| Message from our PresidentDear Friends of the Bollandists,The good weather has returned to lift our spirits up after the trying months of confinement and during which the work of the Bollandists has continued unabated, albeit with some adjustments. The presence of Father Diego Arfuch in the Library, our Bollandist-associate in Paris, was limited to on-line sessions, and our fund-raiser became desk bound while developing online relations. The rhythm of our publications did not change however, and our Analecta was published on schedule while the new Subsidia Hagiographica “Les saints anciens au temps de la réforme catholique”, is proving popular.The Board of Directors has resumed its meetings with greater regularity and we have had the joy of welcoming its first female member, Mrs. Claire Saint-Remi, who brings with her long experience in the world of finance.But mostly, we are very grateful to our two Major Superiors, to whose Provinces our Society belongs, for their unconditional support and who see our unique research Institute as a deeply embedded element of the Society of Jesus as a whole. An element to be preserved and bequeathed to future generations.I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the Friends of the Bollandists and urge those who are thinking of joining to do so. As the holiday months are approaching I hope you will all be able to take a pleasant break. Take care and stay safe.Fr. Mark Rotsaert, SJ |
Bollandist expertise on relics:
The relics of the saints have played an important role in the development of many medieval and modern hagiographic texts and devotions. European churches still possess a large number of these ‘parcels of the divine’ attributed to saints, but their interpretation – both in terms of their identification and their role in contemporary pastoral work – is increasingly problematic… and leads to recurrent requests.
Over the past three years, very concrete expert assessments have been carried out by the Bollandists in the field, in Brussels, Mons, Namur, or online (Enghien) with a double aim: to help church managers classify their relics and make an inventory of them, and to study the constitution of these astonishing collections from a historical perspective.
This work is rich in historical data and also makes it possible to examine, alongside multiple fragments of bone and tissue, several beautiful reliquaries in silver or wood.
During these exceptional and trying times we stayed in touch through a series of monthly webinars from November to May. You can catch up with any you may have missed here:
They are available in our online shop:
Find out what is in the next issue of Analecta Bollandiana 139/I – june 2021 :
C. Lanéry. Cinq Passions tardo-antiques d’Italie méridionale (Donat et ses frères, Éleuthère, Potitus, Guy, Érasme)
E. Rizos. Saint Julian of Cicilia: Cult and Hagiography. Including the Edition and English Translation of the Passio S. Iuliani Anazarbeni (BHG 966) and its Epitome (BHG 967d)
B. Joassart. Charles de Montalembert et Victor De Buck
X. Lequeux. Bibliotheca Hagiographica Graeca Manuscripta. Avancements récents
Bulletin des publications hagiographiques
Publications reçues
A new award winning Subsidia Hagiographica!
The Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres (http://www.aibl.fr/prix-et-fondations/palmares-2021/) awarded the Charles Diehl Medal which honours a monograph dedicated to the Byzantine world, to Professor Sophie Métivier, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, for her book titled “Aristocratie et Sainteté à Byzance”, published in our Subsidia Hagiographica collection in 2019.
We warmly congratulate Sophie Métivier for her excellent work.
The Bollandist Fund Appeal
Every gift, no matter the amount, has a significant impact on our work: supporting a research project on hagiographic manuscripts, helping our library to purchase a rare book, contributing to the digitization of our card catalogues, are just a few examples of what can be achieved with your help.
You can support the Bollandists by using the link below to make tax-deductible gift:
If you have any questions, please email us at saintsernin@bollandistes.be
We thank you in advance for your generosity and we extend our gratitude to those who support us already.