Attigny prayer covenant

In the year 762 , a synod took place in the royal palace of Attigny , which went down in history as the Attigny Prayer League (also known as the Attigny Death League ). It is the first example of a prayer fraternity or synod fraternity in memorialism .

At this synod, under the direction of King Pippin the Younger, 22 bishops, 5 abbot bishops and 17 abbots took part, including Chrodegang von Metz, who initiated this synod for the salvation of the soul (“pro causa religionis ac salute animarum”), Megingaud von Würzburg , Lullus von Mainz and Willibald von Eichstätt .

The synod decided on mutual prayers for the deceased: the members of the covenant, i.e. the bishops, abbishops and abbots present, undertook (or their successors) to commemorate the death of one of their own with 100 psalteries and masses, 30 of which are celebrated personally should. The agreement was therefore based on the principle of reciprocity and was legally binding. The Attigny prayer union served as an example and forerunner for other synodal fraternities, which were also concluded at the level of abbeys, which in this way established a network that worked across national borders.

In order to be able to implement the agreement, lists were drawn up and exchanged in which the names of those clergymen were listed who were to be remembered. Many of these lists have been preserved and are now an essential source of medieval history. The best-known of them are the Fraternization Book of Reichenau Abbey and the corresponding books of the Prince Abbey of St. Gallen and Pfäfers Abbey .

source

• Concilium Attiniacense, MGH Concilia aevi Karolini I, 1