Arnulf von Löwen

Arnulf von Löwen (* around 1200 in Leuven , today: Belgium; † 1250 in Villers ) was a Cistercian monk , abbot and poet .

life and work

Arnulf von Löwen was a Cistercian in the monastery of Villers-la-Ville in Brabant . He was abbot there from 1240.

He is the author of a cycle of seven Latin passion poems under the title Salve Mundi salutare ( Hail, salvation of the world ), each of which meditatively venerates a certain member of the crucified Christ : feet, knees, hands, side, chest, heart and face . This cycle, also known as rhythmica oratio , which was erroneously attributed to Bernhard von Clairvaux , was popular with Catholics and Lutherans in the 17th century.

Dieterich Buxtehude composed a seven-part cycle of Passion cantatas with the title “ Membra Jesu nostri ”.

Salve caput cruentatum , the last poem of the cycle, is the Latin model of the well-known Passion chorale O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden by Paul Gerhardt , which Johann Sebastian Bach used in the St. Matthew Passion and which can be found in the Evangelical Hymnbook (No. 85) and in Catholic hymn book Praise God (No. 289). In the praise of God (under No. 369, clearly abbreviated) there is also Gerhardt's transmission of the 6th part ( Summi regis cor ) O heart of the king of all the world , while his be greeted a thousand times , the transmission of the 1st part ( Salve mundi salutare ) , was to be found in the EKG regional parts of several Protestant regional churches.

literature

• Marlies Lehnertz: From the High Medieval Catholic Hymn to the Baroque Evangelical Hymn. Paul Gerhardt's “O head full of blood and wounds” and its Latin model, the “Salve caput cruentatum” by Arnulf von Löwen . In: Hansjakob Becker, Reiner Kaczynski (ed.): Liturgy and poetry. An interdisciplinary compendium . Volume 1: Historical Presentation . EOS, St. Ottilien 1983, ISBN 3-88096-281-2 , ( Pietas Liturgica 1), pp. 755-773.

Web links

• Text of the rhythmica oratio (Latin)