Christianity through the Thirteenth Century

440 Pages·1970·40.543 MB·English

by  Marshall W. Baldwin (eds.)

Christianity through the
Thirteenth Century
A volume
in
THE DOCUMENTARY HISTORY
of
WESTERN CIVILIZATION
CHRISTIANITY
THROUGH THE
THIRTEENTH CENTURY
edited by
w.
MARSHALL BALDWIN
MACMILLAN
CHRISTIANITY THROUGH THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY
Copyright© 1970 by Marshall W. Baldwin
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1970 978-0-333-00226-1
Modern English adaptation of The Lay-Folks' Mass-Book
copyright © 1970 by Mary Baldwin
All rights reserved. No part of this publication
may be reproduced or transmitted in any form
or by any means without permission.
First published in the United States 1970
First published in the United Kingdom by
Macmillan and Co. Ltd. 1971
Published by
MACMILLAN AND CO LTD
London and Basingstoke
Associated companies in New York Tor onto
Dublin Melbourne Johannesburg and Madras
SBN 333 00226 1 (hard cover)
ISBN 978-1-349-00028-9 ISBN 978-1-349-00026-5 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-00026-5
Contents
Preface
PART I THE PATRISTIC HERITAGE
THE ORGANIZATION OF THE EARLY CHURCH 10
I. St. Clement of Rome, Letter to the Corinthians I o
2. St. Ignatius of Antioch, Letters I 3
3· St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies I8
4· Canons of the Early Ecumenical Councils 20
STATEMENTS OF FAITH 24
5. The Creed of Nicea 24
6. Pope Leo I, Letter to Flavian, Bishop of Constan-
tinople 25
7. The Creed of Chalcedon 27
SACRAMENTS AND LITURGY 28
8. The Didache 28
9· Justin Martyr, The First Apology 30
Io. Hippolytus, On the Apostolic Tradition 34
1 1. The Apostolical Constitutions 36
I 2. Gregory the Great and the Liturgy 40
I 3· Liturgical Hymns of the Patristic Period 42
I4. Sermon of St. John Chrysostom 47
THE RESPUBLICA CHRISTIANA 50
I 5. St. Augustine, The City of God 50
MoNASTICISM 68
I6. The Rule of St. Benedict 68
THE BISHOP AS PASTOR 95
I 7. Gregory the Great, The Pastoral Rule 9 5
PART II THE CAROLINGIAN AGE 109
EccLESIASTICAL 0RGANIZAn oN UNDER RoYAL I I 5
AuTHORITY
CONTENTS
I 8. Charlemagne, Admonitio generalis, Letter to Pope
Leo III, Letter from Alcuin I I 5
I9· Theodulf of Orleans, Precepts and Hymn for Palm
Sunday no
zo. Ardo Smaragdus, Life of Benedict of Aniane and
Inda I3 I
2 I. Halitgar's Roman Penitential I 34
CAROLINGIAN LITURGICAL DocUMENTS I44
22. Charlemagne, Epistola generalis I44
23 · Alcuin, Preface and Additions to the Roman Mass I45
24- Latin the Exclusive Liturgical Language of the West I49
25 . Liturgical Interpretation: Symbolism and Allegory I 52
THE RE-EMERGENcE oF THE PAPAcY I 58
26. Pope Nicholas I, Letters I 58
PART III THE CENTRAL MIDDLE AGES (9oo-I I 5o)
I64
MoNASTIC REFORM I70
27 . Ulrich, Customs of Cluny I70
28. The Cistercian Exordium 177
PAPAL REFORM 181
29. Pope Gregory VII, Dictatus papae I81
3o . Pope Gregory VII, Letters 183
CANON LAW I88
3 I. Gratian, The Concord of Discordant Canons 188
THE THEOLOGY OF THE SACRAMENTS 205
32· Peter Lombard, Four Books of Sentences 205
PoPULAR RELIGION 2I7
33 · Rodulfus Glaber, Five Books of Histories 2I7
34· Reports of Urban II's Speech at Clermont 225
35. The Book of the Pilgrim 229
THE LITURGY: SEQUENCE, TROPE, AND DRAMA
237
36 . The Sequence
237
37· The Quem quaeritis Trope 240
38. The Quem quaeritis "Play" 24I
ST. BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX
243
39· Sermons on the Virgin Mary
243
40. On Consideration
247
CONTENTS
PART IV THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES (I I5o-qoo) 276
PoPE INNOCENT III 283
4 I. Letter to Archbishop Hubert of Canterbury 28 3
42. Letter to the Bishop of Ely 287
THE FouRTH LATERAN CouNCIL ( 12 I 5) 292
43· Innocent III and the Fourth Lateran Council 293
44· Canons of the Council 299
45. Implementation of the Decrees: Robert Grosseteste 32 3
46. Eudes Rigaud's Record of Visitations 334
FRANCISCAN WRITINGS 344
47· The Rule of 1223 344
48. The Rule of the Third Order 350
49· The Canticle of Brother Sun 356
so.
The Stabat mater 357
51· Jacopone da Todi, Donna del paradiso 358
DoMINICAN DocuMENTS 363
52. Raymond of Peiiafort, Constitutions 363
53· Provisions for the Friars Preachers at the Univer-
sity of Paris 36 7
54· Thomas Aquinas, Summa theologica 369
55· Thomas Aquinas, Pange, lingua 379
THE LITERATURE OF PROTEST 380
56. Robert Grosseteste, Memoranda 38I
57· Humbert of the Romans, Passage from the Opus
tripartitum 38 4
58. Bruno of Olmiitz, Memorandum to Pope Gregory X 385
59· The Gospel According to Marks of Silver 389
6o. Protest in Vernacular Poetry 39 1
PRIESTS AND LAYMEN 39 5
61. Sermon Literature 395
62. Jacobus de Voragine, The Golden Legend 397
63. The Lay-Folks' Mass-Book 400
Chronology 413
Index 416
Preface
The selections included in this volume have been chosen to illus
trate the features most characteristic of Christianity in each of four
periods: the early patristic age to the pontificate of Gregory the
Great (d. 6o4), the Carolingian age, the period of European
recovery from the tenth to the mid-twelfth century, and finally
the period from about 1150 to 1300, sometimes called the High
Middle Ages. Partly because of limitations of space, and partly
because they are well covered by readily available translations,
certain categories of Christian documents have been left out or
given scant treatment. Such, for example, are the theological
treatises which deal with controversies between the temporal and
spiritual jurisdictions and the literature of Byzantine Christianity.
What is offered here, therefore, might best be described as a selec
tion of documents illustrating Christian life, largely in the West, in
its varied and changing aspects. I have attempted to be as inclusive
as possible, but often only one or two typical examples could be
presented. To those who miss a favorite selection or to those who
would like to have more, I can but suggest the only remedy appro
priate to such frustrations, a wide and deep reading in the vast field
of Christian literature.
Except where otherwise indicated, the translations have been
prepared by the editor. For expert assistance in this task I am most
grateful to Dr. Sara Sindel of the Department of Classics of Emory
University.
M.W.B.
I
The Patristic Heritage
The foundation and early growth of Christianity coincided in secular
history with the establishment of the Roman principate under Au
gustus, its gradual transformation into a monarchy and empire, its
decline, and the first settlements of Germans on Roman soil. For the
first three Christian centuries the Roman government, though not
continuously persecuting, was officially hostile. By the early fourth
century, although Christians were still far from a majority, Christian
communities were to be found everywhere and governmental policy
changed. Following the Edict of Milan, promulgated by the emperor
Constantine in A.D. 313, the Church was able to establish itself on a
permanent basis throughout the Roman world and to begin pushing
beyond. By the time of the death of the emperor Theodosius (A.D.
395), simple toleration by the imperial government had become official
support. Thus the empire of the late fourth and early fifth centuries
was a Christian empire and its laws included provisions for ecclesiasti
cal matters.
This same fifth century witnessed the occupation of large areas in
the West by Germanic peoples. A temporary calm established by
Theodoric, the Ostrogothic king (d. sz6), was followed first by the
partial reconquest of the West by the emperor Justinian (527-65), and
then by the occupation of most of the interior of Italy by the Lorn
bards. By the time of Pope Gregory the Great (59o-6o4), Roman rule
in Italy was restricted to Ravenna, Rome, Naples, parts of the south,
and Sicily. Moreover, any semblance of jurisdiction over the kingdoms
of the Franks in Gaul or of the Visigoths in Spain was rapidly dis
appearing; and Britain was irretrievably lost.
The consequences for Christianity of the transformation of the
ancient Roman world were profound. For while the eastern provinces
of the empire maintained the traditional forms of administration, the
West, divided among the Germanic kingdoms, failed to preserve
Roman governmental institutions. As a consequence, ecclesiastical
dealings with the East followed a more or less traditional manner,
while the problems of the West required an altogether different
approach. Moreover, the cultural separation between the Greco
Oriental East, the "Byzantine" world as it was later designated, and the