Folia Canonica 12. (2009)
STUDIES - Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi: Medieval canon law heritage of the Norbertine Abbey of Weissenau in the hermitage of St. Petersburg
122 SZABOLCS ANZELM SZUROMI fint two canons of the collection.16 Here Christ gently introduces Book I, in teaching pose together with two angels on either side. The miniatures are remarkably fine and elaborate, and there is one at the opening of each of the five books.17 Book II, which is dedicated to canonical cases,18 is illustrated by a bishop wearing a red robe and holding a book, surrounded by two bishops and three other religious on either side.19 This particular part of the manuscript yields considerable peculiarities which help to identify the field of usage of this codex by the Norbertine community of Weissenau. Book III summarizes the canonical norms on the life of clerics.20 There is a nice illustration drawn of a priest celebrating Holy Mass, surrounded by a deacon, subdeacon and acolyte. In this part, we can find marginal references by hand n° 3.21 Book IV explains the discipline of the Church regarding engagement and marriage,22 and the miniature expresses well the effect of the Fourth Lateran Council’s decision concerning marriage, i.e. Canon 51,23 which prescribes public weddings in a church and also requires that there be a public proclamation of the marriage before the wedding. Following the canonical regulation, the illustration contains a priest in the center, wearing a chasuble, and on either side appear the two families, each presenting their children; in addition four other people, two on either side. In the opening miniature of Book V — which treats of accusations24, simony, license to teach, heretics, homicide, martial actions, crimes, privileges, purgation, penitence and excommunications — there is recognizable an archbishop (wearing a pallium and red chasuble) holding a book in the center, and another archbishop at his left side also holding a book. Around them are a monk and two clerics, as well as a person leaning on a cane. This book is the second most consulted part of the entire codex. If we focus on Books I, II and V, we can learn more about the interest and activity of the Norbertine community of Weissenau. Fol. 4r is an extraordinarily good example to discover the field of usage of the Ermit. lat. 26. The reader held his hand at the middle of the glossa of this folio, which made it “Firmiter credimus et simpliciter confitemur (...) Deo ad aeternam merentur beatitudinem pervenire. // Damnamus ergo reprobamus libellum (...) doctrina non tam haeretica censenda sit quam insana. COD 230—233._Cf. X 1.1.1—2: Friedberg II. 5—7. 17 Book I: foil. lva-68rb; Book II: foil. 68rb-131ra; Book III: foil. 131ra-188rb; Book IV: foil. 188rb-207va; Book V: foil. 207va-263va. 18 X 1.2.1: De Quodvultdeo Centuriensi episcopo, quem, quum adversarius ipsius eum petiis- setad concilium nostrum introduci, interrogatus, an cum eo vellet apud episcopos experiri, primo id promiserat, et altera die respondit, hoc sibi non placere, atque discessit. Placuit omnibus episcopis, ut nullus eidem Quodvultdeo communicet, donec satisfactione praemissa fuerit absolutus. Nam adimi sibi episcopatum ante causae eius exitum nulli potest iure videri. Friedberg II. 239. 19 Erm. lat. 26, fol. 68rb. 20 Cf. X 3.1: De vita et honestate clericorum. Friedberg II. 449. 21 Ermit. lat. 13 lr. 22 Cf. X 4.1: De sponsalibus et matrimoniis. FRIEDBERG II. 661. 23 Cone. Lateranense IV, Const. 51: COD 258. 24 Cf. X 5.1: De accustationibus, inquisitionibus et denunciationibus. Friedberg II. 733.
