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E01653: The short Life of *Adeodatus (bishop of Rome, ob. 676, 00868) in the Liber Pontificalis, written in Latin in Rome soon after his death, mentions the restoration of a church of *Peter (the Apostle, S00936) on the via Portuensis outside Rome, and the enlargement of the monastery of *Erasmus (probably the martyr of Formia, S00867) inside the city, as well as Adeodatus' burial at St Peter's on 26 June.

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posted on 2016-06-22, 00:00 authored by robert
Liber Pontificalis 79

Adeodatus, natione Romanus, ex monachis, de patre Iobiano, sedit ann. IIII mens. II dies V. Tante magnitudinis fuit, mitissimus ac benignissimus, ut omnem hominem a maiore usque ad minimum libenter susciperet. Peregris conpassionem exhibuit, ut etiam unusquisque quod postulavit sine dubio inpetravit. Sed et rogam omnibus ampliavit.

'Adeodatus, born in Rome, one of the monks, son of Iovianus, held the see 4 years 2 months 5 days. So great was he, so very mild and kind, that he freely welcomed any man, from the greatest to the least. To those away from home he showed compassion, so that no one doubted he would get what he craved. He increased the stipend for everyone.'

.....

Hic ecclesiam beati Petri, qui est via Portuense iuxta ponte Meruli, ut decuit restauravit atque dedicavit. Sed et in monasterio sancti Herasmi situm in Celiomonte, in quo concrevisse visus est praedictus sanctissimus vir, multa nova edificia augmentavit; sed et casalia conquisivit et in vita sua abbatem vel congregationem ibidem instituit.

'He suitably restored and dedicated the church of the blessed Peter on the via Portuensis close to the Pons Meruli. With many new buildings this holy man enlarged the monastery of saint Erasmus on the Caelian Hill, in which he had grown up; he acquired farmsteads, and in his lifetime he established there an abbot and a community.'

.....

Qui etiam sepultus est ad beatum Petrum apostolum sub die XVI kal. iulias.

'He was buried at the blessed Peter the apostle on 26 June.'


Text: Duchesne 1886, 346-347. Translation: Davis 2010, 70-71, lightly modified.

History

Evidence ID

E01653

Saint Name

Erasmus, martyr and bishop of Formia (Italy), ob. c. 303 : S00867 Peter the Apostle : S00036 Adeodatus, bishop of Rome, ob. 676 : S00868

Saint Name in Source

Herasmus Petrus Adeodatus

Type of Evidence

Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)

Language

  • Latin

Evidence not before

676

Evidence not after

696

Activity not before

672

Activity not after

676

Place of Evidence - Region

Rome and region

Place of Evidence - City, village, etc

Rome

Place of evidence - City name in other Language(s)

Rome Rome Rome Roma Ῥώμη Rhōmē

Major author/Major anonymous work

Liber Pontificalis

Cult activities - Festivals

  • Saint’s feast

Cult activities - Places

Cult building - monastic

Cult activities - Places Named after Saint

  • Monastery

Cult activities - Non Liturgical Practices and Customs

Construction of cult buildings

Cult Activities - Protagonists in Cult and Narratives

Ecclesiastics - bishops

Cult Activities - Relics

Bodily relic - entire body

Source

The Liber Pontificalis consists of a series of very short lives of popes. The preface attributes it to pope Damasus (366-384), but this attribution is obviously false. According to Louis Duchesne, the first modern editor of the Liber Pontificalis, the original series of lives was written in Rome by an anonymous author, probably a member of the lesser clergy, in the 530s, and contained the lives from *Peter the Apostle to Felix IV (ob. 530). Shortly after, before 546, the text was re-edited by another anonymous author and only this edition survives. The first edition, however, can be reconstituted on the basis of its two epitomes (and the second edition). The second edition started to be continued systematically from the time of pope Honorius (625–638). It should be noted that Theodor Mommsen dated both editions of the Liber Pontificalis to the 7th century, but his opinion is widely rejected and the commonly accepted dating is that of Duchesne. For the pre-Constantinian period (before 312), the credibility of the Liber Pontificalis is very low. The chronology is confused, and details concerning the personal lives, decisions and ordinations of the bishops of Rome at best reflect what people in the 6th century trusted to be true, at worst are a pure invention of the author. The situation changes with the later lives. Already the information of 4th-century papal foundations and offerings are generally trustworthy. The early 6th-century evidence, based on the author's first hand knowledge is even better, though still imperfect.

Bibliography

Edition: Duchesne, L., Le Liber pontificalis. 2 vols (Paris: E. Thorin, 1886-1892) (with substantial introduction and commentary). Translation: Davis, R., The Book of Pontiffs (Liber Pontificalis) (Translated Texts for Historians 6; 3rd ed.; Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2010). Further reading: Krautheimer, R., Corpus Basilicarum Christianarum Romae: The early Christian Basilicas of Rome (IV–IX Centuries), Vatican City 1937–1977 Brandenburg, H., Ancient churches of Rome from the fourth to the seventh century: the dawn of Christian architecture in the West, Turnhout 2005.

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    Evidence -  The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity

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