Theodulf of Orléans
Theodulf of Orléans (
Life
Theodulf was born in
Charlemagne recognized Theodulf's importance within his court and simultaneously named him Bishop of Orléans (c. 798) and abbot of many monasteries, most notably the
Charlemagne died in 814 and was succeeded by his son Louis the Pious.
According to some sources Theodulf may have been married at the beginning of his career and had a daughter named Gisla.[12]
Villa at Germigny-des-Prés
The oratory at Germigny-des-Prés (Loiret, Orléanais), an example of Carolingian architecture, was built by Bishop Theodulf in 806 as part of his Gallo-Roman villa in Germaniacus. Theodulf was also abbot of the neighboring monastery of Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire. His complex at Germigny-des-Prés was in a general sense modelled on Charlemagne's Palace of Aachen, the center of the Carolingian Empire at that time.
All except the oratory was destroyed by the
Writings
Capitularies
As Bishop of Orléans (798–818), Theodulf wrote two important capitularies.
Capitula ad presbyteros parochiae
The first capitulary was a reminder to the priests of his diocese of the importance of manual labour, studying, prayer and chastity.[14]
Capitula altera Theodulpho episcopo Aurelianensi adscripta
The second capitulary focused on his code of penance where he lists the consequences of murder, adultery, fornication, incest, thievery, usury and other infractions.[15] It is divided in ten main parts:
- De ammonitione sacerdotum
- De adulteriis et incestis et fornicationibus
- De confessionibus laicorum
- De homicidio
- De mulierum delictis
- De furto et falso testimonio
- De inrationabili fornicatione
- De adultero presbytero publice et occulte
- De usurariis
- De inquisition octo vitiorium ad confessionem
Hymns and poems
Theodulf composed hymns and poems as well, of which 80 are preserved. Gloria, laus et honor is the most famous one of them.
Libri Carolini
Theodulf was also almost certainly responsible for composing the Libri Carolini (c. 793) which served as a rebuttal to a faulty translation of the acts of the Second Council of Nicaea of 787 which was mistakenly interpreted as saying that the worship ("adoration") of images was acceptable in the church.[16] According to it, the Council suggested that an end was to be put to the iconoclastic period which had led to the destruction of many sacred images in the church, especially in Constantinople, which was only partially true. This translation made its way from Rome to the court of Charlemagne where it infuriated the Frankish emperor and his loyal theologians, including Theodulf, who was ordered to write the Libri Carolini in Charlemagne's name in a way that portrayed him as the sole representative of the Western world and defender of the church against a supposed idolatry.[17]
According to the Libri Carolini, images may be used as ecclesiastical ornaments, for purposes of instruction, and in memory of past events. It would be foolish, however, to burn incense before them and to use lights, though it would be quite wrong to cast them out of the churches and destroy them. Strong opposition is voiced in it to "adoration" of images, wrongly believing that the Council in Nicaea used this word, taken to mean the absolute adoration reserved for God alone, while only an appropriate
Key values
Hospitality
Theodulf brought fresh ideas and an open mind to the period known as the Carolingian Renaissance. He believed in always keeping the door open and never refusing pilgrims, travelers or the poor if they needed a meal or a place to stay for the night. He believed that you had to offer the less fortunate a seat at your dinner table if you one day wished to have a seat at the banquet of God. These ideas were highly influenced by his readings of Augustine.[19] He often referred to himself as the poor traveler or stranger, being born in Spain and of Visigothic descent, and being accepted with open arms by the royal court of Charlemagne.[5]
Literature and the liberal arts
Theodulf was an avid reader of Christian literature, and some of his favorite writers are listed in one of his letters to the
See also
Notes
- ISBN 0-300-06493-4
- ^ Dodwell,49
- ^ Garipzanov 2008, p. 298.
- ^ Freeman & Meyvaert 2001, p. 125.
- ^ a b Baunard 1860, p. 54.
- ^ Freeman & Meyvaert 2001, p. 126.
- ^ Baunard 1860, p. 77.
- ^ Baunard 1860, p. 296.
- ^ Baunard 1860, p. 300.
- ^ Baunard 1860, p. 301.
- ^ Baunard 1860, p. 322.
- ^ Smith / Wace, p. 985.
- ^ Beckwith, 13–17
- ^ Schaff, Philip (1910). Mediaeval Christianity, from Gregory I to Gregory VII, A.D. 590-1073. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans. pp. 697–698.
- ^ de Clercy 1930, p. 8.
- ^ Freeman 1957, pp. 663–664.
- ^ Freeman 1957, p. 665.
- ^ Shahan, Thomas Joseph (1908). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 3. New York: Robert Appleton Company. . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).
- ^ a b Baunard 1860, p. 196.
- ^ Baunard 1860, p. 237.
- ^ Baunard 1860, p. 241.
Bibliography
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- Löffler, Klemens (1912). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company. . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).
- Smith, William & Wace, Henry, A Dictionary of Christian Biography, vol. 4. , London, 1887, p. 985
- Monsignor Louis Baunard, Théodulfe, évêque d'Orléans et Abbé de Fleury-sur-Loire. Orléans, 1860.
- C. de Clercy, Quelques Status Diocésains de L'époque de Charlemagne. Anvers, 1930.
- A. Freeman, "Theodulf of Orleans and the Libri Carolini," Speculum Vol. 32, No. 4 (Oct., 1957), pp. 663–705.
- Ann Freeman and Paul Meyvaert (2001). "The Meaning of Theodulf's Apse Mosaic at Germigny-des-Prés". Gesta. 40 (2): 125–139. S2CID 193384276.
- A. Freeman, Theodulf of Orléans: Charlemagne's Spokesman Against the Second Council of Nicaea (Aldershot, Ashgate, 2003).
- N. Staubach, "Zwischen Mythenallegorese und Idolatriekritik. Bischof Theodulf von Orléans und die heidnischen Götter," in Christine Schmitz und Anja Bettenworth (hg.), Menschen – Heros – Gott: Weltentwürfe und Lebensmodelle im Mythos der Vormoderne (Stuttgart, Franz Steiner Verlag, 2009), 149–166.
- Garipzanov, Ildar H. (2008). The Symbolic Language of Royal Authority in the Carolingian World (c.751-877). Brill.