Arnulf of Leuven
Encyclopedia
Arnulf of Leuven
(c. 1200–1250) was the abbot of the Cistercian abbey in Villers-la-Ville
. After serving in this office for ten years, he abdicated, hoping to pursue a life devoted to study and asceticism. He died within a year. Little else is known.
(1146–1240). However, his primary significance is as a poet. His "Excerptum Speculi Caritatis" is a verse adaptation of the "Summa Causum" of Raymond of Peñafort
. Arnulf is also the probable author of the Membra Jesu Nostri
, a cycle of five poems, each a meditation on one of the wounds of the crucified Christ. In the 17th century, Paul Gerhardt
wrote an adaptation in German, which became "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded" in English.
These poems were ascribed to Bernard of Clairvaux
, for they are consistent with his spirituality. However, "the external proof for this ascription is so slight as to be negligible" (Hurlbut, VII, 18). The "Membra Jesu Nostri" did appear in Bernard's collected works, but only beginning two hundred years after his death. When the monasteries were suppressed in the French Revolution
, all of the relevant manuscripts disappeared. The true authorship of the Membra Jesu Nostri will remain a mystery.
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
(c. 1200–1250) was the abbot of the Cistercian abbey in Villers-la-Ville
Villers-la-Ville
Villers-la-Ville is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. On January 1, 2006 Villers-la-Ville had a total population of 9,572...
. After serving in this office for ten years, he abdicated, hoping to pursue a life devoted to study and asceticism. He died within a year. Little else is known.
Work
He compiled the first volume of the annals of the Villers AbbeyVillers Abbey
Villers Abbey is an ancient Cistercian abbey located near the town of Villers-la-Ville in the Brabant province of Wallonia , one piece of the Wallonia's Major Heritage. Founded in 1146, the abbey was abandoned in 1796...
(1146–1240). However, his primary significance is as a poet. His "Excerptum Speculi Caritatis" is a verse adaptation of the "Summa Causum" of Raymond of Peñafort
Raymond of Peñafort
Saint Raymond of Penyafort, O.P. is a Dominican friar who compiled the Decretals of Gregory IX, a collection of canon laws that remained part of church law until the Code of Canon Law was promulgated in 1917...
. Arnulf is also the probable author of the Membra Jesu Nostri
Membra Jesu Nostri
Membra Jesu Nostri , BuxWV 75, is a cycle of seven cantatas composed by Dieterich Buxtehude in 1680, and dedicated to Gustaf Düben. The full Latin title Membra Jesu nostri patientis sanctissima translates to "The most holy limbs of our suffering Jesus". This work is known as the first Lutheran...
, a cycle of five poems, each a meditation on one of the wounds of the crucified Christ. In the 17th century, Paul Gerhardt
Paul Gerhardt
Paul Gerhardt was a German hymn writer.-Biography:Gerhardt was born into a middle-class family at Gräfenhainichen, a small town between Halle and Wittenberg. At the age of fifteen, he entered the Fürstenschule in Grimma. The school was known for its pious atmosphere and stern discipline...
wrote an adaptation in German, which became "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded" in English.
These poems were ascribed to Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux, O.Cist was a French abbot and the primary builder of the reforming Cistercian order.After the death of his mother, Bernard sought admission into the Cistercian order. Three years later, he was sent to found a new abbey at an isolated clearing in a glen known as the Val...
, for they are consistent with his spirituality. However, "the external proof for this ascription is so slight as to be negligible" (Hurlbut, VII, 18). The "Membra Jesu Nostri" did appear in Bernard's collected works, but only beginning two hundred years after his death. When the monasteries were suppressed in the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, all of the relevant manuscripts disappeared. The true authorship of the Membra Jesu Nostri will remain a mystery.
Sources
- Deves, Guido Maria and Blume, ClemensClemens BlumeClemens Blume was a Jesuit hymnologist.-Biography:Blume was educated at the Jesuit gymnasium, Feldkirch, Austria, Jesuit scholasticates in Holland and England and the universities of Prague and Bonn. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1878, was gymnasium professor at Feldkirch in 1887-90 and...
. Ein Jahrtausend Lateinischer Hymnendichtung. O. R. Reisland: Leipzig, 1909. - Hurlbut, Stephen A., e.d. Hortus Conclusus: A Series of Mediaeval Latin Hymns With Selected English Renderings." St. Albans: Washington, D.C. 1936.
- Unknown. Biographie Nationale de BelgiqueBiographie Nationale de BelgiqueThe Biographie Nationale de Belgique is the biographical dictionary of Belgium and its predecessor states....
, 1866, I, 469. - Unknown. Histoire Littéraire des Pays Bas, 1769, XVI, 52–58.