Page:A Dictionary of Saintly Women Volume 2.djvu/213

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ST. RUFINA 201 was placed in the Benedictine monastery of Andrenses, in Flanders, bnilt in 1084 by the pious Gonnt of Ouines, a relation and friend of Charles, count of Flanders. Peter, the fifth abbot, wrote a history of the saint which used to be read during dinner on her festival. In coarse of time so many munificent offerings were made to Kotrade and her ministers that Baldwin Bochard, lord of the surrounding district, fearing that some of his possessions also would gradually be absorbed by the Church, destroyed the book, hoping therewith to destroy the saint and her worship, and said so much against the monks and the miracles, that at last it was agreed that the bones of the saint should be tried with fire ; an immense concourse of people collected to see the trial which turned out greatly to the honour of St. Eotrude and of the Church, and to the confusion of their enemies, for the fire glorified in the sight of all the people, the sacred bone that was thrown into it, and put the infidels to shame. Some of her relics were trans- lated to the monastery of St. Bertin, near St. Omer, and were attributed to St. RioTBUDE of Marchiennes, who is, there- fore, sometimes by mistake called Eotrude. Bucelinus. AA,SS. St. Roxana, Humility. St. Royes or Roisia. An ancient subterranean chapel at Royston, on the borders of Hertfordshire and Cambridge- shire, was dedicated in honour of SS. Lawrence and Hippolytus. Stukeley (Palaeograpia Britannica) says this chapel, with the famous cross on the highway, called Eoheys - Cross, was founded by Roisia, daughter of Alberio de Vere, earl of Oxford, and widow of Geoffery de Magneville, earl of Essex who died in 1148. After her second marriage to Pain de ^eauchamp, she founded the conyent of Chikesand, in Bedfordshire, where she afterwards took the veil and died ; but Parkin says the chapel is much older, and named from Hoyes, a Saxon or British saint. A convent near High Cross in Hertford- shire was called Roheyney or Roheenia. In another church of St. Hippolytus, near Royston, horses were blessed at the high altar with great devotion. The town was called Hippolytes, Eppa- lets. Pallets. Butler, « St. Hippolytus,*' Aug; 13. B. Ruessella. (See Fulcide.) St. Rufania or Rufina, Feb. 28, M. with many others. AA.SS. St. Ruffina, Rufina. The name in Latin is Rufina ; in modern Italian the « f " is doubled. St. Rufina (1), Claudia (1). SS. Rufina (2) and Secunda, or Ruffina and Seconda, W. MM. 257. Patrons of Porto and of Selva Candida. Daughters of Asterius, a Roman senator. They were betrothed respectively to Armentario and Verino, Christians who, in the persecution under Valerian and Gallienus, abjured their faith and tried to persuade Rufina and Secuuda to do the same. This proposition filled them with horror and they fled from Rome, but were overtaken and brought before the Prefect, Junius DonatuH, to whom they were accused of being Christians. After torturing them in various ways, he had them beheaded in a wood twelve miles from Rome. On the site of their martyrdom a chapel was soon built, which Pope (St.) Julius I. converted into a magnificent church. A town afterwards arose around it, called Selva Candida, which became a bishop's see. The B.M., July 10, says their bodies are preserved in the church of St, John Lateran, near the font. Moroni, Diz, Storico-ecclesiastico, St. Rufina (3), Aug. 31, M. 3rd century. She was cast into prison with her husband, St. Theodotus, at CsBsarea in Cappadocia ; while under sentence of death and awaiting their execution, Rufina gave birth to a son, afterwards known as Mamas the Martyr: he was at once adopted by a charitable woman, commemorated as St. Amhia, with SS. Theodotus and Rufina. EM. AA.SS. St. Rufina (4). (See Justa (2).) St. Rufina (5), Rufania. St. Rufina (6), June 1, M. with St. AUCEGA. St. Rufina (7), Feb. 28, M. place unknown. St. Rufina (8), May 3, M. in Africa. St. Rufina (9), April 6, M. at Sirmium.