Caesarius of Terracina | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Deacon and Martyr | |
| Died | c. 3rd century Terracina, Italy |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church Roman Catholic Church Apostolic Catholic Church |
| Majorshrine | Terracina |
| Feast | 1 November |
| Attributes | palm, Gospel, sack |
| Patronage | patron saint of Roman emperors, has replaced and Christianized the cult ofJulius Caesar andAugustus; invoked against drowning, flooding, and for the good success ofCaesarean section. |
Saint Caesarius of Terracina (Italian:Saint Cesario Deacono, "Saint Caesarius the Deacon") was a Christianmartyr.[1] The church ofSan Cesareo in Palatio inRome bears his name. He is venerated as a saint in theEastern Orthodox Church andRoman Catholic Church, with a feast day on 1 November.[2]
Caesarius was adeacon ofAfrica, martyred atTerracina inItaly.
The"Passio" (story of martyrdom) of Saint Caesarius is set in Terracina, harbor town near Rome andNaples, under the pagan emperorTrajan (r. 98–117).
Caesarius, belonging to the ancient and illustriousgens Julia, after a shipwreck, arrived in Terracina to preach theGospel to poor people. In this Roman city, each year on the first day of January, a ceremony of self-immolation took place to assure the health and salvation of the Empire. A young man was pampered with material delights and fulfilled in all his wishes for eight months; then he was obliged to mount on a richly harnessed horse, climb up to the summit of city's cliff and throw himself into the void, with the recalcitranthorse, to crash against the rocks and perish in the waves in honour of the godApollo, as a propitiatory offering for the prosperity of the state and the emperors. The deacon Caesarius denounced this pagan custom and protested: "Alas for a state and emperors who persuade by tortures and are fattened on the outpouring of blood".[3]
The priest of Apollo named Firminus had him arrested and taken before Leontius, Roman consul ofCampania.During the interrogation, he refused to sacrifice to the pagan god of the sun and light, and his prayers "caused" thetemple of Apollo to collapse (located in the Forum), killing the pagan Firminus. Caesarius was then locked up in jail and, after twenty-two months, he was taken to theForum to be judged. He asked permission to pray: a radiant light blazed down on him, and the pagan consul Leontius was thereupon converted and sought baptism; he died shortly after (October 30).[4]
The1st of November of the year 107 A.D., Luxurius, governor of the city, tied Caesarius and Julian (a localpresbyter) up together in a sack and flung them into the sea, from a cliff called "Pisco Montano".[5]
In this way the deacon Caesarius was martyred, although not before prophesying the death of Luxurius, bitten by a poisonous viper.[6]
Caesarius and Julian, on that same day, were thrown back onto the shore and were buried by Eusebius, a servant of God, near the town of Terracina.[7][8][9]
Caesarius' feast day is 1 November. From the early Christian age, Caesarius of Terracina was the saint chosen for his name to consecrate the places that already belonged to the pagan Caesars to the faith of Christ.[10] The name Caesarius means "devoted to Caesar" and is therefore linked to the great Roman leaderJulius Caesar, and to the Roman emperors as their name was precisely "Caesar". Saint Caesarius, therefore, replaced the cult of the Caesars, very difficult to eradicate because it was founded on the national self-love of the Romans.[11][12] The analogy between the name of the saint and that of the rooms calledCaesareum orAugusteum, reserved in Roman public buildings for the cult of the emperors, has always been connected with the precise will of the Church to supplant devotion to the deceased sovereigns of Rome (rather important in paganism) with the one more tolerable towards a Christian martyr.[13]
The Palatine in the Middle Ages became a ceremonial space, rarely inhabited by the designated occupant: the emperor. In the imperial palaces of the Colle we do not find a multitude of new saints, but a single saint to strengthen the imperial majesty: Saint Caesarius.[14]
In the 4th century, the EmperorValentinian I's daughter was healed at his shrine in Terracina.[15] The emperor then moved his relics toRome, first to a church on thePalatine Hill, and then to a newSan Cesareo in Palatio near theAppian Way. The imperial chapel was named after Caesarius by Valentinian III.[16] It has been noted that Caesarius'spassio revolves around the good health or prosperity (salus) of the Roman Empire, borrowing the overtones of his name to suggest that the well-being of the state rested more solidly on Christian foundations than on its pagan past.[14]
Terracina Cathedral (Cattedrale dei Santi Pietro e Cesareo) is dedicated to him andSaint Peter.
Caesarius is the protector ofCaesarean sections.[17]Saint Caesarius is invoked against riverfloods anddrownings (in memory of his martyrdom), and for defence against lightning, earthquakes and meteorological calamities.[18]
The first illustrations of the history of St. Caesarius are found in precious illuminated manuscripts. Most of these manuscripts date back to the Middle Ages.
In theBritish Library ofLondon in a "Passionale", a Latinmanuscript, made in 1110 for the Monastery of Saint Augustine in Canterbury (describes the lives of the Saints from September 21 to November 9), there is the text of the Passion of Saint Caesarius of Terracina with historiated initial which represents "Martyrdom of St Caesarius" (BLArundel MS 91, f. 188r.).[19]
In theMorgan Library ofNew York in the “Book of Hours”, made in 1465 in Langres, France,[20] there is the miniature of “Saint Caesarius” (MS G.55 fol. 132v).
In theBibliothèque nationale de France inParis, in the Department of Manuscripts, theSpeculum Historiale byVincent of Beauvais (translation byJean de Vignay) is kept, made in 1463. In this manuscript the "Passio S. Caesarii" is described with different miniatures of the life of the saints Caesarius and Julian.[21]
The relics of the Saint Caesarius deacon and martyr are preserved in the BasilicaSanta Croce in Gerusalemme in Rome (basalt urn of high altar), in theBasilica of San Frediano of Lucca, Tuscany (urn with six bones), and inTerracina Cathedral (urn with two shins and a reliquary arm).
From March 30 to June 30, 2015, the silver reliquary arm of St. Caesarius preserved inTerracina Cathedral was exhibited at the exhibition entitled "Precious sculptures: sacred jewelry inLazio" set up in the Braccio di Carlo Magno, inSt. Peter's Square, in theVatican, by the will ofAntonio Paolucci, Director of theVatican Museums.[22]
During the Middle Ages, bone fragments of the saint were translated into England: inGlastonbury Abbey[23] (his relics are listed at Glastonbury in the mid-twelfth-century list of Hugh Candidus of Peterborough), inCathedral of Exeter[24] and inCathedral of Lincoln.[25]
Saint Cesarius is venerated in St. Michael Church ofNetcong, a borough inMorris County, New Jersey,United States. A bone fragment of Saint Cesarius is preserved in this church.[18]
Other relics of Saint Caesarius deacon (with the cartouche in Latin" 1 November S. Caesarii diac. m.") are preserved in Saint Anthony's Chapel inPittsburgh (Pennsylvania); in St. Martha Church inMorton Grove (Illinois); in St. Joseph Cathedral inBuffalo (New York); inSt. Raphael's Cathedral (Dubuque, Iowa); in theShrine of the Holy Relics inMaria Stein (Ohio); inBasilica of the Sacred Heart (Notre Dame), Indiana; inSt Margaret's Chapel, Edinburgh; in a private collection inGnesen Township, St. Louis County, Minnesota; in Basílica of São Sebastião inRio de Janeiro; in Paróquia Nossa Senhora das Graças inCaieiras; and in theManila Cathedral (Philippines).
An Arm Reliquary of Saint Caesarius is preserved inKunstegewerbemuseum in Berlin.[26]
Bone fragments of St. Caesarius (with the cartouche in Latin"S. Caesarii diac. m.") are preserved inSancta Sanctorum of Roma, in Cathedral ofMonreale (Palermo, Italy); in Treasury of the Collegiate of St. Peter and St. Alexander in the Museum of the Chapter of the Rectory ofAschaffenburg (Germany); inEssen Minster; in the Museum Frederic Marès ofBarcelona; in the Museum de la Visitation,Moulins (France); in the Museum São Roque ofLisbon. In the municipality of St. Marys (Kansas, United States of America) on May 3, 2023, Bishop Bernard Fellay consecrated the main altar of the majestic Basilica of the Immaculate Conception with a first class relic of St. Caesarius deacon and martyr of Terracina and of Sant'Emerentiana (sister of Sant'Agnese)
In Italy other bone fragments of the saint are preserved in:Udine Cathedral;[27]Naples Cathedral;[28]Santa Brigida, Naples;Santa Maria in Vallicella;Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls;Santa Maria Corteorlandini, Lucca;San Paolo Maggiore, Bologna;Basilica of Our Lady Help of Christians, Turin;Anagni Cathedral;[29]Verona Cathedral;Foligno Cathedral;San Cesario di Lecce;Cesa;[30]San Cesareo;San Cesario sul Panaro;Asola, Lombardy;Guardea;Cava de' Tirreni;Nave, Lombardy;Fara in Sabina.
On the occasion of theExtraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, a newicon of Saint Caesarius martyr painted by artist Giovanni Guida[31] was exhibited in museums, cathedrals and basilicas alongsidereliquaries in which are preserved fragments of the body of the saint.[32] The tour included sites inItaly,Spain,Mexico,Portugal,France,Corsica,Germany,United States,England,Philippines,Croatia andSlovakia. The icon has been exhibited in such museums as the Kunstegewerbemuseum inBerlin; Museum Frederic Marès ofBarcelona; Museum São Roque ofLisbon; Museum of the Chapter of the Rectory ofAschaffenburg) and in important basilicas (St. Joseph Cathedral in Buffalo; St. Raphael's Cathedral inDubuque; Saint Anthony's Chapel inPittsburgh; St. Martha Church inMorton Grove; St. Michael's Church inNetcong;Manila Cathedral; and Basilica Santa Croce in Gerusalemme inRome).[33]
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