Adso of Montier-en-Der

Adso of Montier-en-Der

▪ Benedictine monk and abbot
born 910/915, Burgundy
died 992

      Benedictine monk and abbot whose treatise on the Antichrist became the standard work on the subject from the mid-10th to the 13th century.

      Born of a noble family, Adso was an oblate at the important monastery of Luxeuil, where he also received his education. He was later called to teach at the monastery of St. Èvre in Toul, and in 935 he entered the monastery at Montier-en-Der. In 968, when he became abbot of Montier-en-Der, he began to introduce reforms there in the tradition of the monastery at Gorze. Adso had contacts with the leading religious and political figures of his day, notably Gerberga, the wife of Louis IV of France and sister of Otto I of Germany; Gerbert of Aurillac (the future Pope Sylvester II); and Abbo of Fleury, who asked Adso to compile a verse edition of the second book of the Dialogues, a hagiographic and doctrinal text composed by Pope Gregory I (Gregory I, Saint). In 990 Adso became the abbot of the monastery of St. Bénigne in Dijon. His death two years later occurred while he was on pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

      Adso was a man of letters as well as a reformer. He was well acquainted with classical literature and collected a significant personal library. Along with his verse edition of the Dialogues, which is now lost, he wrote other works in verse and several poems and hymns. He was also the author of a number of saints' lives, including the life of Bishop Mansuestus of Toul (485–509). His hagiographic works in particular reveal his devotion to the religious reform current in his day.

      Adso's most important work, however, was the Epistola ad Gerbergam reginam de ortu et tempore Antichristi (“Letter to Queen Gerberga on the Place and Time of Antichrist”), also known as the Libellus de Antichristi (“Little Book on the Antichrist”). Written at Gerberga's request, possibly because of contemporary fears of the imminence of the Last Days, the treatise was a compilation of the various traditions concerning Antichrist. With a narrative that paralleled contemporary saints' lives, it represented what may be called an antihagiography, a work that depicts the model life of false sanctity and sin in opposition to the ideal life of a saint.

      According to Adso, Antichrist will come but not while the Roman Empire (then governed by the Franks) remains standing. Antichrist will be born in the city of Babylon into the Jewish tribe of Dan, and the devil will imbue him with all iniquity. Eventually he will go to Jerusalem, where he will rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem (Jerusalem, Temple of) and assert that he is the son of God, performing miracles and resurrecting the dead. Gaining a large following and the support of many kings and emperors of the world, Antichrist will persecute Christians during a time of tribulation that will last for three and one-half years. In the final battle on the Mount of Olives (Olives, Mount of) in Jerusalem, Antichrist will be killed by Christ (Jesus Christ) or by the archangel Michael, after which there will be a time of peace and finally the Last Judgment.

      Adso's life of Antichrist was immensely popular during the Middle Ages. The text survives in 9 versions and in some 171 manuscripts. Along with the original Latin version there were numerous translations into the vernaculars, the earliest being an Old English translation completed before the 12th century. Adso's life also circulated under the names of Alcuin, Augustine (Augustine, Saint), and other important Christian authorities and underwent occasional revision to reflect contemporary events. The work also was the main source for the anonymously composed 12th-century liturgical drama Ludus de Antichristo (“Play of the Antichrist”).

Michael Frassetto
 

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Adso von Montier-en-Der — Adso (* 910 oder 915 im Jura in Hochburgund; † 992), auch Azo oder Adson, war ein mittelalterlicher Theologe und Gelehrter [1]. Adso stammte aus hochadeliger Familie; er war Benediktineroblate und wurde 934 von Bischof Gauzlin von Toul zum Leiter …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Adso of Montier-en-Der — ( la. Adso Dervensis) (died 992) was abbot of the Cluniac monastery of Montier en Der Abbey in France, and died on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem; he was one of the foremost European writers of the tenth century. Born of rich and noble parents, he was …   Wikipedia

  • Montier-en-Der Abbey — Carolingian Blind arcading in the abbey church, from Viollet le Duc, 1856. The Abbey of Montier en Der (Haute Marne, France) was formerly a Benedictine, later Cluniac, abbey, dissolved during the French Revolution, the grounds and premises of… …   Wikipedia

  • Abtei Montièr-en-Der — Blendarkade der Abteikirche Montièr en Der, Viollet le Duc, 1856. Die Abtei Montier en Der (Haute Marne, Frankreich) war zunächst eine Benediktiner , später eine Cluniazensische Abtei, die während der Fra …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Adson de Montier-en-Der — (en latin : Adso Dervensis) est un abbé français né en 920 et mort en 992[1]. Il rouvrit le monastère de Montier en Der (Haute Marne) après sa destruction par les Vikings. Il est mort lors d un pèlerinage à Jérusalem; il était l un des… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Abtei Montier-en-Der — Blendarkade der Abteikirche Montièr en Der, Viollet le Duc, 1856. Die Abtei Montier en Der (Haute Marne, Frankreich) war zunächst eine Benediktiner , später eine Cluniazensische Abtei, die während der Französischen Revolution aufgelöst wurde.… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Der Name der Rose — ist der erste Roman von Umberto Eco, mit dem ihm ein Welterfolg gelang. Das Werk erschien 1980 im italienischen Original als Il nome della rosa und 1982 in der deutschen Übersetzung von Burkhart Kroeber. Das mehrschichtige Werk, Epochenporträt,… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Liste der Biografien/Ad — Biografien: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Anti-Messias — Der Antichrist (deutsch auch: Widerchrist, Endchrist) ist eine Figur der christlichen Apokalyptik, die als Gegenspieler und Gegenmacht Jesu Christi vor dessen Wiederkunft erwartet wird. Der Begriff stammt aus dem Neuen Testament (NT) und… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Antichristus — Der Antichrist (deutsch auch: Widerchrist, Endchrist) ist eine Figur der christlichen Apokalyptik, die als Gegenspieler und Gegenmacht Jesu Christi vor dessen Wiederkunft erwartet wird. Der Begriff stammt aus dem Neuen Testament (NT) und… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”