Saint Donatus of Muenstereifel (Svatý Donát ) - Chotusice, Czech Republic - Statues of Religious Figures on Waymarking.com

The Baroque sandstone statue of Saint Donatus of Muenstereifel (Svatý Donát ) can be found on a viilage square in Chotusice, near Sv Václav (St Wenceslaus) Church. St Donatus is standing on a typicalBaroque prism pedestal with volute wings and a frontal cartouche. St. Donatus is depicted here in a robe of a Roman soldier with a richly draped cloak. The Baroque statue comes from 1735.


Saint Donatus of Muenstereifel is a saint whose relics are found in the Jesuit church in Bad Muenstereifel. He is widely venerated in the Rhine valley region of Germany and the Low Countries, and he is a patron saint of Buda and of protection against lightning. His relics were translated to Muenster Eifel in the 17th century from the Catacombs of Rome, where he had been originally buried.

Legend

Saint Donatus is said to be a 2nd century Roman soldier and martyr. His parents were named Faustus and Flaminia. When Faustus was deathly ill, his wife Flaminia sought the intercession of Saint Gervasius, who assured her that her husband would recover and beget a son. This came to pass, and Flaminia named the boy Donatus, which means "gift". She educated him in the Christian faith. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the famed 12th Legion "Fulminatrix", i.e., the "Thundering Legion". He rapidly rose through the ranks and soon became a personal bodyguard to the emperor, Marcus Aurelius.

In the year 173 the 12th Legion was engaged in the Marcomannic Wars in Moravia along the Danube frontier. According to the contemporary writer Dio Cassius, part of the legion was surrounded and nearly overwhelmed when it was miraculously saved by a divine thunderstorm. Cassius attributed the thunderstorm to the invocation of Mercurius by Aurelius' Egyptian sorcerer, Arnuphis, but Tertullian and other Christian writers ascribed the miracle to the prayers of the many Christians in that Legion. Later legend credited Donatus as the leader of the Christians' prayers. After the miracle, Donatus gave thanks to God, and he was martyred by the emperor.

He was buried by his mother in the Catacombs of Saint Agnes. Over the centuries, access to the catacombs was lost. In 1646, the catacombs were re-opened, and the relics of Donatus and many other saints were re-discovered. Pope Innocent X bequeathed Donatus's relics to the Jesuit church in Muenster Eifel, and they were carried in procession from Rome to the Rhineland. On June 30, 1652 the relics were at St. Martin's church in Euskirchen as a Jesuit priest, Fr. Heerde, was saying mass in the morning. With the conclusion of benediction, lightning struck the church and lit the altar and the priest on fire. He immediately invoked the aid of Saint Donatus and was miraculously restored unharmed. This miracle spread the fame of the Roman martyr throughout the region.

Some writers comment on the alliteration between the Latin name Donatus and the German title Donner, which means "Thunderer".

Cited from (visit link)

Associated Religion(s): Roman Catholic Church Statue Location: in the center of the village, near Sv Václav (St Wenceslaus) Church Entrance Fee: free Website: [Web Link] Artist: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Take a picture of the statue. A waymarker and/or GPSr is not required to be in the image but it doesn't hurt.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.