Legends of Saints

"Jutta of Sangerhausen. A ‘new saint’ in the wake of Elizabeth of Thuringia?

Jutta of Sangerhausen (Thuringia/Germany) is a less known representative of the religious movements of the 13th Century Western Europe, a lay woman who spent the last four years of her life as anchoress in the neighborhood of the town Kulm in Prussia (today: Poland) and probably died in 1260. There is no reference to her neither in HERBERT GRUNDMANN’s standard work about the “Religious movements in the Middle Ages” (Berlin 1935/Darmstadt 1977) nor in the books written by KURT RUH and BERNARD MCGINN about the history of mysticism in Western Europe (see Geschichte der abendländischen Mystik, Vol. 2, München 1993 and The Flowering of Mysticism, New York 1998). Not even ANNEKE B. MULDER-BAKKER mentioned Jutta in her recent publication about the “Lives of the anchoresses” (Philadelphia 2005). The reason for this ignorance may be the lack of a modern edition of the sources about Jutta. Now, that a new edition appeared last year (ed. by PETER GERLINGHOFF, Sangerhausen 2006) we finally have the opportunity to situate Jutta in her historical context. Some scholars are of the opinion that Jutta modelled herself on the Hungarian princess and Thuringian countess Elizabeth, a contemporary and compatriot of Jutta who died in 1231 and was canonized as early as 1235. The purpose of this paper is to prove the validity of this claim. My methodological procedure will be a textcritical one. Such an approach is inevitable because all the sources came from the 16th and 17th century. The question is: Couldn’t have been Jutta a ‘new Elizabeth’ before the 17th century? Or do we have to do with a ‘falsification’? In other and less provocative words: Is Jutta a ‘sainte construite’?"

Although venerated throughout the Christian West, St Roch has nevertheless remained a mysterious personage.  Beginning in the second half of the fifteenth century the cult of the holy pilgrim, protector against the plague, spread from Lombardy to Venice and from Venice German merchants took it to Nuremberg and southern Germany, from where it swiftly spread to the rest of Europe.  But who was in fact St Roch and what were the causes which led to his cult becoming so deeply rooted with such speed so that traces of it can be seen everywhere including representations of him in works of art ?
It was to answer these questions that Belgian, French, Italian and German scholars met at Padua in February 2004.  Their exchange of views led to the abandonment of opinions previously considered certainties.  The joint examination of hagiographic, literary, iconographic and documentary sources as well as the discovery of new texts all gave rise to the problematical image of a new saint who appeared in the wake of a new illness – the plague.  It was the result of a process of hagiographic elaboration but not as such a product of pure imagination.  It was the invention of printing which led to the rapid progression of the cult by the laity of this lay saint, both at its origins and in its elaboration.

Throughout the nineteenth century, Maskilic journals increased their publication of anti-Hasidic satires. From the eighteen-sixties onward, this literature came primarily as a response to the revival in the publishing of Hasidic hagiography and to the spread of Hasidism into new territory. To this point, no complete review or even general survey has been performed on this extensive polemical literature, despite the fact that it has much to teach us about Hasidism and the Haskalah in those years. We are not speaking of an insignificant bibliographical lacuna, but of a disregard for an entire field of research which would shed light not only on a forgotten chapter of modern Hebrew and Yiddish literature but also on an important chapter in the relationships between Maskilim and Hasidim in that period and the genesis and development of the different streams of Hasidism. This Maskilic literature intended to do more than eradicate Hasidism; it aimed to strengthen the self-consciousness of the individual Maskilim who found themselves alone in Hasidic territory. Paradoxically, the literature documented the very movement it intended to eradicate from the world. The distorted reflection displayed in the anti-Hasidic literature does more than present a caricature of its subject -- it conceals hitherto unknown elements about the nature and development of the Hasidic movement. The present article deals with one such case, a satire on Bratslav Hasidism from 1863, which has at its core a Maskilic satirical text written by Yehiel Meller on pilgrimage to the grave of R. Nahman of Bratslav in Uman.





כתבי עת של משכילים לאורך המאה התשע עשרה הרבו לפרסם סאטירות בגנותה של החסידות. משנות הששים ואילך באה ספרות זו בעיקר כתגובה להתעוררות הדפסת ספרות השבחים החסידית ולהתפשטות החסידות במרחבים חדשים. לא קיימת עד עתה סקירה שלימה, ואף לא מיפוי כללי, של אותה ספרות פולמוסית ענפה, על אף שיש בה ללמד הרבה על דרכי החסידות וההשכלה באותן שנים.  לא מדובר רק בחסרון ביבליוגרפי שאין לו משמעות, אלא בהתעלמות משדה מחקר רב עניין שעשוי להאיר לא רק על פרק נשכח בספרות עברית ויידיש החדשה אלא גם על פרק חשוב ביחסים בין משכילים לחסידים באותה תקופה, ועל דרכי צמיחתם, פיצולם והתפתחותם של זרמים שונים בחסידות. הייתה זו ספרות שיותר מאשר נועדה לבער את החסידות נועדה לחזק את תודעתם העצמית של המשכילים הבודדים במרחבים החסידיים; ספרות שבאופן פרדוקסלי תיעדה תנועה אותה חפצו לבער מן העולם. הבבואה המעוותת בה התהדרה הסאטירה האנטי חסידית לא רק הציגה דימוי – אלא טומנת בחובה הצבעה על אלמנטים חדשים ועל התפתחויות בחסידות. במקרה אחד ממין זה הנוגע לחסידות ברסלב בשנות השישים של המאה התשע עשרה עוסק המאמר. שלפנינו - שעיקרו מהדורה של טקסט משכילי שכתב יחיאל מלר - בשנת 1863 - על העלייה לקבר ר' נחמן מברסלב באומן
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With an appendix by Rian Thum and David Brophy.

The story of the Sufi saint Khwaja Muhammad Sharif is one of the best-loved hagiographies from East Turkistan (present-day Xinjiang, China), where the saint’s shrine remains a place of pilgrimage and devotion to this day. The Khwaja’s narrative recounts his adventures as he travels from Central Asia to Hindustan, Mecca, and back again, guided by saintly spirits and working miracles at every turn. He saves Muslims from shipwreck, gains powerful disciples, wages holy war, and ends his days as a beloved Sufi master. Jeff Eden’s introduction and notes offer insights into the text and its interpretation, and his translation marks the first time that a complete East Turkistani hagiography has been made available to readers in English. The appendix, by Rian Thum and David Brophy, reveals the intricate liaison between Muhammad Sharif’s shrine complex, its elite patrons, and the present hagiography. A classic of its genre, the Life of Muhammad Sharif provides both an accessible introduction to Central Asian Sufi literature and a compelling mystical allegory on the attainment of spiritual perfection.

One of the more astounding books produced by Bratslav Hasidism is Liqquṭei tefilot (1822–1827), composed by R. Nathan Sternhartz of Nemirov, which established a whole new genre in Bratslav literature. This article discusses the book's genesis, publication, and primary goals, as well as the controversy it generated. The new Bratslav theology that emerged after the death of Rabbi Naḥman led to disputes, both internal and external, over the role and character of R. Nathan. Examining this particularly obscure chapter in the early history of Bratslav Hasidism sheds light on the movement as it exists today in all its diversity, both ideological and social. Keywords Bratslav Hasidism – Hasidism – Jewish mysticism – Kabbalah

Full Article
http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/10.1163/1477285x-12341269;jsessionid=1n5j66dblsols.x-brill-live-03

[1. ENG. > 2. ITA.]

1. ENG.
John of Nepomuk, canonised by the Church in 1729, in the popular consciusness replaced Saints Christopher, Nicholas and Zeno as protector from the dangers posed by water and traveling, especially in the areas of Central Europe under Hapsburg rule. Venerated in as far back as the 17th century, after his canonisation his following grew significantly. This was furthered also by the dissemination in the late 17th century of books that told the story of his life and the miracles allegedly due to his intercession. In Trentino too, in the course of a century tormented by many floods, murals and wooden and stone statues were to protect houses, as well as churches and votive chapels dedicated to him in particular.              .

2. ITA.
Giovanni Nepomuceno, dichiarato santo dalla chiesa nel 1729, sostituì nella coscienza popolare specie nei territori dell’Europa centrale soggetti al controllo degli Asburgo il ruolo di protettore dai pericoli delle acque e dei viaggi che in precedenza era stato svolto dai santi Cristoforo, Nicola e Zeno. Venerato già dalla fine del Seicento dopo la sua canonizzazione e grazie alla diffusione di libri che raccontavano sia la sua vita che i miracoli che si ritenevano dovuti alla sua intercessione crebbe di molto la devozione nei suoi confronti. Anche in Trentino nel corso di un secolo tormentato da molti eventi alluvionali vennero fatti realizzare dipinti murali e statue in legno a protezioni di abitazioni, oltre che chiese, cappelle votive a lui particolarmente dedicate e belle statue lapidee.

RESUMEN: Teniendo en cuenta la acción misericordiosa de Dios en los hombres y la respuesta de éstos a Dios, se pasa revista tanto al don de la conversión (fruto de la misericordia divina) como a las obras de misericordia impulsadas por esa misma conversión. Mencionando a varios conversos famosos, son recordados desde una visión cronológica otros más desconocidos, destacando algunos testimonios recientes y ciertos casos especiales de acción misericordiosa de Dios.  PALABRAS CLAVE: Conversión, misericordia, obras de misericordia, caridad.
ABSTRACT: Using as a point of departure the merciful action of God toward human persons and their response to God, this article examines both the gift of conversión (as a fruit of divine mercy) and the works of mercy undertaken as a result of this conversion. A number of famous converts are mentioned, with emphasis on recent testimonies and certain special instances of the merciful action of God. KEY WORDS: Conversión, mercy, works of mercy, charity.

Jewish mysticism has many forms. In his epochal Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism, Gershom Scholem however defined Luranic Kabbalah, Sabbatianism, and Hasidim as three different stages in the same process of mystical articulation. In his wake, various scholars of Jewish Thought have since pursued the interrelationship of the two latter ones: Wherein lie the possible origins and sources of the Hasidic movement within the Sabbatean movement? How and which respect can the formation of the Hasidic movement be understood as a (critical) response to the Sabbatean and Frankist movements? And what role played the Baal Shem Tov, the paradigmatic figure and founder of Hasidism, and his circle in this regard?
The aim of this workshop is to shed light on these questions by an attempted close reading of a central and foundational source of Hasidism, the Shivhei ha-BeSHT (In Praise of the Baal Shem Tov).

The workshop will be held by Prof. Dr. Jonatan Meir of the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Prof. Meir is currently associate professor at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. His
research interests include the History of the Jews in Eastern Europe, Jewish Polemics, Jewish Mysticism, the Haskalah Movement, Hasidism, and Contemporary Kabbalah. Among his most recent publications are: Rehovot ha-Nahar: Kabbalah and Exotericism in Jerusalem (1896-1948), Jerusalem, 2011; Michael Levi Rodkinson and Hasidism, Tel Aviv, 2012; Imagined Hasidism: The Anti-Hasidic Writings of Joseph Perl, Jerusalem, 2013.

On the basis of exempla and legends from the 14th and 15th centuries in the Netherlands confronted with literary texts from earlier centuries earlier, the author studied representations of the anthropomorphic devil in medieval Dutch literature.
The humanisation of the devil was the next stage in the process of explaining evil. The devil, who was originally perceived as an abstract, became part of reality, was blended into the community by assuming a corporeal form. From being a distant and incomprehensible concept, evil became close and familiar. It ceased to be just an idea and changed into a character belonging to the real world.

People have been in an important relationship with cosmic elements since the early days
of history, that is, sky, stars, planets, and objects that they dreamed and/or dreamed of in the
sky before they moved to the modern age and the life-cycle of urbanization. However, the
incredible change and development of urbanization, industry, and technology has detached man
from nature and therefore sky. Although humanity has sent a vehicle to many planets as a result
of scientific research about space and acquired important information about space, this is not
the case for ordinary people.
This rupture caused the knowledge of the sky to begin to be forgotten in social memory
as well as information about nature. The industrial revolution, technical and technological
developments and the change of the means of production have reduced the need of people for
the sky. Therefore, these developments gradually disrupted the relationship of people with the
sky. In the past, many cultural elements that require celestial interest and the need for these
elements have been replaced by less, limited knowledge and insensitivity to the sky.
In Turkish culture, great attention has been given to the sky, which is seen as the roof
of the world before Islam, which is the main subject or place of many mythical stories about all
the elements of which shamans travel, and in the Islamic period as a manifestation of the power
of the creator. This importance and interest, as in the oral culture, has found a place in the
written culture. Especially in hagiography which is written to address all sections of the society,
great respect and importance to the sky are constantly told. This information in literary and
historical works is important to monitor the changes that society has undergone from past to
present and to determine the cause of these changes.
In this study, the elements related to the sky in the work of Ahmed Eflâkî's Menâkıbülârifîn were examined. The celestial bodies such as the pleiades, saturn, mercury, jupiter, nine
felek, nesr, ferkâdan, spica/arcturus, canopus, anthem determined from the texts were taken
together with the backgrounds in Turkish culture.
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İnsanlar, modern çağa ve şehirleşmenin beraberinde getirdiği yoğun hayat temposuna geçmeden önce, tarihin ilk devirlerinden beri kozmik unsurlar ile yani gökyüzü, yıldızlar, gezegenler ve gökyüzünde gördükleri ve/ya hayal ettikleri nesnelerle önemli bir ilişki halindeydiler. Ancak şehirleşme, endüstri ve teknolojinin akıl almaz değişimi ve gelişimi, insanı tabiattan ve dolayısıyla gökyüzünden koparmıştır. Bu kopuş, tabiata dair bilgilerin yanı sıra gökle ilgili bilgilerin de toplumsal bellekte unutulmaya başlamasına neden olmuştur. Sanayi devrimi, teknik ve teknolojik gelişmeler ve üretim araçlarının değişmesi, insanların gökyüzüne olan ihtiyacını azaltmış ve gökle olan ilişkisini tedrici olarak sekteye uğratmıştır. Bu yüzden mitlerden, destanlara, toplumsal hayattaki tarım ve hayvancılık faaliyetlerinden dinî ibadet ve ritüellere, mevsimlerden törenlere kadar göksel ilgiyi gerektiren birçok kültürel öğe ve bu öğelere ihtiyaç duyma durumu, yerini zamanla daha az, sınırlı bir bilgiye ve gökyüzüne karşı duyarsızlığa bırakmıştır. Türk kültüründe, İslamiyet'ten önce dünyanın çatısı olarak görülen, kam/şamanların yolculuklar yaptığı, bütün unsurlarıyla ilgili birçok mitsel hikâyenin ana konusu veya mekânı olan ve İslamî dönemde ise yaratıcının kudretinin bir tecellisi olarak görülen gökyüzüne büyük bir önem atfedilmiştir. Bu önem ve ilgi, kendisine sözlü kültürde olduğu gibi yazılı kültür ortamında da yer bulmuştur. Özellikle menakıpnameler gibi toplumun bütün kesimlerine hitap etmek adına kaleme alınan eserlerde, göğe duyulan büyük saygı ve önem defaatle zikredilmiştir. Edebî ve tarihî eserlerde yer alan bu bilgiler, toplumun geçmişten günümüze geçirdiği değişimleri izlemek ve bu değişimlerin sebebini tespit etmek adına önemlidir. Bu çalışmada Ahmed Eflâkî'nin Menâkıb'ül-ârifîn adlı eserinde yer alan gök ile ilgili unsurlar incelenmiştir. Menkıbelerden tespit edilen süreyya (ülker), zühal (satürn) ve utarit (merkür), müşteri, dokuz felek, nesr yıldızı, kırân devri, simâk yıldızı, ferkadan yıldızı, süheyl, merih (mars) gibi gök cisimleri ve yıldızların uğur-uğursuzluğu hususları, Türk kültüründeki
arka planları ile beraber ele alınmıştır.

A dragon is a large, serpentine legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures around the world. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as winged, horned, four-legged, and capable of breathing fire. Dragons in eastern cultures are usually depicted as wingless, four-legged, serpentine creatures with above-average intelligence.

The earliest attested reports of draconic creatures resemble giant snakes. Draconic creatures are first described in the mythologies of the ancient Near East and appear in ancient Mesopotamian art and literature. Stories about storm-gods slaying giant serpents occur throughout nearly all Indo-European and Near Eastern mythologies. Famous prototypical draconic creatures include the mušḫuššu of ancient Mesopotamia; Apep in Egyptian mythology; Vṛtra in the Rigveda; the Leviathan in the Hebrew Bible; Grand'Goule in the Poitou region in France, Python, Ladon, Wyvern, and the Lernaean Hydra in Greek mythology; Jörmungandr, Níðhöggr, and Fafnir in Norse mythology; and the dragon from Beowulf.

The popular western image of a dragon is based on a conflation of earlier dragons from different traditions, and of inaccurate scribal drawings of snakes. In western cultures, dragons are portrayed as monsters to be tamed or overcome, usually by saints or culture heroes, as in the popular legend of Saint George and the Dragon. They are often said to have ravenous appetites and to live in caves, where they hoard treasure. These dragons appear frequently in western fantasy literature, including The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling, and A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin.

The word "dragon" has also come to be applied to the Chinese lung, which are associated with good fortune and are thought to have power over rain. Dragons and their associations with rain are the source of the Chinese customs of dragon dancing and dragon boat racing. Many East Asian deities and demigods have dragons as their personal mounts or companions. Dragons were also identified with the Emperor of China, who, during later Chinese imperial history, was the only one permitted to have dragons on his house, clothing, or personal articles.

Commonalities between dragons' traits are often a hybridization of avian, feline, and reptilian features, and may include: snakelike features, reptilian scaly skin, four legs with three or four toes on each, spinal nodes running down the back, a tail, and a serrated jaw with rows of teeth. Several modern scholars believe huge extinct or migrating crocodiles bear the closest resemblance, especially when encountered in forested or swampy areas, and are most likely the template of modern dragon imagery. This also fits with the ancient words 'Draco' and 'Drakon', meaning 'large serpent' or 'sea serpent.'

In 1787, Grímur Thorkelin, the secretary of the Arnamagnæan Commission, gave the manuscript collector Thomas Astle two paper manuscripts and a parchment bifolium. After Astle’s death, these manuscripts found their way into the Stowe collection and are now kept in the British Library. The paper manuscripts contain transcriptions of texts found in a manuscript in the Arnamagnæan collection and were probably written by Thorkelin himself. The bifolium was, however, written in the fourteenth century. It contains a compilation of short stories about English bishops, mostly archbishops of Canterbury, preceded by a short prologue. For the compilation, the compiler has gathered and adapted material from sources that were already available in Old Norse-Icelandic translations, including Árni Lárentíusson’s Dunstanus saga. However, not all the texts in the compilation are known to exist elsewhere in Icelandic translation.

An examination shows that the bifolium was written by the same scribe who wrote parts of Reynistaðarbók in AM 764 4to, and a closer look reveals that the bifolium was once a part of that same manuscript. The last narrative on the bifolium tells the life of St Cuthbert, but its conclusion is now at the top of f. 36r in AM 764 4to. Furthermore, catalogues of the Arnamagnæan collection compiled in the first third of the seventeenth century show that tales about archbishops of Canterbury were included in AM 764 4to, but they are now missing. It thus appears that Thorkelin, who had easy access to Arnamagnæan manuscripts, removed the bifolium before journeying to England, causing its text to fall into oblivion for over two centuries.

In the article, the history of the bifolium is discussed, and the script and orthography of its scribe examined and compared to that of scribe E in AM 764 4to. The sources of the compilation’s texts are traced, and the compiler’s methods are analysed. Finally, a diplomatic edition of the texts of the compilation that is now split between the Stowe bifolium and AM 764 4to is presented.

Kult regensburškog sveca Wolfganga koji je živio i djelovao u 10. stoljeću, proširio se u mnoge zemlje srednje Europe, pa tako i u Hrvatsku, koja predstavlja najjužnije mjesto širenja. Budući da je bio regensburški biskup, najviše crkava i kapela posvećeno mu je na tom području. No, zbog legende koja se pojavila o boravku sveca u Austriji, danas se tamo nalazi mjesto koje je dobilo naziv po njemu te se razvio važan hodočasnički put, koji počinje u kripti sv. Wolfganga u Regensburgu, a završava u crkvi sv. Wolfganga u mjestu Sankt Wolfgang. Kult sveca prepoznat je i u drugim zemljama centralne Europe u kojima je svetac boravio ili su uz njegov boravak i djelovanje vezane brojne legende. Tako je njegov kult živ u Švicarskoj, gdje je Wolfgang bio redovnik u samostanu Einsiedelnu. U Mađarsku je otišao kao misionar, a njegov je utjecaj zatim nastavljen neposredno preko kraljice Gizele, supruge prvog mađarskog kralja Stjepana, kojoj je bio učitelj, a ujedno je i zaslužan za ostvarenje njihova braka. Svetac se kao regensburški biskup odrekao dijela svoje biskupije, kako bi se formirala biskupija u Pragu te tako i u Češkoj postoji aktivno sjećanje na njegov rad. U Sloveniju su kult vjerojatno donijeli teutonci, pripadnici Njemačkog viteškog reda. U Hrvatskoj je u Varaždinskoj županiji zabilježeno najjužnije europsko svetište sv. Wolfganaga (Vuka). Njegov se kult proširio ili utjecajem iz slovenskih prostora ili, pak, djelovanjem obitelji podbana Gjulaya, koji je nakon 1504. godine, odnosno nakom smrti Ivana Korvina, dobio posjede Trakošćana i Klenovnika. Naime, obitelj Gjulay dala je sagraditi kapelu sv. Wolfganga u Vukovoju. Cilj ovog rada je istražiti nastanak i razvoj kulta svetog Wolfganga te način na koji je kult stigao na područje sjeverne Hrvatske, kao i prikazati i analizirati ikonografiju sveca i ikonografske narative koji se temelje na njegovom životopisu i brojnim legendama.

[Résumé français ci-dessous]
Little known today outside Italy, S. Homebon (Omobono, Homobonus, v. 1117-1197) is an interesting and significant character. Married with children, this craftsman and cloth merchant from Cremona was the first non-aristocratic layman canonised by the Church during the Middle Ages. Having led the life of a successful merchant for a long time, Homebon decided to devote himself to charitable work, serving the poor of his city, whom he fed and lodged even in his own house.  He lived a life of penance, and his piety and fidelity to the Church meant he stand out in a city where there were many heretics. Miracles started occurring around his tomb immediately after his death and Bishop Sicard of Cremona persuaded Innocent III that Homebon should be canonised in 1199. During the 13th century, three Latin Lives were composed in his honour. In this book we provide a critical edition, accompanied by a translation and various textual and iconographic documents attesting to the evolution of his cult from the 13th century to the present day. Although his cult was of interest only locally for a long time, it extended to most of Christianity between the 15th and 17th centuries thanks to the tailors’ and clothmakers’ guilds who chose Homebon as their patron saint. With the abolition of guilds in the 19th century, devotion to him declined, though it survives in his hometown and, it seems, in some business circles.

Peu connu aujourd’hui hors d’Italie, S. Homebon (Omobono, Homobonus, v. 1117-1197) est un personnage intéressant et significatif.  Marié et père de famille, cet artisan et marchand drapier de Crémone fut en effet le premier laïc non noble dont la sainteté ait été reconnue par l’Église au cours du Moyen Âge.  Après avoir longtemps mené la vie d’un négociant prospère, il décida de se consacrer à la bienfaisance, en se plaçant au service des pauvres de sa cité qu’il nourrissait et hébergeait jusque dans sa maison. En même temps, il menait dans le monde une vie de pénitent et se distinguait par sa piété et sa fidélité à l’Église, dans une ville où les hérétiques étaient nombreux.  Dès le lendemain de sa mort, des miracles se produisirent autour de sa tombe et l’évêque Sicard de Crémone obtint d’Innocent III qu’il le canonise en 1199.  Au cours du XIIIe s., trois Vies latines furent composées en son honneur.  Nous en donnons dans le présent ouvrage une édition critique, accompagnée d’une traduction et de divers documents textuels et iconographiques qui attestent l’évolution de son culte du XIIIe s. à nos jours.  Demeuré longtemps local, ce dernier s’étendit à la plus grande partie de la chrétienté entre le XVe et le XVIIe s., grâce aux confréries de tailleurs et drapiers qui choisirent Homebon comme saint patron.  Avec la suppression des corporations au cours du XIXe s., la dévotion envers lui déclina, mais elle survit encore dans sa ville natale et, semble-t-il, dans certains milieux d’affaires.

Jacopo da Voragine in his latin collection "Legenda Aurae" (at the end of XIII. century) published one of St. Jerome's most famous legends. As a part of the zodiac tale theory developed in Hungary at the end of the last century Pap Gábor art historian (partly and earlier by Jankovics Marcell) discovered that in the folk tales based on the 12 zodiac signs or the 36 decans those cast often personalize the astrological planets /Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn/ [1,2]. Whilst the tale follows the sequence of the signs or the decans, the actors can deploy their basic planetary features depending on planetary dignity in the sign. In domicile dignity the actor can "achieve" him-or herself entirely (Gábor Pap prefers the exaltation), but in the worst-exileposition he or she is totally powerless. This principle we can follow in St. Jerome's legend too.

Auf  der  Frankfurter  Buchmesse  war  auch  von  dem  Eupener Selbstverleger  Fabrice  Müllender die Rede. Anlässlich  der Gemeinschaftspräsentation der  Klein-  und  Selbstverleger wurde  dessen  Titel  »De  scutis aenigmatis sancti Felicis« (Über  das  Rätsel  der  Wappen des heiligen Felix) vorgestellt.

L’exposé présentera et commentera une dizaine de miracles militaires survenus dans des combats entre Loire et Rhin, tels que décrits dans des sources latines de l’époque féodale (fin IXe-début XIIIe).  Ces exemples, significatifs et parfois pittoresques, donneront lieu à des réflexions sur leur contenu mais aussi sur l’élaboration littéraire du fait miraculeux et les conceptions des clercs à son égard.  Les circonstances et les acteurs de ces miracles de guerre apparaissent assez variés. Certains n’impliquent aucune épiphanie céleste voire se produisent sans la moindre invocation. Les anges ou les saints se montrent parfois sur le champ de bataille, mais ces apparitions se révèlent en fin de compte assez peu fréquentes. Le plus souvent les mentions de l’aide surnaturelle apparaissent vagues et générales.  Loin d’être extravagants, les miracles de guerre correspondent le plus souvent à des phénomènes somme toute plausibles qui reflètent les aléas de la guerre et le cours fluctuant des combats.  Dans le même temps, ces récits sont modelés par des canons littéraires et possèdent souvent une portée morale plus prononcée que leur visée historiographique.