Stephen of Tournai, (18 March 1128 - 11 September 1203), was a Canon regular of

Sainte-Geneviève Saint Genevieve or Sainte-Geneviève may refer to: * Saint Genevieve (419/422–512), the patron of Paris * Saint Geneviève de Loqueffret (10th century), a local saint from Loqueffret, Brittany Buildings * Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève, a li ...

(Paris), and

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

canonist Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

who became

bishop of Tournai The Diocese of Tournai is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Belgium. The diocese was formed in 1146, upon the dissolution of the Diocese of Noyon & Tournai, which had existed since the 7th Century. It is ...

in 1192.

Stephanus Tornacensis – Summa Decreti, 13th-century – BEIC 11593722

Biography

He was born at

Orléans Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Euromet ...

in September 1203. He entered the Order of the

Canons Regular Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by a ...

at Saint-Euverte in Orléans about 1150, then studied

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

and

Roman law Roman law is the law, legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the ''Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor J ...

Bologna university The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continuo ...

, returning to his monastery in 1160. He was elected

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

of Saint-Euverte in 1167 and of the

Abbey of Sainte-Geneviève at Paris The Abbey of Saint Genevieve (French: ''Abbaye Sainte-Geneviève'') was a monastery in Paris. Reportedly built by Clovis I, Clovis, King of the Franks in 502, it became a centre of religious scholarship in the Middle Ages. It was suppressed at the ...

in 1177. The latter monastery he almost entirely rebuilt, establishing a monastic school in connexion with it. In 1192 he became

Bishop of Tournai The Diocese of Tournai is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Belgium. The diocese was formed in 1146, upon the dissolution of the Diocese of Noyon & Tournai, which had existed since the 7th Century. It is ...

, but was greatly hampered in the exercise of his episcopal functions by the opposition of the people as well as by the interdict placed on France on account of the divorce proceedings of

Philip II Philip II may refer to: * Philip II of Macedon (382–336 BC) * Philip II (emperor) (238–249), Roman emperor * Philip II, Prince of Taranto (1329–1374) * Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (1342–1404) * Philip II, Duke of Savoy (1438-1497) * Philip ...

Works

He is the author of a ''Summa in decretum Gratiani'' (1159), which is to a great extent based on the similar works of

Paucapalea Paucapalea was a canon lawyer of the twelfth century. He produced the first commentary on the '' Decretum'' of Gratian Gratian (; la, Gratianus; 18 April 359 – 25 August 383) was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 367 to 383. The eldes ...

, Rufinus and Rolandus (occasionally mistaken for

Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland ( it, Rolando), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a con ...

). It was first edited by Schulte (Stephen of Tournai, ''Die Summa des Stephanus Tornacensis über das Decretum Gratiani'', ed. J.F. von Schulte, Giessen 1891.) His letters, edited by Molinet (Paris, 1679), are printed in ''

Patrologia Latina The ''Patrologia Latina'' (Latin for ''The Latin Patrology'') is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1841 and 1855, with indices published between ...

'', CCXI, 309–625.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tournai, Stephen Of Bishops of Tournai Canon law jurists 1128 births 1203 deaths 12th-century French people 13th-century French people French male writers 12th-century jurists

Biography

Works

Further reading

Sources