ON SS. TERENTIANUS AND FLACCUS, BISHOP AND MARTYR, AND MARTYR, AT TODI IN UMBRIA, AT TODI IN UMBRIA
About the year 118.
PRELIMINARY COMMENTARY.
Terentianus, bishop and M., at Todi in Umbria. (S.)
Flaccus, M., at Todi in Umbria. (S.)
BHL Number: 8002
Written by J. S.
§ I. The place of the martyrdom, the cult and the relics: the Terentianus of Tortona not distinguished from the one of Todi.
[ ] Tuder is an ancient city of Umbria, which more recent writers have called Tudertum, At Todi in Umbria St. Terentianus is venerated as patron, but which the Italians name Todi. Orlendius, in part 2, book 3, chapter 10, describes its site in these words: Tuder, now Tudertum, is a city of Umbria, set upon a hill by the river Tiber, midway between Perugia and Narni. He then adds the following: At the beginning of the Christian name's propagation through Latium and Umbria, Tuder received the faith of Christ, which afterwards the holy Terentianus, its first bishop, consecrated about the year 122, confirmed, and for which he also underwent martyrdom in the year 138 on the Kalends of September, in the reign of Hadrian. His memory stands in the Roman Martyrology. Hear the very words of the Martyrology: At Todi in Umbria, of St. Terentianus, bishop and martyr, who under the emperor Hadrian, by order of the proconsul Lætianus, was tortured on the rack and with scorpions, and at last, his tongue being cut off, was condemned to lose his head, and so completed his martyrdom. That no other arena of this Saint's martyrdom is to be sought, we shall presently show against the scruples that arose from certain of the Hieronymian copies. Meanwhile let us hear what the said Orlendius adds concerning his cult: To Tortona (Dertona) the sacred body of Terentianus is said to have been translated, where his memory is famously kept. At Teano, however, an arm of the same Saint, and at Parma a portion of his relics, is preserved. For the rest, by the people of Todi the birthday of St. Terentianus, as of their tutelary saint, is kept with solemn pomp.
[2] whose memory is in the ancient Martyrologies: That the cult of St. Terentianus is ancient will abundantly appear from the Hieronymian copies, in which his memory is celebrated, but very variously, as is wont to happen in those faulty copies. In Florentinius it is read thus: In Tuturtina of Tuscia, the birthday of the holy Terentianus, bishop, etc. For Sanctorum (of the holy ones) we must doubtless read Sancti (of the holy one): for there follows, of Felix, of Donatus. But these do not belong to Terentianus; they are two of the twelve Brothers, of whom we shall treat on this very day. On the first words Florentinius comments thus: In the city of Tudertum of Tuscia, I altogether judge is to be read, the Corbie Martyrology especially furnishing the torch. For the Corbie copy, published by us after the seventh volume of June, page 35, has it thus: In Tutertina of Tuscia, etc. Florentinius adds: At Todi in Umbria the Roman Martyrology reads, as indeed the town now is in Umbria; but in Antoninus Tudernum is a town of Tuscia, in others Sudernum, in the territory of Viterbo. Hence the most illustrious Francesco Maria de Aste, in his Disputations upon the Roman Martyrology, page 403, doubts whether our St. Terentianus should be ascribed to Umbria or to Tuscia, and wishes that in the Roman Martyrology these words, in Umbria, be omitted, and that there be written only, At Todi, of St. Terentianus, bishop, etc. His reason is the same; for, he says, in Antoninus Tudertum, or Tudernum, is a town of Tuscia, by others called Tudernum, in the territory of Viterbo; and besides, the Acts give Tudertum with no further addition. I shall endeavour to remove this scruple, which rests upon almost no foundation.
[3] Ptolemy in book 3 of his Geography numbers among the inland cities of the Tuscans Sudernum, the Saint did not suffer in Tuscia, but in Umbria, in others Sudertum, of which Cellarius treats in his Ancient Geography, book 2, chapter 9, page 456; and Cluverius, in book 2 of Ancient Italy, chapter 3, page 516. But neither of them asserts that Sudernum in the Itinerary of Antoninus is called Tudertum, nor could I find that in the Itinerary of Antoninus. Cluverius does say, however, that Tudertum is read in the Itinerary of Annius of Viterbo, so that one may doubt whether he perhaps found it in some copy of his own. Therefore, first, it is not likely that that town of Tuscia was called Tudertum, since Ptolemy, Pliny and Livy, cited in Cluverius and Cellarius, called it Sudertum or Sudernum, and its inhabitants Sudertans. Secondly, the people of Sudertum never had a bishop, so far as we know; nor do they ever seem to have venerated St. Terentianus as their patron or their bishop. On the contrary, Tuder, a city of Umbria, is well enough known to the ancients, and has had bishops from the first centuries of the Church. Moreover, it has long venerated St. Terentianus as its patron, nor does anyone before Florentinius ever seem to have doubted that St. Terentianus was really bishop of Tudertum in Umbria. There is therefore only one difficulty here to be removed, and that not a great one, namely that Tudertum is ascribed to Tuscia in the said copies. It may be added that the proconsul of Tuscia ordered our Saint to be tortured. I answer that both come about for this reason. In the Little Book of the Roman provinces, among the provinces of Italy is Tuscia with Umbria. The same man, therefore, who presided over Tuscia, also governed Umbria as comprehended under Tuscia. Hence we understand, first, why the proconsul of Tuscia is everywhere named in the Acts; and next, why either the author or the interpolator of those copies ascribed Tudertum to Tuscia — namely, either because, finding the proconsul of Tuscia everywhere in the Acts, he thought it really to be in Tuscia, from whose borders it is not far distant, or because he made of Tuscia and Umbria only one province. I do not see, then, why one should doubt about the arena of St. Terentianus, or why the words in Umbria should be erased from the Martyrology.
[4] In other Hieronymian copies also the memory of St. Terentianus is announced without any mention of Tuscia. and with him St. Flaccus, who is venerated at Todi on another day: The Reichenau copy, published by us after the seventh volume of June, has it thus: And at Tudertum, of Ferrentianus (read Terrentianus), bishop. The Augsburg copy, without a place: of Terentinus, bishop. The Labbean: of Terentianus, bishop. So too the Gellone copy in d'Achery, volume 2 of the reprinted Spicilegium, page 34; and the one he calls the Most Ancient, in Martène, volume 3 of the Anecdota, col. [ ]. Usuard and the other martyrologists of that period did not record St. Terentianus. His memory nevertheless occurs in various codices of Usuard afterwards enlarged, as may be seen in the Usuard published by the care of our Sollerius at 1 September. Indeed it is found there also at 30 August and 28 September. Hear the elogium of Grevenus at 30 August: On the same day, according to the Catalogue of the Saints, of the holy Therentianus, bishop and martyr. Who in the time of Hadrian, at Tudertum of Tuscia, refusing to sacrifice, was hoisted on the rack, beaten with scorpions, and fire was set to his sides. Then, his tongue being cut away, since he nonetheless confessed Christ plainly, he was beheaded together with Flaccus, a priest of the idols converted and baptized by him. Of St. Flaccus among the ancients I find nothing. He is venerated, however, in the church of Todi, as Ferrarius asserts in his Catalogue of the Saints of Italy, and Giovanni Battista Possevino in the Lives of the Saints of Todi, both at the 18th of September, on which day they testify that he is venerated, so that the festivity of St. Terentianus alone may thus be carried out with greater solemnity, with its Octave. But we treat of St. Flaccus here together with him, because nothing has become known of him except from the Acts of St. Terentianus.
[5] a hymn, in which the martyrdom of both is described. Ferrarius at 1 September recites a hymn from the Office of the church of Todi, in which the contest of both Martyrs is thus described:
We sing praises to the martyr Terentianus the bishop; Come all of you as suppliants, Old men, and young men with them. Whom in his aged years Lecianus, most wicked, Afflicted with very many punishments, As he besought God with prayers. He in the time of Hadrian Was thrust away into prison By the most savage proconsul Of Tuscia, Lecianus. And when this man compelled the Martyr To deny Christ the Lord, The wretch at once was struck dumb, And lost his life along with his voice. The priest Flaccus is blind: At the Saint's prayer he is made whole; At his bidding he is washed, And is reborn in the sacred font. Both, cut down by the sword, Enjoy an equal gladness, Holding the gates of heaven And the rewards of paradise.
[6] The relics of both: certain bones of St. Terentianus also at Tortona, Besides the things which have been said of the relics of St. Terentianus in number 1, the already-praised Possevino writes, on page 65 in Italian, what I render into Latin: The bodies of both of these Saints are in the castle of St. Terentianus, in the church dedicated to his name. Jacobilli, in the Lives of the Saints of Umbria, volume 1, page 721, speaks thus of the same: In the city of Tortona a part of the body of St. Terentianus is said to be kept, where his festivity is celebrated on the first day of September. But he is believed to be another than the one of Todi, since he is said to have been bishop of that city of Tortona, in which he was crowned with martyrdom on the same first day of September, but in the year 187, that is, 49 years after the one of Todi. Ughelli, in volume 1, among the bishops of Todi, col. [ ], does not distinguish the one of Tortona from the one of Todi: for he enumerates his relics thus: At Tortona also a famous memory of this Saint is kept, where they affirm that his body was laid; likewise at Teano, where the inhabitants venerate an arm of the same Saint; at Parma also, which city most honourably preserves no contemptible portion of that Saint's relics. For the rest, with a more splendid pomp of solemnity the people of Todi pay their due rites to St. Terentianus as their tutelary Saint. Thus far he.
[7] But in volume 4, column 626, he inserts Terentianus into the catalogue of the bishops of Tortona in these words: some think that these are of another Terentianus, bishop of Tortona: St. Terentianus is numbered after Ammonius among the prelates of the church of Tortona, and in the public records of that church he is set down as having been chosen about the year of the Lord 176, and crowned with martyrdom in the year 187. His feast is celebrated on the 1st day of September. For the rest, the Roman Martyrology on this very day makes mention of another Terentianus, bishop and martyr of Todi, this Terentianus of Tortona being suppressed. I have suspected that it is one and the same Terentianus, who is attributed to both these churches through the error of writers; or that there really are two, but that they flourished at different times, and that the people of Tortona celebrate the feast of their Terentianus on this very day (because the genuine day is unknown among them) on which, consummated by martyrdom, he increased the number of the heavenly citizens. Such is our conjecture. Others more sagacious will provide what in this matter is to be said as more consonant with the truth. You see, reader, that Ughelli is in doubt. And indeed from the things which we have thus far brought forward, the matter seems ambiguous enough.
[8] Nevertheless I am altogether persuaded that the Terentianus who is venerated at Tortona [but the people of Tortona themselves once believed the bones to be those of St. Terentianus of Todi,] is no other than the holy Bishop of Todi. I gather this from the documents which in the year 1662 were most kindly transmitted to our Elders by Giovanni Battista Chapuis, canon of the cathedral church of Tortona. He, in a brief collection concerning the Saints of his own church, at the day 1 September records these things: In the month of September, on the first day, there is marked in all the ancient Calendars a double Office of St. Terentianus, bishop and martyr, and his relics are in the cathedral. In the synod of Tortona of the year 1595, among the sacred relics of the cathedral there is placed: Of the bones of St. Terentianus, bishop and martyr, with four teeth. In the parchment Antiphonary book of the cathedral church there is a proper Office of St. Terentianus, in whose antiphons and responsories, since mention is made of the emperor Hadrian and of the proconsul Læcianus, and he is never called bishop of Tortona, it is a sign that this is the Office of St. Terentianus, bishop of Todi, who under this day is announced in the Martyrology, and that he is venerated here at Tortona on account of his relics, which had once been found together with the body of St. Martianus, and laid beneath the altar, as was said here under the day 17 July, on which is noted the solemnity of the reinterment of the holy martyrs Martianus, Terentianus, Vitalis and Agricola. There he notes, to our purpose, the following concerning the Office of that feast: Terentianus, moreover, of whom this is said, was believed by the composer of the Office to be St. Terentianus, bishop of Todi, of whom the Martyrology speaks under the first day of September; and this is argued from the third responsory of the first nocturn of the said Office, where it stands thus: “The prelate of the city of Todi, worshipper of the Trinity, martyr of the highest sanctity, Terentianus is here present.” It is therefore necessary that the relics of this Saint were at some other time translated to Tortona, and afterwards found with the relics of St. Martianus.
[9] These things intimate clearly enough what was once the opinion of the people of Tortona themselves about their holy Terentianus. so that the opinion about a Terentianus of Tortona is to be disregarded, Another opinion indeed afterwards prevailed there, but this need not detain us. Hear nevertheless what the said Canon subjoins after the former things: Nevertheless, among the holy bishops of Tortona, in the table of bishops of the synod of the year 1659, St. Terentianus is numbered in the fourth place under this tenor of words: St. Terentianus was raised to the see of Tortona by the votes of the clergy and the people. The morals of clergy and of men were then ruined. The public cause of Christ was going almost to wreck: countless corruptions had sprung up; the priests had been driven into flight; and the church herself, long widowed of her spouse, bewailed the darkness. By the efforts of the new Prelate there was restored, so far as that decline of the times allowed, faith to the Christian commonwealth, comeliness to the sacred rites, and religion to the priests and to God. At length, after many torments, in the reign of Marcus Aurelius, he was crowned with martyrdom. He sat about 11 years. Of him the synod of Tortona celebrated in the year 1595 makes mention, where in the index of sacred relics these words are found: Of the notable bones of St. Terentianus, bishop of Tortona and martyr, in the cathedral, under the title of the provostship. Of St. Terentianus Ferrarius writes in his Topography.
[10] which seems to have arisen from ill-founded conjectures: From these things let us observe a few points. First, nowhere is it said that the whole body of St. Terentianus is kept at Tortona, but only that certain relics are had there. Secondly, the Synod of Tortona of the year 1595 does not call him bishop of Tortona, so that the synod of the year 1659 seems to have added that from an ill-founded conjecture. From a like conjecture I should believe to have proceeded what they assert, that he was crowned with martyrdom under the rule of Marcus Aurelius — for no other reason, perhaps, than that they could find no fitter place for him in the catalogue of the bishops of Tortona. Certainly it cannot be believed that any ancient monuments were at hand from which that could be gathered, since no mention is made of monuments of that kind, and yet the authority of the synod of the year 1595 is adduced, and of Ferrarius, in whom nothing of the sort is read. Wherefore, since the author of the ancient Office makes that Terentianus bishop of the church of Todi, and it is not likely that he did so without reasons, I can scarcely doubt that in fact it is the Bishop of Todi who is venerated at Tortona, as is also gathered from the sameness of the day on which he is venerated in both places.
[11] St. Terentianus once venerated also at Capua. The church of Capua also venerated St. Terentianus, as we understand from the ancient Breviary of Capua, in which three lessons are had concerning him. His memory is found in the ancient Calendars which Michele Monaco published in the Sanctuarium Capuanum. The same author, on page 540, testifies that in a manuscript Lectionary this prayer is read of SS. Priscus and Terentianus together: Be favourable, we beseech thee, O Lord, to us thy servants through the glorious merits of these holy martyrs of thine, Priscus and Terentianus, who rest in the present church, and by their loving intercession may we ever be protected from all adversities, through our Lord, etc. Hence Monaco goes on thus: Therefore the church of Capua had relics of St. Terentianus. Moreover, holy Terentianus had a church in the suburb by the gate of the Bridge, and to this day the naming of the place from that Saint endures. Further, this is the same St. Terentianus, as is gathered from the lessons. Thus the relics of this Saint were kept in various places, and nowhere the whole body. Let these things suffice concerning the cult and the relics.
§ II. Various Acts, but none sufficiently trustworthy: a summary of the Acts from the Capuan Breviary; the time at which the Saints suffered.
[ ] Various Acts, of all of which Mombritius published the worst: We have various Acts of St. Terentianus, both printed and manuscript, of which some are less faulty than others, but I could find none at all that do not labour under their own defects. Baronius saw the manuscript Acts of the church of Todi, as he testifies in his annotations to the Martyrology; and he brands them with no censure; rather he seems, at least in part, to have approved them, since he inserted into the Martyrology an elogium put together out of them. Tillemont, however, in volume 2 of the Monuments, in the Persecution of Hadrian, article 3, censures gravely the Acts of St. Terentianus, as he saw them published in Mombritius, volume 2, from folio 327, affirming that they are worth nothing at all. Now none of the copies of the Acts which we have are more faulty than those of Mombritius. Hear what is said at the beginning of these concerning the emperor Hadrian: Hadrian therefore the emperor, who was also called Helios, that is, the sun, while he was visiting the Eastern parts, was informed by certain worshippers of Christ about Jesus Christ the Son of God, that he had worked many miracles there. He at once believed, and began to rebuild the house of the Lord, and constructed it with wonderful workmanship, and moreover conferred many gifts there, and repaired the city of Jerusalem from the ground; and moreover through all parts of the world he set forth an edict, that no Christian should be punished for Christ, unless he were found guilty of some other crime. First, Hadrian's forename was not Helios, but Ælius. Next, Hadrian was neither a Christian, nor did he rebuild the temple at Jerusalem, and therefore neither did he confer gifts upon it. Jerusalem indeed he restored under the name of Ælia Capitolina, but he did not do that out of love of the Christians, since he set up idols in the sacred places. He wrote back also to Minucius Fundanus, proconsul of Asia, in favour of the Christians, whom he was unwilling to have condemned by the shouts of the people alone, as may be seen in Eusebius, book 4, chapter 8: but he gave no such edict as is here described. These things therefore doubtless displeased Tillemont, and, with others presently to be recorded, could give him cause for utterly rejecting the Acts.
[13] But all these things are not read in the other copies of the Acts, other, less fabulous copies are enumerated; so that it must necessarily be said that that fabulous preface was added to the Acts by a bold and unskilled man. For besides one manuscript copy, formerly sent from the monastery of Böddeken, which agrees almost with the Mombritian Acts, we have four other copies, transmitted from various places of Italy, of which none has that beginning. The first of those copies was taken from an ancient Legendary of Orvieto, in which, without any preface, the Acts begin from Hadrian's return from the parts about Jerusalem. The second is marked as from Ms. 2061 of His Eminence Cardinal Francesco Barberini, in quarto; the third from the Acts anciently printed of the church of Teano. These two copies, however, have another preface about the time at which Terentianus suffered; and they are divided into nine lessons; and finally there is subjoined in these copies the Translation of the arm to Teano, which likewise is divided into nine lessons. Of all the copies, none agree better with one another than these two. The fourth copy we received from a manuscript of the Reverend Fathers of the Oratory at Rome. To this also something has been added at the beginning which is not found in the rest. Receive that brief supplement: The persecution of the Christians was still severe through the whole province, so that if anyone did not prostrate himself and sacrifice to the idols, he was tormented with punishments. For at that time of the emperor Hadrian there was a certain man of venerable life, Terentianus, bishop in the city of Todi, a true worshipper of God. He, serving the Lord all the days of his life, and persisting in pious works, and fulfilling the commandment of the Lord with the alms of charity, he was ever persisting in fastings, and vigils and prayers, and was converting many souls to the faith of Christ.
[14] [but neither are those free from blemishes: which copy is to be published, and how.] From what has been said I gather that those different prefaces were added to the Acts, and therefore that from their faults no sufficiently effective argument can be drawn against the Acts themselves. Nevertheless it is to be feared that the Acts have been interpolated in other places also, and this especially appears in the Mombritian ones, which differ more from the others; for the rest disagree less frequently, and only in words which do not alter the history. Besides, certain things are read in all the copies by which the credit of the Acts is lessened. First, Hadrian seems to be said to have passed a law that the Christians should be compelled to sacrifice to the idols, and that those refusing should be afflicted with various torments. But a law of that sort is generally denied to Hadrian by the learned. Certainly Tertullian in the Apologeticum, chapter 5, reckons Hadrian among those emperors who did not pass a law against the Christians. Next, Terentianus disputes much with the proconsul Lætianus about the mysteries of the Christian faith, which are not altogether likely, since the Christians would not easily disclose to the gentiles the hidden mysteries of our faith. There may be added certain sayings of Terentianus harsher than is just. But neither is Hadrian's law asserted in the manuscripts so clearly that they cannot be explained of the emperor's mere order to persecute the Christians, which Hadrian in fact did; nor are the other blemishes in the manuscripts so notable, or so frequent, that we should wish all credit whatsoever taken away even from the facts, or pronounce with Tillemont that the Acts are worth nothing at all. We shall therefore give these Acts, not indeed as original and certain, but as not wholly unworthy of credit in all those matters against which no weightier authority stands. Further, since all the copies are disfigured by a number of errors, I shall follow none of them so closely as not to correct from the others, when I find in them a more correct phrasing, yet in such a way that I shall throughout publish the manuscript of the Most Eminent Barberini, which is preferable to the rest, and shall advise the reader when I have thought that it should be corrected from the others.
[15] The history of the translation of the arm is fabulous and to be omitted: I have already said that in two copies there is also read a Translation of the arm to Teano. This city is of Campania Felix, which now is commonly called Terra di Lavoro; it is episcopal under the archbishop of Capua, and is called Teanum Sidicinum, to distinguish it from another Teanum, now almost destroyed, which is surnamed Apulum. But that history of the translation is even less worthy of credit than are the Acts of the martyrdom. For not only are all the things narrated there marvellous beyond belief, but some of them are contrary even to the traditions of the church of Teano itself. For the translation is said to have been made only twelve years after the Saint's martyrdom under Hadrian, and therefore before the middle of the second century. But then there is brought forward a bishop of Teano who went out to meet the woman carrying the relics. Yet from the traditions of the church of Teano the first bishop of that city in the time of Constantine the Great, that is, in the fourth century, is by all held to be St. Paris, whose Acts we gave in volume 2 of August from page 73. Thus there is here a manifest anachronism. Wherefore receive in a few words a summary of that writing. It is said that St. Terentianus, in the twelfth year after his martyrdom, appeared to Laurentia, who had been present at his burial, and taught her the place of his tomb, which she said she had forgotten. She, as she had been bidden, betakes herself thither with another woman, finds the body, takes up the arm and keeps it three months in her own house. The women, seized with fevers, commit themselves to an unknown journey, after a month reach Rome, and thence after eight days Teano, where the bishop, warned by an earthquake, meets them as they come. The relics are brought into the city, and the gate through which they are carried in thereafter permits no one exit or entrance. To have related these things is enough, nor is there need of further refutation, even though the aforementioned Giovanni Battista Possevino and Jacobilli inserted that fabulous history into their Works. We, however, shall not deny that the arm of St. Terentianus was at some time translated to Teano; but we shall not believe that it happened in the manner aforesaid; nor shall we publish that writing.
[16] At length, before I subjoin the Acts, a few things must be discussed concerning the time of the martyrdom. the time about which the Saints suffered. That St. Terentianus suffered with Flaccus under the rule of Hadrian all agree; but various years are assigned. Possevino sets down the year 123, Jacobilli and Orlendius 138, Ughelli about the year 138. But I suspect that the martyrdom of our Saints happened at the beginning of Hadrian's rule, or while he had returned for the first time from the East: for all the copies of the Acts have it that St. Terentianus was denounced to Hadrian while he had returned to Rome from the parts about Jerusalem. Moreover, in the two prefaces, as also in the Capuan Breviary, this epoch is set down: From the Passion of the Lord the eighty-fifth year was almost running out when the holy bishop Terentianus suffered. I should not wish here to examine whether this epoch is altogether correct; for that cannot be done unless the intricate controversy be threshed out about the year of the common era in which Christ suffered. It is wholly correct if the Saint was crowned in the year 118, in which Hadrian returned from the East, as Tillemont holds, and if the opinion of those is true who set down Christ's death in the thirty-third year of the common era, or even the thirty-fourth. But whatever be the case about the year of our Lord's death, which different men set differently, I shall place the martyrdom of SS. Terentianus and Flaccus about the year 118, in which for the first time Hadrian returned from the East: for, although he returned thence more than once, the eighty-fifth year after Christ's death, in everyone's opinion, favours the year 118 more than the later years.
ACTS
by an anonymous author From a Ms. of His Eminence Cardinal Francesco Barberini, collated with three other Mss. and the edition of Mombritius.
Terentianus, bishop and M., at Todi in Umbria. (S.)
Flaccus, M., at Todi in Umbria. (S.)
BHL Number: 8003
By an Anonymous author.
CHAPTER I.
St. Terentianus is denounced to Hadrian, and on his account a persecution is stirred up: the Saint, being arrested, is set before the proconsul Lætianus, and disputes much with him concerning the Christian faith.
[ ] The time at which St. Terentianus suffered with St. Flaccus: In the forty-second year of Cæsar Augustus, there being completed, according to the Hebrew verity, from the beginning of the world three thousand nine hundred and fifty-two years, Jesus Christ the Son of God hallowed the world by his coming; and in the eighteenth year of Tiberius Cæsar he redeemed the world by his passion. St. John the Apostle, in the sixty-ninth year after the Lord's passion, and in the ninety-seventh of his own age, in the times of Trajan, rested at Ephesus by a peaceful death. From the passion of the Lord the eighty-fifth year, or nearly so, is counted when St. Terentianus a the bishop suffered in the times of the emperor Hadrian: who came to the palm of martyrdom in this manner.
[2] St. Terentianus is accused before the emperor, While the emperor Hadrian was reigning in the city of Rome, and while he was returning from the parts about Jerusalem [b], there met him Marianus the prefect c, and, making a suggestion to his glory, said to him: O emperor, let your august piety not disdain to hear my petition, so that, as your serenity is renowned throughout the whole world, so the commonwealth may ever be governed through the honour of our gods. I make known to your piety that there is in a certain town not far from the city of Rome a man who worships Christ, by name Terentianus, a bishop already old in years, who with continual empty Christian persuasions teaches the people not to believe in the immortal gods, preaching I know not what Christ. Whence it is fitting that either he offer sacrifices to the immortal gods, or, if he will not, that he be afflicted with the sharpest torments. And Hadrian the emperor, hearing this on the fourth of the Kalends of August, as he was standing before the temple d of the city of Rome, gave this reply: Truly with joy have I received your petition. And he spoke to him, saying: It is fitting that your request be not denied, so that the will of all may be made plain. Then with angry countenance he proclaimed such a law, that wherever a Christian be found, he should be condemned by universal judgment, if he did not bow his neck to the immortal gods.
[3] But Lecianus, proconsul of Tuscia, and Andreas the gowned advocate, while they were standing in the sight of Hadrian Augustus, Marianus the prefect said: I have announced my suggestion to your serenity; [who orders the Christians to be compelled to sacrifice, or, refusing, to be killed:] let only the command of our august lords [e] prevail. Hadrian the emperor said: Let your petition rejoice, and let all things be fulfilled by common command. Hadrian the emperor at last gave this reply: Victorious Hadrian [f], the renowned Augustus, perpetual triumpher, exalted with general honour and piety throughout the whole Roman world, and an ornament of honour to the most sacred immortal gods. For it is just to serve continually the most sacred gods, through whom Roman felicity flourishes and the commonwealth is governed; and it is fitting that, according to the suggestion of the magnificent man Marianus the prefect, a just petition be not denied. Therefore I will that wherever a Christian be found, he first be compelled to sacrifice, and if he refuse to fulfil this, that he be afflicted with various torments, so that honour to our gods may in all things be increased by the libation of sacrifices. This command [g] was at last set forth on the fourth of the Kalends of August in the forum of Trajan [h].
[4] Lecianus, proconsul of Tuscia, according to the command of the emperor Hadrian, coming into the town of Todi, St. Terentianus, being taken, is set before the proconsul, and unfolding before all the sacred imperial command, called together the elders and the magistrates Lucius and Gabinus i; and sitting in the forum before all, he spoke, saying: Men, fathers and friends of the princes, learn the most blessed and sacred command k. And it was read out in the common tongue, as has been declared above l. And all cried out: Augustus, mayest thou ever conquer. This was said seventeen times m. Lecianus the proconsul said: May the propitious gods flourish, and may the religiousness of our gods shine forth, and let the Christians not delay to present themselves at once. But if they do not present themselves, let them be smitten with the penalty of the guilty. And all departed. On another day the enemies of the Christians seized the most blessed bishop Terentianus n, and led him to Lecianus the proconsul, saying: Magnificent sir, of this sacrilegious man mention has been made to the lord emperor Hadrian in the city of Rome. He o seduces the people, and preaches we know not what Christ; and therefore they offer no sacrifices, and burn no incense. Therefore we receive no answers from our gods according to the sacred custom.
[5] But Lecianus the proconsul said to the blessed Terentianus the bishop: with whom he disputes Old man, we ask your greatness not to hide from us the prudence of your art, that you may enjoy the friendship of our Augusti, and bestow on us with your excellent means the promised gifts [p]. St. Terentianus the bishop said: If you truly desire to receive all good things, and to possess the heavenly kingdoms, seek first what is just, to know the true God who is in the heavens, and then you will be able to know the truth of true salvation, and to exult in all good things. Lecianus the proconsul ordered St. Terentianus the bishop to come inside the palace, that he might speak with him more secretly of these things; and when he had entered, Lecianus the proconsul said to him: Cast out this most empty superstition, and hear my admonitions, that through you many may rejoice and flourish, and you likewise may rejoice in all good things. St. Terentianus the bishop said: Truly I lament the more if I do not scorn to hear your admonitions. But do you rather hear me, and believe in God almighty, who reigns in the heavens, and you shall flourish with all good things for ever. Lecianus the proconsul said: I ask you to tell me the secret of your art, and not to hide why the immortal gods avail nothing while you are preaching, and why our priests, and the virgins burning the accustomed incense, receive no answers, and why the fire of the sacrifices is extinguished. St. Terentianus the bishop said: If you wish to know, learn first the truth, and I will show you the reason of this matter. Lecianus said: Make that truth clear to me.
[6] concerning the Christian faith, St. Terentianus the bishop said: The truth is, that you believe Christ the Son of God, together with the Holy Spirit, abiding in Trinity and in unity, and you shall be saved. Lecianus the proconsul said: For this I do not understand: how do you set before me Christ the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit, remaining in Trinity and in unity? St. Terentianus the bishop said: I, a humble servant of Christ, already worn out with age, say confidently that the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit, remain always in unity and in Trinity. Lecianus the proconsul said: Set out for me the rule of this matter and the property of so great a name. St. Terentianus the bishop said: If you desire to know this, learn first the property of so great a mystery, and thus you will be able to come to the bright comeliness of so great a light. For [q] God is almighty, creator of all things visible and invisible, and of all creatures in heaven above and on earth beneath. He through whom all things were made, is himself Jesus Christ the Son of God, who with the Holy Spirit, creating and ruling all things, reigns through the ages and lives for ever.
[7] and concerning the vanity of the idols. Lecianus the proconsul said: Then they are nothing the gods, and do they not furnish the commonwealth with any truth [*]? For how do they relate true things by oracles, and pronounce things to come by their answers? St. Terentianus the bishop said: This has been granted [r] to the demons, that, because of the pride of the human race, and to those not believing in the true God, they should speak empty things, pronouncing falsehoods, so that they may deceive the minds of the unbelieving. Lecianus the proconsul said: O magic art of the Christians! which does not establish what is true, and displays what ought not even to be heard, for the deceiving of the minds of all peoples. St. Terentianus the bishop said: Is it then not true to preach the truth and to empty out falsehood? This I admonish you, Lecianus, that you turn the eyes of your mind away from the worship of idols, and so you will be able to know the true and most full truth which is in God. Lecianus the proconsul said: Lay aside this false obstinacy, and sacrifice to the immortal gods; but if you do not sacrifice, by the gods I will make you perish by various punishments. St. Terentianus the bishop said: From the day on which, by God's assent, I received the episcopal honour, I have not ceased to sacrifice to God almighty the victim of praise of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Lecianus the proconsul said: Is your Christ then frequently slain, that you may continually sacrifice his body and blood? St. Terentianus the bishop said: Truly your sense is confounded, O devil, and hardened with every iniquity. Know most truly that once for all Jesus Christ the Son of God was slain for the salvation of all, and was buried, and on the third day rose from the dead, and ascended into the heavens, whence he will come to judge the living and the dead, and your father the devil, who holds you back from believing and knowing the truth of your own salvation.
ANNOTATIONS.
CHAPTER II.
St. Terentianus is tortured with various torments: Flaccus, a priest of the idols, suddenly becomes blind; but the proconsul, when St. Terentianus's tongue has been cut off, is struck dumb and dies: Flaccus is converted and baptized, and with St. Terentianus undergoes martyrdom. [ ] Flaccus, a priest of the idols, becomes blind; Lecianus the proconsul, full of wrath, ordered his servants, saying: Crush his mouth with a stone, because he has spoken proudly against the gods and against our birth-gods. St. Terentianus the bishop said: May our Lord crush you and your father the devil, with whom you shall have punishment in the fire without end for ever a. Lecianus the proconsul said: Lay aside now the madness of your heart, and sacrifice to the gods. St. Terentianus the bishop said: The bond of death and of the devil, O unhappy man, you have received. Therefore you utter blasphemy from your mouth, and things that are not fitting. Lecianus the proconsul ordered holy Terentianus the bishop to be stripped of his garments in his sight; and he ordered the priests of the idols to be called, that they might carry before him all the apparatus of the sacrifices, and Hercules and Jupiter, saying to him: Sacrifice to our immortal gods. St. Terentianus the bishop, standing naked in the sight of Lecianus the proconsul, lifting up his eyes to heaven, said: Lord God of all things, let all be confounded who adore graven images, and who glory in their idols, and deliver not to the beasts the souls of those who confess thee. Then Flaccus, the priest of the idols [b], was blinded, and fell upon his face, and the whole apparatus of the sacrifices was broken to pieces, and the images of Hercules and of Jupiter were shattered, and, crushed, were reduced to dust.
[9] But Lecianus the proconsul, seeing this, ordered him to be hoisted on the rack in his sight, The Saint is afflicted with various torments: and said to him: Explain to us your magic art [c], and you shall live: for if you do not, by the gods I will hand you over to the fire. St. Terentianus the bishop, smiling, said with a clear voice: May Christ the Son of God destroy you. Lecianus the proconsul ordered him to be afflicted with scorpions, and, dragging him, they tore his body most grievously. But he cried out with a loud voice: Glory to thee, blessed Jesus Christ, Son of God, who blessest all who hope in thee. Behold, now I know thy blessing and thy mercy. Lecianus the proconsul, exceedingly angry, ordered them to apply fire to his sides, saying: Let us see whether his magic art frees him, by which he blinded the priest and worshipper of our immortal gods. In that same hour fires were brought to his sides. Lecianus the proconsul said to the blessed Terentianus the bishop: Where is your Christ? St. Terentianus the bishop answered: He is with me; and if you will believe in him, you will obtain mercy from the Lord Jesus Christ [d].
[10] Lecianus the proconsul said: If you make me know him, his tongue cut off, he speaks; but the proconsul is struck dumb and dies: I believe you are no magician, but a perfect man and my friend, and you shall be released from the torments. Blessed Terentianus the bishop said: Do what you have begun: for if you cease to do what you have begun, you bestow on me no benefit; but what your father the devil has commanded you, carry out at once. Lecianus the proconsul ordered his tongue to be cut off; and in his sight his tongue was cut off, and before all he had it trampled underfoot. Then Lecianus the proconsul was struck dumb; but holy Terentianus began to cry out, saying: Glory to thee, O God; glory to thee, O God. And Lecianus the proconsul, making signs with his hands, because he had been struck dumb and could not speak, ordered him to be clothed in his own garments. Then Lucius and Gabinus ordered him to be shut up in prison, and Lecianus the proconsul suddenly expired.
[11] But on another day Celsus and Leontius, of the augustales [e], led St. Terentianus the bishop out of the prison, Flaccus the priest receives his sight and confesses Christ, and ordered him to be brought to the forum; and when he had come, there met him Flaccus the priest of the idols, who had been made blind, and cast himself at his feet, saying: I adjure you by the living God whom you preach, that you enlighten my eyes, because today in a vision I saw a most beautiful man, who admonished me, saying: Go to Terentianus the bishop, and he will enlighten you. And all who were present at this spectacle, hearing the words of Flaccus, praised the Lord. St. Terentianus the bishop, chained with fetters on neck and hands, bending his knees, was praying to the Lord. But Flaccus the blind man, fearing nothing, at once cast himself down, and took his hands, bound with fetters, and placed them upon his own eyes, beseeching him to enlighten him. And St. Terentianus the bishop, trusting in the Lord, said: May Jesus Christ our Lord enlighten you, who is the true light, who has also enlightened the hidden things of darkness. Then the eyes of Flaccus were opened, and straightway he began to cry out: I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God, who has enlightened me, and whom I saw protecting St. Terentianus the bishop.
[12] and, being baptized, he is condemned to death with St. Terentianus: And he said to those who were leading him bound: Stand a little while, I pray, and wait for me. And when they had stood, he said to St. Terentianus the bishop: By Christ I ask you that what you know, you do quickly upon me, that you may save my soul. St. Terentianus the bishop said to him: If you wish to be saved, be baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Flaccus said to him: Bear with me a little, and pray for me; and running he brought water in a little glass jar. But they supposed that he was giving him a drink. And St. Terentianus took the water, and according to the custom of the Christians blessed it, and baptized him in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. And Flaccus followed him until he came into the sight of Celsus and of Leontius in the city of Todi. And when Leontius, the gowned advocate of the Augusti, had seen Flaccus running with joy after St. Terentianus the bishop, he said with a clear voice: Behold what the magic art of the Christians does, that the immortal gods are forsaken and men hear the admonitions of the sacrilegious Terentianus. And both gave order, saying: According to the sacred command of our lords the Augusti let them be smitten with the capital penalty.
[13] The martyrdom and burial of both Saints. At last both were led, St. Terentianus the bishop and Flaccus the Christian, to the place of suffering, and they were beheaded on the day of the Kalends of September, beside the wall of the city near the river; and immediately this was reported to Hadrian Augustus. That same night a certain Exuperantius, a presbyter, and Laurentia, admonished in sleep, gathered up their bodies, and buried them at the eighth milestone from the city of Todi, in a place which is called Petrosus [f], and is named Colonia; and many marvels are wrought there down to the present day, our Lord Jesus Christ reigning, who with God the Father lives and reigns as God in the unity of the Holy Spirit through all the ages of ages. Amen [g].