St. Peter Damian by Andrea Barbiani
St. Peter Damian (1001-1072 AD) was a Benedictine monk, Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia, Doctor of the Church, and brilliant reformer.
St. Peter Damian lived during a troubled time in the life of the Church; corruption of morals, notably among the clergy, cried out for a reform. That reform would come under the leadership of pontiffs like St. Leo IX, Nicholas II, and, of course, St. Gregory VII, whose name was used to describe them: the Gregorian Reform.
In the midst of this difficult reform, St. Peter Damian was exemplary for the service he lent to these popes, and to the Church itself. He was unflinching in his condemnation of sin and corruption, tireless in his defense of the rights of the Church, and, importantly, earnestly interested in the conversion, and not the destruction, of those who would harm the Church and themselves.
He served as Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia from 1058-1072AD. This office of Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia is, today, that of the Cardinal-Dean of the College of Cardinals; the first-among-equals who presides over a papal conclave, should that Cardinal be able to participate in the election. Notably, Pope Benedict XVI was Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia when he was elected in the 2005 conclave.
Pope Benedict XVI actually discussed the life of St. Peter Damian in a Wednesday audience: Pope Benedict XVI: Wednesday Audience, 9 Sept 2009.
A copy of his works, published in 1743.
One of the more notable moral notable works of St. Peter Damian is the gritty Book of Gomorrah, which is an honest exposition of the issue of ecclesiastical moral corruption, especially involving homosexual activity among the clergy. St. Peter calls out the sin for what it is, and notes that there are some crimes which should exclude one from the clerical state; but more than that, his work is a pleading call to his fellow Churchmen to repent, so as to save their souls. That work has been republished in a new translation, available here: Ite ad Thomam Books and Media: Book of Gomorrah
Here are a couple samples from the hard-hitting text:
He begins in book I: "The cancer of sodomitic impurity is thus creeping through the clerical order, and indeed is raging like a cruel beast within the sheepfold of Christ with the audacity of such liberty, that for many it would have been much more salutary to be oppressed by the yoke of worldly duties than to be surrender so freely to the iron rule of diabolical tyranny under the pretense of religion. It would have been better to perish alone in secular dress than, having changed one's clothes but not one's heart, to also drag others to destruction, as the Truth testifies, saying: 'He that shall scandalize one of these little ones that believe in me, it is expedient for him that a millstone be hanged about his neck, and that he be drowned in the depth of the sea.' And unless the force of the Apostolic See opposes it as quickly as possible, there is no doubt that when it finally wishes for the unbridled evil to be restrained, it may not be able to halt the fury of its advance."
In Book III, he warns of the dangers of not removing from Holy Orders those who commit *any* homosexual acts with others:
"Obviously, the carnal man of any order fears more to be despised in the sight of men than to be condemned according to the determination of the Supreme Judge, and for this reason he would prefer any penance, however severe and extended it might be, to being subject to the endangerment of his grade. Moreover, while he does not fear losing his honorable state by his indiscreet discretion, he is also inclined to take up new vices and to remain longer in those he has taken up with impunity, so that, so to speak, as long as he is not stuck where it hurts more severely, he lies serenely in that pigsty of filthy obscenity in which he first fell."
"Obviously, the carnal man of any order fears more to be despised in the sight of men than to be condemned according to the determination of the Supreme Judge, and for this reason he would prefer any penance, however severe and extended it might be, to being subject to the endangerment of his grade. Moreover, while he does not fear losing his honorable state by his indiscreet discretion, he is also inclined to take up new vices and to remain longer in those he has taken up with impunity, so that, so to speak, as long as he is not stuck where it hurts more severely, he lies serenely in that pigsty of filthy obscenity in which he first fell."
For St. Peter Damian, it is evident, the salvation of souls is the supreme law.
He was made a Doctor of the Church by Pope Leo XII in 1828.
His feast was traditionally on 23 February, and moved to 21 February in the revised calendar of 1970.
May our Bishops today have the moral integrity, zealous energy, personal sanctity, and concern for the salvation of souls of St. Peter Damian!
For more about this great saint and doctor, you might note:
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