- Venantius of Camerino
Infobox Saint
name= Saint Venantius of Camerino
birth_date=
death_date=~250 AD
feast_day=May 18
venerated_in=Roman Catholic Church
imagesize= 300px
caption= Venantius is hung upside-down over a fire, and then thrown to the lions. Wallmural from St. Venantius Church,Horgenzell .
birth_place=
death_place=
titles=
beatified_date=
beatified_place=
beatified_by=
canonized_date=
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attributes= young man crucified upside-down with smoke coming from his head; young man holding the citadel of Camerino; young man holding the city of Camerino, a palm, and a book; young man with a banner holding a city wall
patronage=Camerino
major_shrine=Camerino
suppressed_date=
issues=Saint Venantius ( _it. San Venanzio) of Camerino (d. ca. 250) is an Italian
saint , and the patron ofCamerino .Christian tradition holds that he was a seventeen-year old who was tortured and martyred by beheading at Camerino during the persecutions ofDecius . Martyred with him were the priest Porphyrius, Venantius' tutor; and Leontius, bishop of the city.His legend states that, before Venantius was killed, he was scourged, burned with flaming torches, hanged upside-down over a fire, had his teeth knocked out and his jaw broken, thrown to the
lion s, and tossed over a highcliff . His 11th century "Acts" state additionally that he managed to briefly escape from Camerino and hide out atRaiano , where a church was later dedicated to him. [http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/53900 ]Veneration
Venantius was buried outside the city walls of Camerino, where a
basilica was built in the fifth century, and later rebuilt many times in succeeding centuries. The cult of Venantius became popular: his image appeared oncoins and in litanies; springs near the basilica, which were associated with the saint, were used bylepers and people withulcers to cure their afflictions. Venantius subsequently replacedSaint Ansovinus as the city'spatron saint .In 1259, during the destruction and sacking of Camerino by the troops of
Manfred of Sicily , therelics of Venantius were transported to safety to theCastel dell'Ovo atNaples . They were restored to Camerino in 1269 by order ofPope Clement IV , an opponent of Manfred.In the 17th century,
Pope Clement X , who was a formerbishop of Camerino , further contributed to the spread of his cult: he raised the saint's feast to the level of a double rite and composedhymns for his Venantius' office. [http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0518.htm ]External links
* [http://www.catholicforum.com/saints/saintv0g.htm Catholic Forum: Venantius]
* [http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=722 Venantius]
* [http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0518.htm Saints of May 18: Venantius of Camerino]
*it icon [http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/53900 San Venanzio di Camerino]
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