October 2002
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
An Edition and Study of Selected Sermons of Robert Grosseteste Volume I SuzannePaul Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Leeds, Centre for Medieval Studies, October 2002 The candidate confirms that the work submitted is her own and that appropriate credit has been given where reference is made to the work of others. This copy has been supplied on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. Suzanne Paul An Edition and Study of Selected Sermons of Robert Grosseteste My thesis offers an edition and study of a collection of sermons attributed to the theologian and bishop Robert Grosseteste(c. 1168-1253),preserved in a single manuscript, Durham Dean and Chapter Library MS A. III. 12. The starting point for my study is MS A. III. 12 itself. The first chapter summarises and evaluates the physical evidence of the codex and what can be determined of its history and provenance. Chapter II considers the material on fols 78-87 and 104-127 as a collection. Noting that many of the texts are not in fact sermonsbut short theological notes or sets of biblical or patristic sententiae, I analyse the material according to its form and function and demonstrate its utility for preaching. I also explore the relationship between this particular collection and Grosseteste'sPsalms commentary and Dicta collection since the three works have a number of texts in common. I highlight two sermons in particular which appearto be in reportatio form and compare them with more developed versions of the samematerial found in Grosseteste'sDicta collection; the differences between the reportationes and the Dicta offer an insight into Grossetesteas preacher and Grossetesteas teacher, adapting his material for a wider audience. Chapter III focuses specifically on the twenty-four sermons in the collection, analysing their structure and content. I consider the way in which the various elements of the thematic sermon and particular types of argumentation are deployed, before surveying their pastoral messageand their approachtowards their audience(s). The final chapter considers the authorship of the collection by reading the texts in the light of what is known of Grosseteste'stheological and homiletical method. Many of the texts are securely attributed to him becauseof their presencein his authoritative Dicta collection and this study concludes that theseparticular folios, and the manuscript as a whole, demonstrate a clear intention to compile a collection of authoritative and useful preaching material associatedwith Grosseteste.The study is accompanied by an edition of the twenty-four sermons from this collection. ýýý_ TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents of Volume I Acknowledgements iv Abbreviations vi Introduction 1 I. Manuscript Description and Provenance 1. Physical description of MS A. III. 12 14 2. History and Dating of the Manuscript 19 II. The Manuscript Context of the Sermons 1. Introduction 24 2. Identifying and Naming 25 3. Sermonsand Transmission 30 i. T3 and Dictum 35 33 ii. T43 and Dictum 50 40 4. Between the Sermons i. Sententiae 45 a) Biblical 45 b) Patristic 49 ii. Dicciones 58 5. Relationship with the Dicta Collection and PsalmsCommentary 65 III. Analysis of Sermon Structure and Content 1. Introduction 73 2. Structure 75 3. Building an Argument i. Introduction 88 ii. Authorities 89 iii. Exempla 96 iv. Similitudes 102 4. The Message of the Sermons 107 5. Preacherand Audience 117 IV. Authorship and Textual Identity 1. Introduction 124 2. The Texts as a Collection 125 3. The Rationale behind the Collection 126 4. Difficulties of Establishing Authorship 131 5. Authorial Identity 139 Conclusion 149 Appendix I 152 Appendix II 175 Bibliography 178 Contents of Volume II Editorial Notes 194 Texts T1 196 T2 201 T3 206 T20-21 211 T22 216 T23 231 T24 234 T26 238 T34 243 T35 256 T40 266 T41 271 T42 279 T43 287 T44-45 299 T48 307 T55 323 T69 328 T70 340 T71 355 T72 367 T73 372 T74 382 T75 387 1V Acknowledgements Firstly I would like to acknowledge the financial support of the British Academy and AHRB, without which I would not have been able to undertake doctoral research. The Centre for Medieval Studies at the University of Leeds provides a stimulating and rewarding environment for carrying out interdisciplinary research.I would like to expressmy thanks to the community of medievalists, both staff and postgraduates,in and around the Centre who have supported my work in a myriad of ways. I have learned a great deal from them over the past few years - about medieval studies and much more. I would like to thank Karen George, Alison Martin, Marianne O'Doherty, James Roberts, Nicola Robertson and Philip Shaw for their help in the final stages and in particular Mr Ian Moxon of the School of History for generousassistance with Latin proofreading. Within the wider scholarly community, I have benefited a great deal from membership of the International Medieval Sermon Studies Society and the good will and encouragement of its members, particularly Dr Anne Thayer and Dr Jussi Hanska. In the field of Grosseteste studies, I am indebted to Prof. James McEvoy, Prof. Frank Mantello and Prof. Joseph Goering who have shared their unpublished work with me and discussed my work. As a representative of both camps, Dr Maura O'Carroll has been a particular source of encouragement. I would also like to express my thanks to Mr Alan Piper of the Department of Archives and Special Collections, Durham University Library for his assistance in preparing the physical description of MS A. III. 12. Every researcherowes a debt of gratitude to libraries and librarians but mine is greater than most. I am grateful for the opportunity to consult the holdings of the Bodleian Library, the Pontifical Institute for Mediaeval Studies in Toronto and Durham University Library but two libraries have been crucial - the Dean and Chapter Library of Durham Cathedral and the Brotherton Library at the University of Leeds. It has been a privilege to work in the Dean and Chapter Library and I would like to thank the staff, V Roger, Wendy and Jill, for the friendly and professional way they have handled my requests. I am grateful to the Brotherton Library for providing not only the relevant books, periodicals and databasesI neededto carry out my research,but also a room to study, a regular source of part-time employment and a dedicated and professional set of staff. My colleagues and friends throughout the library, particularly among the Reader Services staff and the porters, have supported my researchand made it a rewarding and enjoyable place to work and study. My greatest academic debt is to my two supervisors, Dr JamesGinther and Dr Mary Swan; their encouragement,calmness and good humour have been invaluable. Dr Ginther's perceptive comments and questionshave helped to guide and shape this project and his own considerable knowledge of Grosseteste'sthought and work has deepenedmy understanding. Dr Swan's wise advice and her support above and beyond the call of duty have been a constant throughout my postgraduatestudies and I am immensely grateful to her for all her assistance. On a personal note, I would like to thank my friends in Leeds and beyond who have put up with me throughout this project and kept me sane;Mel deservesspecial thanks for keeping my feet on the ground and making me laugh. Above all, I want to thank my family for all their love and encouragement.Rose has provided enormous support - domestic, technical, financial and emotional - which has really made all the difference. I couldn't have done it without her (and I wouldn't have wanted to). My brother Chris has always been there for me. As for my parents, even now I am not fully aware of all the sacrifices they made to give me the academicopportunities they never had; that is in itself a testimony to their love for me. The dedication of this thesis to them is a small token of my gratitude, and my love for them. vi Abbreviations CCCM Corpus Christianorum Continuatio Mediaevalis CCSL Corpus Christianorum Series Latina CSEL Corpus scriptorum ecclesiasticorumLatinorum PL Patrologia Latina, ed. by J: P. Migne SChr Sources chretiennes Introduction INTRODUCTION Medieval sermon studies has developed as a discipline over the past thirty years or so as scholars have come to appreciate the rich potential of the study of medieval preaching ' texts. This potential is generatedby the considerablequantity of extant texts, both Christian and Jewish, which encompassthe full chronological, geographical and linguistic range of the medieval world. In addition, these texts can sustain a multiplicity of historical, literary, linguistic and theological approachesand the study of sermons has thus developed as a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary activity. Preaching texts both reflect and respond to the theological and cultural values and concerns of medieval society. Their value as a resource for religious, intellectual, social and linguistic history across la longue duree and at particular times and places is demonstratedby the recent volume edited by Beverly Kienzle which brings together scholars of many different types of sermonsand aims to offer both a typology of the genre as a whole and an account of the current state of sermon studies scholarship. Kienzle attempts to define the genre and notes some of the difficulties involved in interpreting preaching texts: their instability in the continuum between written and oral discourse, their close connections and affinity with other genres, and the complexities of their composition and transmission. These complexities have been the subject of extremely fruitful researchbased on close attention to a small selection of the many extant manuscripts containing sermons.