Saint Emygdius (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

: ''Emidius, Æmedius, Emigdius, Hemigidius''; ; – AD) was a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

bishop who is venerated as a

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

. Tradition states that he was killed during the persecution of

Diocletian Diocletian ( ; ; ; 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed Jovius, was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Diocles to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia. As with other Illyri ...

.Sant' Emidio Martire
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Legend

His legend states that he was a

pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

who became a

. He travelled to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and cured the paralytic daughter of his host Gratianus, who had let him stay with him at his house on

Tiber Island The Tiber Island (, Latin: ''Insula Tiberina'') is the only river island in the part of the Tiber which runs through Rome. Tiber Island is located in the southern bend of the Tiber. The island is boat-shaped, approximately long and wide, and ha ...

. Gratianus' family then converted to Christianity. Emygdius also cured a blind man. The people of Rome believed him to be the son of

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

and carried him off by force to the Temple of

Asclepius Asclepius (; ''Asklēpiós'' ; ) is a hero and god of medicine in ancient Religion in ancient Greece, Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. He is the son of Apollo and Coronis (lover of Apollo), Coronis, or Arsinoe (Greek myth), Ars ...

on the island in the Tiber, where he cured many of the sick. Emygdius declared himself a Christian, however, and tore down the pagan altars and smashed into pieces a statue of Asclepius. He also converted many to Christianity; this enraged the prefect of the city. He was made a bishop by

Pope Marcellus I Pope Marcellus I () (6 January 255 – 16 January 309) was the bishop of Rome from May or June 308 to his death on 16 January 309. He succeeded Marcellinus after a considerable interval. Under Maxentius, he was banished from Rome in 309, on acc ...

(or

Pope Marcellinus Pope Marcellinus was the bishop of Rome from 30 June 296 to his death in 304. A historical accusation was levelled at him by some sources to the effect that he might have renounced Christianity during Emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christia ...

), and sent to

Ascoli Piceno Ascoli Piceno (; ; ) is a (municipality) and capital of the province of Ascoli Piceno, in the Italy, Italian region of Marche. Geography The town lies at the confluence of the Tronto, River Tronto and the small Castellano (river), River Castell ...

. On his way to Ascoli, Emydgius made more conversions, and performed a miracle where he made water gush out of a mountain after striking a cliff. Polymius, the local governor, attempted to convince Emygdius to worship

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a Jupiter mass, mass more than 2.5 times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined a ...

and the goddess Angaria, the patroness of Ascoli. Polymius also offered him the hand of his daughter Polisia. Instead, Emygdius baptized her as a Christian in the waters of the Tronto, along with many others. Enraged, Polymius decapitated him on the spot now occupied by the Sant'Emidio Rosso temple, as well as his followers Eupolus (Euplus), Germanus, and Valentius (Valentinus). Emygdius stood up, and carried his own head to a spot on a mountain where he had constructed an oratory (the site of the present-day Sant'Emidio alle Grotte). After Emygdius'

dom, his followers attacked Polymius' palace and pulled it down.

Veneration

His

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...

was written probably by a

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

origin in the eleventh century, after the rediscovery of the saint's

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

, which had been conserved in a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (: sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a coffin, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek language, Greek wikt:σάρξ, σάρξ ...

. However, his hagiography was attributed to his disciple Valentius, who was martyred with him. The cult of Saint Emygdius is ancient, documented by churches dedicated to him since the eighth century. The translation of his relics from the catacomb of Sant'Emidio alle Grotte to the crypt of the cathedral happened probably around the year 1000 under Bernardo II, bishop of Ascoli Piceno. In 1703, a violent

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

occurred in the

Marche Marche ( ; ), in English sometimes referred to as the Marches ( ) from the Italian name of the region (Le Marche), is one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. The region is located in the Central Italy, central area of the country, ...

, but did not affect the city of Ascoli Piceno. The city's salvation was attributed to Emygdius. He was thenceforth invoked against earthquakes, and the city dedicated a church to him in 1717. Other towns have also appointed him as patron, erecting statues in his honour in their churches (

L'Aquila L'Aquila ( ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy. It is the capital city of the Province of L'Aquila and the Abruzzo region in Italy. , it has a population of 69,902. Laid out within medieval walls on a hill in the wide valley of the A ...

, 1732;

Cingoli Cingoli is a town and ''comune'' of the Marches, Italy, in the province of Macerata, about by road from the town of Macerata. It is the birthplace of Pope Pius VIII. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of I ...

, 1747;

San Ginesio San Ginesio is an Italian Comune (Italy), municipality with a population of 3,040 inhabitants located in the Province of Macerata within the Marche region. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of Italy"). Phy ...

, 1751; and Nocera Umbra, 1751).Abruzzo Heritage
All Catholic churches in the State of California are mandated to commemorate his feastday, invoking his protection against earthquakes. Emygdius is considered to have protected Ascoli from other dangers. A dazzling vision of Emygdius is said to have deterred

Alaric I Alaric I (; , 'ruler of all'; ; – 411 AD) was the first Germanic kingship, king of the Visigoths, from 395 to 410. He rose to leadership of the Goths who came to occupy Moesia—territory acquired a couple of decades earlier by a combine ...

from destroying Ascoli in 409.Sant' Emidio
The troops of

Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor Conrad II (, – 4 June 1039), also known as and , was the Holy Roman Emperor, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 until his death in 1039. The first of a succession of four Salian dynasty, Salian emperors, who reigned for one century ...

passed through the region in 1038 carrying the plague; Bernardo I, bishop of Ascoli, invoked Emydgius' aid and the plague stopped. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, on 3 October 1943, Emygdius is said to have protected the city against

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

movements against the

Italian partisans The Italian Resistance ( ), or simply ''La'' , consisted of all the Italian resistance groups who fought the occupying forces of Nazi Germany and the fascist collaborationists of the Italian Social Republic during the Second World War in Italy ...

Gallery

File:The Annunciation, with Saint Emidius - Carlo Crivelli - National Gallery.jpg, ''Annunciation with St. Emygdius'' (1486) by Carlo Crivelli Image:Quadro raffigurante la decollazione di Sant' Emidio IMG 0051.JPG, ''The decapitation of Saint Emygdius'' Image:Cripta di Sant'Emidio AP.jpg, Statue of Saint Emydgius converting Polisia Image:Tempietto Sant'Emidio Rosso Ascoli Piceno.jpg, Sant'Emidio Rosso temple, Ascoli Piceno, built on the supposed spot of Emygdius' martyrdom

Legend

Veneration

Gallery

References

External links