Presbyters Uniwersytet Warszawski
ID
ER 2108
Presbyter Paulinus, later bishop of Nola, writes to Presbyter Sulpicius Severus from Primuliacum (Gaul). Paulinus describes the edifices built by Sulpicius in Primuliacum: two basilicas and a baptistry. Paulinus of Nola, Letter 32, AD 403/404.
Letter 32 to Sulpicius Severus
 
1. Perquam enim gratulor, quod unam cordis et corporis nostri, operum quoque et uotorum similitudinem ostenderimus, eodem tempore basilicas dominicis adicientes ouilibus. Tu uero eodem baptisterium basilicis duabus interpositum condidisti, ut nos in horum quoque operum, quae uisibiliter extruuntur, aedificatione superares.
 
Afterwards, Paulinus rebukes Sulpicius for hanging his portrait in the baptistry alongside the one depicting Martin of Tours, since Paulinus is unworthy of such company. After some consideration, he concludes that, on the other hand, the image of sinful Paulinus will put Martin's portrait in an even better light. Paulinus also sends the poems that Sulpicius requested from him to embellish the walls of his edifices. The dedication of the baptistry should contain the following verse:
 
5. Inde parens sacro ducit de fonte sacerdos
Infantes niueos corpore corde habitu.
  
(ed. de Hartel 1894: 275-280)
Letter 32 to Sulpicius Severus
 
1. I am higly delighted that we have together exhibited the one appearance of heart and body, and of works and dedications as well, by simultaneously bestowing basilicas on the Lord's folds. But you have also constructed a baptistry between your two basilicas, so that you surpassed me in the erection of visible buildings as well as in invisible works.
 
Afterwards, Paulinus rebukes Sulpicius for hanging his portrait in the baptistry alongside the one depicting Martin of Tours, since Paulinus is unworthy of such company. After some consideration, he concludes that, on the other hand, the image of sinful Paulinus will put Martin's portrait in an even better light. Paulinus also sends the poems that Sulpicius requested from him to embellish the walls of his edifices. The dedication of the baptistry should contain the following verse:
 
5. From it the priest our father raises from the consecrated water children snowwhite in body, heart and dress.
 
(trans. Walsh 1966: 2.134; summarised by J. Szafranowski)

Discussion:

This letter was written shortly before the second of Sulpicius' basilicas was dedicated, thus in 403 or, even more probably, in 404.
 
Primuliacum was one of Sulpicius' estates that he did not sell when he was rejecting his wealth [2095]. Its exact location was lost. Recently, Frank Riess (Riess 2013: 66-69) has, once again, proposed the identification of Primuliacum with Elusio, present-day Monferrand, which Paulinus mentions in his first letter to Sulpicius ([2055]). The hypothesis that it also served as the later site of Sulpicius’ monastery is strengthened by the recent excavations of two 4th- or 5th-century basilicas, positioned side by side, just as in Primuliacum.
 
What constitutes a major distinction between Sulpicius and Paulinus in terms of their construction efforts is that Nola was the seat of a bishop and Primuliacum was not. It is interesting, then, that Sulpicius built two basilicas and a baptistery in his villa-turned-monastery. Judging by the collection of relics Sulpicius strived to gather in Primuliacum, it looks as if he wanted to establish a pilgrimage centre of sorts. Baptisteries were quite often constructed at such places, as it was considered advantageous to baptize oneself in close proximity to holy relics. Cf. with a baptistery, later significantly enlarged, in the monastery of Abû Mînâ at the tomb of Saint Menas near Alexandria in Egypt (Grossman 1988: 283–4).
 
It seems then, since no bishop lived in proximity, that it was Sulpicius himself or one of his monastic companions who were to baptize at Primuliacum. The monastery itself was certainly not short of presbyters, see [1025] and [1002].

Place of event:

Region
  • Italy south of Rome and Sicily
  • Gaul
City
  • Nola
  • Primuliacum

About the source:

Author: Paulinus of Nola
Title: Letters, Epistulae
Origin: Nola (Italy south of Rome and Sicily)
Denomination: Catholic/Nicene/Chalcedonian
Paulinus of Nola (Pontius Metropius Paulinus) was born into a very affluent family ca 335. Although most of his estates were located near Bordeaux in Gaul, he was appointed the governor of Campania in his early twenties. He then returned to Gaul. In 389, after being baptized, Paulinus and his wife moved to Spain. They both started to follow a semi-monastic way of life. Following the death of his newborn son, Paulinus was ordered a presbyter at Christmas 394. In 395, Paulinus established a monastery in Nola in Campania. He served as a bishop of that city from 409 till his death in 431. Paulinus corresponded with many principal Christian intellectuals of the era, including Sulpicius Severus, Jerome, Ambrose of Milan, and Augustine of Hippo. Of this rich epistolographic corpus, however, only fifty-one letters survived. For the list of all letters Paulinus sent as a presbyter, and their addressees, see [2059].
Edition:
G. de Hartel ed., S. Pontii Meropii Paulini Nolani opera, vol. 1 Epistulae, Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum 29, Prague-Wien-Leipzig 1894.
 
Translation:
Letters of St. Paulinus of Nola, trans. P.G. Walsh, Ancient Christian Writers 35, New York 1966.
Bibliography:
F. Riess, Narbonne and its Territory in Late Antiquity. From the Visigoths to the Arabs, Farnham-Burlington, VT 2013.
P. Grossmann, The Pilgrimage Center of Abû Mînâ, in: D. Frankfurter, ed., Pilgrimage & Holy Space in Late Antique Egypt, Leiden 1988.
F. Trzeciak, Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity E05104 (http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E05104).

Categories:

Writing activity - Correspondence
Functions within the Church - Monastic presbyter
Ritual activity - Baptism and instructing catechumens
Ecclesiastical administration - Construction/Renovation
Economic status and activity - Indication of wealth
Relation with - Another presbyter
Functions within the Church - Presbyter in a lay foundation
Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL: J. Szafranowski, Presbyters in the Late Antique West, ER2108, http://www.presbytersproject.ihuw.pl/index.php?id=6&SourceID=2108