Exegesis and Preaching in the Middle Ages
Type de matériel :
31
What relationship is there between exegesis and predication? Is the latter the aim of the former, which would then only be its preparation? The texts of the Middle Ages show that the links between them are far more complex. A first approach is undertaken by considering the “hermeneutical triad” (understanding, interpretation, application): does it correspond to the three processes described by Peter the Chanter (lectio – disputatio – praedicatio ) or rather to the three senses in the exegesis of the Victorines (littera – allegoria – tropologia )? Both exegesis and predication carry a sacred dimension and try to uncover and transmit the proper nature of the Word which transcends time. Through several examples (mainly marginal notes in the manuscripts and distinctiones ), it is shown how the exegetical exercise is initially exploited with predication in mind. Conversely, traces of the exegetical exercise are sought out within homelies and sermons. If indeed there is evidence of this exercise, even in its more technical aspects, it is nevertheless necessary to characterise exegesis specifically in its form geared toward predication, which grants considerable importance to tropology and topicality.
Réseaux sociaux