Jonas of Bobbio
Encyclopedia
Jonas of Bobbio or Jonas Bobiensis (Sigusia, now Susa, Italy
, c. 600 – after 659) was a Columbanian monk and writer of hagiography
, among which his Life of Saint Columbanus
is outstanding.
In 618, Jonas arrived at the monastery of Bobbio Abbey
in the province of Pavia
, just three years after the death of its founder Columbanus, and he asserted that he had based his account of the great Irish saint on the testimony of persons who had known him intimately. "As is usual in such biographies, the miracles are numerous; for the contemporaries these formed the most valuable portions; for modern students they are full of instruction, and throw much light on the daily life of the monks" (Munro 1895). The monastery was a center of Early Medieval learning, supported by a library that was outstanding in its day. Jonas was appointed to a position of confidence, probably that of secretary to the abbots Attala
(died 627) and to his successor Bertulf, whom Jonas accompanied on a journey to Rome in 628. Immediately after his return he moved to Gaul
, for his life of Eustace, abbot of Luxeuil
, (died 629), reflects personal acquaintance.
Appealed to by Saint Amand
for assistance in his missionary work among the pagans of what is now Belgium and northern France, which occasioned his vita
of Saint Vedast
or Vaast, the first Frankish Bishop of Arras
. In fulfilment of a promise made to the Black Monks of Bobbio during a short return visit to the monastery in 639, he wrote between 640 and 643 his principal work, the Life of St. Columbanus.
In 659, when he was sent by the Queen-Regent Balthild
on a mission to Chalon-sur-Saône
, he was referred to as "abbot", though of which monastery it cannot now be determined. During this journey he sojourned for a few days at the monastery of St. John of Réomé (Reomans, now Moustier-Saint-Jean) in the diocese of Langres. To comply with a request made by the monks on this occasion he wrote the life of their founder.
The other works of Jonas are lives of the abbots Attala and Bertulf of Bobbio, of abbot Eustace of Luxeuil, an abbey founded by Columbanus that retained close personal ties with Bobbio, and of the abbess Burgundofara
(or Fara) of Evoriac (modern Faremoutiers
).
Eustace, Attala, and Bertulf, he knew personally. Bede
incorporated these lives into his Ecclesiastical History
, while Flodoard
turned that of Saint Columbanus into hexameter verse. The "Life of St. Fara" is chiefly an account of miraculous events alleged to have occurred during this saint's rule at Evoriac, but Jonas' elaborate and fantastically miraculous account contains nuggets of historical information that throw precious light upon a poorly-documented time.
The works of Jonas, exclusive of the "Life of St. Vaast", are printed in Patrologia Latina
LXXXVII, 1011–88; a better edition by Krusch is in Monumenta Germaniae Historica
: Script. Rer. Mer., III, 406-13, 505-17; IV, 61-152 (Hannover, 1896 and 1902).
Susa, Italy
Susa is a city and comune in Piedmont, Italy. It is situated on at the confluence of the Cenischia with the Dora Riparia, a tributary of the Po River, at the foot of the Cottian Alps, 51 km west of Turin.-History:...
, c. 600 – after 659) was a Columbanian monk and writer of hagiography
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
, among which his Life of Saint Columbanus
Columbanus
Columbanus was an Irish missionary notable for founding a number of monasteries on the European continent from around 590 in the Frankish and Lombard kingdoms, most notably Luxeuil and Bobbio , and stands as an exemplar of Irish missionary activity in early medieval Europe.He spread among the...
is outstanding.
In 618, Jonas arrived at the monastery of Bobbio Abbey
Bobbio Abbey
Bobbio Abbey is a monastery founded by Irish Saint Columbanus in 614, around which later grew up the town of Bobbio, in the province of Piacenza, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is dedicated to Saint Columbanus...
in the province of Pavia
Pavia
Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
, just three years after the death of its founder Columbanus, and he asserted that he had based his account of the great Irish saint on the testimony of persons who had known him intimately. "As is usual in such biographies, the miracles are numerous; for the contemporaries these formed the most valuable portions; for modern students they are full of instruction, and throw much light on the daily life of the monks" (Munro 1895). The monastery was a center of Early Medieval learning, supported by a library that was outstanding in its day. Jonas was appointed to a position of confidence, probably that of secretary to the abbots Attala
Saint Attala
Saint Attala was a disciple of Saint Columbanus and his successor as abbot of Bobbio Abbey.-Biography:...
(died 627) and to his successor Bertulf, whom Jonas accompanied on a journey to Rome in 628. Immediately after his return he moved to Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
, for his life of Eustace, abbot of Luxeuil
Luxeuil Abbey
Luxeuil Abbey was one of the oldest and best-known monasteries in Burgundy, located in the "département" of Haute-Saône in Franche-Comté, France.-Columbanus:...
, (died 629), reflects personal acquaintance.
Appealed to by Saint Amand
Saint Amand
Saint Amand or Amandus was a French Christian saint, one of the great Christian Saints of Flanders.-Biography:...
for assistance in his missionary work among the pagans of what is now Belgium and northern France, which occasioned his vita
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
of Saint Vedast
Vedast
Saint Vedast or Vedastus, also known as Saint Vaast or Saint Waast and Saint Gaston in French, Saint Vedast or Vedastus, also known as Saint Vaast (in Flemish, Norman, and Picard) or Saint Waast (also in Picard and Walloon) and Saint Gaston in French, Saint Vedast or Vedastus, also known as Saint...
or Vaast, the first Frankish Bishop of Arras
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
. In fulfilment of a promise made to the Black Monks of Bobbio during a short return visit to the monastery in 639, he wrote between 640 and 643 his principal work, the Life of St. Columbanus.
In 659, when he was sent by the Queen-Regent Balthild
Balthild
Saint Balthild of Ascania , also called Bathilda, Baudour, or Bauthieult, was the wife and queen of Clovis II, king of Burgundy and Neustria . Two traditions, independent and conflicting, trace what Wilhelm Levison accounted "truly an extraordinary career for an English slave sold to the Continent"...
on a mission to Chalon-sur-Saône
Chalon-sur-Saône
Chalon-sur-Saône is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne in eastern France.It is a sub-prefecture of the department. It is the largest city in the department; however, the department capital is the smaller city of Mâcon....
, he was referred to as "abbot", though of which monastery it cannot now be determined. During this journey he sojourned for a few days at the monastery of St. John of Réomé (Reomans, now Moustier-Saint-Jean) in the diocese of Langres. To comply with a request made by the monks on this occasion he wrote the life of their founder.
The other works of Jonas are lives of the abbots Attala and Bertulf of Bobbio, of abbot Eustace of Luxeuil, an abbey founded by Columbanus that retained close personal ties with Bobbio, and of the abbess Burgundofara
Burgundofara
Burgundofara , also Saint Fara or Fare, was the founder and first Abbess of the Abbey of Faremoutiers. Her family is knowns as the Faronids, named after her brother Saint Faro....
(or Fara) of Evoriac (modern Faremoutiers
Faremoutiers
Faremoutiers is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.-History:Originally named Evoriacum, Faremoutiers was renamed in honour of Saint Fara, who founded the Abbey of Faremoutiers there in the 620s. It lies in the historical region of...
).
Eustace, Attala, and Bertulf, he knew personally. Bede
Bede
Bede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
incorporated these lives into his Ecclesiastical History
Ecclesiastical history (Catholicism)
Ecclesiastical history, for the Roman Catholic Church, is the history of the Roman Catholic Church as an institution, written from a particular perspective. There is a traditional approach to such historiography...
, while Flodoard
Flodoard
-Biography:He was born at Épernay, and educated at Reims in the cathedral school which had been established by Archbishop Fulcon .As canon of Reims, and favourite of the archbishops Herivaeus and Seulfus -Biography:He was born at Épernay, and educated at Reims in the cathedral school which had...
turned that of Saint Columbanus into hexameter verse. The "Life of St. Fara" is chiefly an account of miraculous events alleged to have occurred during this saint's rule at Evoriac, but Jonas' elaborate and fantastically miraculous account contains nuggets of historical information that throw precious light upon a poorly-documented time.
The works of Jonas, exclusive of the "Life of St. Vaast", are printed in Patrologia Latina
Patrologia Latina
The Patrologia Latina is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1844 and 1855, with indices published between 1862 and 1865....
LXXXVII, 1011–88; a better edition by Krusch is in Monumenta Germaniae Historica
Monumenta Germaniae Historica
The Monumenta Germaniae Historica is a comprehensive series of carefully edited and published sources for the study of German history from the end of the Roman Empire to 1500.The society sponsoring the series was established by the Prussian reformer Heinrich Friedrich Karl Freiherr vom...
: Script. Rer. Mer., III, 406-13, 505-17; IV, 61-152 (Hannover, 1896 and 1902).
External links
- Catholic Encyclopedia 1908; "Jonas of Bobbio"
- Philip Schaff, editor. The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Vol. VI: "Jonas of Bobbio"
- Medieval Sourcebook: The Life of St. Columban, by the Monk Jonas Introduction by D.C. Munro, in Translations and Reprints... University of Pennsylvania, ii. 7, Philadelphia, 1895