Society

He was brought to the same shrine I mentioned earlier which contained relics of Protasius and Gervasius. The demon then leaves the child's body and writhes in pain and the boy is cured. Other such miracles that were said to have taken place in front of large crowds were done by Gregory the Great. He was known for ".exorcisms, restoration of sight to the blind, even restoration of sight to the dead." (96). It is his belief that "The converts had cared little for sect or theology, only for relief of what ailed them" (125). In other words, people would often convert for selfish reasons, in order to heal themselves of a physical problem rather than converting due to true belief in Christianity. MacMullen also wrote of supernaural beliefs whose existence began sometime around midway through the fourth century. This book touches on these beliefs more so than the others. The beliefs in the healing power of relics is ironic in that it almost seems Pagan. For instance, object that saints touched while living were believed to hold special powers that the saints used during their lives. There were even arguements in Palestine as to who would own the remnants of martyrs bodies. This superstition got to the point where even monks were ween fighting over Saint Martin's cloak because of the belief that it was full of healing power. MacMullen writes of how martrys may have been a creation of the bishops of the time in an effort to put an end to paganism. Another example of a supernatural superstition takes place when Severinus went on a mission to Noricum and attempted to ".banish blight from the wheat fields.by marking boundary posts with the cross, to ward off floods" (97). Yet another case of superstition existed in the belief that plants that were found only at the foot of a statue of Jesus contained immense healing powers. While these plants may have contained healing power, MacMullen takes note of the fact that many of the plants taken from around saint's relics were already known for their value as healing agents.