Santo Domingo de Silos, el santo de la frontera. La imagen de la santidad a partir de las fuentes hagiográficas castellano-leonesas del siglo XIII

Abstract

The beginning of the cult and the transmission of the devotion to Saint Domingo de Silos created a "symbolic image" of the saint. It is a function or task associated to his condition of saint and fulfilled through his miraculous action. In this case, the image coined is that of the "redemptor of captives" based on a long series of miraculous redemptions performed by the saint, and collected in a text dated from the 13th century, entitled the Miracolos romançados usually considered to be written by the monk Pedro Marin. The Saint from Silos is the heavenly messanger who liberated some Christians emprisoned by the "unfaithful" Moors, opening the jail's doors and their chain. This miracles make Saint Domingo become the "protector of the Frontier People", consolidating his fame of sainthood and ratifying his condition of efficient mediator. The Saint therefore assumes a specific function in a Christian community and, through this function, he remains at their service.