Apollinaris of

Apollinaris of Ravenna (Italian: Apollinare) is a Syr- ing, sent back to . All this continued for ian , whom the describes as three years, and a fourth time he returned to “a bishop who, according to tradition, while spreading Ravenna. By this time was Emperor, among the nations the unsearchable riches of Christ, led and he, in answer to the complaints of the pa- his flock as a good shepherd and honoured the Church of gans, issued a decree of banishment against the Classis near Ravenna by a glorious martyrdom.”[1] Christians. Apollinaris was kept concealed for some time, but as he was passing out of the gates of the city, was set upon and savagely 1 Biography beaten, probably at Classis, a suburb, but he lived for seven days, foretelling meantime that the persecutions would increase, but that the According to tradition, he was a native of in Church would ultimately triumph. It is not cer- of Syria. As the first Bishop of Ravenna, tain what was his native place, though it was he faced nearly constant persecution. He and his flock probably Antioch. Nor is it sure that he was were exiled from Ravenna during the persecutions of Em- one of the seventy-two disciples of Christ, as peror Vespasian (or , depending on the source). On has been suggested. The precise date of his his way out of the city he was identified, arrested as being consecration cannot be ascertained, but he was the leader, tortured and martyred by being run through Bishop of Ravenna for twenty-six years.[2] with a sword. Centuries after his death, he appeared in a vision to Saint . However, the acts of the martyrdom of Saint Apollinaris Other legends have him martyred under the Emperor have scarcely any historical value; they were probably . written by Archbishop Maurus of Ravenna (642-671), The early 20th-century Catholic Encyclopaedia rendered who presumably wanted to publicize the alleged apostolic the traditional version as follows: origin of the See of Ravenna, and also to abet his polit- ical aspirations against the influence of both and . However, Christian inscriptions dating He was made Bishop of Ravenna, Italy, by from the 2nd century have been discovered near Classe, Saint Peter himself. The miracles he wrought confirming the presence of Christianity in Ravenna at a there soon attracted official attention, for they very early date. According to the list of the bishops of and his preaching won many converts to the Ravenna compiled by Bishop Marianus (546-556), the Faith, while at the same time bringing upon 12th Bishop of Ravenna was named Severus; and he is him the fury of the idolaters, who beat him among those who signed at the Council of Sardica in 343. cruelly and drove him from the city. He was Thus, the epoch of Saint Apollinaris may be estimated as found half-dead on the seashore, and kept in possibly to the last decades of the 2nd century, placing his concealment by the Christians, but was cap- martyrdom possibly under Emperor . tured again and compelled to walk on burning coals and a second time expelled. But he re- mained in the vicinity, and continued his work of evangelization. We find him then journeying 2 Veneration in the Roman province of Aemilia [in Italy]. A third time he returned to Ravenna. Again he A noted miracle worker, Saint Apollinaris is considered was captured, hacked with knives, had scald- especially effective against gout, venereal disease[3] and ing water poured over his wounds, was beaten epilepsy. His relics are at the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in the mouth with stones because he persisted Nuovo (which housed his relics from the 9th century until in preaching, and was flung into a horrible dun- the 1748 reconsecration of Sant'Apollinare in Classe) and geon, loaded with chains, to starve to death; the 6th century Benedictine Basilica of Sant'Apollinare but after four days he was put on board a ship in Classe (on the traditional site of his martyrdom), both and sent to Greece. There the same course in Ravenna and in Saint Lambert’s church, Düsseldorf, of preachings, miracles and sufferings contin- . There are also churches dedicated to him in ued; and when his very presence caused the or- , Burtscheid and Remagen in Germany, where his acles to be silent, he was, after a cruel beat- veneration was probably spread by Benedictine monks.

1 2 5 EXTERNAL LINKS

The Frankish king Clovis built a church dedicated to him 5 External links in Dijon, and another dedicated to Saint Apollinaris also existed in , but was destroyed in 1250. Bořivoj • Santi Beati: Sant'Apollinare di Ravenna, Vescovo e II, Duke of Bohemia, founded a church with a collegiate martire (Italian) chapter dedicated to Saint Apollinaris in Sadská (then an important centre of the Czech state) in 1117/1118. On • American Catholic - Saint of the Day: St Apollinaris behalf of Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, the chap- • Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Apollinaris ter was later transferred from Sadská to recently founded New Town of Prague in 1362 and another church of • “Saint Apollinaris” at the Christian Iconography St Apollinaris built there. Both of these churches in website Bohemia stand to the present time. • “Here Followeth the Life of St. Appolinaris” from In the his feast day is July 23, his the Caxton translation of the Golden Legend birthday into Heaven (i.e., the day of his martyrdom).[1] The present devotes this day to Saint , since it is also her birth- day to Heaven and she is now better known in the West than Saint Apollinaris, being one of the patron of . Owing to the limited importance of Saint Apol- linaris’ feast worldwide, his liturgical celebration was in 1969 removed from the General Roman Calendar, but not from the Roman Martyrology, the official .[4] His memorial was restored to the General Ro- man Calendar in the 2002 edition of the , with the date of celebration changed to July 20, the near- est day not taken up with other celebrations. The Roman Martyrology mentions Saint Apollinaris both on July 20 (with the above-quoted text) and also more briefly[5] on July 23.[1]

3 References

• Santi Beati: Sant'Apollinare di Ravenna, Vescovo e martire (Italian)

• This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Company.

4 Notes

[1] Martyrologium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2001 ISBN 88-209-7210-7)

[2] Catholic Encyclopedia: St Apollinaris

[3] https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id= 1486,

[4] Calendarium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1969), p. 131

[5] “At Classis, near Ravenna in Flaminia, the martyrdom of Saint Apollinaris, bishop, whose memorial is celebrated on 20 July.” 3

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