This book explores the role of canon law in the ecclesiastical reform movement of the eleventh century, commonly known as the Gregorian Refom movement. Focusing on the Collectio canonum of Bishop Anselm of Lucca — hitherto largely unexplored in English — it is concerned with the symbiotic relationship between canon law and reform, and seeks to explore the ways in which Anselm’s writing can be seen in the context of the reformer’s need to devise and articulate strategies for the renovation of the Church and Christian society. Its principal contention is that Anselm’s collection cannot be seen merely as a catalogue of canon law, but also functioned to articulate, define, and propagate reformist doctrine in a time of great social and religious upheaval.
The study of medieval Europe is being transformed as old orthodoxies are challenged, new methods embraced and fresh fields of inquiry opened up. The adoption of inter-disciplinary perspectives and the challenge of economic, social and cultural theory are forcing medievalists to ask new questions and to see familiar topics in a fresh light. The aim of this series is to combine the scholarship traditionally associated with medieval studies with an awareness of more recent issues and approaches in a form accessible to the non-specialist reader.
This chapter presents the life of Anselm of Lucca as a Gregorian bishop. Where and what Anselm studied are matters of much debate. The two Vitae Anselmi are largely silent on Anselm’s early life and education, speaking only of his good knowledge of grammar, and acquaintance with dialectic. Between March 18 and April 21 1073, Anselm was designated as Bishop of Lucca by Pope Alexander II. Anselm’s biographers were concerned to demonstrate the ways in which Anselm’s life had been devoted to the promotion of ecclesiastical reform. Anselm’s episcopacy and the entire conflict with the canons was a struggle of a bishop looking to recover and stabilise his position, both in financial and pastoral terms.
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