PIETRO CANTORE. — Theologian and preacher, b. in the first half of the 12th century, d. at Longpont on 22 September 1197. A master in Paris from 1171 and cantor of the Chapter (cantor Parisiensis) from 1184, he was elected bishop of Tournai in 1191; owing to the opposition of the metropolitan, Guglielmo di Champagne, archbishop of Reims, his appointment was contested as irregular. Elected bishop of Paris in 1196, he did not accept; instead, he accepted the offer of the deanery of Reims made to him by Guglielmo di Champagne, and it was precisely on the journey to Reims that he fell ill at the abbey of Longpont, where he died after taking the Cistercian habit.
He wrote important works: Verbum abbreviatum, also called Viaticum tendentis in Jerusalem e Summa de vitis et virtutibus (PL 205, 21-554): a kind of examination of conscience for the use of ecclesiastics, with a valuable treatment of penitential matters and a brief reference to the Last Things; Summa de Sacramentis et animae consiliis (in two versions: Paris, Bibl. naz., lat. 9593 and 14.521; Bibl. di Troyes, 276): the work, in the Trench version, comprises two books, the first devoted to the dogmatic and moral doctrine of the Sacraments, the other to casuistry on various subjects (vows, simony, Matrimony, Baptism, Eucharist); Summa Abel (Paris, Bibl. naz., lat. 455; 613 etc.), an extensive alphabetical dictionary, beginning with the word Abel (whence the name), comprising 1250 distinctiones on theological and liturgical subjects; the work enjoyed great popularity (some passages are scattered, in the form of glosses, throughout the purported Clavis Melitonis, ed. by G. B. Pitra, Spicilegium Salesmense, III, Paris 1858, pp. 1-276); De tropis loquendi or De tropis theologiae (Paris, Bibl. naz., lat. 14.455) is also called De contrarietatibus Scripturae, because it constitutes a genuine attempt to resolve biblical antinomies; Glossae super unum ex quatuor: a harmony of the four Gospels; he also wrote brief glosses on the Acts, the Pauline and Catholic epistles, the Apocalypse, and various books of the Old Testament (the latter of doubtful authenticity).
P. C. was also an eloquent preacher, who inspired the celebrated Folco di Neuilly, but almost nothing remains of his sermons. His entire production is guided by practical concerns, and consequently P. C.’s style is simple and closely adapted to the needs of his audience; his erudition is extensive but used sparingly, and his exegesis avoids embellishments and superfluous questions.