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Vol. 105 (2006): Our Past

Articles

The episcopal consecration in 13th-century Poland

  • Jacek Maciejewski
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52204/np.2006.105.117-139  [Google Scholar]
Published: 2006-06-30

Abstract

The article presents the results of research on the problem of episcopal consecration in late medieval Poland, which was the main element of a multi-stage ritual associated with the transition from a group of higher clergy to the episcopate. Episcopal consecrations were held in the province of Gniezno in the 13th century in accordance with the basic rules of canon law regarding the time of the celebration and the participation of the required number of bishops. In addition to its ecclesiastical significance, the celebration, which lasted at least three days, also had a social aspect, while the symbolic aspect referred to the metaphor of a wedding feast and marriage, well known in the Roman Church. The participation of the Archbishop of Gniezno, who is almost always concerned with the prestige of his office, is characteristic of these ceremonies. On the other hand, as far as the place of ordination was concerned, an interesting local custom had been established in the Gniezno Province of ordaining priests outside cathedral churches. These ceremonies were held in various places, usually important ecclesiastical and administrative centres in central Poland. They were located in the territory of the archdiocese of Gniezno (usually near the archbishop's residence) or very close to its borders, in the territory of the diocese of the elect. The reason for the persistence of this custom was the location of Gniezno, which was too peripheral in relation to other episcopal capitals, and the need to find a compromise between the archbishops' desire to maintain their own prestige and the communication capacity, in the broad sense of the word, of the episcopate at that time. On the other hand, even preliminary observations of the customs prevailing in the 14th and 15th centuries indicate that during this period the solemn liturgy on the occasion of the consecration was organised mainly in the cathedrals of the electors, while the participation of the archbishops of Gniezno in the conferring of the sacraments on their suffragans was much less than in the previous period.

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