Theodulf (Teodolfo), Bishop of Orléans

THEODULF (Teodolfo), Bishop of Orléans. - Theologian and poet, of Spanish origin, born in the first half of the 8th century, died, according to a necrology, on 18 September 821.

Particularly favoured by Charlemagne, he was appointed by him bishop of Orléans (c. 798) and abbot of Fleury. A zealous bishop and above all concerned for the good of his diocese, he was swept away by the historical events that followed the death of Charlemagne. Implicated in the revolt of Bernard, king of Italy (817), he was proscribed like all the old counsellors of the deceased Emperor, and in 818 he was replaced in the see of Orléans by Jonas (v.). He died before the amnesty of 831, according to some in exile, according to others poisoned after his return to Orléans.

As a theologian he displays all his patristic erudition in the collection of texts on the question of the Filioque, in his De Spiritu Sancto; in the De ordine Baptismi he offers a detailed explanation of the rites of Baptism. As a bishop he left two collections, Capitula and Capitulare, of precepts and counsels, precious for the history of ecclesiastical discipline in the Carolingian period. Besides two brief Sermones, one must recall, for its happy theological formulations, the Interpretatio Missae edited by Cuissard (v. bibl.). He is the author of numerous poetical works (ed. by E. Dümmler, in MGH, Poëtae, I, pp. 437-581), among which the Gloria, laus, inserted in the liturgy of Palm Sunday, is famous. He emended, not happily, the text of the Vulgate, making use of codices especially Spanish ones due to a certain Peregrinus. T.'s recension spread little; its original manuscript (Θ) is preserved in the Bibl. Nat. of Paris (cf. E. Power, Corrections from the Hebrew in the Theodulfian Mss. of the Vulgata in Biblica, 5 [1924], pp. 233-58).

Antonio Piolanti