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Agnes of Rome

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For other uses, seeSaint Agnes (disambiguation).

Agnes of Rome(c. 291– c.  304) is avirgin martyr,venerated as asaintin theCatholic Church,Oriental Orthodox Churchand theEastern Orthodox Church,as well as theAnglican CommunionandLutheran Churches.[2]She is one of several virgin martyrs commemorated by name in theCanon of the Mass,and one of manyChristians martyred during the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian.

Saint

Agnes of Rome
Saint AgnesbyDomenichino(c. 1620)
Virgin and martyr
Bornc. 291
Rome,Italy
Diedc.304(304-00-00)(aged 12–13)
Rome, Italy
Venerated inCatholic Church
Eastern Orthodox Churches[1]
Oriental Orthodox Churches
Anglican Churches
Lutheran Churches.
CanonizedPre-congregation
MajorshrineChurch ofSant'Agnese fuori le muraand the Church ofSant'Agnese in Agone,both in Rome
Feast21 January; beforePope John XXIIIrevised the calendar, there was a second feast on 28 January
AttributesLamb,martyr's palm,sword
PatronageGirls;chastityand virgins; victims ofsexual abuse;betrothed couples;gardeners;Girl Guides;theDiocese of Rockville Centre,New York;Children of Mary;Collegio Capranica,Rome; the city ofFresno

Agnes was born in 291 intoRomannobility, and raised as a Christian. She suffered martyrdom on 21 January 304, aged 12 or 13. Her high-ranking suitors, slighted by her resolute devotion to religious purity, sought to persecute her for her beliefs. Her father urged her to deny God, but she refused, and she was dragged naked through the streets to abrothel,then tried and sentenced to death. She was eventuallybeheaded,after attempts for her to beburnt at the stakefailed. A few days after her death, her foster-sisterEmerentianawas found praying by her tomb, and wasstoned to death.

An early account of Agnes, stressing her young age, steadfastness and virginity was written by the 4th-century theologian,St Ambrose.Since theMiddle Ages,she has traditionally been depicted as a young girl with her long hair with a lamb (the symbol of her virginal innocence and her name), a sword, and apalm branch(an attribute of her martyrdom). Her bones are beneath the high altar of the church built over her tomb in Rome. Her skull is preserved in the church ofSant'Agnese in Agone,Rome.

Biography

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According to tradition, Agnes was born in 291 intoRomannobility, and raised as a Christian. She suffered martyrdom on 21 January 304, aged 12 or 13, and during the reign of the Roman emperorDiocletian.[3][4]A beautiful young girl, Agnes had many suitors who were young men of high rank. Slighted by her resolute devotion to religious purity, they submitted her name to the authorities as a follower of Christianity.[5][6]One of them, a man named Procop, brought Agnes to his father, who was the local governor. He urged Agnes to deny God, but she refused.[7]

ThePrefectSempronius condemned Agnes to be dragged naked through the streets to abrothel.In one account, as she prayed, her hair grew and covered her body.[8]It was also said that all of the men who attempted torapeher were immediately struck blind. The son of the prefect was struck dead but revived after she prayed for him, causing her release. At the start of Agnes's trial, Semproniusrecusedhimself, and another figure presided. After Agnes was sentenced to death, she was led out andbound to a staketo be burned, but the bundle of wood would not burn, or the flames parted away from her. The officer in charge of the troops drew his sword andbeheadedher—or, in other texts, stabbed her in the throat. It is said that when her blood poured to thestadiumfloor, other Christians soaked it up with cloths.[9]

Agnes depicted on the medievalRoyal Gold Cupin theBritish Museum

Agnes was buried beside theVia Nomentanain Rome.[5]A few days after her death, her foster-sister,Emerentiana,was found praying by the tomb. Emerentiana claimed to be the daughter of Agnes'swet nurse.She wasstonedto death after refusing to leave the place and reprimanding the people for killing her foster-sister. Emerentiana was also latercanonized.The daughter ofConstantine I,Constantina,was said to have been cured ofleprosyafter praying at Agnes's tomb. She and Emerentiana appear in the scenes from the life of Agnes on the 14th-centuryRoyal Gold Cupin theBritish Museumin London.[citation needed]

An early account of Agnes' death, stressing her young age, steadfastness and virginity, but not the legendary features of the tradition, is given by the 4th-century theologian,Ambrose.[3]

The broader social circumstances of her martyrdom are believed to be largely authentic, though the legend cannot be proven true, and many details of the 5th-centuryActs of Saint Agneshave been challenged.[10]A church was built over her tomb, and herrelicsvenerated.[11]

Veneration

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Drawing byJohann Overbeckof St. Agnes

Agnes was venerated as a saint at least as early as the time of St Ambrose, based on an existing homily. She is commemorated in theDepositio MartyrumofFilocalus(354) and in the early Roman Sacramentaries.[6]

Saint Agnes' bones are conserved beneath the high altar in the church ofSant'Agnese fuori le murain Rome,[12]built over thecatacombthat housed her tomb. Her skull is preserved in a separate chapel in the church ofSant'Agnese in Agonein Rome'sPiazza Navona.

Agnes isrememberedin theAnglican Communionwith aLesser Festivalon 21 January.[13][14][15]

St Agnes is venerated as asaintin theCatholic Church,Oriental Orthodox Churchand theEastern Orthodox Church,as well as theAnglican CommunionandLutheran Churches.[16]

Patronage

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Santa Inés,Guarino,1650

Because of the legend around her martyrdom, Saint Agnes is patron saint of those seeking chastity and purity.[11]She is also the patron saint of young girls and girl scouts. Folk custom called for them to practiseritualson Saint Agnes' Eve (20–21 January) with a view to discovering their future husbands. Thissuperstitionhas been immortalised inJohn Keats'spoemThe Eve of Saint Agnes.[17]

Iconography

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Since the Middle Ages, Saint Agnes has traditionally been depicted as a young girl with her long hair down, with a lamb, the symbol of both her virginal innocence[18]and her name, and a sword (together with thepalm branchan attribute of her martyrdom). The lamb, which isagnusin the Latin language, is also the linguistic link to the traditional blessing of lambs.[19]Saint Agnes has been depicted with a lamb since the 4th century.[20][21]

Blessing of the lambs

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On the feast of Saint Agnes, two lambs are traditionally brought from theTrappistabbey ofTre FontaneinRometo be blessed by the Pope. In summer, the lambs are shorn, and the wool is used to weave thepallia,which the Pope gives on the feast of Saint Peter and Paul to the newly appointed metropolitanarchbishopsas a sign of his jurisdiction and their union with the pope.[5][22][23]This tradition of the blessing of the lambs has been known since the 16th century.[24]

Notable churches

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The relic of the skull of Saint Agnes inSant'Agnese in Agone,Rome

Legacy

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TheCongregation of Sisters of St. Agnesis a Catholic religious community for women based inFond du Lac, Wisconsin,US. It was founded in 1858, by Father Caspar Rehrl, an Austrian missionary, who established the sisterhood of pioneer women under the patronage of Agnes, to whom he had a particular devotion.

Graphite pencil drawing of Saint Agnes by Johann Overbeck

The city ofSanta Ynez, Californiais named after her.

Cultural references

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Hrotsvitha,the 10th-century nun and poet, wrote a heroic poem about Agnes.[28]

In the historical novelFabiola or, the Church of the Catacombs,written by CardinalNicholas Wisemanin 1854, Agnes is the soft-spoken teenage cousin and confidant of the protagonist, the beautiful noblewoman Fabiola.[29]

The Eve of St. Agnesis aRomanticnarrative poem written byJohn Keatsin 1819.

The instrumental song "Saint Agnes and the Burning Train" appears on the 1991 albumThe Soul CagesbySting.

The song "Bear's Vision of St. Agnes" appears on the 2012 albumTen Storiesby rock bandmewithoutYou.

The St. Agnes Library is a branch of theNew York Public Librarylocated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, on Amsterdam Avenue between West 81st and West 82nd Streets.[30]

References

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  1. ^February 3 / January 21.https://www.holytrinityorthodox.com/htc/orthodox-calendar/
  2. ^admin (2024-01-17)."Saint Agnes of Rome".Understanding Faith.Retrieved2024-04-14.
  3. ^ab"NPNF210. Ambrose: Selected Works and Letters – Christian Classics Ethereal Library".Ccel.org. 2005-06-01.Retrieved2009-01-21.
  4. ^"Our Patroness: St. Agnes the Martyr".St. Agnes Parish.Retrieved2024-04-12.
  5. ^abc"St. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr".St. Agnes Cathedral. Archived fromthe originalon 2015-01-21.Retrieved2013-04-24.
  6. ^ab"Duffy, Patrick." Jan 21 – St Agnes (d. 305) martyr ",Catholic Ireland,21 January 2012 ".
  7. ^"Our Patroness: St. Agnes the Martyr".St. Agnes Parish.Retrieved2024-04-12.
  8. ^"St. Agnes of Rome".Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese.
  9. ^"Saint Agnes of Rome, Virgin and Martyr".Learn Religions.Retrieved31 January2020.
  10. ^"Monks of Ramsgate." Agnes ".Book of Saints,1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 12 May 2012 ".
  11. ^ab""St. Agnes",Faith ND,University of Notre Dame ".
  12. ^""Virginmartyr Agnes of Rome", Orthodox Church in America ".
  13. ^"The Calendar".The Church of England.Retrieved2021-03-27.
  14. ^"For All the Saints / For All the Saints - A Resource for the Commemorations of the Calendar / Worship Resources/ Karakia/ ANZPB-HKMOA / Resources / Home - Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia".www.anglican.org.nz.Retrieved2021-03-27.
  15. ^"Agnes and Cecilia of Rome".The Episcopal Church.Retrieved2022-07-19.
  16. ^admin (2024-01-17)."Saint Agnes of Rome".Understanding Faith.Retrieved2024-04-14.
  17. ^One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Agnes, Saint".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 377.
  18. ^"CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Agnes of Rome".
  19. ^"Why is St. Agnes depicted with a lamb?".Aleteia — Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture.2023-01-20.Retrieved2024-04-12.
  20. ^"Why is St. Agnes depicted with a lamb?".Aleteia — Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture.2023-01-20.Retrieved2024-04-12.
  21. ^"St Agnes, Little Lamb of the Lord".Missionaries of Divine Revelation.2015-08-07.Retrieved2024-04-12.
  22. ^"Pope modifies and enriches Pallium Investiture Ceremony".Vatican Radio.January 29, 2015.RetrievedJanuary 29,2015.
  23. ^"Pope Francis celebrates Saint Agnes with blessing of lambs".
  24. ^"Blessing of lambs a 500 year old tradition, priest reveals".
  25. ^""History", St. Agnes Cathedral ".Archived fromthe originalon 2018-09-13.Retrieved2019-01-29.
  26. ^"Church of St Agnes,English Heritage National Monuments ".
  27. ^Pacenti, John (2023-06-19)."St. Agnes pastor to critics:" We are building to leave a legacy ".Key Biscayne Independent.Retrieved2024-04-12.
  28. ^"The non-dramatic works of Hrosvitha: Text, translation, and commentary".1936.
  29. ^Librivox."LibriVox".librivox.org.Retrieved2018-03-16.
  30. ^"St. Agnes Library".

Further reading

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