Valerie of Limoges - Parallels

Parallels

The most obvious parallels to the legendary figure of St. Valerie are those that manifest the distinctive trait of cephalophory. France is fairly rich in these, including most notably the capital's patron saint, Denis. The severed head that goes on preaching is a powerful assertion of autonomy, or perhaps theonomy in the face of persecution, with the bishop Denis continuing his work of prophecy and preaching. In St Valerie's case, the severed head is returned to where it belongs, the deceased person's bishop, pastor and confessor. In both cases there is a continuity in the relationship to the Church beyond death.

The more basic theme of decapitation widens the field of comparison greatly. An obvious source of parallels is the deuterocanonical book of Judith, in which we find a young woman pledging herself to virginity after seducing and decapitating a tyrannical enemy of the faith, and presenting his head to her countrymen. The mythemes are differently configured, but there seem to be a similar underlying concerns in which the faith community is threatened by both persecution and exogamy.

The most obvious parallels are perhaps with the Biblical and post-Biblical narrative of John the Baptist. Here we find not only a beheading, but a problematic marriage (with suggestions of incest rather than exogamy), defiant denunciation of tyranny, a centrally-important young woman and presentation of the head to a third party. Here, however, the threat to the faith community seems to come from inside. The thematic parallel, nevertheless, was strong enough for the builders to back St Valerie's shrine in St Michel des Lions with a fine stained glass window depicting John the Baptist.