Lindsay Rudge PhD Thesis - University of St Andrews

Caesarius has been made available in the Sources chrétiennes series. New editions and
French translations of the sermons were produced by Marie-José Delage, Césaire
d’Arles. Sermons au people 3 vols. (Paris, 1975-86) and of the monastic writings by
Adalbert de Vogüé and Joël Courreau as Césaire d’Arles. Oeuvres monastiques, I,
Oeuvres pour les moniales (Paris, 1998) and II, Oeuvres pour les moines (Paris, 1994).
Clearly the existence of critical editions of the full corpus is of immense benefit to any
study of the writings of Caesarius. However, such editions also serve to dislocate the
texts from their manuscript contexts and imply a textual fixity that is not always justified.
The current study has relied most heavily on the two most recent works in each of
these categories, Klingshirn’s Caesarius of Arles and de Vogüé and Courreau’s Oeuvres
monastiques, with considerable reference to Morin’s magisterial work. However, in
scope and focus it significantly differs from both. Forming the basis for examining the
transmission of the Caesarian texts, its starting points are the production of the Regula
virginum and the monastery of St John in Arles. The thesis examines the spiritual and
practical contexts for making such a foundation, and thereby shows the composition of
the Regula in a new light. Caesarius’ renown has to a large extent obscured the
importance of the members of his family in the production and circulation of texts which
are credited only to him. Of primary importance amongst them is Caesaria (I), Caesarius’
sister. While admittedly listed by a modern historian among the ‘founding mothers’ of
Gallic monasticism, Caesaria’s role in both the foundation of the monastery of St John
and the production of the Regula virginum has never been fully explored or understood. 12
This study demonstrates that Caesaria’s own experience of living as a Deo devota
informed and contributed to the writing of the rule.
The focus of this study is squarely on the writings for dedicated women by
Caesarius of Arles and members of his immediate family. Other sources have been
discussed because of their use of one or more of the Caesarian texts: several vitae, for
instance, make reference to the Regula virginum itself or to the vita Caesarii. This study
12 J.T. Schulenberg, ‘Women’s monastic communities, 500-1100: Patterns of expansion and decline’ Signs
14:2 (1989) 261-92, at 261.
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