The martyrdom of St. Erasmus

Saint Erasmus of Formiae born in 278 (died about 303), also known as Saint Elmo, is the patron saint of sailors. St. Elmo's Fire is named after him. Erasmus or Elmo is also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, not well known figures of Christian legend who were venerated especially in Central Europe as intercessors. Image File history File links Martyrdom_of_saint_erasmus. ... Image File history File links Martyrdom_of_saint_erasmus. ... Events Diocletian launched the last major persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire; Hierocles was said to have been the instigator of the fierce persecution of the Christians under February 24 - Galerius, Roman Emperor, publishes his edict that begins the persecution of Christians in his portion of the Empire. ... In several forms of the church of Christianity, but especially in Roman Catholicism, a patron saint has special affinity for a trade or group. ... St. ... Fourteen Holy Helpers The Fourteen Holy Helpers are a group of saints venerated together in Roman Catholicism because prayer to them was thought to be particularly effective, especially against various diseases. ... Central Europe is the region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe. ...

The Acts of Saint Elmo were partly compiled from legends that confuse him with a Syrian bishop Erasmus of Antioch. Jacobus de Voragine in the Golden Legend credited him as a bishop at Formia over all the Italian Campania, as a hermit on Mount Lebanon, and a martyr in the persecutions under Eastern Roman Emperor Diocletian. Jacobus de Voragine (c. ... The Golden Legend by Jacobus de Voragine is a collection of fanciful hagiographies, lives of the saints, that became a late mediæval best seller. ... Formia is a small town/city on the Mediterranean Coast of Italy. ... Campania is a region of Southern Italy, bordering on Lazio to the north-west, Molise to the north, Puglia to the north-east, Basilicata to the east, and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west. ... Mount Lebanon, as a geographic name Mount Lebanon, as a geographic designation, is the mountain range that extends across the whole country of Lebanon along about 160 km (100 mi), parallel to the Mediterranean coast and rising to 3,090 m (10,137 ft). ... This is a list of Byzantine Emperors. ... Emperor Diocletian. ...

The belfry of the Cathedral of St. Erasmus in Gaeta

According to his legend, when the persecutions of Diocletian began, Erasmus was called before a judge, beaten around the head, spat upon and "besprinkled [...] with foulness". He was then beaten with leaden mauls until his veins broke and burst. Erasmus suffered all of these punishments with tremendous willingness. Erasmus was then thrown into a pit of snakes and worms, and boiling oil and sulfur were poured on him but "he lay therein as he had lain in cold water, thanking and loving God". Then thunder and lightning came and electrocuted everyone around save Erasmus. Thus the saint was protected from the lightning. Diocletian had him thrown in another pit, but an angel came and slew all the vipers and worms. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (683x1024, 382 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Erasmus of Formiae Gaeta ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (683x1024, 382 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Erasmus of Formiae Gaeta ... Gaeta (ancient Latin name Caieta) is a city in Province of Latina, in Lazio, Italy. ... This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ...

Then, came the Western Roman Emperor Maximian, who according to Voragine, "[...] was much worse than was Diocletian". Erasmus would not cease preaching the Gospel, even though he was "put into a pan seething with rosin, pitch, brimstone lead, and oil, [which were] pour[ed] [...] into his mouth, [from] [...] which he never shrinked". A searing hot cloak and metal coat were both tried on him, to no effect, and an angel eventually carried him away to safety. "And when this holy man came before the false gods" to which he was to be forced to sacrifice, they "fell down and brake all in pieces, and consumed into ashes or dust". That made the emperor so angry he had Erasmus enclosed in a barrel full of protruding spikes, and the barrel was rolled down a hill. But an angel healed him. Further tortures ensued: The Western Roman Empire is the name given to the western half of the Roman Empire after its division by Diocletian. ... Maximian Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus Herculius (c. ...

A 15th century fresco painting held to be the torturing of Erasmus, in the Maria Church in Båstad, Sweden

"[H]is teeth [were] [...] plucked out of his head with iron pincers. And after that they bound him to a pillar and carded his skin with iron cards, and then they roasted him upon a gridiron...and did smite sharp nails of iron in his fingers, and after, they put out his eyes of his head with their fingers, and after that they laid this holy bishop upon the ground naked and stretched him with strong withes bound to horses about his blessed neck, arms, and legs, so that all his veins and sinews that he had in his body burst." Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1400x884, 314 KB) Date: July, 2005 This image is of bad quality because of bad lightning in the Church . ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1400x884, 314 KB) Date: July, 2005 This image is of bad quality because of bad lightning in the Church . ... BÃ¥stad Municipality is a municipality in southern Sweden, where the town BÃ¥stad is seat with a population of 4,700. ...

The version of the Golden Legend did not relate how Erasmus fled to Mount Lebanon and survived on what ravens brought him to eat, an interesting pre-Christian mytheme. When he was recaptured, he was brought before the emperor and beaten and whipped, then coated with pitch and set alight (as Christians had been in Nero's games), and still he survived. Thrown into prison with the intention of letting him die of starvation, Erasmus managed to escape. In the study of mythology, a mytheme is a feature of a myth, which may be shared with other, related myths. ... Nero[1] Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (December 15, 37 – June 9, 68), born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, also called Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus, was the fifth and last Roman Emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty (54–68). ...

He was recaptured and tortured some more in the Roman province of Illyricum, after boldly preaching and converting numerous pagans to Christianity. Finally, according to the legend, his stomach was slit open and his intestines wound around a windlass. This late legend may have developed from interpreting an icon that showed him with a windlass, signifying his patronage of sailors. This article is about an ancient civilization in southeastern Europe; see also Illyria (software), Illyria (character in the TV series Angel). ... A windlass is an apparatus for moving a heavy weight. ...

Erasmus may have become the patron of sailors because he is said to have continued preaching even after a thunderbolt struck the ground beside him. This prompted sailors, who were in danger from sudden storms and lightning to claim his prayers. The electrical discharges at the mastheads of ships were read as a sign of his protection and came to be called "Saint Elmo's Fire." St. ...

Gregory the Great recorded in the 6th century that his relics were preserved in the cathedral of Formia. When the old Formiae was razed by the Saracens in 842, the cult of Erasmus was translated to Gaeta. He is currently the patron of both Gaeta and Formia. Saint Gregory I, or Gregory the Great (called the Dialogist in Eastern Orthodoxy) (circa 540 - March 12, 604) was pope of the Catholic Church from September 3, 590 until his death. ... This Buddhist stela from China, Northern Wei period, was built in the early 6th century. ... Formia is a small town/city on the Mediterranean Coast of Italy. ... It has been suggested that Serkland be merged into this article or section. ... Events Oaths of Strasbourg — alliance of Louis the German and Charles the Bald against emperor Lothar — sworn and recorded in vernacular languages. ... Gaeta (ancient Latin name Caieta) is a city in Province of Latina, in Lazio, Italy. ...

Besides mariners, Erasmus is invoked against colic in children, intestinal ailments and diseases, cramps and the pain of women in labor, as well as cattle pest.

Gallery

"Meeting of Saint Erasmus and Saint Maurice" by Matthias Grünewald (1517-23), Alte Pinakothek. Grünewald used Albert of Mainz, who commissioned the painting, as the model for St. Erasmus. Image File history File links Saint_maurice. ... Saint-Maurice may refer to: Saint-Maurice, a former federal electoral district represented in the Canadian House of Commons, and located in the province of Quebec Saint-Maurice, VS (Roman Agaunum) is a commune and a district in the Valais, Switzerland. ... The Crucifixion, central panel of the Isenheim Altarpiece Matthias Grünewald (1470-1528) is a highly regarded figure from the German Renaissance. ... The Alte Pinakothek (Old Pinakothek) is an art museum situated in the Kunstareal in Munich, Germany. ... Cardinal Albert of Hohenzollern, Archbishop of Mainz and Magdeburg: engraved portrait by Albrecht Dürer, 1519 Cardinal Albert of Hohenzollern (German: Albrecht; June 28, 1490 in Cölln – September 24, 1545 in Aschaffenburg), Elector and Archbishop of Mainz and Archbishop of Magdeburg, was the younger son of John Cicero, Elector...

See also

• St. Elmo Hall fraternity

Saints Portal

The Delta Phi (ΔΦ) fraternity was founded in 1827 at Union College. ... Image File history File links Gloriole. ...

External links

• Golden Legend – e-text adapted from Wynken de Worde's edition of 1527.
• Saint Erasmus