Halitgar
Encyclopedia
Halitgar was a ninth-century bishop of Cambrai (in office 817-831). He is known also as an apostle to the Danes, and the writer of a widely-known penitential
.
. In 825, with Amalarius of Metz
, he carried the conclusions of a Paris synod on iconoclasm
to Louis the Pious
. He went as ambassador to Byzantium
in 828.
It was written in five volumes, at Ebbo's request. Ebbo's intention was to have a normative penitential; Halitgar set aside tariffs of penance
s for exhortations. This work and the two attributed to Hrabanus Maurus were considered to supersede those written before, and were very influential, particularly in pre-Norman England. At this point, "the books used by confessors began to consist more and more of instructions in the style of the later moral theology".
His sources have been much debated:
Penitential
A penitential is a book or set of church rules concerning the Christian sacrament of penance, a "new manner of reconciliation with God" that was first developed by Celtic monks in Ireland in the sixth century AD.-Origin:...
.
Life
In 822 he travelled to Denmark as a missionary with Ebbo of Rheims and Willeric of Bremen, though not to great immediate effect. In 823 he was dedicating the church and relics of St Ursmer at LobbesLobbes
Lobbes is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut. On January 1, 2006, Lobbes had a total population of 5,499. The total area is 32.08 km² which gives a population density of 171 inhabitants per km²....
. In 825, with Amalarius of Metz
Amalarius of Metz
Amalarius of Metz was a liturgist. He wrote extensively on the Mass and was involved in the great Medieval debates regarding predestination. We must rely on his enemy, Florus of Lyon, for an account of Amalar's condemnation at Quierzy, 838. While the exact date of his death is not known, it is...
, he carried the conclusions of a Paris synod on iconoclasm
Iconoclasm
Iconoclasm is the deliberate destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually with religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major political or religious changes...
to Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious , also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was the King of Aquitaine from 781. He was also King of the Franks and co-Emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813...
. He went as ambassador to Byzantium
Byzantium
Byzantium was an ancient Greek city, founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas . The name Byzantium is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...
in 828.
De Paenitentia
His De Paenitentia laid down qualities Christians should aspire to in their lives. He discussed a distinction between killing in warfare (a sin), and in self-defense in battle. Heavy penances for homosexual acts were imposed on older men. The work is also a source for information about surviving pagan practices.It was written in five volumes, at Ebbo's request. Ebbo's intention was to have a normative penitential; Halitgar set aside tariffs of penance
Penance
Penance is repentance of sins as well as the proper name of the Roman Catholic, Orthodox Christian, and Anglican Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation/Confession. It also plays a part in non-sacramental confession among Lutherans and other Protestants...
s for exhortations. This work and the two attributed to Hrabanus Maurus were considered to supersede those written before, and were very influential, particularly in pre-Norman England. At this point, "the books used by confessors began to consist more and more of instructions in the style of the later moral theology".
His sources have been much debated:
- material from Gregory the Great, Prosper of AquitaineProsper of AquitaineSaint Prosper of Aquitaine , a Christian writer and disciple of Saint Augustine of Hippo, was the first continuator of Jerome's Universal Chronicle.- Life :...
, the Collectio Acheriana - the Canons of Elvira and other old collections
- Julianus PomeriusJulianus PomeriusJulianus Pomerius was a Christian priest in fifth century Gaul. He wrote five treatises, only one of which, De Vita Contemplativa, survives.He appears to have fled from North Africa to Gaul to escape the Vandals, towards the end of the century...
- a source common to Halitgar, the Collectio quadripartitaCollectio canonum quadripartitaThe Collectio canonum quadripartita is an early medieval canon law collection, written around the year 850 in the ecclesiastical province of Reims. It consists of four books...
, and the penitential writings of Hrabanus Maurus.