Venantius of Camerino ( it, San Venanzio, also known as Saint Wigand) (died 18 May 251 or 253)San Venanzio di Camerino
Santiebeati.it (2002-06-29). Retrieved on 2011-02-02. is the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

Camerino Camerino is a town in the province of Macerata, Marche, central-eastern Italy. It is located in the Apennines bordering Umbria, between the valleys of the rivers Potenza and Chienti, about from Ancona. Camerino is home to the University of C ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and Raiano, Italy. Christian tradition holds that he was a 15-year-old who was tortured, and martyred by decapitation at Camerino during the persecutions of

Decius Gaius Messius Quintus Traianus Decius ( 201 ADJune 251 AD), sometimes translated as Trajan Decius or Decius, was the emperor of the Roman Empire from 249 to 251. A distinguished politician during the reign of Philip the Arab, Decius was procl ...

. Martyred with him were 10 other Christians, including the priest Porphyrius, Venantius' tutor; and Leontius, bishop of Camerino. Before Venantius was killed, he was scourged, burned with flaming torches, hanged upside-down over a fire, had his teeth knocked out and his jaw broken, thrown to the lions, and tossed over a high cliff. His 11th century ''Acts'' state additionally that he managed to briefly escape from Camerino and hide at Raiano, where a church was later dedicated to him.

Veneration

Venantius was buried outside the city walls of Camerino, where a

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's Forum (Roman), forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building ...

was built in the fifth century, and later rebuilt many times in succeeding centuries. The cult of Venantius became popular: his image appeared on

coins A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

and in

litanies Litany, in Christian worship and some forms of Judaic worship, is a form of prayer used in services and processions, and consisting of a number of petitions. The word comes through Latin '' litania'' from Ancient Greek λιτανεία (''li ...

; springs near the basilica, which were associated with the saint, were used by

lepers Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve dama ...

and people with

peptic ulcer Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) is a break in the inner lining of the stomach, the first part of the small intestine, or sometimes the lower esophagus. An ulcer in the stomach is called a gastric ulcer, while one in the first part of the intestines ...

s to cure their afflictions. Venantius subsequently replaced

Saint Ansovinus Saint Ansovinus ( it, Sant'Ansovino) (d. 816) was a bishop of Camerino, and is the patron saint of agriculture. His feast day is March 13. Life He was educated at the cathedral school of Pavia. After ordination to the priesthood, he became a he ...

as the city's patron saint. In 1259, during the destruction and sacking of Camerino by the troops of

Manfred of Sicily Manfred ( scn, Manfredi di Sicilia; 123226 February 1266) was the last King of Sicily from the Hohenstaufen dynasty, reigning from 1258 until his death. The natural son of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, Manfred became regent over the ...

, the

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tang ...

of Venantius were transported to safety to the

Castel dell'Ovo Castel dell'Ovo ("Egg Castle") is a seafront castle in Naples, located on the former island of Megaride, now a peninsula, on the Gulf of Naples in Italy. The castle's name comes from a legend about the Roman poet Virgil, who had a reputation in ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

. They were restored to Camerino in 1269 by order of Pope Clement IV, an opponent of Manfred. In the 17th century,

Pope Clement X Pope Clement X ( la, Clemens X; it, Clemente X; 13 July 1590 – 22 July 1676), born Emilio Bonaventura Altieri, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 April 1670 to his death in July 1676. Elected pope at ag ...

, who was a former

bishop of Camerino The Italian Archdiocese of Camerino-San Severino Marche ( la, Archidioecesis Camerinensis-Sancti Severini in Piceno) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory, seated in Camerino, a city in the Province of Macerata, in the central Italian Marc ...

, further contributed to the spread of his cult: he raised the saint's feast to the level of a double rite and composed

hymns A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

for Venantius' office. In the General Roman Calendar of 1670–1969 he has a third-class feast on 18 May. Image:Pfärrenbach Wandmalerei Venantiuslegende 2.jpg, Venantius is decapitated and then buried. File:Scarsellino - Martyrdom of St. Venantius of Camerino - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Martyrdom of St. Venantius of Camerino'' by Scarsellino

References

External links

St. Venantius
{{DEFAULTSORT:Venantius Of Camerino 250 deaths Italian saints Year of birth unknown 3rd-century Christian martyrs People executed by decapitation

Veneration

See also

References

External links