©Copyright 2003 James R. Heugel “Graunted of the Bysshop Honde”: The Meaning and Uses of the Sacrament of Confirmation From its Inception Through the Middle Ages James R. Heugel A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Washington 2003 Program Authorized to Offer Degree: Department of History University of Washington Graduate School This is to certify that I have examined this copy of a doctoral dissertation by James R. Heugel and have found that it is complete and satisfactory in all respects, and that any and all revisions required by the final examining committee have been made. Chair of Supervisory Committee: ____________________________________________ Robert C. Stacey Reading Committee: ____________________________________________ Robert C. Stacey ____________________________________________ Mary R. O’Neil ____________________________________________ Michael A. Williams Date: _______________________________ In presenting this dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctoral degree at the University of Washington, I agree that the Library shall make its copies freely available for inspection. I further agree that extensive copying of the dissertation is allowable only for scholarly purposes, consistent with “fair use” as prescribed in the U.S. Copyright Law. Requests for copying or reproduction of this dissertation may be referred to ProQuest Information and Learning, 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48106-1346, to whom the author has granted “the right to reproduce and sell (a) copies of the manuscript in microform and/or (b) printed copies of the manuscript made from microform.” Signature _____________________________ Date __________________________________ University of Washington Abstract “Graunted of the Bysshop Honde”: The Meaning and Uses of the Sacrament of Confirmation From its Inception Through the Middle Ages James R. Heugel Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Professor Robert C. Stacey Department of History This dissertation is a social history of the sacrament of confirmation in western Christianity from its beginnings in the early third century through the Middle Ages. It is an exploration of the meanings attached to the rite, the uses to which it was applied, and the experiences of those who practiced it. Based primarily on the evidence found in liturgies, theological works, devotional manuals, the records of church councils, and saints’ lives, it concludes that, prior to the sixteenth century, confirmation was largely defined by the office and status of the bishop, and through him it connected people of both sexes and all ages and classes to the power and prestige that he represented. In addition, confirmation served as a potentially significant element in the life of Christian devotion, as a source of supernatural power which could be applied to a variety of ends, and through the practice of godparenthood, as a useful social instrument for the creation and extension of kinship networks. Part one analyzes the creation of confirmation in the third through fifth centuries by looking at the role that anointing and handlaying played in Judaism and early Christianity, the diversity of initiation practices in the classical Christian world, and the values that led to the decision in the west that only the bishop could administer the rite. It suggests that this episcopal exclusivity arose, at least in part, in response to the kind of sectarian challenge posed in the Valentinian Gospel of Philip. Part two looks at the development of confirmation as a separate sacrament and the variety of roles it played in the early Middle Ages. Importantly, we find that confirmation was not introduced to the Franks during the Carolingian dynasty, as has been generally thought; rather, there is clear evidence that Merovingian bishops regularly performed this rite. Part three contends that the rite of confirmation continued to develop through the high and late Middle Ages. Bishops used it in their attempts to renew lay piety, and its identity came to be associated with important contemporary social institutions such as monasticism, chivalry, and crusading. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page List of Abbreviations ........................................................................................ v Introduction .................................................................................................. 1 Part One: “There Is Fire Within Chrism”: The Origins of Confirmation ....................................................................... 10 Chapter 1: Anointing in the Jewish and Earliest Christian Traditions .................................................................. 12 Anointing in Jewish Scriptural Traditions ............................................ 12 Old Testament Vocabulary ......................................................... 13 Old Testament Anointing Practices .............................................. 15 Anointing in the Second Temple and Mishnaic Periods ...................................................... 18 Anointing in Early Christianity ............................................................ 21 New Testament Vocabulary ........................................................ 26 Anointing and Handlaying at Baptism Among the Earliest Christians? .................................................. 27 Conclusion .......................................................................................... 31 Chapter 2: Early Christian Baptismal Liturgy ............................................. 32 The Inadequacy of the Traditional Approach to Studying Liturgies ........................................................................... 33 Differences in Early Anointing Practice, East and West ........................ 35 The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus ................................................... 42 Rites of Separation .................................................................... 44 Rites of Transition ...................................................................... 44 Rites of Incorporation ................................................................. 46 Early Western Liturgical Development ................................................. 47 The Multiplication of Symbols ..................................................... 47 The Shift from Adult to Infant Baptism ........................................ 51 Chapter 3: The Creation of Confirmation .................................................... 59 The Term Confirmare ........................................................................... 60 i The Episcopal Postbaptismal Anointing in the Apostolic Tradition ............................................................................... 65 Theories as to the Source of the Episcopal Anointing .................... 66 The Influence of Heterodox Sacramental Practices ............................... 77 Cyprian of Carthage and the Rebaptism Controversy ........................... 89 Chapter 4: Summary of the Beginnings of Confirmation .............................. 97 Part Two: “Surely This Can Only Be Done by Bishops”: Confirmation in the Early Middle Ages ................................ 100 Chapter 5: Episcopal Confirmation Among the Carolingians ..................... 102 Carolingian Liturgical Reform and the Imposition of the Roman Rite .............................................................................. 102 Charlemagne’s Circular Letter and the Question of Disintegration ................................................................................ 107 Primo paganus and the Circular Letter ...................................... 107 The Absence of Confirmation in the Circular Letter .................... 111 Two Impartations of the Holy Spirit? The Theological Tension Caused by Delayed Confirmation ...................... 120 The Archbishops’ Response to the Circular Letter .............................. 121 Chapter 6: Traditional Frankish Practice or Carolingian Innovation? .......................................................... 127 The Liturgical Evidence from Merovingian Gaul ................................. 128 Non-Liturgical Evidence for Merovingian Confirmation ....................... 138 Evidence From Outside Gaul .................................................... 139 Evidence From Within Merovingian Gaul ................................... 144 Evidence From the Exclusive Honors Given to Bishops ...................................................................... 152 Chapter 7: Sources for Carolingian Theological Beliefs About Confirmation ................................................................. 157 Documents Used in the Bishops’ Responses to the Circular Letter ......................................................................... 157 The Letter of John the Deacon to Senarius ................................. 158 Isidore of Seville ...................................................................... 159 The Florilegium on the Symbolism of Baptism ............................ 162 The (Pseudo)Eusebian Pentecostal Homily ......................................... 163 Content and Gallican Provenance ............................................. 163 Carolingian Use of the Homily’s Terminology? ........................... 169 ii Chapter 8: The Meaning of Early Medieval Confirmation ........................... 175 Theological Meaning: Reception of the Holy Spirit .............................. 175 Spiritual Meaning: Power