Libellus responsionum
Encyclopedia
The Libellus responsionum or Responsiones is a section of Bede
's Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum
that is a reply by Pope Gregory I
to questions posed by Augustine of Canterbury
about specifics of the Gregorian mission
.
and Peter.
Bede inserted a text of the Libellus into book I of the Historia, where it makes the bulk of chapter 27. Bede claimed that it was the full text of a letter sent by Gregory back to Augustine in response to a number of questions that Augustine had asked about his missionary efforts and other concerns connected with conversion to Christianity
. Bede appears to have included almost all of the letter from Gregory in chapter 27, although it is possible that some references to a local martyr were excluded. Bede appears to have known of two differing versions of the letter, and did not choose to correct the text he used from the other version available to him. He used one version of the Libellus in his prose Vita Sancti Cuthberti, which was composed about 720, although it was not quoted in that work.
missionary to the Germanic peoples of Europe, wrote to Nothhelm, the Archbishop of Canterbury
in 735 requesting a copy of the Libellus. He also requested information on whether the work was authentic, as his inquiries at the papal archives had failed to turn up a copy of the letter there. Nor was the letter found in a further search of the archives in 743. Both searches were prompted by Gregory's response on who might marry whom, which contradicted later church teachings. The Libellus was never entered into Gregory's register of letters that was kept at Rome, at least in any surviving manuscripts of the Gregory's register.
Later in the Middle Ages, the text of the Libellus was used to support the claims of the monks of the Canterbury Cathedral
cathedral chapter
that the chapter had always been monks, back to the founding of the cathedral by Augustine. This was somewhat of a stretch, as the actual reply by Gregory did not explicitly say that the cathedral chapter should be composed of monks, merely that they should live in common and have some other aspects of monastic life. Modern historians, including Ian Wood, have seen the Libellus as indicating that Augustine had more contact with native British Christians than that related by Bede in the Historia Ecclesia.
Modern historians have also questioned the authenticity of the work. In 1941 Suso Brechter wrote a book titled Die Quellen zur Angelsachesenmission Gregors des Grossen (roughly The Sources for the Anglo-Saxon Mission of Gregory the Great) which, among a number of other topics, attempted to prove that the Libellus was an 8th century forgery by Nothhelm. Brechter felt that the Libellus contained too much that was only relevant in terms of 8th century theological concerns. He argued that the forgery was completed in 731 and was foisted on Bede by Nothhelm in that year, and was a late insertion into the Historia. Brechter's work did not attract much scholarly interest until 1959, when Margaret Deanesly and Paul Grosjean wrote a joint journal article refuting most of Brechter's arguments. Deanesly and Grossjean felt that Nothhelm had taken genuine Gregorian letters, added information on theological questions current at Canterbury. They further felt that Nothhelm did this in two stages, a first stage that they named the capitula version, which they felt was best exemplified by a manuscript now in Copenhagen, and a second version, which was rearranged in the form of questions paired with answers. In their view, this second version was the work sent to Bede.
Most current historical thinking is that the Libellus is a genuine letter of Gregory, and was written to Augustine for the reasons that Bede gave.
to his clergy and vice versa, how gifts from the laymen to the church should be divided amongst the clergy, and what the tasks of a bishop were. The second set of questions covered why the various regional churches had differing customs and liturgies. The third reply was in answer to questions about the proper punishment of church robbers. The fifth and sixth sets of responses dealt with who might marry whom, including whether it was allowed for two brothers to marry two sisters, or for a man to marry his step-sister or step-mother. The sixth request concerned whether it was acceptable for a bishop to be consecrated
without other bishops present, if the distances involved prevented other bishops attending. The next question from Augustine dealt with the relations between the church in Britain and the church in Gaul
. The eighth set of questions and responses concerned what a pregnant or a newly-delivered mother might do or not do, including when they might re-enter a church. The last response dealt with questions about whether men might have communion after a sexual dream or if priests might celebrate mass
after similar dreams.
Besides the edition contained in the Historia, there also exists a manuscript tradition that contains some information not included in Bede's version. One omission is a section usually known as the Obsecratio Augustini, which contains a reply by Gregory to Augustine's request for relic
s of the local martyr Sixtus. Gregory's reply says that he is sending relics of Pope Sixtus II
to replace the local saint's remains, as Gregory has doubts about the actual saintly status of the local saint. Although the authenticity of the Obsecratio has occasionally be questioned, most modern historians accept that its genuine.
Bede
Bede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
's Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum
Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum
The Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum is a work in Latin by Bede on the history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the conflict between Roman and Celtic Christianity.It is considered to be one of the most important original references on...
that is a reply by Pope Gregory I
Pope Gregory I
Pope Gregory I , better known in English as Gregory the Great, was pope from 3 September 590 until his death...
to questions posed by Augustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597...
about specifics of the Gregorian mission
Gregorian mission
The Gregorian mission, sometimes known as the Augustinian mission, was the missionary endeavour sent by Pope Gregory the Great to the Anglo-Saxons in 596 AD. Headed by Augustine of Canterbury, its goal was to convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity. By the death of the last missionary in 653, they...
.
Creation
The Libellus is a reply by Pope Gregory I to questions posed by Augustine of Canterbury about specifics of the Gregorian mission. The original questions were sent by Augustine to Rome around 598, but the replies were not composed until the summer of 601. The Libellus, along with letters to the king of Kent and his wife and other items for the mission, were brought back to Augustine by LaurenceLaurence of Canterbury
Laurence was the second Archbishop of Canterbury from about 604 to 619. He was a member of the Gregorian mission sent from Italy to England to Christianize the Anglo-Saxons from their native Anglo-Saxon paganism, although the date of his arrival is disputed...
and Peter.
Bede inserted a text of the Libellus into book I of the Historia, where it makes the bulk of chapter 27. Bede claimed that it was the full text of a letter sent by Gregory back to Augustine in response to a number of questions that Augustine had asked about his missionary efforts and other concerns connected with conversion to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. Bede appears to have included almost all of the letter from Gregory in chapter 27, although it is possible that some references to a local martyr were excluded. Bede appears to have known of two differing versions of the letter, and did not choose to correct the text he used from the other version available to him. He used one version of the Libellus in his prose Vita Sancti Cuthberti, which was composed about 720, although it was not quoted in that work.
History
The Libellus was transmitted in the Middle Ages not just as part of the Historia, but also as an independent manuscript. Over 150 different manuscripts of the stand-alone Libellus still survive. However, while Bede felt that the letter was authentic, others in the Middle Ages were not so sure. Boniface, an Anglo-SaxonAnglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
missionary to the Germanic peoples of Europe, wrote to Nothhelm, the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
in 735 requesting a copy of the Libellus. He also requested information on whether the work was authentic, as his inquiries at the papal archives had failed to turn up a copy of the letter there. Nor was the letter found in a further search of the archives in 743. Both searches were prompted by Gregory's response on who might marry whom, which contradicted later church teachings. The Libellus was never entered into Gregory's register of letters that was kept at Rome, at least in any surviving manuscripts of the Gregory's register.
Later in the Middle Ages, the text of the Libellus was used to support the claims of the monks of the Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
cathedral chapter
Cathedral chapter
In accordance with canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese in his stead. These councils are made up of canons and dignitaries; in the Roman Catholic church their...
that the chapter had always been monks, back to the founding of the cathedral by Augustine. This was somewhat of a stretch, as the actual reply by Gregory did not explicitly say that the cathedral chapter should be composed of monks, merely that they should live in common and have some other aspects of monastic life. Modern historians, including Ian Wood, have seen the Libellus as indicating that Augustine had more contact with native British Christians than that related by Bede in the Historia Ecclesia.
Modern historians have also questioned the authenticity of the work. In 1941 Suso Brechter wrote a book titled Die Quellen zur Angelsachesenmission Gregors des Grossen (roughly The Sources for the Anglo-Saxon Mission of Gregory the Great) which, among a number of other topics, attempted to prove that the Libellus was an 8th century forgery by Nothhelm. Brechter felt that the Libellus contained too much that was only relevant in terms of 8th century theological concerns. He argued that the forgery was completed in 731 and was foisted on Bede by Nothhelm in that year, and was a late insertion into the Historia. Brechter's work did not attract much scholarly interest until 1959, when Margaret Deanesly and Paul Grosjean wrote a joint journal article refuting most of Brechter's arguments. Deanesly and Grossjean felt that Nothhelm had taken genuine Gregorian letters, added information on theological questions current at Canterbury. They further felt that Nothhelm did this in two stages, a first stage that they named the capitula version, which they felt was best exemplified by a manuscript now in Copenhagen, and a second version, which was rearranged in the form of questions paired with answers. In their view, this second version was the work sent to Bede.
Most current historical thinking is that the Libellus is a genuine letter of Gregory, and was written to Augustine for the reasons that Bede gave.
Contents
The Libellus consists of a series of questions posed by Augustine and answered by Gregory. There are nine different questions that are asked, usually numbered one through nine, although most of the responses address more than one question from Augustine. Gregory's first response addresses questions on the relationship of a bishopBishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
to his clergy and vice versa, how gifts from the laymen to the church should be divided amongst the clergy, and what the tasks of a bishop were. The second set of questions covered why the various regional churches had differing customs and liturgies. The third reply was in answer to questions about the proper punishment of church robbers. The fifth and sixth sets of responses dealt with who might marry whom, including whether it was allowed for two brothers to marry two sisters, or for a man to marry his step-sister or step-mother. The sixth request concerned whether it was acceptable for a bishop to be consecrated
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
without other bishops present, if the distances involved prevented other bishops attending. The next question from Augustine dealt with the relations between the church in Britain and the church in Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
. The eighth set of questions and responses concerned what a pregnant or a newly-delivered mother might do or not do, including when they might re-enter a church. The last response dealt with questions about whether men might have communion after a sexual dream or if priests might celebrate mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
after similar dreams.
Besides the edition contained in the Historia, there also exists a manuscript tradition that contains some information not included in Bede's version. One omission is a section usually known as the Obsecratio Augustini, which contains a reply by Gregory to Augustine's request for relic
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
s of the local martyr Sixtus. Gregory's reply says that he is sending relics of Pope Sixtus II
Pope Sixtus II
Pope Sixtus II or Pope Saint Sixtus II was Pope from August 30, 257 to August 6, 258. He died as a martyr during the persecution by Emperor Valerian....
to replace the local saint's remains, as Gregory has doubts about the actual saintly status of the local saint. Although the authenticity of the Obsecratio has occasionally be questioned, most modern historians accept that its genuine.