Marcellinus of Carthage was a Christian
martyr and
saint
In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...
who died in 413. He was
secretary of state of the
Western Roman Empire under
Roman emperor Honorius and a close friend of
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...
, as well as a correspondent of
Saint Jerome's. Saint Augustine dedicated the first books of his landmark ''
The City of God'' to Marcellinus in 413.
Life
Flavius Marcellinus was born in
Toledo
Toledo most commonly refers to:
* Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain
* Province of Toledo, Spain
* Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States
Toledo may also refer to:
Places Belize
* Toledo District
* Toledo Settlement
Bolivia
* Toledo, Orur ...
in
Spain, and had a brother, Apringius. He came to hold the rank of ''tribunus et notarius'' under Emperor Honorius.
He was described as "a cultured, generous aristocrat, interested in theology".
His interest in religious questions, brought about close and friendly relations between him and St. Augustine, who wrote him several letters, and dedicated various books to him ("''De peccatorum meritis et remissione''", "''De baptismo parvulorum''", and the first three books of "''
De Civitate Dei''").
also wrote him.
[Kirsch, Johann Peter. "Flavius Marcellinus."]
''The Catholic Encyclopedia'' Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 28 Dec. 2015 He was married to
Anapsychia.
Donatist controversy
In Africa, the dispute between the
Donatists
Donatism was a Christian sect leading to a schism in the Church, in the region of the Church of Carthage, from the fourth to the sixth centuries. Donatists argued that Christian clergy must be faultless for their ministry to be effective and th ...
and orthodox Christians was not only doctrinal but also involved regional and social tensions:
Numidia
Numidia ( Berber: ''Inumiden''; 202–40 BC) was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians located in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up modern-day Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunis ...
against proconsular Africa, and proletarians against Roman landowners.
["St. Marcellino"]
Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo di Milano In 405 an imperial decree declared the Donatists heretics and prescribed confiscation of their property. The fall of
Stilicho in 408, led them to hope for a change in imperial policy; however, in 410 Marcellinus was given instructions to "abolish the new superstition".
[ The orthodox bishops hoped the Donatists would be more susceptible to reasoned debate and petitioned the emperor to call a conference.
Marcellinus was sent to Africa in 411, charged with presiding over the Council of Carthage in early June of that year. In his summons to the parties, Marcellinus made no secret of the emperor's position. Bishops representing each side of the controversy debated the issue. Marcellinus, as the emperor's representative, ruled that the Donatists were heretics and that they had to give up their churches and return to churches under the control of orthodox bishops and priests. According to John T. Noonan, the Donatists alleged that Marcellinus had been bribed as that was a stronger argument than that he was merely enforcing imperial policy.][Noonan, John Thoma]
''Bribes''
University of California Press, 1987,
The judgment was enforced by the Roman army
The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval continu ...
with great severity. So bloody was the persecution of the Donatists that Augustine, who had been one of the leaders in condemning Donatism as a heresy, protested at their treatment.
Subsequently, some of the Donatists engaged in sporadic violence against orthodox priests. Marcellinus presided at the trials of those arrested. Augustine appealed for clemency both to Marcellinus and Marcellinus's brother Apringius, who was proconsul for Africa. Noonan views the fact that Augustine and Marcellinus remained close friends as suggesting that the bishop's petition was granted.[
]
Death
In 413, the Donatists accused Marcellinus and Apringius of involvement in the rebellion of Heraclianus. General Marinus, who had quashed the rebellion and who had Donatist sympathies, arrested the brothers and put them in prison. Even with Saint Augustine intervening on their behalf with Caecilian, the presiding judge of their case, the two brothers were executed, on September 13. The following year, Marcellinus was exonerated by Emperor Honorius.[
]
Veneration
Marcellinus was subsequently listed in the Roman Martyrology.[
Saint Marcellinus has a statue adorning the spire atop the south transept of the Duomo di Milano,][ and a statue on the southern half of Bernini's colonnade in ]Saint Peter's Square
Saint Peter's Square ( la, Forum Sancti Petri, it, Piazza San Pietro ,) is a large plaza located directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the papal enclave inside Rome, directly west of the neighborhood (rione) of Borgo. Bot ...
, Vatican City.Colonnade Statue in St Peter's Square
/ref>
References
Sources
* Brown, Peter. ''Augustine of Hippo: a Biography'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000). See particularly the chapters 25–28 for Marcellinus' role in the Donatist controversy and his juridical murder after Heraclion's attempted coup.
External links
Bargellini, Piero. "San Marcellino", Santi e beati
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marcellinus Of Carthage
4th-century births
413 deaths
Saints from Roman Africa (province)
5th-century Christian saints
5th-century Christian martyrs