Saint of the Day – 10 October – St Cerbonius (c493-575) Bishop and Confessor of Populonia, Miracle-worker. He was the Bishop during the Barbarian invasions. St Pope Gregory I the Great, praises him in Book XI of his Dialogues. Born in c493 in North Africa and died in 575 in Elba, Italy. Patronages – of Baratti, Piombino, Massa Marittima, the Diocese of Massa Marittima-Piombino, the Diocese of Piombino. Also known as – Cerbonius of Piombino, … of Populonia, Cerbonius of Massa Marittima, Cerbo…Cerbone…Cerbonio…
The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Piombino in Tiscany, St Cerbonius, Bishop and Confessor, who, as St Gregory relates, was renowned for miracles, both during life and after death.”
Cerboneius was born in North Africa to a Christian family. When he became a Priest, to escape the persecution of Christians by the Vandals, he fled to Italy. The ship landed on the Maremma coast, in Tuscany, in the Gulf of Baratti.
In Populonia, Cerbonius was proclaimed as the Bishop. The locals were unhappy with him because he had the habit of saying Mass at dawn—too early for those who lived in the countryside far from Town. Their complaints reached the Pope.
Two Clerics were sent to Populonia to accompany the Bishop to the Pontiff. During the journey, Cerbonius performed miracles – the companions were thirsty and exhausted from the journey and Cerbonius approached two doe, who tamely let themselves be milked for good milk. When the bBshop then encountered a flock of geese, he invited them to follow him to Rome. And so it happened. The geese, docile and obedient, follow Cerbonius and only took flight when he arrives before the Pope.
The Pope, for his part, wishes to personally attend Cerboniud’ famous Dawn Mass. The Pontiff thus realises that he was in the company of a Saint. Indeed, during the Mass, a sublime melody was heard emanating from a Choir of Angels. From that day on, Cerbonois was happily supported by the people in celebrating his Dawn Mass.
Upon their return to Maremma, the battle between the Goths and the Byzantines rages. Cerbonius was imprisoned by the cruel Gothic King, Totila, accused of having favoured the enemy. The punishment must demonstrate an example – to be torn to pieces by a ferocious bear but the beast, instead of attacking Cerboneius, crouches beside him like a lamb, licking his feet. The King was astonished and decides to release the prisoner.
During the Lombard invasion, Cerbonius escapes to the Island of Elba, defended by the Byzantines. There the Bishop lived a Hermit’s life and, when in 575, he felt his death approaching, he asked to be buried on dry land.
Thanks to a miraculous storm which kept the Lombards at bay, the ship carried the Bishop’s body to the Town of Baratti (Piombino), where he was buried in a small Church. In this spot, the famous San Cerbonius Spring still flows today, giving rise to the saying: “He who does not drink at San Cerbonius is a thief or a scoundrel.” Today, San Cerbonius rests in the Cathedral of Massa Marittima (Grosseto).
AnaStpaul 