom I serve every day with a pure mind. As for that error of yours, I not only do not venerate it, I detest it."
The tribune ordered that she be struck blows to the face. That done, she said that as Christ was struck for her, why should she not be struck for him? Then "the most cruel serpent" ordered that she be "tortured by the hair", later described as mollitia, "diminishment" of her hair. Then she was flogged, to which she replied in the same way, that if Christ was flogged and crowned with thorns for her, why should she not endure this diminishment of the hair, which she calls the vexillum fidei, the "flag of faith?" The "serpent", fearful of being indicted for cruelty, hurried the process along by ordering "the handmaiden of Christ" to be placed on the
Other views
She may have lived in the 6th or 7th centuries, or been killed by Moors rather than Roman authorities.[7] Some scholars believe that Julia was indeed of Carthaginian origin, but that she died in Africa during the persecutions of Decius (ca. 250 AD) or Diocletian, and that her association with Corsica derives from the fact that her relics were brought to this island during the invasion of Africa by the Vandals under Gaiseric, who was of Arian faith.[8]
Veneration
Monks from
In 762,
The
See also
References
- ^ (in Greek) Ἡ Ἁγία Ἰουλία ἡ Μάρτυς. 22 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
- ISBN 9781576073551.
- ^ Vitensis, Victor; Ruinart, Theoderic (1699). Historia persecutionis Vandalicæ in duas partes distincta. Prior complectitur libros 5 Victoris Vitensis episcopi, & alia antiqua monumenta. Posterior Commentarium historicum de persecutionis Vandalicæ. p. 453. Downloadable Google Books.
- ^ An English version of the story explicitly taken from Ruinart can be found in Butler, Alban (1845). The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints. Dublin: Duffy. pp. 282–283. Other works only by Butler, such as "Lives of the Saints" repeat a shortened version. Later works authored by others but using Butler's name as a specious co-author take little or nothing from either Butler or Ruinart but interject other opinions.
- ^ Ruinart (1699) on page 454 notes that Papebrochius judges the reading to be Arian or Saracen. He replies "But the whole presentation of the passion demands that it be read 'pagan'." As 439 is too early for Saracens, Papebrochius would have to be calling the authorship into question.
- ^ Ruinart (1699) page 455.
- ^ Saint of the Day Archived 1 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine SaintPatrickDC.org. Retrieved 8 March 2012.
- ^ Santa Giulia at Santi e Beati (in Italian)
External links
- Vitensis, Victor (2006). "Commentarius Historicus De Persecutione Vandalica [Th Ruinarti]" (link to pdf). Documenta Catholica Oronmnia: De Omnibus Autoribus atque Argumentis Collectio: Omnium Rerum Auctorumque qui cum Littera <<V>> incipiunt: Conspectus Alphabeticus (in Latin). Cooperatorum Veritatis Societas. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
- Gabriel von Max's painting The Christian Martyr (1867) portrays St. Julia, and is part of the Frye Art Museum collection. [1] Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine