Saint Paulinus of Nola, also known as
Pontius Meropius Anicius Paulinus (
Bordeauxis a port city on the Garonne River in southwest France, with one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area at a 2008 estimate. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture of the Gironde department...
, ca. 354 – June 22,
431-Western Roman Empire:* Aëtius pushes the Franks back across the Somme.-Eastern Roman Empire:* Marcian, future Eastern Roman Emperor, is captured while fighting the Vandals.-Americas:...
in
NolaNola is a city of Campania, Italy, in the province of Naples, situated in the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is served by the Circumvesuviana railway from Naples.-Ancient era:...
, outside
NaplesNaples in Italy, is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples. The city is known for its rich history, art, culture, architecture, music and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,800 years old...
) was a
Roman SenatorThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic. According to the Greek historian Polybius, our principal source on the Constitution of the Roman Republic, the Roman Senate was the predominant branch of government...
who converted to a severe
monasticismMonasticism is the religious practice in which one renounces worldly pursuits in order to fully devote one's life to spiritual work...
in 394. He eventually became
Bishop of NolaThe Diocese of Nola is a Roman Catholic diocese in Italy, with its seat in the ancient city Nola. The diocese is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Naples....
, helped to resolve the disputed election of
Pope Boniface IPope Saint Boniface I was pope from December 28, 418 to September 4, 422. He was a contemporary of Saint Augustine of Hippo, who dedicated to him some of his works....
, and was recognized as a saint.
Life
Paulinus was from a notable
senatorialThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic. According to the Greek historian Polybius, our principal source on the Constitution of the Roman Republic, the Roman Senate was the predominant branch of government...
family with possessions in
AquitaineAquitaine , archaic Guyenne/Guienne , is one of the 26 regions of France, in the south-western part of metropolitan France, along the Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. In the Middle Ages it was a kingdom and later a duchy, with boundaries considerably larger...
, northern
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
, and southern
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
. He was educated in Bordeaux, where his teacher, the poet
AusoniusDecimius Magnus Ausonius was a Latin poet and rhetorician, born at Burdigala .-Biography:Decimius Magnus Ausonius was born in Bordeaux in ca. 310. His father was a noted physician of Greek ancestry and his mother was descended on both sides from long-established aristocratic Gallo-Roman families...
, also became his friend. His normal career as a young member of the senatorial class did not last long—he served as governor of the southern Italian province of
CampagnaCampagna is a small town and comune of the province of Salerno, in the Campania region of Southern Italy.-History:The town, located in a mountainous district, gradually lost importance in the 20th century...
, but returned to Bordeaux where he became a serious
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
. In Paulinus's day the upper classes were in large part Christian, but not strongly observant. Paulinus married a Spanish woman named Therasia, and they moved from Bordeaux to northern Spain in 389 or 390. About the same time their only child, a son, died in infancy; Paulinus and Therasia's life in Spain became increasingly secluded. He was baptized in 389 by Delphinus, Bishop of Bordeaux. Paulinus then decided to live on his estates in Spain. In 393 or 394, after some resistance from Paulinus, he was ordained a priest on
ChristmasChristmas , also referred to as Christmas Day, is an annual holiday celebrated on December 25 that commemorates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. The day marks the beginning of the larger season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days. The nativity of Jesus, which is the basis for the anno Domini...
day by
LampiusLampius was bishop of Barcelona from 393 to 400 AD. He is best remembered for being responsible for the ordination of Saint Paulinus of Nola on Christmas, 393 AD, in the cathedral of Barcelona. He also attended the First Council of Toledo....
, Bishop of Barcelona. This was very similar to what happened with
Saint Augustine of HippoAugustine of Hippo , Bishop of Hippo Regius, also known as St. Augustine or St. Austin, was an Algerian Berber philosopher and theologian....
, who had been ordained against his will in the year 391 by a crowd cooperating with Bishop Valerius in the North African city of
Hippo RegiusHippo Regius is the ancient name of the modern city of Annaba, Algeria. Under this name, it was a major city in Roman Africa, hosting several early Christian councils, and was the home of the philosopher and theologian Augustine of Hippo. In even earlier days, the city was a royal residence for...
.
Paulinus refused to remain in
BarcelonaBarcelona is the capital, most populous city of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain, with a population of 1,615,908 in 2008. It is the 11th-most populous municipality in the European Union and sixth-most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris,...
, though, and in late spring of the following year he and his wife moved from Spain to
CampagnaCampagna is a small town and comune of the province of Salerno, in the Campania region of Southern Italy.-History:The town, located in a mountainous district, gradually lost importance in the 20th century...
. Already Paulinus had definite interests in
monasticismMonasticism is the religious practice in which one renounces worldly pursuits in order to fully devote one's life to spiritual work...
and engaged in considerable epistolary dialogue about this with
Saint JeromeSaint Jerome was a Christian priest and apologist. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Strido, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
among others.
Influence
Already during his governorship Paulinus had developed a fondness for the 3rd century martyr
FelixSaint Felix of Nola was a Priest martyred for the Faith following the general persecution instigated by the Emperor Decius.-Life:...
. Felix was a minor saint of local importance and patronage whose tomb had been built within the local necropolis at
CimitileCimitile is a comune in the Province of Naples in the Italian region Campania, located about 25 km northeast of Naples. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 6,877 and an area of 2.7 km²...
, just outside the town of
NolaNola is a city of Campania, Italy, in the province of Naples, situated in the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is served by the Circumvesuviana railway from Naples.-Ancient era:...
. As governor, Paulinus had widened the road to Cimitile and built a residence for travelers; it was at this site that Paulinus and Therasia took up residence. Nearby were a number of small chapels and at least one old basilica. Paulinus rebuilt the complex, constructing a brand new basilica to Felix and gathering to him a small monastic community. Paulinus wrote an annual hymn (
natalicium) in honor of St. Felix for the feast day when processions of pilgrims were at their peak. In these hymns we can understand the personal relationship Paulinus felt between himself and Felix, his advocate in heaven. His poetry shares with much of the work of the early 5th century, an ornateness of style that classicists of the 18th and 19th century found cloying and dismissed as decadent—though Paulinus' poems were highly regarded at the time and used as educational models.
Many of Paulinus's letters to his contemporaries, including Ausonius and
Sulpicius SeverusSulpicius Severus was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours.-Life:...
in southern
GaulGaul is a historical name used in the context of the Roman Empire in references to the region of Western Europe approximating present day France and Belgium, but also sometimes including the Po Valley, western Switzerland, and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River...
, Victricius of Rouen in northern Gaul, and Augustine in Africa are preserved. At least one of the letters to Ausonius has led to speculation that Paulinus may have been homosexual, although this interpretation has not been supported by other biographers
Paulinus may have been indirectly responsible for Augustine's
Confessions: Paulinus wrote to
AlypiusAlypius may refer to:* Alypius of Byzantium, bishop of Byzantium in the 2nd century* Alypius of Antioch, a vicarius of Roman Britain in the 350s* Alypius , a writer on music c. 360...
, Bishop of Thagaste and a close friend of
Saint AugustineAugustine of Hippo , Bishop of Hippo Regius, also known as St. Augustine or St. Austin, was an Algerian Berber philosopher and theologian....
, asking about his conversion and taking up of the ascetic life. Alypius's autobiographical response does not survive; St Augustine's ostensible answer to that query is the
"Confessions."
Around 410 Paulinus was chosen Bishop of Nola. Like a growing number of aristocrats in the late 4th and early 5th centuries who were entering the clergy rather than taking up the more usual administrative careers in the imperial service Paulinus spent a great deal of his money on his chosen church and city.
We know about his buildings in honor of St Felix from literary and archaeological evidence, especially from his long letter to Sulpicius Severus describing the arrangement of the building and its decoration. He includes a detailed description of the
apsethumb|250px|Triple apse of [[Basilica di Santa Giulia]], northern [[Italy]].In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
mosaicMosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
over the main altar and gives the text for a long inscription he has written to be put on the wall under the image. By explaining how he intends the visitors to understand the image over the altar Paulinus provides rare insight into the intentions of a patron of art in the later Empire.
In later life Paulinus, by then a highly respected church authority, participated in multiple church synods investigating various ecclesiastical controversies of the time, including
PelagianismPelagianism is a theological theory named after Pelagius . It is the belief that original sin did not taint human nature and that mortal will is still capable of choosing good or evil without special Divine aid. Thus, Adam's sin was "to set a bad example" for his progeny, but his actions did not...
. St Paulinus died on June 22,
431-Western Roman Empire:* Aëtius pushes the Franks back across the Somme.-Eastern Roman Empire:* Marcian, future Eastern Roman Emperor, is captured while fighting the Vandals.-Americas:...
at Nola.
Relics
About 800, a
LombardThe Lombards were a Germanic people originally from Northern Europe who settled in the valley of the Danube and from there invaded Byzantine Italy in 568 under the leadership of Alboin. They established a Kingdom of Italy which lasted until 774, when it was conquered by the Franks...
prince of
BeneventoBenevento is a town and comune of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, 50 km northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill 130 m above sea-level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino and Sabato. It is also the seat of a Catholic archbishop.Benevento occupies the site of...
removed Paulinus's bones as relics. From the eleventh century, they rested at the church of Saint Adalbert, now Saint Bartholomew, on the
island in the TiberThe Tiber Island , is a boat-shaped island which has long been associated with healing. It is an ait, and is the only island in the Tiber river, which runs through Rome. The island is located in the southern bend of the Tiber. It is approximately 270 m. long and 67 m...
at Rome; in 1908
Pope Pius XPope St. Pius X , born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the 258th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, serving from 1903 to 1914, succeeding Pope Leo XIII . He was the first pope since Pope Pius V to be canonized. Pius X codified Catholic doctrines to inspire conformity in the church and rejected...
permitted them to be
translatedIn Christianity, the translation of relics is the removal of holy objects from one locality to another...
to the new Cathedral at Nola, where they were reinterred on May 15, 1909. The bones are now found in the small Sicilian city of
SuteraSutera is a comune in the Province of Caltanissetta in the Italian region Sicily, located about 70 km southeast of Palermo and about 30 km west of Caltanissetta. The area is dominated by a large monolithic rock termed "The Mountain of San Paolino". Upon this mountain sits the bones of...
where they dedicate a feast day, and conduct a procession for the Saint at Easter each year.
Modern devotion to St. Paulinus
The people of modern day Nola and the surrounding regions remain devoted to St. Paulinus. His feast day is celebrated annually in Nola during
"La Festa dei Gigli" (the Feast of the Lilies), in which Gigli, several large statues in honor of the saint, placed on towers, are carried upon the shoulders of the faithful around the city. In the United States, the descendants of Italian immigrants from Nola continue the tradition in Brooklyn ,Harlem and on Long Island.
External links