Exhortatio: parola, filosofia e società negli scritti teologici di Pietro Abelardo

Abstract

This paper intends to investigate Peter Abelard’s

use of the notion of ‘exhortation’ in his theological

writings. Abelard’s notion of exhortatio must be described

as correlative to the notions of preaching, teaching,

prophecy, edification, advice and consolation

(praedicatio, doctrina, prophetia, aedificatio, consilium,

consolatio). For Peter Abelard ‘exhorting’ means ‘persuading’

somebody to act well, and this is first of all the

main aim of the Scriptures: persuading then follows

theaching (what is acting well) and preceeds confirming,

by way of examples, the exhortations and doctrines precedently

given. According to Abelard, exhortation differs

from preaching on the following three points: Preaching

spreads the knowledge of the law and of the precepts

which is necessary to respect in order to be saved, while

exhortations aim to produce a moral edification in the listeners;

Preaching preceeds and founds exhortation, while

exhortation follows and presuppose preaching; Only prelates,

i.e. bishops and priests, are allowed to ‘preach’,

while also non-prelates may produce exhortations. According

to Abelard monks and philosophers specially

practice exhortation: philosophers, in fact, play within the

pagan society the very same role that monks plays within

the Christian one.