Fidelis of Mérida

Fidelis was the Bishop of Mérida flourishing probably in the 550s and 560s.

Fidelis was a Greek who was hired out by his parents to a merchant venture to Spain in the mid sixth century, arriving in Mérida, where his mother's brother, Paul, was bishop. [Thompson, "The Goths in Spain", 22.] As it was customary of merchants to greet the bishop with gifts upon their arrival, it is not surprising that Paul discovered his nephew on one of these trading missions. [Collins, "Mérida and Toledo", in James, 202.]

Paul had amassed a large fortune which by law he was obligated to give to the diocese, but which he kept for himself. He consecrated Fidelis as his successors and forced the clergy to accept this by threatening to bequeath his wealth to others if Fidelis was not his successor. [Thompson, "The Goths in Spain", 44.] Fidelis was willed the private wealth and when public opposition tried to force him to abandon taking up his see, he threatened to remove his inherited wealth. He was consequently accepted as bishop.

With the immense wealth he had at his disposal and Mérida the richest diocese in Spain, Fidelis went about repairing the buildings of the city, restoring the collapsed episcopal palace — and decorating lavishly with marble — and reconstructing the basilica of Saint Eulalia with two added towers. [Collins, "Visigothic Spain", 213–214; Id, "Mérida and Toledo", 194.] The foundations of Fidelis' church are full preserved and have been uncovered by archaeologists today. [Collins, "Visigothic Spain", 213–214.]

Fidelise bequeathed all his inherited wealth to the church on his death, [Thompson, "The Goths in Spain", 44.] and he returned any unredeemed bonds to his debtors on his deathbed. [Collins, "Mérida and Toledo", 195.] The "Vitas Patrum Emeritensium" records, in a fashion borrowed from the "Dialogues" of Gregory the Great, the visions Fidelis saw on his deathbed. [Collins, "Mérida and Toledo", 193.] The tradition of the bishop as a source of credit as well as the ambitious building programme were continued by Fidelis' successor, Masona.

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References

*cite book |last=Collins |first=Roger |title=Visigothic Spain, 409–711 |year=2004 |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |location=Oxford |isbn=0-631-18185-7
*cite book |last=James |first=Edward |authorlink=Edward James (historian) |title=Visigothic Spain: New Approaches |year=1980 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=0-19-822543-1
*cite book |last=Thompson |first=E. A. |title=The Goths in Spain |year=1969 |publisher=Clarendon Press |location=Oxford |isbn=0-19-814271-4| pages=