Saint Remi Exorcising a Young Girl, limestone, early 14th century Musée Saint-Remi, ReimsThe

Saint Remi Exorcising a Young Girl, limestone, early 14th century

Musée Saint-Remi, Reims

The story behind this scene is that a young girl in a noble family was possessed by an evil spirit since childhood.  Her parents took her to Rome, hoping Saint Benedict would be able to help, but after many attempts, he could not heal her. The demon then announced that only the blessed Bishop Remi could drive him out of this body.  (This was back in the day when demons were polite enough to tell people how to get rid of them. Things have changed.) The parents brought her to Bishop Remi, who promptly commanded the evil spirit to “come out the way he came in” and leave the girl behind.  

I like this story because it elevates St. Remi while dissing St. Benedict. Benedict was about forty years younger than Remi, so this is like an old wizard telling a young wizard that he’s a dumb punk. Notice that the demon rising from the girl’s body has a second face where genitals are usually located. This is often seen in medieval art.

Photos by Charles Reeza