:''for other people called Sabinus, see Sabinus (disambiguation)'' Saint Sabinus of Canosa ( it, San Sabino) (461 – 9 February 566), venerated as a saint in the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

church, was bishop of Canosa di Puglia from 514.

Life

He was sent twice as a papal envoy to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

, in 525, by

Pope John I Pope John I ( la, Ioannes I; died 18 May 526) was the bishop of Rome from 13 August 523 to his death. He was a native of Siena (or the "Castello di Serena", near Chiusdino), in Italy. He was sent on a diplomatic mission to Constantinople by the ...

and in 536 to accompany Pope Agapitus I, who lost his life on the journey, to defend the true faith against the Monophysite heresy. He attended the

Council of Constantinople (536) The Council of Constantinople was a conference of the endemic synod held in Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, in May–June 536. It confirmed the deposition of the Patriarch Anthimus I of Constantinople and condemned three pro ...

. In 531, in the papacy of

Pope Boniface II Pope Boniface II ( la, Bonifatius II; died 17 October 532) was the first Germanic bishop of Rome. He ruled the Holy See from 22 September 530 until his death on 17 October 532. Boniface's father's name was Sigibuld. He was probably born in Ro ...

, he took part in the Synod of Rome. He was a builder of churches and other religious buildings, according to the

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

discipline of ''

Ora et labora The phrase pray and work (or 'pray and labor'; Latin: ''ora et labora'') refers to the Catholic monastic practice of working and praying, generally associated with its use in the Rule of Saint Benedict. History "Ora et labora" (pray and work ...

'' ("Work and pray"). He died after 52 years as bishop, on 9 February 566.

Cult

Sabinus was a friend of

Saint Benedict Benedict of Nursia ( la, Benedictus Nursiae; it, Benedetto da Norcia; 2 March AD 480 – 21 March AD 548) was an Italian Christian monk, writer, and theologian who is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Orient ...

, whom he visited at Montecassino and to whom, as recorded by

Gregory the Great Pope Gregory I ( la, Gregorius I; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was the bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 to his death. He is known for instigating the first recorded large-scale mission from Rome, the Gregoria ...

, he once expressed his preoccupations on the incursions of the Ostrogoth King

Totila Totila, original name Baduila (died 1 July 552), was the penultimate King of the Ostrogoths, reigning from 541 to 552 AD. A skilled military and political leader, Totila reversed the tide of the Gothic War, recovering by 543 almost all the t ...

into the Italian peninsula. According to the hagiographic legend, he succeeded in saving

Canosa di Puglia Canosa di Puglia, generally known simply as Canosa ( nap, label= Canosino, Canaus), is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani, Apulia, southern Italy. It is located between Bari and Foggia, on the northwestern edge of the ...

from the threat of the latter. There is a story that in 548 Totila wanted to test the prophetic gifts of Sabinus, who was by then old and blind. The king, pretending to be a servant, offered him a goblet of wine, but Sabinus was not deceived and thanked him by name, which impressed Totila so much that he renounced his pillaging. Another legend of Sabinus relates that a jealous archdeacon tried to poison him. Sabinus drank the poison but did not die; but the archdeacon did. For this reason he appeared in the liturgy as a protector against poisons. His relics were translated to the present

Canosa Cathedral Canosa di Puglia, generally known simply as Canosa ( nap, label= Canosino, Canaus), is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani, Apulia, southern Italy. It is located between Bari and Foggia, on the northwestern edge of the ...

on 1 August in an unknown year of the 8th century by bishop Pietro. After the destruction of the town by the Saracens, the relics were rescued from the ruins by

Saint Angelarius Saint Angelar (died probably soon after 885 AD) was a medieval Bulgarian saint and Slavic enlightener. He was one of the most prominent disciples of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Along with them and Saint Gorazd, Saint Clement of Ohrid, Naum of Pre ...

in 844 and taken to

Bari Cathedral Bari Cathedral, or Cathedral of Saint Sabinus, ( it, Duomo di Bari or ''Cattedrale di San Sabino'') is the cathedral of Bari, in Apulia, southern Italy. The cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Bari-Bitonto, as it was previously of the a ...

. Saint Sabinus is venerated in Canosa and Bari, in both of which places the cathedrals are dedicated to him, in

Torremaggiore Torremaggiore is a town, '' comune'' (municipality) and former seat of a bishopric, in the province of Foggia in the Apulia (in Italian: ''Puglia''), region of southeast Italy. It lies on a hill, over the sea, and is famous for production of w ...

and

Furci Furci is a '' comune'' and town in the Province of Chieti in the Abruzzo , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1 ...

. The only church in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

dedicated to him is the

Church of St Sabinus The Church of St Sabinus is the Church of England parish church for in Woolacombe, Devon. It is the only church in the United Kingdom that is dedicated to St Sabinus of Canosa and has been a Grade II* listed building since 1985.Jean Dodds and ...

Woolacombe Woolacombe is a seaside resort on the coast of North Devon, England, which lies at the mouth of a valley (or "combe") in the parish of Mortehoe. The beach is long, sandy, gently sloping and faces the Atlantic Ocean near the western limit of th ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

Feast days

, 9 February: death of Saint Sabinus *

, the first Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday in June: Festa Patronale *Canosa di Puglia, 31 July to 2 August: Festa Patronale

References

*Gerardo A. Chiancone - ''La Cattedrale e il Mausoleo di Boemondo a Canosa'' (tip. D. Guglielmi, Andria, 1983; pag. 54) *Attilio Paulicelli - ''San Sabino nella storia di Canosa'' (tip. San Paolo, Bari, 1967) *''La tradizione barese di s. Sabino di Canosa''. A cura di Salvatore Palese. Bari, Edipuglia, 2001. Contiene i seguenti studi: *Ada Campione, ''Sabino di Canosa tra storia e leggenda'', p. 23-46 *Pasquale Corsi, ''Canosa e Bari nelle modificazioni ecclesiastiche dei Bizantini'', p. 47-56 *Gioia Bertelli, ''Le reliquie di s. Sabino da Canosa a Bari: tra tradizione e archeologia'', p. 57-78 *Gerardo Cioffari o. p., ''Le origini del culto di s. Sabino a Bari'', p. 79-98 *Nicola Bux, ''La liturgia barese di s. Sabino'', p. 99-106 *Anna Maria Tripputi, ''La devozione barese a s. Sabino in età moderna e contemporanea'', p. 107-114 *Francesco Quarto - ''Un isolato omaggio tra devozione ed erudizione. La vita di S. Sabino del canonico Giuseppe Di Cagno'', p. 115-170. *''La Historia di S. Sabino di Antonio Beatillo (1629)''. A cura di Francesco Quarto. In Nicolaus Studi Storici, XVII, 2006, p. 97-160.

External links

Santi E Beati: San Sabino di Canosa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sabinus Of Canosa Italian saints Bishops in Apulia People from Canosa di Puglia 461 births 566 deaths