Vitus | |
|---|---|
 Saint Vitus, from theNuremberg Chronicle, 1493 | |
| Martyr, Holy Helper | |
| Born | c. 290 Mazzara del Vallo,Sicily |
| Died | c. 303 (age 12–13) Lucania, modern-dayBasilicata,Italy |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Feast | 15 June |
| Attributes | Depicted in acauldron, with arooster or alion |
| Patronage | Actors;comedians;Rijeka, Croatia;Czechoslovakia;dancers;dogs;epilepsy;Mazara del Vallo, Sicily;Forio, Ischia;oversleeping;Prague, Czech Republic;rheumatic chorea (Saint Vitus Dance);Serbia;snake bites;storms;Vacha, Germany;Zeven,Lower Saxony; theGooi, Netherlands;E Clampus Vitus |
Vitus (/ˈvaɪtəs/), whose name is sometimes renderedGuy orGuido, was aChristian martyr fromSicily. His survivinghagiography is pure legend. The dates of his actual life are unknown.[1][2] He has for long been tied to the Sicilian martyrs Modestus and Crescentia but in the earliest sources it is clear that these were originally different traditions that later became combined.[3] The figures of Modestus and Crescentia are probably fictitious.[1]
According to his hagiography, he died during theDiocletianic Persecution in AD 303. In theMiddle Ages, he was counted as one of theFourteen Holy Helpers. InGermany, his feast was celebrated with dancing before his statue. This dancing became popular and the name "Saint Vitus Dance" was given to the neurological disorderSydenham's chorea. It also led to Vitus being considered the patron saint of dancers and of entertainers in general.[4] He is also said to protect against lightning strikes, animal attacks and oversleeping. Hisfeast day is celebrated on 15 June. In places where theJulian calendar is used, this date coincides, in the 20th and 21st centuries, with 28 June on theGregorian calendar.
According to the hagiography, Vitus, Modestus and Crescentia were martyrs underDiocletian. The earliest testimony for their veneration is offered by the "Martyrologium Hieronymianum" (ed.G. B. de Rossi-Louis Duchesne, 78: "In Sicilia, Viti, Modesti et Crescentiae"). The fact that the note is in the three most important manuscripts indicates that it was also in the common exemplar of these, which appeared in the fifth century. The sameMartyrologium has under the same day another mention of a Vitus at the head of a list of nine martyrs, with the statement of the place, inEboli, "InLucania", that is, in the Roman province of that name insouthern Italy between the Tuscan Sea and theGulf of Taranto. It is easily possible that it is the same martyr Vitus in both cases.
According to J. P. Kirsch,[5] the testimony to the public veneration of the three saints in the fifth century proves that they are historical martyrs. There are, nevertheless, no historical accounts of them, nor of the time or the details of their martyrdom.
During the sixth and seventh centuries a purely legendarynarrative of their martyrdom appeared which appears to be based upon otherlegends, especially on the legend ofPotitus, and ornamented with accounts of fantastic miracles. According to this legend, Vitus was a 7-year-old son of a senator of Lucania (some versions make him 12 years old). He resisted his father's attempts, which included various forms of torture, to make him turn away from his faith. He fled with his tutor Modestus and Modestus's wife Crescentia, who was Vitus's nanny, to Lucania. He was taken from there to Rome todrive out a demon which had taken possession of a son of the Emperor Diocletian. He successfully performed the exorcism, but, because he stayed faithful to Christianity, he and his tutors weretortured. By amiracle anangel brought back the three to Lucania, where they died from the tortures they had endured. Three days later, Vitus appeared to a distinguished matron named Florentia, who then found the bodies and buried them where they lay.
The veneration of the martyrs spread rapidly in Southern Italy and Sicily, as is shown by the note in the "Martyrologium Hieronymianum". PopeGregory the Great mentions a monastery dedicated to Vitus in Sicily ("Epist.", I, xlviii, P.L., LXXXVII, 511).
The veneration of Vitus, the chief saint of the group, also appeared very early at Rome.Pope Gelasius I (492–496) mentions a shrine dedicated to him (Jaffé, "Reg. Rom. Pont.", 2nd ed., I, 6 79), and at Rome in the seventh century the chapel of a deaconry was dedicated to him ("Liber Pont.", ed. Duchesne, I, 470 sq.).
In AD 756,Abbot Fulrad is said to have brought therelics of St. Vitus to themonastery of St-Denis. They were later presented to Abbot Warin ofCorvey in Germany, who solemnly transferred some of them to this abbey in AD 836. From Corvey the veneration of St Vitus spread throughout Westphalia and in the districts of eastern and northern Germany. His popularity grew inPrague, Bohemia when, in AD 925, kingHenry I of Germany presented as a gift the bones of one hand of St. Vitus toWenceslaus, Duke of Bohemia. Since then, this relic has been a sacred treasure in theSt. Vitus Cathedral in Prague. Other relics of Saint Vitus were taken inPavia (they were kept in the church ofSan Marino) by the emperorCharles IV in 1355 and were brought to Prague.[6]
The veneration of St. Vitus became very popular inSlavic lands, where his name (Sveti Vid) may have replaced more ancient worship of the god of lightSvetovid.[7]
InSerbia his feast day, known asVidovdan, is of particular historical importance.[8] The day is part of theKosovo Myth — theBattle of Kosovo occurred on that day; several events have symbolically occurred on that day, such as the 1914assassination of the Austrian royal couple; Vitus was the patron saint of theKingdom of Serbia.[9] InHungary he has been venerated asSzent Vid since the early Middle Ages. InBulgaria, it is called Vidovden (Видовден) or Vidov Den (Видов ден) and is particularly well known among theShopi, in the western part of the country. InCroatia, 123 churches are dedicated to St. Vitus.
In theNetherlands, Vitus is the patron saint ofWinschoten, as well as of the region of the Gooi, where in each of the three largest towns (Hilversum, Bussum and Naarden), the main Catholic Church is dedicated to St Vitus.
Vitus is one of theFourteen Martyrs who give aid in times of trouble. He is specifically invoked againstchorea, which is calledSt. Vitus Dance.
He is represented as a young man with a palm-leaf, in a cauldron, sometimes with a raven and a lion, hisiconographic attribute because according to the legend he was thrown into a cauldron of boiling tar and molten lead, but miraculously escaped unscathed.
The names of Saints Modestus and Crescentia were added in the 11th century to the Roman Calendar,[10] so that from then on all three names were celebrated together until 1969, when their feast was removed from theGeneral Roman Calendar. Vitus is still recognized as a saint of theCatholic Church, being included in theRoman Martyrology under 15 June,[11] andMass may be celebrated in his honor on that day wherever theRoman Rite is celebrated,[12] while Modestus and Crescentia, who are associated with Vitus in legend, have been omitted, because they appear to be merely fictitious personages.[10]
Vitus is the patron saint of the city ofRijeka inCroatia; the towns ofCiminna andVita inSicily;Forio on the island ofIschia, the town of Sapri inCampania; thecontrada of San Vito, inTorella dei Lombardi, inAvellino; the town ofRapone, Italy; the Gooi region in theNetherlands; the Italian colony ofSan Vito in Costa Rica; and the town ofSt. Vith inBelgium. Various places inAustria andBavaria are namedSankt Veit in his honour.
The saint's feast day is also the subject of a popular weather rhyme: "If St. Vitus' Day be rainy weather, it shall rain for thirty days together". This rhyme often appears in such publications asalmanacs; its origin is uncertain.
Michael J. Towsend writes that "the phrase 'The patron saint ofMethodism is St Vitus' summed up with reasonable accuracy many people's impressions of the Methodist Church. Methodists, surely, are supremely busy people, always rushing around organizing things and setting up committees to do good works. They can generally be relied upon to play their part in runningChristian Aid Week, the sponsored walk for the local hospice or the group protesting about homelessness, and they are known, even now, to be activists in trades unions and political parties."[13]
... was scheduled for June 28. This was a significant date for both Princip and the archduke. It was the day of St. Vitus, the patron saint of Serbia,
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Sts. Vitus, Modestus, and Crescentia".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
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