The ''Glossa Ordinaria'', which is
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
for "Ordinary
.e. in a standard formGloss", is a collection of biblical commentaries in the form of
glosses. The glosses are drawn mostly from the
Church Fathers, but the text was arranged by scholars during the twelfth century. The ''Gloss'' is called "ordinary" to distinguish it from other gloss commentaries. In origin, it is not a single coherent work, but a collection of independent commentaries which were revised over time. The ''Glossa ordinaria'' was a standard reference work into the Early Modern period, although it was supplemented by the Postills attributed to
Hugh of St Cher and the commentaries of
Nicholas of Lyra
Nicolas de Lyra
__notoc__
1479
Nicholas of Lyra (french: Nicolas de Lyre; – October 1349), or Nicolaus Lyranus, a Franciscan teacher, was among the most influential practitioners of biblical exegesis in the Middle Ages. Little is know ...
.
Composition
Before the 20th century, this ''Glossa ordinaria'' was misattributed to
Walafrid Strabo
Walafrid, alternatively spelt Walahfrid, nicknamed Strabo (or Strabus, i.e. " squint-eyed") (c. 80818 August 849), was an Alemannic Benedictine monk and theological writer who lived on Reichenau Island in southern Germany.
Life
Walafrid Strabo ...
. The main impetus for the composition of the gloss came from the school of
Anselm of Laon
Anselm of Laon ( la, Anselmus; 1117), properly Ansel ('), was a French theologian and founder of a school of scholars who helped to pioneer biblical hermeneutics.
Biography
Born of very humble parents at Laon before the middle of the 11th cent ...
(d. 1117) and his brother Ralph. Another scholar associated with Auxerre,
Gilbert the Universal (d. 1134), is sometimes credited with the Gloss on much of the Old Testament, although only the gloss on Lamentations has been firmly attributed to him. The Gloss achieved a more-or-less standard form at Paris in the second half of the twelfth century.
Editions
The ''
Patrologia Latina'', volumes 113 and 114, contain a version of the ''glossa'' which, as well as being misattributed to Strabo, represents a later manuscript tradition. There is currently available a
facsimile of the
first printed edition of a ''glossa'', which was published at
Strasbourg in 1480/1 which can be found here. There are now modern editions of the following books: Genesis (chps 1-3); Lamentations (prothemes and ch 1); Ecclesiastes; Song of Songs.
Other works
It is a parallel tradition to the Jewish
Mikraot Gedolot
A ''Mikraot Gedolot'' (''Great Scriptures''; in Hebrew: ), often called the " Rabbinic Bible" in English, is an edition of the Hebrew Bible (in Hebrew) that generally includes three distinct elements:
* The biblical text according to the '' ma ...
.
Many important works would also have their own ''glossa ordinaria,'' such as that of
Accursius
__NOTOC__
Accursius (in Italian ''Accursio'' or ''Accorso di Bagnolo''; c. 11821263) was a Roman jurist. He is notable for his organization of the glosses, the medieval comments on Justinian's codification of Roman law, the ''Corpus Juris Civil ...
for
Justinian
Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565.
His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...
's
''Corpus'' or that of
Johannes Teutonicus Zemeke
Johannes Teutonicus Zemeke (died 1245), also Joannes Simeca Teutonicus and John Zimeke, was a Decretist
In the history of canon law, a decretist was a student and interpreter of the ''Decretum Gratiani''. Like Gratian, the decretists sought to pro ...
and
Bartholomew of Brescia
Bartholomew of Brescia (b. probably in the second half of the 12th century at Brescia; died 1258) was an Italian canonist.
Life
He studied Roman and ecclesiastical law at Bologna, where he himself became a teacher. It is believed that he was murd ...
of
Gratian
Gratian (; la, Gratianus; 18 April 359 – 25 August 383) was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 367 to 383. The eldest son of Valentinian I, Gratian accompanied his father on several campaigns along the Rhine and Danube frontiers and w ...
.
[Baldwin, John W., ''The Scholastic Culture of the Middle Ages, 1000-1300, pp. 72-73 ]
References
Further reading
*
*
*Froehlich, Karlfried (2010). ''Biblical Interpretation from the Church Fathers to the Reformation'' (''Variorum Collected Studies Series''; CS951; Farnham, Surrey, England; Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2010)
even essays on the Glossa ordinaria ISBN 9781409403654.
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*Litteral, John (editor) and Van Der Pas, Sarah (translator) (2014). ''The Glossa Ordinaria, Epistles of St. John''. Ancient Bible Commentaries in English. Litteral's Christian Library Publications. .
*Van Der Pas, Sarah (2015). ''The Glossa Ordinaria on Revelation: an English Translation''. Consolamini Commentary Series. .
*Schoenfeld, Devorah (2012). ''Isaac on Jewish and Christian Altars: Polemic and Exegesis in Rashi and the Glossa Ordinaria'', New York: Fordham University Press. ISBN 9780823243495.
*Zier, Mark (1993). “The Manuscript Tradition of the ''Glossa Ordinaria'' for Daniel, and Hints at a Method for a Critical Edition,“ ''Scriptorium'' 47: 3-25. ISSN 369772.
*Zier, Mark (1997). “Peter Lombard and the ''Glossa ordinaria'' on the Bible”. In J. Brown and W.P. Stoneman (eds.). ''A Distinct Voice: Medieval Studies in honor of Leonard E. Boyle. O.P.'' Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, pp. 629-641. ISBN 978-0268008833.
*Zier, Mark (2004). “The Development of the ''Glossa Ordinaria'' to the Bible in the Thirteenth Century: The Evidence from the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris”. In G. Cremascoli and F. Santi (eds.). ''La Bibbia de XIII Secolo: Storia del Testo, Storia dell’Esegesi''. Florence: Sismel - Edizioni del Galluzzo. pp. 155-184. ISBN 8884501180.
*Zier, Mark (2007). “Peter Lombard and the ''Glossa Ordinaria'': A Missing Link?” In ''Pietro Lombardo. Atti del XLIII Convegno storico internazionale. Todi, 8-10 ottobre 2006.'' Spoleto: Fondazione Centro italiano di Studi sull'alto medioevo. pp. 361-409. ISBN 9788879880657.
External links
* Complete glossa ordinaria at http://gloss-e.irht.cnrs.fr/php/livres-liste.php
Catholic Encyclopedia: Scriptural Glosses*"A Handlist of Medieval Manuscripts of the ''Glossa Ordinaria''" with links to online catalogues and digitized manuscripts wher
available*''Glossa ordinaria'', ed.
Migne
Jacques Paul Migne (; 25 October 1800 – 24 October 1875) was a French priest who published inexpensive and widely distributed editions of theological works, encyclopedias, and the texts of the Church Fathers, with the goal of providing a ...
, Google Books facsimile:
vol. 1vol. 2
*''Glossa ordinaria'' vi
VulSearch
! This version of the Glossa is incomplete and is not representative of the medieval text. It is not suitable for scientific work.
*Website providing resources about the ''Glossa Ordinaria'' and other glosses to the Bible
Glossae.net
{{Authority control
Religious books
Christian terminology