About the Work
The Hymnarius Paraclitensis is a collection of liturgical hymns composed by Peter Abelard for the Paraclete, the community of nuns led by Heloissa. The work survives through two principal manuscript witnesses: the Brussels codex (No. 10147-10158), a membranaceous mixed codex of ninety-six folios written by more than one scribe, none later than the thirteenth century, containing ninety-three hymns divided into three books; and the Calmontanus codex (Chaumont), a membranaceous Breviary of 245 folios written in the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century, adapted to Paraclete use. The Calmontanus codex is the only surviving liturgical monument of the Paraclete; no Missal, Breviary, Antiphonary, or Gradual from that community has otherwise been spared by time.
The hymns were composed at Heloissa’s request, as Abelard himself testifies in a dedicatory epistle prefixed to his book of sermons, where he mentions a little book of hymns recently completed at her behest. The collection includes hymns for the weekdays (ferial hymns), hymns for the seasons of the liturgical year (de tempore), and hymns for saints’ feasts. The hymns are accompanied in the surviving witnesses by prefatory notes, and the third book is divided into series or chapters. The editor of the modern edition, Guido Maria Dreves, S.J., prepared the text from both codices, collating the Brussels codex anew and using the Calmontanus codex to correct many of its errors. The hymns were long thought lost; in the early seventeenth century, when an edition of Abelard and Heloissa was being prepared at Amboise, the hymns were already lamented as lost. They were rediscovered when Oehler fell upon the Brussels codex and found ninety-three hymns of the Paraclete. Victor Cousin first edited all the hymns in order from Oehler’s copy, collated again with the codex, and Pitra of the Solesmes family later made a new edition inserted in Patrologiae cursus completus, volume 178. All earlier editors relied on the single Brussels codex, which was not free of faults and did not contain all hymns; after the ninety-three hymns, the beginnings of a fourth book appear at the end of that volume, and in the preface to the third book the author testifies he composed five hymns on the cross, though only four or three are found in the codex.
Context
The hymns belong to the twelfth century, the period of Abelard’s flourishing, and were composed for the Paraclete, the oratory and later convent founded by Abelard and governed by Heloissa. The editor of the modern edition, Dreves, states he will not recount Abelard’s life and varied fortunes, as many have written on them, though they differ in their accounts; he omits Abelard’s deeds because he believes the most learned are inflamed more by Abelard’s own letter to a friend, commonly called his Historia calamitatum, than by any other account. The hymns themselves must be understood against the background of Abelard’s wider literary activity, which included sermons, a Hexaemeron (commentary on the six days of creation), and the famous exchange of letters with Heloissa.
Heloissa’s testimony in her letter to Abelard (the second among his letters) attests that Abelard had two gifts that could attract any woman: the grace of composing verses (dictandi) and of singing (cantandi). She says he left many songs composed in amatory meter or rhythm, which, because of their sweetness, kept his name on everyone’s lips, made even the unlettered remember him, and made women sigh for love of him. These songs told of their loves and made him known in many regions, inciting envy among many women. This agrees with what Abelard confesses in chapter VI of his Historia calamitatum: that he found it wearisome to go to schools, keeping night vigils for love and days for study; his reading became negligent, and he produced nothing from genius but only from habit, being a reciter of old inventions; if he could compose songs, they were amatory, not philosophical secrets. Many of these songs were still sung in many regions, especially by those whom a similar life delighted. Posterity has been defrauded of these famous songs; nothing survives except six planctus (laments), recently published by Wilhelm Meyer of Speyer, and the Carmen Astralabii. The hymns nearly all perished.
The editor’s discovery and use of the Calmontanus codex is significant for the textual history. Its existence was not unknown: in 1855 J. Carnandet, keeper of the Calmontana library, published a fairly accurate description; in 1878 Leo Gauthier, in his work on the French epic, noted that a great number of unpublished hymns lay hidden in the Paraclete Breviary. Dreves, visiting famous French libraries to gather material for Analecta hymnica, obtained the codex’s transmission to Paris with the kindness of A. Martin, keeper of that library. After examining it thoroughly, he decided to edit not only the unpublished hymns but all of them anew, and he again collated the Brussels codex. Though the Calmontanus codex is not of great antiquity, it is very useful; it is closer to Abelard than the oldest codices of Demosthenes, Cicero, or Horace are to their authors.
Structure of the Book
The collection of hymns is organized into three books, as attested by the prefatory notes in the Brussels codex. The first book contains feral (weekday) hymns, the second hymns on the seasons (de tempore), and the third hymns for saints’ feasts. Within the first book, the hymns are arranged by the days of the week and by the liturgical hours. The weekday hymns for the office of Matins follow the six days of creation: hymns for the first day (Sunday) through the sixth day (Friday), with a hymn for Saturday celebrating the completion of creation and God’s rest. Each of these hymns takes up the works of that particular day of creation—light, the firmament, the separation of waters and the appearance of dry land with its plants, the creation of the sun, moon, and stars, the creation of fish and birds, the creation of terrestrial animals and of man, and finally God’s rest on the seventh day.
The first book also contains a second series of hymns for the daytime hours (diurni), beginning with hymns for Sunday at Lauds and Prime, with hymns for the little hours following. The hymns for the seasons of the liturgical year in the second book cover the major feasts of the temporal cycle: the Nativity, the Epiphany, the Passion, Easter, the Ascension, and Pentecost, among others. The third book contains hymns for saints’ feasts, including feasts of the apostles (Peter, Paul, John), martyrs, confessors, holy women, the Holy Innocents, Mary Magdalene, and the feast of All Saints, as well as hymns for the dedication of a church.
The hymns for the dedication of a church (LXXIII–LXXVI) provide a detailed picture of the liturgical rite: the first nocturn hymn references the Jewish feast of the Dedication (encaenia) in Jerusalem; the second nocturn hymn describes the blessing of water, the mixing of salt, the triple sprinkling of the temple, the lighting of twelve lamps placed in a circle, the bishop’s threefold circuit of the temple sprinkling, his striking the door’s front three times with a rod, and his command that the doors open so the King of Glory may enter; the third nocturn hymn describes the pontiff preparing himself at the altar, mixing water, salt, ashes, and earth, making the sign of the cross with a twice-dipped finger on the altar’s horns, sprinkling the altar seven times with a hyssop sprinkler, wetting the inner walls three times, pouring the remaining water at the altar’s base, burning incense, signing the altar and its corners with oil, anointing the altar with chrism while an antiphon is sung, chrismating twelve crosses on the walls, covering the altar, and making the sacrifice; the Lauds hymn describes the house of God and the faithful people devoting themselves to psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with Christ protecting His house, the shepherd guarding His flock, angels keeping watch, and Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel each fulfilling their ministries.
The collection concludes with hymns for the feasts of holy women and for All Saints. The hymns for holy women celebrate the virgin martyr as a holocaust, the wonder of women’s constancy overcoming exquisite tortures, the fidelity of the virgin spouse to her spouse, and her advance like dawn rising to the celestial spouse’s bed. The hymns for Mary Magdalene celebrate the blessed sinner’s feast as most rejoicing sinners, with none to despair after her. The hymns for All Saints describe the solemnity as gladdening the faithful, with what is owed individually paid collectively; the feast joins old just men’s memories with martyrs’ birthdays, and after prophets and martyrs come church princes, soldiers, foot-soldiers, then virgins’ chorus—roses, lilies, crocus flowers woven. The Pantheon, emptied of idols, is dedicated to saints’ memories, and people and pontiff gather yearly.
Detailed Section-by-Section Summary
The Editor’s Task and the Fate of Abelard’s Hymns
The Prolegomena opens with the editor, Guido Maria Dreves, S.J., declaring his intention to refrain from recounting the life and varied fortunes of Peter Abelard. Many have already written on these matters, though their accounts differ. Dreves believes that the most learned readers are inflamed more by Abelard’s own letter to a friend, commonly called his Historia calamitatum, than by any other narrative, and so he omits Abelard’s deeds entirely.
The editor then turns to the testimony that Abelard himself wrote hymns. In a dedicatory epistle to Heloissa, prefixed to his book of sermons, Abelard mentions a little book of hymns recently completed at her request. This great labor of composing and adorning songs is confirmed by the testimony of both Abelard and his wife. In a letter to her husband—the second among Abelard’s letters—Heloissa states that Abelard possessed two gifts that could attract any woman: the grace of composing verses (dictandi) and of singing (cantandi). She recalls that he left many songs composed in amatory meter or rhythm, which, because of their sweetness, kept his name on everyone’s lips, made even the unlettered remember him, and caused women to sigh for love of him. These songs told of their loves, made him known in many regions, and incited envy among many women. This agrees with what Abelard confesses in chapter VI of his Historia calamitatum: that he found it wearisome to go to schools, keeping night vigils for love and days for study. His reading became negligent, and he produced nothing from genius but only from habit, being a reciter of old inventions. If he could compose songs, they were amatory, not philosophical secrets. Many of these songs were still sung in many regions, especially by those whom a similar life delighted.
Posterity, however, has been defrauded of these famous songs. Nothing survives except six planctus (laments), recently published by Wilhelm Meyer of Speyer, and the Carmen Astralabii. The hymns nearly all perished. In the early seventeenth century, when an edition of Abelard and Heloissa was being prepared at Amboise, the hymns were already lost and lamented by Clément, who counted them among the desired works of Peter. Then Oehler, by fortune, fell upon the Brussels codex 10158 and rejoiced to find ninety-three hymns of the Paraclete. After Oehler, E. Gachet and E. du Méril published a few from the same codex, but Victor Cousin first edited all the hymns in order from Oehler’s copy, collated again with the codex. Pitra of the Solesmes family then made a new, somewhat more accurate edition, inserted in Patrologiae cursus completus, volume 178. All relied on the single Brussels codex, which was not free of faults and did not contain all hymns. After the ninety-three hymns, the beginnings of a fourth book appear at the end of the volume; in the preface to the third book of hymns, the author testifies he composed five hymns on the cross, but only four or three are found in the codex.
The editor finds it wonderful that no one has studied another codex, containing a considerable number of hymns, kept in the Calmontana library (Chaumont). The existence of this codex was not unknown: in 1855 J. Carnandet, keeper of the Calmontana library, published a fairly accurate description; in 1878 Leo Gauthier, in his work on the French epic, noted that a great number of unpublished hymns lay hidden in the Paraclete Breviary. The editor, visiting famous French libraries to gather material for Analecta hymnica, did not omit Calmontana. With the kindness of A. Martin, keeper of that library, he obtained the codex’s transmission to Paris. After examining it thoroughly, he decided to edit not only the unpublished hymns but all of them anew, and he again collated the Brussels codex.
The Brussels codex (No. 10147-10158) is membranaceous, 96 folios, incomplete at the end, 15.5 cm high, 11.5 cm wide, a mixed codex (recueil), written by more than one scribe, none later than the thirteenth century. From folio 81 to the end, written by a hand of at least the thirteenth century, without titles, run ninety-three hymns, divided into three books with prefatory notes: the first contains feral (weekday) hymns, the second hymns on the seasons (de tempore), the third hymns for saints’ feasts.
The Calmontanus codex is membranaceous, 245 folios, 18 cm high, 13.5 cm wide, written in the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century. It is a Breviary, not complete, but a diurnale adapted to Paraclete use. Though not of great antiquity, it is very useful. It is closer to Abelard (who flourished in the twelfth century) than the oldest codices of Demosthenes, Cicero, or Horace are to their authors. It is the only liturgical monument of the Paraclete that has survived; no Missal, Breviary, Antiphonary, or Gradual has been spared by time. Though the codex has many faults, it is not inferior to the Brussels codex, and the editor was able to remove many of the latter’s errors with its help.
The Editorial Preface and Textual Notes
The editor then provides a critical preface and textual notes surrounding hymns I through IX. He observes that the Gallican church then used the same psalter version as now—the Itala corrected by Jerome. Abelard allegedly wished to substitute Jerome’s Hebrew-based version, which Jerome himself declined. The editor argues that Abelard only claims the ancient version’s author is unknown, with Jerome adding few corrections to its corruptions. “Apocrypha” here means “anonymous,” not “non-canonical.” Psalms 118:55, 62, 164 and 62:7 are cited. Hymn incipits are identified from Daniel’s Thesaurus hymnologicus and Dreves’ Analecta hymnica (e.g., Consors paterni luminis, Rerum creator optime, Tu Trinitatis unitas, Summae Deus clementiae). Pitra omitted seu reliqua after “Sic et matutini contra fidem,” words needed for sense. Hymn sources include Prudentius’ Cathemerinon and an ancient hymn on St. Martin.
For Hymn I, variants include Glorificent (BG), Actor es (BG, “actor” for “auctor”). The meter is scanned. The editor notes Abelard alludes to Plato’s Timaeus 29a and Phaedrus 247a on divine goodness. The hymn defends “moderate” optimism—not Plato’s absolute optimism—since God could always create better. Abelard’s Hexaemeron exposition (Migne 178, 766) is quoted: all things were made “as good as they ought to be.” Hymn II discusses triple intelligence (moral, mystical, historical), quoting Abelard’s Hexaemeron on moral exposition (faith, hope, charity) versus mystical (prefiguring Christ’s grace). Hymn III: “Intelligibilis” means “intelligent.” Abelard alludes to Job 38:4,7 (morning stars = angels, per Bede). The editor compares Notker’s sequence on the Spirit brooding over waters; Jerome notes Hebrew merachephet means “incubating” like a bird. Basil (Hexaemeron homily 2), Diodore of Tarsus, Augustine, and Ambrose are cited. Abelard’s own Hexaemeron distinguishes translations: “volitabat,” “fovebat,” “ferebatur.” Hymn IV: On waters above the heavens—Abelard rejects the flood theory (Psalm 148:4 proves waters remain), favors their tempering the celestial fire. Hymn V: Fruit trees in paradise; obedience (citing Wisdom 3:21, Romans 8:20); sacrificial praise (Psalms 26:6, 115:17). Hymn VI: Planets moved by spirits or divine will; astronomy useful for weather/medicine but not contingent futures—such claims are “diabolical.” Augustine on poverty (Enarr. in Ps. 127); angels as ministering spirits (Hebrews 1:14). Hymn VII: Gryphons (eagle-lion) symbolize Christ in Dante; Philologus describes griffons in Indian deserts; Augustine on dragons (Ps. 148). Hymn VIII: Whether God could create the world without man—Ambrose and Abelard say no; man as final cause. Image vs. likeness: man alone is God’s image, woman his likeness (following Augustine, 1 Cor. 11:7); Bede’s mystical reading; paradise and human multiplication. Hymn IX: “Valde bona”—nothing in creation is evil or superfluous; even pruned vine-branches serve fire.
Hymns for the Weekday Office (Ad Matutinum)
The hymns themselves then begin. Hymn V, for Feria Tertia at Matins, calls the third day’s works to praise. God gathered the lower waters and uncovered the earth. The revealed earth sprouts herb and tree of every kind. God prepares the place to place man, the prince of the earth. We are accused if we despise the Creator, who demands reason for all things from us, since He made all for us. The world, made ornate for us, disputes against us if grace does not subject us to God, to whom He subjected all things. We please Him with praises whom we provoke with deeds; psalm-instruction teaches how great a sacrifice of praise is due.
Hymn VI, for Feria Quarta at Matins, notes that plants adorned the earth; now luminaries adorn heaven—sun, moon, stars, whose many uses are known. They distinguish light and times, serving as sure signs; planetary physics administers nearly all earthly goods. Consider, man, these made for you; heaven’s region confesses itself yours by their service. The poor man lacking fire has the sun in winter and moon and stars for night-light. The rich lie on ivory beds, the poor on grassy ones; birdsong delights the one, flower-fragrance breathes for the other. Rich man, you build a falling house with excessive expense, painting your ceiling with false sun and false stars in heaven’s likeness; but in the true heaven’s chamber the poor man lies most beautifully—the Lord painted that for him with true sun and true stars. Nature’s work exceeds man’s, prepared by neither labor nor expense, nor dissolved by age. Man serves the rich man, but the angel serves the poor—showing heavenly things are subjected to us by God.
Hymn VII, for Feria Quinta at Matins, observes that with the upper parts of the world adorned with light, the lower places remain to be adorned from those things from which light was made. The waters bring forth reptiles and birds; at one command fish and fowl came forth in their species. Great whales and small oysters are made at once; in one moment the greatest gryphon and the small sparrow are perfected. He spoke and they were made; He commanded and they were created—He completes great and small alike, to whom all things are equally easy.
Hymn VIII, for Feria Sexta at Matins, says praise attends the sixth day, for which other praises are owed, when man is formed last, all things being prepared for him. On this day terrestrial animals are created—every reptile of earth, every kind of beast. Man, made last of all, is to preside over all; all things looked to him as their single end. The highest is created, in whom the sum of works stands; in this end divine reason of counsel is fulfilled. This one noble formation in which You shine, Lord—the glory of Your image and of Your likeness. The man first, then the woman from the man’s rib, after sleep is sent upon the man, by which the great sacrament is borne. The other animals are given into their power; they enjoy Paradise’s temple as most pleasing tabernacles.
Hymn IX, for Sabbato at Matins, proclaims that God, having perfected all things and inspected His works, supremely good, sees and approves all He made as very good. All things are perfected in the number six of days, so that the virtue of the number attests the perfected work of days. He rested on the seventh day, not wearied in anything; that rest is God Himself, perpetual, in whom are all joys of rest. He sanctifies the day on which He rested by ceasing; in the mystery of the true Sabbath He blesses the seventh day—that Sabbath which knows no end, where true peace, highest tranquility, keeps perpetual festivals.
Hymns for the Daytime Hours
The second part of the hymns, the diurnal hymns, begins with Hymn X, for Sunday at Lauds. Truth has come, the shadow passed; after night, day’s brightness has come. At the rising of the supernal light, the mysteries of the Law, full of darkness, shine. Let Moses’
The Dedication of a Church
The four hymns for the Dedication of a Church move from the physical act of consecration to its spiritual meaning. The first nocturn hymn opens by recalling the Jewish feast of the Dedication in Jerusalem, when the Lord’s presence was celebrated in the temple. The hymn asks Christ to be present at today’s feast as the true King of the present basilica, praying that He consecrate the temple of the heart and join inner realities to outward signs. A doxology honors the Father, Son, and Spirit equally.
The second nocturn hymn states plainly that the visible temple is a sign of the spiritual reality; all done outwardly is done mystically within. It describes the blessing of water, the mixing of salt, and the triple sprinkling of the temple. Twelve lamps are lit and placed in a circle. The bishop walks around the temple three times sprinkling, strikes the door’s front three times with a rod above, then commands the doors to open so the King of Glory may enter. Inside, he offers prayers first for himself, then for the people. He imprints the alphabet twice, with crossed lines forming the sign of the cross. The hymn repeats the inner/outer completion prayer and doxology.
The third nocturn hymn details the pontiff preparing himself at the altar, mixing water, salt, ashes, and earth. With a twice-dipped finger he makes the sign of the cross on the altar’s horns. Holding a hyssop sprinkler, he sprinkles the altar seven times. After wetting the inner walls three times, he prays the Lord hears those there. Turning back to the altar, a psalm with antiphon is said. The remaining water is poured at the altar’s base; a clean linen cloth is at hand. The priest burns incense to the Lord; the altar and its corners are signed with oil. The altar is anointed with chrism while an antiphon is sung. Twelve crosses on the walls are chrismated; the altar is covered and the sacrifice made. The hymn again repeats the inner/outer prayer and doxology.
The Lauds hymn turns from the building to the people. The house of God and the faithful devote themselves to psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Christ protects His house and the shepherd guards His flock, repelling invisible wolves. Angels keep watch over the faithful. Michael is sent to crush proud Satan; Raphael to heal the wounded; Gabriel strengthens wavering hearts and aids the steadfast. The heavenly palace should not lack celestial ministers; all things are ordered by their ministry. They offer the people’s prayers to Christ and teach what to vow and pray. The faithful should ask nothing vain or with void vows. Whoever pours out prayers here should rejoice in obtaining what he asked. No Gehazi, no Simonian, no heretic should corrupt Christ’s flock. Whoever drives them from the house and whoever brings them back will feel His wrath. A doxology concludes.
The Editorial Notes on the Second Book
The editorial notes begin with a preface discussing the threefold genre of sacred poetry, citing Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16. The editor references Ferdinand Wolf, Hilliger, and Thierfelder as interpreters, and quotes Augustine’s definition of a hymn as a song with praise of God, and Cassiodorus on metrical composition. A lengthy discussion follows on the Therapeutae controversy: Eusebius held they were Christians; since the sixteenth century some said Jews or Greeks; Lucius in 1879 said Christians and monks but denied Philo’s authorship; Massebieau in 1888 restored Philo and Jewish identity; Nirschl in 1890 combined both views. Jerome is cited on Hebrew rhythm and metre.
The notes then proceed hymn by hymn. For Hymn XXX, the editor notes variant readings in manuscripts B and G, discusses the metre, and the Virgin conceiving by word and faith, citing Guido de Basochis, Bonaventure’s hymn, and Augustine. For Hymn XXXI, variants are given, along with Abelard’s own Sermon 2 on the Nativity, Augustine and Leo the Great on Christ’s birth, and Gregory the Great on Bethlehem as “house of bread.” For Hymn XXXII, variants are noted, with Alanus ab Insulis on geometry failing before the Incarnation and Peter Damiani’s hymn. For Hymn XXXIII, variants are given, Isaiah 7:14 is cited, and Mary is presented as mediatrix for sinners, with a Dutch prayer-book example. For Hymn XXXIV, variants are noted, the Epiphany hymns’ metre is discussed, and extensive quotations from Orosius cover Augustus’s triple triumph, the oil fountain, the closed gates of Janus, and the rejection of the title “Dominus,” with notes on later embellishments by Gotifredus Viterbiensis, Jacobus de Voragine, and German songs. For Hymn XXXV, variants are given, with Ambrose on the new star and Abelard’s own Sermon 4 on the star and dove as newly created elements. For Hymn XXXVI, variants are noted, including a correction of Pitra’s note on a “corrupt” line, with Ambrose-attributed sermons on Christ’s baptism purifying the waters, Abelard’s sermon on prayer after baptism, and Ambrosiaster on the dove’s likeness to Christ. For Hymn XXXVII, variants are given, with Augustine on the Jews’ blindness regarding Christ.
On the Jews and Christ
The commentary continues with a quotation from Abelard’s Sermon 91 on Matthew 22:40, stating that all nations are blessed in Christ. The sermon explains that Christ called himself a stone, citing prophecy. If one stumbles on this stone, it breaks him; when it lies low, it shatters the one who stumbles, and when it comes in glory, it crushes the proud. The Jews have already been shattered by this stumbling, and it remains for them to be crushed by his glorious coming, unless they recognize him while living, lest they die.
A sermon falsely attributed to Ambrose says Jews are told via Isaiah 6:9 that they would see but not perceive, meaning they saw the savior with bodily eyes but not spiritual light. After his miracles, he appeared as new and unexpected, pouring light into human minds so that understanding might know what sight did not. Thus, Christians contemplate Christ by faith, whom they never saw, while Jews, who saw and touched him, do not see him to this day.
Augustine is cited in Epistle 137 saying the Jewish people, uprooted for unbelief, are scattered worldwide, carrying the holy codices as testimony to prophecy, so that the prophecy of Christ and the church is not thought to be a fiction invented by us, but is produced by the adversaries themselves, who were predicted not to believe. The commentary then discusses Sermon 45 on Isaiah 57:13, where the mountain of Judah grows but did not fill the whole earth by growing, because although the Jews filled the earth, they were conquered and lost their land, scattered as punishment for their merits, not by greatness of increase.
Textual Notes on Hymns XXXVIII–LIII
The editor provides variant readings from manuscripts B, G, and C. For Hymn XXXVIII, the editor prefers the reading “Prudentes illae virgines” from Codex Galmont. For line 3,3, the Brussels codex reads “Domus dis cum omnibus,” which Pitra misread as “Domini dominis,” but Abelard uses no elisions. For Hymn XXXIX, the editor notes that “pauper quidem hostia” in B requires “haec” to be supplied, as Codex Galmont shows. For Hymn XL, the editor notes the source in Ezekiel 40, but cannot find where Abelard got his interpretation. Jerome interprets the measuring reed as prophetic grace, and Abelard agrees, citing Paul as a wise architect. For Hymn XLI, the words “Virum… peperit” allude to Jeremiah 31:22, and the text refers to the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin and the sanctification of John the Baptist. For Hymn XLII, the editor notes Cyprian on Christ as the day, and quotes Ambrose’s morning hymn. Augustine is cited on Judas being in Christ’s hands, and on the wolf in sheep’s clothing. For Hymn XLIII, the text quotes a responsory about Judas the merchant, and a German folk song. Abelard’s sermon XI is quoted at length, addressing Judas as “most shameless traitor,” detailing his theft, his betrayal for money, his presence at the supper, and his kiss. For Hymn XLIV, the editor compares Abelard’s sermon on compassion, noting the temple veil torn, the earth shaking, and the sun darkened. The editor notes that hymns XLII–XLIV are one in Codex Galmont, divided by the editor. For Hymn XLV, the editor notes Augustine on the anointed one, explaining that “Christ” comes from chrism, and that kings and priests were anointed. For hymns XLVI–XLIX, the editor compares them to later medieval passion hours, citing Mone’s collection. For Hymn L, the editor notes a missing word he supplied as “colitur.” For Hymn LI, the editor cites Augustine on women’s stronger affection, and Ambrose on the women at the tomb. “Arietes gregis” means the apostles, who toss heretics with the horns of both testaments. For Hymn LII, the editor notes only one hymn for the nocturns of Holy Saturday exists in Codex Galmont, and explains the rule for which hymns to use. Augustine is quoted on Christ’s “Consummatum est” and his power to lay down his life. Ambrose is quoted on Christ having no tomb of his own, as he was victor over death. For Hymn LIII, the editor notes the source in the Physiologus, quoting the Greek text about the lion reviving its cub on the third day, and the Phoenix, which fills its wings with spices and goes to Heliopolis.
The Phoenix and the Resurrection
The commentary on the phoenix continues with a description of the bird ascending the altar, igniting itself from aromatic spices, and being consumed. The priest returns on subsequent days to find first a small worm, then a formed bird, and finally the perfect phoenix which salutes the priest and flies to its former place. The editor cites Cahier et Martin, and references Vitreaux de Bourges, with the Greek text in Lauchert. Augustine is quoted saying the phoenix pertains to resurrection of bodies, not destruction of souls’ sex. The editor notes a German carmen using this trope for nativity, not resurrection: “Der ewig gott verjunget ward / Als Fenix in dem fewre.”
The editor then quotes Abelard’s own sermon on the phoenix, which agrees with the hymn. Abelard says the bird is unique, neither male nor female, builds no nest, prepares a sepulchre-structure from aromatic branches, dies, is dissolved to ashes by the sun’s heat, then is revived like a bee, gradually putting on wings and feathers, returning to its former state. Abelard applies each detail to Christ: uniqueness fits Christ’s excellence and virginity; the apostle says in Christ there is neither male nor female; the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head; Joseph and Nicodemus prepared sepulchre and aromas; the burning corresponds to the paschal lamb roasted, not boiled; the bee-form signifies incorruption, for in resurrection glory they neither marry nor are given in marriage.
The Lion of Judah and the Defeat of the Devil
For Hymn LIV, the editor quotes Ambrose on “Catulus leonis Juda” — the lion and lion’s whelp express Father and Son, showing unity of nature and power. Ambrose continues that Christ slept in the sepulchre as in a bodily sleep, quoting Psalm 3:6, and asks who shall rouse him except himself by his own and the Father’s power. For Hymn LV, Beda on Genesis 49:9 interprets “ascendisti” as leading captivity captive, with ascension signifying resurrection. For Hymn LVI, Pseudo-Beda on Psalm 109:7 explains the torrent as the flow of our mortality, from which the Word of God drank by being born, dying, suffering. For Hymn LVII, Augustine on Psalm 33 says David prefigures Christ, Goliath the devil. The editor notes Abelard’s view that Christ felled the enemy by death as if by a sword not his own, since death did not suit him but was assumed “de nostro.” Abelard’s sermon XIII is quoted on the two days of passion and burial being spent in compassionate mourning so that joy after weeping is sweeter.
For Hymn LVIII, the editor discusses the meter of paschal hymns. On “Zabulus” as death, Augustine says the devil is called death not because he is death but because death comes through him; Gregory the Great similarly identifies malign spirits as inventors of death. Augustine distinguishes first temporal death from second eternal death. The hook-and-bait trope is traced: Ambrose first used it in a paschal hymn; Hermannus Contractus, Notkerus, and Adamus a S. Victore all use it. Gregory explains Leviathan was caught on the hook of incarnation — the passible flesh visible, impassible divinity hidden; the devil unjustly sought Christ’s death and lost those he justly held.
The Apostola Apostolorum and the Renewal of Spring
For Hymn LIX, the editor notes Abelard’s sermon XIII on Mary the prophetess from Exodus 15:1. Mary, a virgin, prefigured the Church; “prophetes” means “videns”
The Feast of Holy Women and All Saints
The hymns for the feasts of holy women begin with a profound meditation on the nature of virgin martyrdom. The virgin is described as whole in spirit and body, becoming a true holocaust, a complete burnt offering, from the moment of her virgin birth. The Old Testament types of the red heifer and the tender calf prefigure her sacrifice—shadow there, truth here, if the signs are rightly compared. Having first consecrated her heart to God, she now consecrates her body through the executioner; the spirit, already given to God, exposes the flesh fearlessly to the enemy. The doxology gives honor and glory to Him who did so many wonders.
The poet then reflects on the wonder of God’s power, which excels in martyrs’ victories. But when He grants victory to women, who would not prefer this grace, for the weaker the sex, the more wonderful the virtue? Women’s constancy overcomes exquisite tortures; either their virtue is wonderful or the agony’s pain is easy, and both are better accomplished by God’s disposing. Love is strong as death, and many waters cannot extinguish invincible charity’s flame; with this, the sex is never weak, however fragile. The hymn challenges the stronger sex to blush, asking what bearded young men will say when delicate virgins bear these things.
The third nocturn praises the virgin’s faithfulness to her spouse, taught by both her life and her death—she kept her body intact and offered herself as a holocaust. The refrain echoes: virgin spouse, virgin spouse; spouse martyr, spouse martyr. Such a spouse befits such a bride, following wherever he goes; neither sacred flesh’s beauty nor death’s disparity divides their love. Others follow the spouse, but she walks at his side. As queen holding the spouse’s right hand, she possesses the crowns; her gilded vesture shines—gold incorrupt and radiant. The garland woven with roses and lilies marks martyr and virgin: the martyr offers the rose, the virgin the lily. White linen and red purple give her insignia, and her steps in shoes are praised by the spouse in the Canticles.
At Lauds, she advances like dawn rising, joined to the celestial spouse’s bed. Here she is betrothed in faith, there she cohabits as wife—here a covenant in faith, there perpetual union. Angels as paranymphs escort her; the angelic pomp leads her to heavenly joys. Virgins meet virgin, martyrs meet martyr. Who can say what glory she enjoys in the spouse’s embrace? These things eye has not seen nor human hearts conceived, prepared by God from eternal times.
The feasts of holy women draw a parallel between the wound and the healing: from both sexes we drew the wound, from both we received healing; God put on man in the virgin. Salvation arose from woman where guilt began. The more abject the sex after the fall, the more divine clemency exalted it. Countless virgins, widows, even prostitutes like Magdalene and the Egyptian woman show virtue abounding where sin abounded. Deborah the judge, Judith who struck Holofernes, the mother of seven brothers, Jephtha’s daughter who chose death rather than defraud her father’s vow—these exemplify women’s fortitude. Esther alone freed the people. Women anointed Christ’s feet and first saw the risen Lord.
The feast of St. Mary Magdalene most rejoices sinners; none should despair after her. A contrite heart and troubled spirit are more pleasing than holocausts; there one slays inner vices, here animals outwardly. The felicitous harlot offered realities for signs. The Pharisee, ignorant of the Lord’s clemency, thought it ignorance; the heart’s Judge judged his murmur. Seven demons loosed show faith’s and love’s worth.
The solemnity of all saints gladdens the faithful; what we owe individually we pay collectively. Christ is the head; to Him all power, wisdom, grace are subject. The feast joins old just men’s memories with martyrs’ birthdays; after prophets and martyrs come church princes, soldiers, foot-soldiers, then the virgins’ chorus—roses, lilies, crocus flowers woven. The Pantheon, emptied of idols, is dedicated to saints’ memories; people and pontiff gather yearly.
The Editorial Apparatus: Sources and Textual Notes
The editor’s apparatus cites two manuscripts throughout, B (Brussels codex) and G, with folio references for each hymn. Variant readings are recorded for each, including corrections by Pitra, who edited the text. For hymn LXXXVIII, Pitra supplied the missing word valet in line 2,3. The editor notes that B has rybes as a scribal error where Pitra claims the codex clearly reads rubeo, though Cousin printed rybes.
The editor traces Abelard’s allusions to Augustine, Paul, Gregory, Jerome, and Bede. For hymn LXXXVIII, Paul’s words from 1 Corinthians 2:4 are quoted on preaching “not in persuasive words of human wisdom but in the power of God.” Augustine’s Enarrationes in Psalmos 36 is cited on God choosing the weak to confound the strong—making fishermen into orators, senators, emperors. Augustine’s Sermon 43 on Isaiah is quoted at length: if Christ had first chosen an orator, that orator would claim election by merit of eloquence; instead God says “Give me that fisherman, give me the unlearned one… When I have filled him, it will be manifest that I am working.”
The editor notes that medieval hymnographers inserted names of pagans and philosophers into liturgical hymns, citing the famous judgment-day poem “Audi tellus” from a 1340 Gradual of Granenburg, which asks where Plato, Porphyry, Tully, Virgil, Thales, Empedocles, and Aristotle are now. Similar verses naming Abaddon (Hebrew), Apollyon (Greek), and “the Destroyer” (Latin) reflect the secular scholar songs popular in that age.
For hymn XC, Saint Peter, the editor quotes Abelard’s Sermon 23 on Peter’s solemnity and the keys: though binding was said to all apostles, only Peter received the keys of heaven; the universal Church is Christ’s kingdom given into Peter’s power so that nothing happens without the Roman pontiff’s ordination or permission. For hymn XCI, Saint Paul, the editor assigns this hymn to Paul’s feast rather than Peter and Paul jointly, noting it fits the Conversion feast in the Paraclete Breviary. Abelard’s Sermon 25 on Paul’s conversion is cited, including Jerome’s words to Pammachius that reading Paul sounds like thunder, not words. The rhinoceros imagery from Job is explained: Paul as the wild unicorn bound by divine reins, tamed from his former savagery to draw God’s plow, breaking the clods of valleys—derived from Gregory’s Moralia book 31.
For hymn XCII, Saint John, Augustine’s Tractate 36 on John is quoted extensively: John as the eagle soaring above the other evangelists who walked on earth with the human Lord; John rose above earth, air, heaven, and all angelic hosts to the Word through whom all things were made. “He belched what he had drunk”—reclining on the Lord’s breast at supper, he drank in secret and proclaimed openly. Augustine’s eagle-testing analogy follows: eaglets are suspended by the father’s talon facing the sun; those who gaze steadily are recognized as true offspring.
The Winepress, Martyrs, and Holy Innocents
The cross is understood as the Lord’s winepress, from Isaiah 63:3 (“I have trodden the winepress alone”). The grape is Christ; Hermann Contractus’s Easter sequence says “You are priest and victim, treading the winepress alone.” The four living creatures of Ezekiel 1 and Revelation 4 are the four evangelists—Christ’s quadriga. Cassiodorus on Canticles 6 is quoted: the gospel preaching as a swift quadriga flying through the world, with Christ as charioteer. The two bearers of the grape cluster from Numbers 13 signify the two peoples: the elder (Jews) carrying Christ without seeing him; the younger (Gentiles) seeing and following.
The editor provides metrical schemata for martyr hymns and the doxology. Augustine’s Sermon 313 on Cyprian is cited on spiritual armor. Gregory’s Moralia on the mustard seed: unless crushed, its strength is unknown; so saints seem contemptible until persecution grinds them, revealing their hidden fervor. Adam of St. Victor’s sequence on Lawrence is quoted on the mustard seed’s power. Augustine’s City of God I.8 is cited: under one fire gold gleams and chaff smokes; the same force tests and purifies the good, damns and destroys the wicked.
For the Holy Innocents, the editor notes Prudentius’s verses on the massacre. For hymn CII, Pitra’s claim that the Brussels codex lacks verses is corrected—the editor shows nothing is missing; Pitra wrongly made Augustus recite Abelard’s lines. The editor quotes Macrobius’s Saturnalia on Augustus’s joke: hearing Herod killed his own son among the infants, Augustus said “Better to be Herod’s pig than his son.” Abelard’s Sermon 34 adds that Augustus believed Herod abstained from pork like his people. Jerome is cited on Rachel weeping for Judah’s children.
The Commentary on Confessors and Saint John
The editorial commentary continues with textual variants, metrical schemata, and patristic annotations for hymns through CXXXI. For the confessor hymns, variants are listed from manuscripts B and G. The hymn, with three following, is assigned in the Paraclitensis Breviary to the feast of Saints Aegidius and Lupus, though it is of the common. The editor provides the metrical scheme for confessor hymns. In the second hymn, excepting the doxology, verses three and four follow a different law. On line 1, 4, the editor notes Abelard here teaches the doctrine of the cult of saints—that saints pray for us and are to be prayed to—citing Augustine: Christ interpellates for us; all martyrs interpellate; their intercessions do not pass until our groaning passes. On 2, 1 sqq., Abelard teaches saints are to be worshipped only in God and God in saints, since whatever is praised in saints is God’s gift and grace, per Paul.
On 1, 3, the editor cites Philippians 2, 3 and Romans 9, 16, then quotes Augustine against the view that grace merely makes obedience easier: the true Master did not say “without me you can do something, but more easily,” but “Without me you can do nothing.” On 2, 6, saints have a kind of omnipotence, but a suppliant omnipotence—they can do all things not by acting but by obtaining; they cannot seek what they know God does not will to grant. Augustine on St. Stephen is cited: Stephen’s prayers obtained many things but not all; he persisted and received, showing prayers are made in the name of Him who knows what should be given.
On 2, 2, the editor emends the Bruxellensis reading “habuit” to “huic adfuit” (the confessors’ mind was ready for the sword), since the Galvimontanus codex has “huic adfuit.” On 1, 5, the poet’s Hexaemeron is cited: in the sixth age man was renewed and placed in paradise, for after the Lord’s passion the heavenly entrance opened; the first sabbath is rest in the soul, the octave is the glorified body enduring without end. On 2, 4, the double death of body and soul is explained: the body dies when its life, the soul, departs; the soul dies when its life, God, deserts it.
The hymns for the Octave of St. John are assigned because the nuns retained the ancient hymns on the feast day itself. The hymn imitates the hymn usually ascribed to Paul the Deacon, “Ut queant laxis.” Augustine is quoted: barrenness received fecundity in John’s mother; fecundity did not corrupt integrity in Christ’s mother. Abelard’s Sermon 33 is cited: John is the prince of the monastic dogma—a monk who lived in the desert from birth, a free wild ass who broke carnal bonds, not compelled by fear like Elias but spontaneous in abstinence. John is not the light but witness; Christ is the Word, John the voice crying in the desert. Adam of St. Victor is cited: “Vox praeit verbum,” drawn from Augustine, that the voice precedes the word in sound to insinuate the word into the mind.
The Final Hymn and the Abbey of Saint Gildas
The editor discusses whether Abelard composed one hymn, noting the rest is so plain and clear it needs no exposition. The editor argues that a final hymn was composed by Abelard for the Abbey of Saint Gildas de Ruis in Lesser Britain, where he was elected by the monks’
Main Arguments
The hymns collectively advance a coherent theological vision grounded in the doctrine of creation, redemption, and the communion of saints. The weekday hymns for Matins argue that the six days of creation form a unified work ordered toward humanity as its end. The third day’s works call us to praise: God gathered the lower waters and uncovered the earth, and the revealed earth sprouts herb and tree of every kind. God prepares the place to place man, the prince of the earth. We are accused if we despise the Creator, who demands reason for all things from us, since He made all for us. The world, made ornate for us, disputes against us if grace does not subject us to God, to whom He subjected all things. We please Him with praises whom we provoke with deeds; psalm-instruction teaches how great a sacrifice of praise is due.
The hymns argue for a “moderate” optimism regarding creation—not Plato’s absolute optimism—since God could always create better. Abelard’s Hexaemeron exposition is quoted: all things were made “as good as they ought to be.” The hymns on the fourth day develop the theme of the luminaries’ service to humanity: plants adorned the earth; now luminaries adorn heaven—sun, moon, stars, whose many uses are known. They distinguish light and times, serving as sure signs; planetary physics administers nearly all earthly goods. Consider, man, these made for you; heaven’s region confesses itself yours by their service. The poor man lacking fire has the sun in winter and moon and stars for night-light. The rich lie on ivory beds, the poor on grassy ones; birdsong delights the one, flower-fragrance breathes for the other. Rich man, you build a falling house with excessive expense, painting your ceiling with false sun and false stars in heaven’s likeness; but in the true heaven’s chamber the poor man lies most beautifully—the Lord painted that for him with true sun and true stars. Nature’s work exceeds man’s, prepared by neither labor nor expense, nor dissolved by age. Man serves the rich man, but the angel serves the poor—showing heavenly things are subjected to us by God.
The hymns on the fifth and sixth days argue for the immediacy of divine creative power: at one command fish and fowl came forth in their species; great whales and small oysters are made at once; in one moment the greatest gryphon and the small sparrow are perfected. He spoke and they were made; He commanded and they were created—He completes great and small alike, to whom all things are equally easy. The sixth day’s hymn argues that man, made last of all, is to preside over all; all things looked to him as their single end. The highest is created, in whom the sum of works stands; in this end divine reason of counsel is fulfilled. This one noble formation in which You shine, Lord—the glory of Your image and of Your likeness. The man first, then the woman from the man’s rib, after sleep is sent upon the man, by which the great sacrament is borne. The other animals are given into their power; they enjoy Paradise’s temple as most pleasing tabernacles. The seventh day’s hymn argues that God, having perfected all things and inspected His works, supremely good, sees and approves all He made as very good. All things are perfected in the number six of days, so that the virtue of the number attests the perfected work of days. He rested on the seventh day, not wearied in anything; that rest is God Himself, perpetual, in whom are all joys of rest. He sanctifies the day on which He rested by ceasing; in the mystery of the true Sabbath He blesses the seventh day—that Sabbath which knows no end, where true peace, highest tranquility, keeps perpetual festivals.
The hymns for the daytime hours argue for the fulfillment of the Old Testament in Christ. The Sunday Lauds hymn declares: Truth has come, the shadow passed; after night, day’s brightness has come. At the rising of the supernal light, the mysteries of the Law, full of darkness, shine. Let Moses’ nocturnal proclamation yield; the daytime song suits the day. With Christ all things come forth from hiding; such great light leaves no place for darkness. Mystic figures cast off their veil; truth is now in the reality, not in a figure, fulfilling prophetic promises—not letting one jot or tittle fail. After the mournful evening of death, when life returns, it is the morning of joy. The Lord rises; angels appear; guards flee, terrified by the splendor. Many saints who had slept proclaim His glory by rising; in testimony of the rising Lord, the dead ascend, angels descend.
The hymns on the saints argue for the intercession of the saints and the propriety of praying to them. The editor notes that Abelard here teaches the doctrine of the cult of saints—that saints pray for us and are to be prayed to—citing Augustine: Christ interpellates for us; all martyrs interpellate; their intercessions do not pass until our groaning passes. Abelard also teaches saints are to be worshipped only in God and God in saints, since whatever is praised in saints is God’s gift and grace, per Paul (1 Cor. 15, 10). On the saints’ power of intercession, the hymns teach that saints have a kind of omnipotence, but a suppliant omnipotence—they can do all things not by acting but by obtaining; they cannot seek what they know God does not will to grant. The hymn on Stephen notes that Stephen’s prayers obtained many things but not all; he persisted and received, showing prayers are made in the name of Him who knows what should be given.
Key Concepts
The Hexaemeron and the Six Days: The weekday hymns for Matins are built on the six days of creation, each day receiving its own hymn. The sequence moves from light (day one) through the firmament (day two), the separation of waters and dry land with plants (day three), the luminaries (day four), fish and birds (day five), terrestrial animals and man (day six), to God’s rest (day seven). The hymns treat the creation days not merely as past events but as present realities that call humanity to praise. The editor notes Abelard’s Hexaemeron exposition is quoted throughout the notes, including the distinction between moral exposition (faith, hope, charity) and mystical exposition (prefiguring Christ’s grace), and the triple intelligence (moral, mystical, historical).
The True Sabbath and the Octave: The seventh day’s rest is interpreted as the mystery of the true Sabbath which knows no end, where true peace, highest tranquility, keeps perpetual festivals. The editor’s notes on the confessor hymns develop this: the first sabbath is rest in the soul (saints until the last judgment), the octave is the glorified body enduring without end. In the sixth age man was renewed and placed in paradise, for after the Lord’s passion the heavenly entrance opened.
Light and Luminaries: The hymns develop an elaborate theology of light. The Sunday Lauds hymn contrasts the supernal light with the shadows of the Law. The Prime hymn develops the figure of Lucifer: Lucifer precedes the dawn; the sun follows. Dawn is understood as the light of faith, which the true Lucifer conferred by rising, when the Lord’s flesh flourished again. This same Lucifer will shine like the sun when He comes to the common judgment, whose presence’s light will be so great that each conscience will speak. This visible sun announces that invisible One whom we understand; the visible effect of works praises the invisible author of all. Man, do not be silent among all praisers, since you owe praises to the Lord for all things; you are urged by each benefit to pay continual thanks with praises.
The Phoenix and the Lion: The Easter hymns draw on the Physiologus and bestiary traditions. The phoenix, which ascends the altar, ignites itself from aromatic spices, and is consumed, then revives like a bee, gradually putting on wings and feathers, returning to its former state, is applied to Christ. Abelard’s sermon on the phoenix agrees with the hymn: the bird is unique, neither male nor female, builds no nest, prepares a sepulchre-structure from aromatic branches, dies, is dissolved to ashes by the sun’s heat, then is revived. Abelard applies each detail to Christ: uniqueness fits Christ’s excellence and virginity; the apostle says in Christ there is neither male nor female (Gal. 3, 28); the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head (Luc. 2, 58); Joseph and Nicodemus prepared sepulchre and aromas (Matth. 27, 57); the burning corresponds to the paschal lamb roasted, not boiled; the bee-form signifies incorruption, for in resurrection glory they neither marry nor are given in marriage (Matth. 22, 30). The lion imagery is drawn from Genesis 49: “Catulus leonis Juda”—the lion and lion’s whelp express Father and Son, showing unity of nature and power. Christ slept in the sepulchre as in a bodily sleep, quoting Ps. 3, 6, and who shall rouse him except himself by his own and the Father’s power.
The Hook and the Bait: The Easter hymns develop the trope of the devil caught on the hook of the incarnation. The editor traces this trope: Ambrose first used it in a paschal hymn (“Hamum sibi mors devoret”); Hermannus Contractus, Notkerus, and Adamus a S. Victore all use it. Gregory explains Leviathan was caught on the hook of incarnation—the passible flesh visible, impassible divinity hidden; the devil unjustly sought Christ’s death and lost those he justly held.
The Winepress and the Quadriga: The cross is understood as the Lord’s winepress, from Isaiah 63:3 (“I have trodden the winepress alone”). The grape is Christ; Hermann Contractus’s Easter sequence says “You are priest and victim, treading the winepress alone.” The four living creatures of Ezekiel 1 and Revelation 4 are the four evangelists—Christ’s quadriga. Cassiodorus on Canticles 6 is quoted: the gospel preaching as a swift quadriga flying through the world, with Christ as charioteer. The two bearers of the grape cluster (from Numbers 13) signify the two peoples: the elder (Jews) carrying Christ without seeing him; the younger (Gentiles) seeing and following.
The Mustard Seed: Gregory’s Moralia on the mustard seed: unless crushed, its strength is unknown; so saints seem contemptible until persecution grinds them, revealing their hidden fervor. Adam of St. Victor’s sequence on Lawrence is quoted on the mustard seed’s power. Augustine’s City of God I.8 is cited: under one fire gold gleams and chaff smokes; the same force tests and purifies the good, damns and destroys the wicked.
The Apostola Apostolorum: The Easter hymn on Mary Magdalene introduces her as “apostolorum apostola”—first sent to announce the resurrection. Ambrose is quoted: through a woman’s mouth death first went forth, through a woman’s mouth life is restored. Abelard’s sermon on Mary the prophetess (Exodus 15, 1) notes Mary, a virgin, prefigured the Church; “prophetes” means “videns” (seer); the tympanum signifies mortification of the flesh.
The Rhinoceros: The hymn on Paul’s conversion uses the rhinoceros imagery from Job: Paul as the wild unicorn bound by divine reins, tamed from his former savagery to draw God’s plow, breaking the clods of valleys—derived from Gregory’s Moralia book 31.
The Eagle: Augustine’s Tractate 36 on John is quoted extensively: John as the eagle soaring above the other evangelists who walked on earth with the human Lord; John rose above earth, air, heaven, and all angelic hosts to the Word through whom all things were made. “He belched what he had drunk”—reclining on the Lord’s breast at supper, he drank in secret and proclaimed openly. Augustine’s eagle-testing analogy follows: eaglets are suspended by the father’s talon facing the sun; those who gaze steadily are recognized as true offspring.
The Voice and the Word: The hymn on John the Baptist develops the distinction: John is not the light but witness (John 1, 8); Christ is the Word, John the voice crying in the desert (Is. 40, 3; Matt. 3, 3). Cites Adam of St. Victor: “Vox praeit verbum,” drawn from Augustine (Serm. 288): the voice precedes the word in sound to insinuate the word into the mind.
The Virgin Spouse: The hymns for holy women develop the image of the virgin martyr as spouse of Christ. The virgin martyr is described as whole in spirit and body, becoming a true holocaust from virgin birth. The red heifer and tender calf of the Old Testament typify her sacrifice—shadow there, truth here, if signs are rightly compared. Having consecrated her heart to God, she now consecrates her body through the executioner; the spirit first consecrated to God exposes the body fearlessly to the enemy. The hymn on the virgin spouse declares: How faithful this virgin was to her spouse, both life and death taught—she keeping her body intact, offering herself as holocaust. Virgin spouse, virgin spouse; spouse martyr, spouse martyr. Such a spouse befits such a bride, following wherever he goes; neither sacred flesh’s beauty nor death’s disparity divides their love. Others follow the spouse; she walks at his side. As queen holding the spouse’s right hand, she possesses the crowns; her gilded vesture shines—gold incorrupt and radiant. The garland woven with roses and lilies marks martyr and virgin: martyr offers rose, virgin lily. White linen and red purple give insignia. Her steps in shoes are praised by the spouse in the Canticles. She advances like dawn rising, joined to the celestial spouse’s bed. Here betrothed in faith, there cohabiting as wife—here covenant in faith, there perpetual union. Angels as paranymphs escort her; the angelic pomp leads her to heavenly joys. Virgins meet virgin, martyrs meet martyr. Who can say what glory she enjoys in the spouse’s embrace? These things eye has not seen nor human hearts conceived, prepared by God from eternal times.
Themes
Creation as Gift and Accusation: The weekday hymns develop a sustained meditation on creation as both gift and accusation. The world, made ornate for us, disputes against us if grace does not subject us to God, to whom He subjected all things. The hymns contrast the rich man’s artificial ceiling painted with false sun and false stars with the true heaven’s chamber in which the poor man lies most beautifully—the Lord painted that for him with true sun and true stars.
