Paraclete Hymnal

Paraclete Hymnal (c.1131). Abelard’s* preface to Book I of this hymnal (Hymnarius Paraclitensis) makes clear that he and Heloise* found the Cistercian* hymn repertory unsatisfactory. When Heloise’s new community had been established at the Paraclete, she requested that Abelard provide her with a hymnal that would be worthy of the liturgy. Some of her objections to the traditional hymns were that they often referred to the wrong season or time of day, others displayed exaggerated or mawkish language, and many of them were ill-fitted to their melodies. Abelard set about remedying these defects, providing hymns with theologically sound sentiments and bold phraseology, that were appropriate to...