April 4
St. Isidore of Seville
Bishop, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church
Double
St. Isidore of Seville:
Born at Cartagena, Spain, about 560; died 4 April, 636.
Isidore was the son of Severianus and Theodora. His elder brother
Leander was his immediate predecessor in the Metropolitan See of
Seville; whilst a younger brother St. Fulgentius presided over the
Bishopric of Astigi. His sister Florentina was a nun, and is said to
have ruled over forty convents and one thousand religious.
Isidore received his elementary education in the Cathedral school of
Seville. In this institution, which was the first of its kind in Spain,
the trivium and quadrivium were taught by a body of learned men, among
whom was the archbishop, Leander. With such diligence did he apply
himself to study that in a remarkably short time mastered Latin, Greek,
and Hebrew. Whether Isidore ever embraced monastic life or not is still
an open question, but though he himself may never have been affiliated
with any of the religious orders, he esteemed them highly. On his
elevation to the episcopate he immediately constituted himself protector
of the monks. In 619 he pronounced anathema against any ecclesiastic
who should in any way molest the monasteries.
On the death of
Leander, Isidore succeeded to the See of Seville. His long incumbency to
this office was spent in a period of disintegration and transition. The
ancient institutions and classic learning of the Roman Empire were fast
disappearing. In Spain a new civilization was beginning to evolve
itself from the blending racial elements that made up its population.
For almost two centuries the Goths had been in full control of Spain,
and their barbarous manners and contempt of learning threatened greatly
to put back her progress in civilization. Realizing that the spiritual
as well as the material well-being of the nation depended on the full
assimilation of the foreign elements, St. Isidore set himself to the
task of welding into a homogeneous nation the various peoples who made
up the Hispano-Gothic kingdom. To this end he availed himself of all the
resources of religion and education. His efforts were attended with
complete success. Arianism, which had taken deep root among the
Visigoths, was eradicated, and the new heresy of Acephales was
completely stifled at the very outset; religious discipline was
everywhere strengthened. Like Leander, he took a most prominent part in
the Councils of Toledo and Seville. In all justice it may be said that
it was in a great measure due to the enlightened statecraft of these two
illustrious brothers the Visigothic legislation, which emanated from
these councils, is regarded by modern historians as exercising a most
important influence on the beginnings of representative government.
Isidore presided over the Second Council of Seville, begun 13 November,
619, in the reign of Sisebut. But it was the Fourth National Council of
Toledo that afforded him the opportunity of being of the greatest
service to his county. At this council, begun 5 December, 633, all the
bishops of Spain were in attendance. St. Isidore, though far advanced in
years, presided over its deliberations, and was the originator of most
of its enactments. It was at this council and through his influence that
a decree was promulgated commanding all bishops to establish seminaries
in their Cathedral Cities, along the lines of the school already
existing at Seville. Within his own jurisdiction he had availed himself
of the resources of education to counteract the growing influence of
Gothic barbarism. His was the quickening spirit that animated the
educational movement of which Seville was the centre. The study of Greek
and Hebrew as well as the liberal arts, was prescribed. Interest in law
and medicine was also encouraged. Through the authority of the fourth
council this policy of education was made obligatory upon all the
bishops of the kingdom. Long before the Arabs had awakened to an
appreciation of Greek Philosophy, he had introduced Aristotle to his
countrymen. He was the first Christian writer to essay the task of
compiling for his co-religionists a summa of universal knowledge. This
encyclopedia epitomized all learning, ancient as well as modern. In it
many fragments of classical learning are preserved which otherwise had
been hopelessly lost. The fame of this work imparted a new impetus to
encyclopedic writing, which bore abundant fruit in the subsequent
centuries of the Middle Ages. His style, though simple and lucid, cannot
be said to be classical. It discloses most of the imperfections
peculiar to all ages of transition. It particularly reveals a growing
Visigothic influence. Arévalo counts in all Isidore's writing 1640
Spanish words.
Isidore was the last of the ancient Christian
Philosophers, as he was the last of the great Latin Fathers. He was
undoubtedly the most learned man of his age and exercised a far-reaching
and immeasurable influence on the educational life of the Middle Ages.
His contemporary and friend, Braulio, Bishop of Saragossa, regarded him
as a man raised up by God to save the Spanish people from the tidal wave
of barbarism that threatened to inundate the ancient civilization of
Spain, The Eighth Council of Toledo (653) recorded its admiration of his
character in these glowing terms: "The extraordinary doctor, the latest
ornament of the Catholic Church, the most learned man of the latter
ages, always to be named with reverence, Isidore". This tribute was
endorsed by the Fifteenth Council of Toledo, held in 688.
Among the scriptural and theological works of St. Isidore the following are especially worthy of note:
ReplyDelete"De ortu et obitu patrum qui in Scriptura laudibus efferuntur" is a work that treats of the more notable Scriptural characters. It contains more than one passage that, in the light of modern scholarship, is naive or fantastic. The question of authenticity has been raised, though quite unreasonably, concerning it.
"Allegoriae quaedam Sacrae Scripturae" treats of the allegorical significance that attaches to the more conspicuous characters of Scripture. In all some two hundred and fifty personalities of the Old and New Testament are thus treated.
"Liber numerorum qui in Sanctis Scripturis occurrunt" is a curious dissertation on the mystical significance of Scriptural numbers.
"In libros Veteris et Novi Testamenti prooemia", as its name implies, is a general introduction to the Scriptures, with special introductions for particular books in the Old and New Testament.
"De Veteri et Novo Testamento quastiones" consists of a series of questions concerning the Scriptures.
"Secretorum expositiones sacramentorum, seu quaestiones in Vetus Testamentum" is a mystical rendering of the Old Testament books, of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Josue, Judges, Kings, Esdras, and Machabees. It is based on the writings of the early Fathers of the Church.
"De fide catholica ex Veteri et Novo Testamento, contra Judaeos" is one of the best known and most meritorious of Isidore's works. It is of an apologetico-polemical character and is dedicated to Florentina, his sister, at whose request it is said to have been written. Its popularity was unbounded in the Middle Ages, and it was translated into many of the vernaculars of the period. It treats of the Messianic prophecies, the passing of the Old Law, and of the Christian Dispensation. The first part deals with the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, and His return for the final judgment. The second part is taken up with the unbelief of the Jews, the calling of the Gentiles, and the passing of the Sabbath. In all, it is an appeal to the Jews to accept Christianity.
"Sententiarum libri tres" is a compendium of moral and dogmatic theology. Gregory the Great and St. Augustine are the most generous contributors to its contents. The Divine attributes, creation, evil, and miscellanea are the subjects treated in the first book. The second is of a miscellaneous character; whilst the third deals with ecclesiastical orders, the judgment and the chastisement of God. It is believed that this work greatly influenced Peter Lombard in his famous "Book of Sentences",
"De ecclesiasticis officiis" is divided into two books, "De origine officiorum" and "De origine ministrorum". In the first Isidore treats of Divine worship and particularly the old Spanish Liturgy. It also Contains a lucid explanation of the Holy, Eucharist. The second treats of the hierarchy of the Church and the various states of life. In it much interesting information is to be found concerning the development of music in general and its adaptation to the needs of the Ritual.
"Regula monachorum" is a manner of life prescribed for monks, and also deals in a general way with the monastic state. The writer furnishes abundant proof of the true Christian democracy of the religious life by providing for the admission of men of every rank and station of life. Not even slaves were debarred. "God", he said, "has made no difference between the soul of the slave and that of the freedman." He insists that in the monastery all are equal in the sight of God and of the Church.