DONATUS, Saint. - Bishop and patron of Arezzo. In an 11th-century Arezzo episcopal catalogue he occupies second place, after Satiro.

According to the legendary Passio Donati (BHL, no. 2289), composed between the 5th and 6th centuries and apparently known also to St. Gregory the Great (Dialogues, I, 7), D. was a young Roman cleric when, during the persecution of Julian the Apostate, he fled to Arezzo, where he was later ordained priest by Bishop Satiro. On the latter's death, having been designated as his successor by the clergy and the people, he came to Rome and was consecrated bishop of Arezzo by Pope Julius (337-52); finally he is said to have been martyred under the same Julian the Apostate. In the Martyrologium Hieronymianum, however, D. appears under the 7th and following days as episcopus et confessor. He had a very widespread cult, even outside Italy.

DONATO, saint - Imprisonment and martyrdom of St. D. Detail of the shrine placed on the high altar of the Cathedral of Arezzo. Work of Giovanni and Betto di Francesco (mid-14th century).(phot. Alinari)

Bibliography4 works

BIBL.: A. Dufourcq, Etude sur les Gesta Martyrum romains, III, Paris 1907, pp. 165-69; H. Quentin, Les Martyrologes historiques du moyen âge, ibid. 1908, p. 514 f.; Lanzoni, p. 596 f.; Martyr. Hieronymianum, p. 422.

Ferdinando Antonelli

@incollection{ec4_donato_santo, author = {Antonelli, Ferdinando}, title = {Donato, santo}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {IV}, pages = {1856--1857}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1950}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/donato-santo} }

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Donatus, Saint

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