Imagining Heloise as Abbess of the Paraclete

This article argues that traditional presentations of Heloise focus on her image as a heroine of love rather than giving sufficient attention to her status as abbess of the Paraclete. In particular, there has been unjustified neglect of the final dossier in her exchange, known as the Institutiones n...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of religious history
Main Author: Mews, Constant J. 1954- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Wiley-Blackwell [2020]
In: Journal of religious history
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Héloïse 1101-1164 / Kloster Le Paraclet / Abbess
RelBib Classification:CB Christian life; spirituality
KAE Church history 900-1300; high Middle Ages
KBG France
KCA Monasticism; religious orders
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
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Summary:This article argues that traditional presentations of Heloise focus on her image as a heroine of love rather than giving sufficient attention to her status as abbess of the Paraclete. In particular, there has been unjustified neglect of the final dossier in her exchange, known as the Institutiones nostre, written in response to Peter Abelard's Institutio, or Rule for the Paraclete. These observances were formulated to establish uniform practices at both the Paraclete and its first daughter-house at Trainel, dedicated to Mary Magdalen. This neglect of Heloise's role as an abbess encouraged a tendency in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries to focus on themes of erotic rather than religious longing, as well as a subsequent tendency to question the authenticity of the letters of Heloise, without full appreciation of her role as abbess of the Paraclete. A translation of the Institutiones nostre is included as an appendix.
ISSN:1467-9809
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of religious history
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1111/1467-9809.12692