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St.
Maurice
Saint Maurice (also
known as Moritz, Morris, or Mauritius) was
the leader of the legendary Roman Theban Legion
in the 3rd century during the reign of Emperor
Maximian Herculius. Maximian sent an army to
control an uprising of the Gauls throughout
central Europe. One of the units in the army
was recruited from Thebes in southern Egypt on
the African continent. This legion was
comprised of 6600 Christian soldiers. In order
to give thanks for the success of their
campaign, the soldiers were expected to offer a
sacrifice to the gods. Since this included the
killing of Christians, the legion of Thebes
refused to comply with this order. When
Maximian was unable to get the legion to obey,
he ordered that they be decimated. Decimation
was a military punishment where every tenth man
was put to death. Saint Maurice was the
legion’s leader and inspirer. When the soldiers
still refused the emperor’s demands, a second
decimation was ordered. Maximian threatened that
if they continued then none of them would
escape. Saint Maurice and the other soldiers
could not renounce their God and chose to die
innocent rather than live knowing they had
killed other Christians. Upon hearing news of
their continued resistance to obey orders,
Maximian proceeded to order the slaughter of the
rest of the legion. The place in Switzerland
where this occurred, known as Agaunum, is now
Saint Maurice-en-Valais, site of the Abbey of
Saint Maurice-en-Valais. Besides Aguanum, the
other sites where the soldiers were slain were
Zurich, Soluthum and Zursach in Switzerland;
Bergamo, Turin, Piacenza, the Cottian Alps,
Pinerolo, Milan, Ventimilia in Italy; and Terier,
Bonn, Cologne, and Xanten in Germany.
Saint Maurice became a
patron saint of the Holy Roman Emperors. In
926, Henry I (919–936), even ceded the present
Swiss canton of Aargau to the abbey, in return
for the sacred lance of the Saint's. The Sword
of Saint Maurice was part of the regalia used at
coronations of the Austro-Hungarian Emperors
until 1916. In 929, Henry I the Fowler held a
royal court gathering (Reichsversammlung) at
Magdeburg. At the same time the Mauritius
Kloster in honor of Saint Maurice was founded.
In 961, Otto I was building and enriching the
cathedral at Magdeburg, which he intended for
his own tomb. In the twenty-fifth year of his
reign, in the presence of all of the nobility,
the body of St. Maurice was conveyed to him at
Regensburg along with the bodies of some of the
Saint's companions. These relics were received
with great honour at Magdeburg by a gathering of
the entire city and of their fellow countrymen.
Saint Maurice is
traditionally depicted in full armor, in Italy
emblazoned with a red cross. He is often shown
as a Moor, especially in the Magdeburg sculpture
and other eastern German depictions. In folk
culture, he has become connected with the legend
of the Spear of Destiny, which he is supposed to
have carried into battle. His name is engraved
on the Holy Lance of Vienna, one of several
relics claimed as the spear that pierced Jesus'
side on the cross. Saint Maurice gives his name
to the town St. Moritz as well as to numerous
places called Saint-Maurice in French speaking
countries. For over 500 years, a 24-hour vigil
called Coptic Tasbeha has taken place in the
monastery of St. Maurice in Switzerland.
Saint Maurice is also the
patron saint of a Catholic parish and church in
the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, and including
part of the town of Arabi in the St. Bernard
parish. The church was constructed in 1856,
making it on of the oldest churches in the area.
Unfortunately, the church suffered wind damage
and flood damage from Hurricane Katrina on
August 29, 2005. The church steeple was torn off
and 5 feet of water entered the building; and
the statue of St. Maurice was stolen by looters
following the storm.
Although Saint Maurice and
his companions faced imminent death, they held
on to their beliefs. Over seventy European
towns carry the name of Saint Maurice.
Churches, statues, classical art masterpieces,
and towns all over the world give homage to
Saint Maurice and his faithful companions.
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