Letter 10: Hildegard to Pope Alexander III
The Letters
Hildegard to Pope Alexander IIP
This letter is one of the frequent complaints Hildegard is forced to voice against her former community of St. Disibod. In 1173 Hildegard's friend and secretary, who had served her faithfully for over thirty years, the monk Volmar, died. Volmar had also served as provost of the convent, and on his death, the troublesome
Helengerus, abbot of St. Disibod, refused to replace him. Hence Hildegard's letter here. The pope's intervention brought about the election of Gottfried, who served as provost only a short time, until his death in 1176. Gottfried took advantage of his position, however, to begin a Vita of Hildegard. By the time of Gottfried's death, Hildegard was already in touch with Guibert of Gembloux, who became her secretary in 1177 and served in that capacity until her death.
O lofty and glorious one, first appointed through the Word of God through whom every creature, rational and non-rational, was made according to its kind, to you has that same Word, by robing Himself in humanity,2 specially yielded the keys of the kingdom of heaven, that is, the power of binding and loosing [cf. Matt 16.19]. You are also, O most excellent father, the source of all spiritual offices. Some of these sound the trumpet of God's justice in the Church, which shines because it has been clothed with various ornaments [cf.
Ps 44.8-10], while others set good examples for other people by imitating the lives of the saints, and if they bring forth good works, they attribute them to God and not to themselves. Rejoicing in those who seek to emulate them, they follow the saints who conquered their flesh and, fighting against the sins of the devil, fortified themselves with the clear victory of heaven's army, and with good will looked upon God, just as the angels do.
And so, O mild father, imitate that kindly father who joyfully received his penitent son at his return and killed the fatted calf for his sake [cf. Luke 15.2 Off]; and emulate also that man who washed with wine the wounds of the one beaten by robbers" [cf. Luke 10.3Off]. By these examples understand the harshness of reproof and the godliness of compassion.3 And be the Morning Star which precedes the sun, a guide to the Church, which, for far too long, has been lacking in the light of God's justice because of the dense cloud of schism.4 And with God's zeal seize the penitents and anoint them with the oil of mercy, because God desires mercy more than sacrifice [Hosea 6.6; Matt 9.13, 12.7].
Now O gentlest father, my sisters and I bend our knees before your paternal piety, praying that you deign to regard the poverty of this poor little woman. We are in great distress because the abbot of Mount St. Disibod and his brothers have taken away our privileges and the right of election which we have always had, rights which we have been ever careful to retain. For if they will not grant us reverential and religious men, such as we seek, spiritual reli-
The Letters ofHildegard ofBingen gion will be totally destroyed among us. Therefore, my lord, for God's sake, help us, so that we may retain the man we have elected to that office. Or, if not, let us seek out and receive others, where we can, who will look after us in accordance with the will of God and our own needs.
Now again we ask you, most pious father, not to despise our petition or our messengers, who on the advice of our faithful friend took up our cause.
May you grant that which they seek to obtain from you, so that after the end of this life, which is already hastening toward evening, you may come to that inextinguishable light and hear the sweet voice of the Lord saying, "Well done, good and faithful servant, because thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will place thee over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord" [Matt
25.21, 23]. Incline the ears of your piety to our supplications, therefore, and be the bright day to us and to them, so that from the kindness of your generosity we may give thanks to the Lord together, and you may rejoice forever in eternal happiness.
Notes 1. Alexander spent most of his long reign (1159-81) resisting die power of the empire, from the very beginning when his election was disputed by the anti-pope Victor
IV, through two succeeding anti-popes, until reconciliation with Frederick I in 1177.
2. per indumentum humanitatis sue. This image of Christ's putting on the robe of mankind's flesh at the incarnation is a particular favorite of Hildegard's. She returns to it again and again.
3. At times, Hildegard can sound extremely harsh in her condemnations, but usually (and it is a common theme in her writing), as here, she stresses justice tempered by mercy.
4. The schism began in 1159 with the disputed election of Alexander III and Victor
IV. After Victor's death Barbarossa chose another anti-pope, and, after him, another.
The schism lasted until 1177 with the reconciliation between Barbarossa and Alexander
III.
10r Pope Alexander III to Wezelinus
In answer to Hildegard's request, the pope appoints Wezelinus, Hildegard's nephew, to look into the matter. Wezelinus acquitted himself well in this disagreeable task, for through his efforts, Abbot Helengerus of Mount St. Disibod assigned the monk Gottfried to Hildegard to serve as provost and secretary.
Alexander, servant of the servants of God, to our beloved son, abbot of St.
Andrew in Cologne, greetings and apostolic blessings.