PENANCE IN THE MIDDLE AGES: INSTITUTIONAL OR CHARISMATIC?

Brandon Kertson Spirit and the Middle Ages April 16, 2012 Dr. Dale Coulter

INTRODUCTION Penitential practices have been present throughout the history of the Christian church. One can even see them as predating the Christian movement through the preceding Jewish movements that also sought for ways through which to atone for sins through penitential acts demonstrating their repentance.1 As time went on, as with most practices and ideas in the church, penance began to become more systematized and ritualized.2 According to McNeill and Gamers volume Medieval Handbooks of Penance, this systematization began to occur in the third and fourth centuries as the practice became increasingly prominent, especially in light of the Novation schism.3 It was not until the High Middle Ages and the rise of scholasticism, however, that the institution of penance became recognized as a sacrament.4 These scholastics dealt with important theoretical questions which, whether they meant it to or not, helped to institutionalize the idea of penance, moving it toward the necessity of confession with a priest. Such confession served to discern the proper penance, to gain satisfaction and not to have to do either in the next life. While much attention has been paid to these scholars in the formation of
This pulls from Sarah Hamiltons definition of penance: Penance denotes the process by which Christians sought to atone for their sins through confession through penitential acts which demonstrated their repentance, in Sarah Hamilton, The Practice of Penance, 900-1050, Royal Historical Society Studies in History New Series, (Woodbridge, Suffolk ; Rochester, NY: Royal Historical Society : Boydell Press, 2001), 2. Just as in later Christian penance, the Old Testament contains individual acts of penance some of which are public, for instance in the temple sacrificial system, and some of which are private, for instance family sacrifices seen in Abraham or Job and the penitential Psalms. It also contains communal acts of penance such as in the Day of Atonement. There are also various voices that promote certain aspects of penance over others such as contrition in the Psalms and satisfaction in the prophets. Ritualization not only occurs with rites like penance, but also occurs with movements like the apostolic movements we will explore through our discussion on penance. John T. McNeill and Helena M. Gamer, Medieval Handbooks of Penance : A Translation of the Principal "Libri Poenitentiales" and Selections from Related Documents, Records of Western Civilization (New York: Columbia University Press, 1990), 7. Abigail Firey, A New History of Penance, Brill's Companions to the Christian Tradition, (Leiden ; Boston: Brill, 2008), 7-8. This occurred as scholastics like Lombard made the distinction between penance as a virtue of the mind and external satisfaction and as they included it in more narrow lists of sacraments that soon became standardized.
4 3 2 1

penance, a movement was at its height that treated penance as a lifestyle rather than an institution. This idea is most evident in the apostolic movements of the period that made penance not just an institutional act but charismatically lived it out independently of the larger church structure. As Sarah Hamilton points out in her The Practice of Penance, older historians have paid little attention to the role of penance within the monastic life.5 It is possible that one could see these two movements as divergent to one another, the first moving penance toward an institutional sacrament, the other in a more grassroots manner making penance a part of everyday life outside of the realm of confession and with the possibility of being lived outside of the church and so undermining the institution. I would contend, however, that to gain a full view of penance and its development in the High Middle Ages, one must see penance as both institutional in scholasticism and working charismatically as seen in the apostolic movements.6 This period was a time in which both forms of penance were at their height within European Christianity. To show this I will begin by overviewing the scholastic contribution to penance as seen in Hugh of St. Victor, Peter Lombard and then the Fourth Lateran Council as a culmination of their work. Second, I will explore penance as a lifestyle as seen in the apostolic movements and exemplified by the early Franciscans. Finally, we will draw together the findings and analysis throughout to demonstrate how both functioned as penance within the period and were more intertwined than one may think.

INSTITUTIONAL
5

Hamilton, 77.

Charismatic is a loaded word these days. In this case, by charismatic I simply mean working outside of the institution leadership because one feels led by the prompting of the Spirit to act on ones own accord. This is similar to how scholars identify the judges in the biblical book of Judges as charismatic leaders. The dichotomy between charismatic and institutional or bureaucratic is similar to that made by Max Weber in his social and leadership theories. See, Max Weber, Economy and Society; an Outline of Interpretive Sociology, 3 vols. (New York,: Bedminster Press, 1968).

As mentioned in the introduction above, penance had a storied history leading up to the scholastic age. Sarah Hamilton in her introduction to penance between 900-1050 cites three stages in its development.7 The first stage, canonical penance pre-ninth century, was dominated by communal penance once a year during lent. Public penance could be repeated as often as required by the penitents lifestyle and private penance could be administered by a priest. The second stage, from the late eighth and ninth centuries, promoted the practice of two separate forms of penance, public and private. Public sins merit public penance and private sins merit private penance. There was also the establishment of a rite for the administration of penance as communal penance fell into decline. Finally in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries is the third stage in which there was an expansion of secret penance evolving into what is now more commonly known as late medieval confession. Hamilton says that there was a shift from the early medieval emphasis on the external performance of penanceto more emphasis being placed on the contrition felt by the individual.8 James Dallen, in his history of penance, simplifies this to a twofold movement the first being ecclesial or canonical penance that was public, the second a move toward private penance in addition to the public.9 It is this last stage that is the focus of our inquiry during which private penance had become widespread. We should, however, keep this history before us remembering that earlier penance within the church was much more public and that, as we will see, this public penance continued to be lived out within the monastic lifestyle. The scholastic period is often seen as beginning in the twelfth century with the rise of the schools that would later form the university and extends to the end of the Middle Ages in the
7

Hamilton, 3-7. Ibid., 7.

James Dallen, The Reconciling Community : The Rite of Penance, Studies in the Reformed Rites of the Catholic Church (New York: Pueblo Pub. Co., 1986), 139.

sixteenth century. We are beginning with and spending more time on scholasticism because it will help us to gain a deeper understanding of what penance meant during this period. According to Joseph Goering, these schools were places where students were introduced to a common tradition through a common curriculum of study and where they developed common methods of thinking about and of teaching about penance.10 Our focus is specifically on the early scholastic period of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. To explore what scholastic penance looked like during this period we will analyze Hugh of St. Victors section on penance in On the Sacraments of the Christian Faith and Peter Lombards section on penance in his fourth volume of The Sentences. We will pay particular attention to how they contribute either to an institutionalization of penance or to the charismatic practice of penance as seen in the apostolic movements. Finally, we will turn to the documents of the Fourth Lateran Council that respond to these contemporary developments in penance as well as the budding apostolic movements.

Hugh of St. Victor According to McLaughlins historiography of penance, Hugh of St. Victor defended a more conservative sacramental position.11 This comment is specifically made in relation to Abelard who held to a robust contritionism in stipulating that true confession was solely from the
Joseph Goering, "The Scholastic Turn (1100-1500): Penitential Theology and Law in the Schools," in A New History of Penance, ed. Abigail Firey, Brill's Companions to the Christian Tradition, (Leiden ; Boston: Brill, 2008), 219. R. Emmet McLaughlin, "Truth, Tradition and History: The Historiography of High/Late Medieval and Early Modern Penance," in A New History of Penance, ed. Abigail Firey, Brill's Companions to the Christian Tradition, (Leiden ; Boston: Brill, 2008), 39.
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love of God rather than from fear of punishment. This label of conservative could also be applied to Hugh in relation to Lombard as Hugh sees an even larger role for the priestly institution of penance. J. Patout Burns in his article about satisfaction in medieval redemption history gives us a context for Hughs view on penance as being situated within a larger Anselmian view of satisfaction based on repaying God the honor due to him.12 This involves repayment for both the loss God suffered in humanitys fall and in satisfaction for his contempt for ongoing sin. While Christs death repays the first loss, penance is needed to fulfill the second. Hugh performs his work on penance within his On the Sacraments of Christian Faith in a section on confession (part XIV).13 First, he establishes the role of priests in confession as ones with whom Christ has shared his power to forgive sins in his absence.14 While priests have been given this power, confession can be made to one another. This is perfectly acceptable along with common penitence for lighter sins, but guilt that is more serious should be disclosed by special confession to the priest who is better equipped to help one make proper satisfaction. Confession should not be seen as a replacement for contrition but rather as an aid to true contrition pointing to the difference between external and internal penance (c 2). Exterior penance, through the affliction of the flesh, is sufficient for small deeds, but an interior penance found in true contrition of the heart is required for deeper depravity. This is because only with contrition will you correct your evils rather than just punish them. Only with both punishment and actual correction does one move beyond penance to reaping the fruits of penance. While exterior
J. Patout Burns, "Concept of Satisfaction in Medieval Redemption Theory," Theological Studies 36, no. 2 (1975): 291. Hugh of Saint-Victor and Roy J. Deferrari, Hugh of Saint Victor on the Sacraments of the Christian Faith ; (De Sacramentis) (Eugene, Or.: Wipf & Stock, 2007), 401-30. This is a shift from the bishop being the primary presider over penance which is more officially made through the Fourth Lateran Council
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penance may have the possibility of being worthy of such fruit, one can never know when they have reached this point so one should always repent internally as well. Even if satisfaction is not fulfilled in this life, however, God is merciful and will purge the remaining sin in the purgatorial fires in the next life, though only if penance was begun here (c 3). After describing confession and penance, Hugh then turns to the question of whether or not penance can be repeated (c 4). He sees Matthew 18 as clearly signifying the possibility of continual forgiveness therefore making continual repentance and penance both feasible and necessary. This of course should not be an excuse for continuing to sin, rather true penance and contrition should cause one to rise above their past state. He also briefly deals with the issue of those who repent at death. For Hugh, no true repentance is fruitless though he questions the facility of a true repentance when one is near death (c 5). He then takes this opportunity to go deeper into the importance of internal penance, which he terms the will of man (c 6-7). Because God judges the will, which is internal, anyone can receive forgiveness. While not all are equal in resources, all humans are resourced equal in will. Here Hugh appears to be dealing with how the rich are able to give more alms than the poor and so in theory could more easily make satisfaction for their sins. Hamilton points out that many practices of penance suggest that the poor were often marginalized in this way as these were reserved for the well-off.15 According to Hugh, however, God weighs the will; man judges the work (c 7). This means that those who are in poverty, voluntary or otherwise, have just as much to give toward penance through contrition of the heart. Finally, Hugh turns to two closing questions. The first returns to the role of priests and whether or not they have the power to forgive sins (c 8). He rejects that the priests power is only a kind of sign of what God has already done. Hugh claims that it is not he who attributes to
15

Hamilton, 203.

priests the power to forgive, rather it is God through the scripture, specifically citing Exodus 22:28 and John 20:22-23. God grants forgiveness, though doing so through the priest. This causes us to question if the priests hold this power, why would one want to confess to another as Hugh holds in chapter one? This again shows Hughs conservatism compared to Lombard and his proclivity toward institutionalization. Within this conversation he also stresses again the importance of interior penance over exterior since salvation comes to him who fully grieves his sin even if satisfaction remains to be paid for sin, speaking about purgatory.16 The final question Hugh deals with is whether sins return after they have been dismissed, the reviviscence of sin (c 9). Hugh makes it clear that as long as that man repented, his sin was not charged to him. As long as there was merit, the reward remained.17 We see that Hugh envisions penance as well within the confines of the churchs institutional structure giving a predominate place to the priest in both confession and absolution. He does make limited room for confession outside of the priesthood and continues the recent trend of putting a heavy emphasis on internal penance while still holding to the importance of external penance. In his focus on the repetition of penance and the focus of the internal will over external ability, we also see some aspects of penance that could have easily been picked up by the apostolic movements in their emphases on personal penance and penance as a lifestyle. These will only be expanded as Lombard writes his sentences shortly after Hughs work.

Peter Lombard To understand Peter Lombard we must first mention Gratian, a canon lawyer from Bologna, who wrote his Decretum in the middle of the twelfth century just before Lombard
16

Hugh of Saint-Victor and Deferrari, 420. Ibid., 429.

17

wrote The Sentences.18 In many ways Gratian set the agenda for penance in dealing with the dilemmas over sacerdotal authority and whether or not priests could apply their own law.19 Goering even goes so far as to say that Lombard adds little to Gratian beyond raising a few new questions of particular interest to theologians, thereby building a shared tradition between theologians and jurists.20 This may stem from Goerings thesis that both scholars, rather than battling for their own views, are functioning as educators in presenting the breadth and catholicity of the tradition they have inherited and their students are beginning to master.21 Both would, in the end, become touchstones for juridical education and dominate the faculties and schools of theology. As for Lombard, his treatise on penance occurs in his fourth book of The Sentences.22 His first three books focus on things such as God, creation, sin and grace. Book four is dedicated to the doctrine of signs or sacraments. In his introduction to the text, Giulio Silano echoes Goering above in seeing Lombards extensive treatment as reflecting the complex richness of the tradition which he inherits as well as its importance to the Christian life.23 Lombard begins by expressing the pastoral concern that is inherent to penance in stating, Penance is necessary for those who are far away (Dist. XIV c1 n1). He also links it with baptism in that both deal with
Henry Ansgar Kelly, "Penitential Theology and Law at the Turn of the Fifteenth Century," in A New History of Penance, ed. Abigail Firey, Brill's Companions to the Christian Tradition, (Leiden ; Boston: Brill, 2008), 240.
19 18

Firey, 15. Goering, 228.

20

Ibid., 225. Goerings thesis is compelling, but will not keep us from bringing out what is distinctive to Lombard in what he presents on penance and how he presents it. Peter Lombard, The Sentences, Book 4: On the Doctrine of Signs, trans., Giulio Silano, Mediaeval Sources in Translation, (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 2007), 69-138. Giulio Silano, introduction to The Sentences, Book 4: On the Doctrine of Signs, by Peter Lombard, Mediaeval Sources in Translation, (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 2007).
23 22

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sin. First, baptism deals with past sin and then penance for ongoing sin. The major difference is that penance can be repeated whereas baptism cannot. Similarly, baptism can be bestowed upon the passive recipient whereas penance requires contrition and the intention not to commit the same wrong again (c2 n2). After this introduction, Lombard goes on to define penance as to sorrow in ones soul and to hate vices (c3 n1). This sorrow should also be coupled with charity, which gives life and revivifies one from their sinful state over which one distresses (c3 n4). Finally, he ends this first distinction by settling the common question of whether or not penance should be repeated holding that it should be repeated frequently (c4-5).24 Since, he sees penance as necessarily repeatable, this naturally opens up the idea of penance as a lifestyle. What better way to repeat penance than to live it out through poverty, simplicity, and even self-infliction? Also, since sorrow should be coupled with charity, not only should one live in poverty, but living a lifestyle of charity through preaching and evangelism also seems natural. A second question Lombard deals with is whether one can repent of one sin and be unrepentant of the rest. He again brings out the importance of pairing charity with contrition (Dist. XV c3 n8). Charity on its own, even if done for satisfaction, is useless if one has not truly withdrawn from sin (c6 n1). True penance, however, even if done subsequent to the almsgiving, makes such charity effective (c6 n4). In the same way, penance is for abolishing all sin and penance for just one sin is not true repentance (c7). This causes Lombard to explain more fully what penance consists of: compunction of heart, confession of the mouth, and satisfaction in deed (Dist. XVI c1 n1). He also outlines the three major methods of penance: baptism for previous sins, after baptism for graver sins, and then daily penance for venial sins (c4 n1) for which the Lords Prayer with some fasting and almsgiving suffices (c6). Again, Lombards
John M. T. Barton, Penance and Absolution, 1st ed., Twentieth Century Encyclopedia of Catholicism, (New York,: Hawthorn Books, 1961), 110. Barton gives a good overview of the major questions Lombard broaches and his own summary of how he believes Lombard answers each question.
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response, in focusing on the need for holistic penance done for every area of ones life, opens the possibility of a lifestyle of penance as being the truest form of repentance. This is especially true in dealing with venial sins. His third question revisits Gratians earlier inquiry into whether contrition of the heart without confession and external satisfaction is sufficient for the forgiveness of sins (Dist. XVII c1 n1-3).25 He presents both sides of the issue and proposes a reconciling view that certain sins may be forgiven through contrition alone, but other graver sins require confession and satisfaction (c1 n11). Secondly, he deals with the question of to whom confession should be made. Does a priest need to be involved or can it be made to God alone? Perhaps it could be made to a friend when a priest is not available? Again, Lombard takes a kind of middle view trying to uphold the importance of the priestly office while maintaining that confession to God with true contrition cannot be denied (c2-3). Similarly, one can confess to another human but they are missing out on the priests ability to bind and loose as well as their skill in prescribing penance (c4). He then asks a fourth question, If sin is entirely remitted by God through contrition of the heart and from the moment when the penitent has the intention of confession, what is afterwards remitted to him by the priest (Dist. 18 c1 n1)? For Lombard, the power of the priest is essentially the power to discern what God has already bound or loosed (c 3). It is ultimately the work of God through Christ who forgives sins (c4). In fact, Lombard then spends time pointing out the oft inadequacy of priests (dist. 19 c1 n2). While all priests receive the key of judgment through ordination, not all seem to receive the key of knowledge, only those who preserve the teaching and way of life of the Apostles (c1 n5). These two questions may keep
Goering.230. It was Goering who brought this particular connection between Lombards 17th distinction and Gratians work to my attention.
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penance opened up to the charismatic the most as they clearly move it outside of the realm of the institution by negating the need for a priest when true contrition is present. In fact, one can even confess to one another rather than a priest. One can see how Lombard is still holding the line of some importance for a priest does provides fodder for those who would later want to institutionalize penance and confession, but he appears to be straddling this line between the institutional and charismatic. Finally, Lombard moves toward death by dealing with the questions of those who wait to repent until the end of their lives, whether or not sins can be remitted even after death, and the question of the reviviscence of sin (Dists. XX-XXII). Here we see him encouraging his readers that the best way to avoid these problems is to become increasingly penitent to the point that one does not desire to sin (Dist. XX c2 n3). So again, we see an emphasis on a penance lived out in ones heart as well as a move toward increased penance, which could support a lifestyle of penance. At the same time, Lombard does encourage developing a standard rule of penance so that priests all give the same weight of penance to the penitent (Dist. XX c3 n 1-2). While this may well help to lead to a further institutionalization of the sacrament, he couches this idea within the framework that such a law would allow more focus on the heart than the punishment. So we see that, on the one hand, Lombard sees penance as a sacrament of the church that is best carried out with the aid of the priests and that elements of his work may well have helped lead to its further institutionalization. On the other hand, he also opens the door aplenty for movements like the apostolic movement to take a more charismatic approach to penance that we will describe below.

The Fourth Lateran Council

As Sarah Hamilton points out, usually in church law, the pastoral predominates. In terms of penance, this is meant to help every Christian ensure his or her own salvation.26 While she is speaking of church law before the Fourth Lateran Council, the same could be said of the council of 1215. Goering affirms this saying that the council had important legislation formulated to meet a perceived need in Christian society in regards to penance.27 We see this concern in the first article, If someone falls into sin after having received baptism, he or she can always be restored through penance.28 This shows an acceptance of the connection made between penance and baptism in Lombard above. Another move that the council made was to order the appointment of coadjutors and cooperators not only in the office of preaching but also in hearing confession and enjoining penance.29 This enlarges the role of the priest and officially expands those who can administer penance beyond the bishop to more local priests making penance more accessible to the masses. In another attempt to make penance more prevalent within the institution as well as accessible to the masses, the council mandated in article twenty-one that priests make available to all adult Christians the opportunity to confess personally all of their sins at least once a year without fear of this confession being revealed by the priest, to perform the penance given to them, and to receive the Eucharist at least once a year at Easter.30 McNeill and Gamer believe, based on the large amount of penitential handbooks available, that this move was only a universalization and codification of what was already the

26

Hamilton, 25. Goering, 226.

27

Fourth Lateran Council, c. 1; Norman P. Tanner, Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils, 2 vols. (London : Sheed & Ward: Washington, DC, 1990), 1:230-31.
29

28

Fourth Lateran Council, c. 10; Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils, 1:239-40. Fourth Lateran Council, c. 10; Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils, 1:245.

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norm in much of medieval Europe.31 It is here, in the Fourth Lateran Council that we see the most official and grandiose move toward an institutionalization of penance in the period. Many attribute this to the scholastic inclusion of penance within their list of sacraments and especially Lombards inclusion of it in his narrowest list of seven sacraments that became definitive in describing the churchs official sacraments. Despite this inclusion, we have seen how, particularly in Lombard, there is just as much that would lead to a more charismatic form of penance as would lead to its institutionalization.

CHARISMATIC At the same time as this conversation on penance was taking place within scholasticism leading to more institutional forms of penance, there was also an increase in apostolic movements that treated penance not just as something to be done once a year before a priest, but as a lifestyle. Like the history of scholastic penance, these apostolic movements have a history as well. First, there were a number of people who, before these movements, chose to live a lifestyle of penance. These individuals were often termed conversi, those who voluntarily became penitents. They either remained in their communities as members of secular institutes or became associated with monasteries. According to James Dallen, these conversi are mentioned as early as the fifth century in Spain and Gaul though they had a spotted history.32 Second, there had always been a sense in which monasticism, from its earliest period, had an aspect of penance in its preoccupation with the avoidance of sin.33 This was fully realized in the High Middle Ages, however, as groups like the Franciscans sought to return to codify their return to apostolic
31

McNeill and Gamer, 29. Dallen, 82-84. Ibid., 151.

32

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simplicity and poverty and that this lifestyle was seen as a fuller form of penance within the context of its institutionalization through the scholastics and Fourth Lateran Council. Not only did they seek to live out these ideals, but also many of these groups sought to spread them through their itinerant preaching ministries and missionary efforts. Finally, there were a number of apostolic movements that arose during this period though not all of them were accepted as legitimate orders as easily as the Franciscans, and some never were accepted. These include groups like the Waldensians, the humiliati, and a number of womens movements like the beguines.34 Whereas the Fourth Lateran Council called individuals to penance with a priest at least annually, the members of these movements saw their lives as penance. As Hamilton points out, The monastic life was supposed to be one of constant penance.35 Their lives were so respected as examples of penance that administering it to others was seen as part of their pastoral duty, even for women ascetics.36 One way this lifestyle was lived out was in poverty. Clare of Assisi for instance, tells us that God enlightened her heart that I might do penance according to the example and teaching of our most blessed father Francis.37 The way in which they follow this example of penance is to not take possessions and live in poverty. Not only was it in living lives of poverty, but according to McNeill and Gamer, fasting was the most common of all ascetic practices and most penitential penalties are assigned some form of it.38 They also kept vigils and
For an overview of the rise of the various movements within the social and economic context of the High Middle Ages, see Herbert Grundmann, Religious Movements in the Middle Ages : The Historical Links between Heresy, the Mendicant Orders, and the Women's Religious Movement in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Century, with the Historical Foundations of German Mysticism (Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1995).
35 34

Hamilton, 94. Ibid., 98.

36

Clare of Assisi, "The Form of Life of Saint Clare," in The Lady : Clare of Assisi : Early Documents, ed. Regis J. Armstrong(Hyde Park, N.Y.: New City Press, 2005), 117-18.
38

37

McNeill and Gamer, 31.

various postures meant to ensure bodily discomfort, mental distress and to prevent sleep.39 For example, Thomas Celano, in his Life of Saint Francis relates that Francis body was often tired because of neglect, though this simply affirmed for him the body was weak but the spirit was willing.40 It was this neglect of his body through fasting and putting it in compromising situations for the sake of vigil, penance, and evangelism that likely led to Francis early death. Others within the apostolic movements, such as Mary of Oignies, intentionally abused their body in penance. Her confessor, James of Vitry tells us that in order to make penance and satisfaction she renounced all things and that not only did she afflict her body but she utterly gave up her own will and denied herself through obedience by subjecting herself to the will of another.41 This affliction came through fasting as well as self-mutilation with a knife in penance. There is no mention of a specific sin that prompted such actions; rather it appears to be the burning desire for a life devoid of sin. All of these were characteristic of the lifestyle of those in the apostolic movements. Not only did their lives function as penance for sins they had committed, but they served to move them away from the possibility of sin. As both Hugh and Lombard point out, true contrition does not just deal with sins committed, but it seeks to not sin again. By living lifestyles of simplicity, prayer, and fasting that focused on the things of God and set them apart from the world, these monastics had little room left for sin making them true penitents. We should point out that when sin did occur within these communities, they were expected to participate in the normal sacrament of penance like anyone else including confession. Some movements such as
39

Ibid., 32.

Thomas Celano, "The Life of Saint Francis," in Francis of Assisi : Early Documents, ed. Regis J. Armstrong, J. A. Wayne Hellmann, and William J. Short(New York: New City Press, 1999), 266-67. Jacques de Vitry, The Life of Marie D'oignies, ed. Margot H. King, Peregrina Translations Series (Toronto, Ont.: Peregrina Pub. Co., 1993), 59-60.
41

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Clare of Assisis houses had regular visitators who would perform confession.42 Similarly, Francis in both his earlier and latter rule encourage the brothers of the order to confess their sins to a priest from whom they are to receive penance and absolution (c 20).43 In this way, we should not see these movements as purposefully attempting to undermine the priestly institution of penance. Rather, it provides an alternative model and another piece to the larger picture of what penance looked like in the High Middle Ages in that one could find an effective form of penance outside of the church structure.

CONCLUSION Penance certainly hit its stride reaching a peak within the High Middle Ages. It makes sense, therefore, that it soon took on a more institutional form as many doctrines and practices do once they are fully formulated. This rise to prominence however should be seen as occurring because of what was going on at both the scholastic level and the charismatic level. We should be careful not to dichotomize the two too much. As we have seen, while the scholastics helped to ritualize the doctrine of penance within the sacramental system and helped to solidify the role of the priest within that institution, they also had a large emphasis on aspects such as contrition of the heart, confession to one another, and the need for repeated penance which validated a form of penance lived outside of the institution which they promoted through their universities. Lombard, for instance, can be seen as undermining the priestly station in putting the full efficaciousness of forgiveness within Gods hands seeing the priest functioning only as a sign to what God has already done, though Hugh would take this to task. On the other hand, the
42

Assisi, "The Form and Manner of Life of Cardinal Hugolino," 83.

Francis of Assisi, "The Earlier Rule," in Francis of Assisi : Early Documents, ed. Regis J. Armstrong, J. A. Wayne Hellmann, and William J. Short(New York: New City Press, 1999), 77-78. See also chapter seven Francis of Assisi, "The Later Rule," in Francis of Assisi : Early Documents, ed. Regis J. Armstrong, J. A. Wayne Hellmann, and William J. Short(New York: New City Press, 1999).

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apostolic movements, while living out their penance largely apart from the institution through a lifestyle of poverty that averted them from sin, focused their hearts on God, and showed the true nature of their contrition, also sought out the institution of penance when they did sin. They even acted as purveyors of penance when no priest was present. Within the scope of the history of penance, the High Middle Ages may in fact sit at a crossroads in which both forms of penance were at their height in different arenas at the same time. Before this period, the charismatic/monastic seemed to reign as the mode for individual penance alongside public and communal acts of penance. After this period, we see the continued rise of individual penance and confession within the institutional church though never to the complete detriment of the charismatic. In the end then, penance was institutional and charismatic, scholastic and lived out on the ground during the High Middle Ages.

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