RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA
Anselm Ansg-ar
ward the end of the century he became archdeacon and cathedral scholasticus in his native city. His reputation as the foremost Biblical exegete made the school renowned and induced young Abelard to attend his lectures. His influence on posterity was mainly due to his Glossa interlinearis, a paraphrastic commentary on the Vulgate, which far surpassed the popular Glossa ordinaria of Walafrid Strabo, but was not able to displace entirely this older work. He also wrote exegetical notes on the Song of Songs, Matthew, and Revelation.
O. ZoCKLERf. Bibliography: Anselm's works are in MPL, clxii. (ineludes an interesting letter on the problem of evil, Num Deus vult malum f). A number of previously unprinted sentences were published by G. Lefevre in Anselmi Laudunensis et Radulfi fratris ejus sentential, Evreux, 1894. Consult Histoire litteraire de la France, x. 182 sqq.; P. Feret, La Faculte de theologie de Paris, i. 25-33, Paris, 1894; H. Hurter, Theologia catholica tempore medii cevi, pp. 17-18, Innsbruck, 1899.
ANSELM OF LUCCA: 1. Anselm Badagius
(Badagio): Bishop of Lucca 1057-73, also pope (Alexander II.) 1061-73. See Alexander II., pope.
2. Bishop of Lucca 1073-86; d. at Mantua Mar. 18, 1086. He was nephew and successor of the preceding, and bore the same family name. In 1073 he is designated electus Lucensis by Gregory VII., whom he consulted as to whether he should receive investiture from the king. The pope decided that it should be postponed until Henry IV. had cleared himself of association with his excommunicated counselors and had made his peace with Rome. Henry especially requested that Anselm's consecration should not take place until after his investiture; and in fact he received the ring and staff from the king's hand before he was consecrated, Apr. 28, 1075. Soon after, troubled in conscience by this relation, he wished to resign his see and retired to a monastery, but was recalled by Gregory, whom he afterward supported with a more ardent loyalty than any other Italian bishop. His personality counted for much when Guibert of Ravenna had been set up as an antipope, and the struggle of Gregory with Henry IV and the Lombard bishops reached its height. With Countess Matilda, Anselm was the principal upholder of the papal cause in the north of Italy. He was driven from his diocese, but was entrusted with a vicariate covering the whole of Lombardy. When Gregory felt death approaching, he commended Anselm to Otto of Ostia and Hugh of Lyons as his choice for successor; but Anselm died while still an exile. His most notable literary work was his lolkctio canonum, which was incorporated almost bodily in the Decretum Gratiani. Other important writings of his were directed to the ending of the schism; the principal one preserved is the Liber contra Wibertum et sequaces ejus, written in 1085- «b after Gregory's death. Fragments of a commentary on the Psalms and some devotional treatises attributed to Anselm have also been preserved. R (Carl Mirbt.)
ibuogbaphy: The Liber contra Wibertum and Collectio canonica, with spurious works, etc., are in M PL, cxlix.; uje former, ed. E. Bernheim, also in MGH, Libelli de "«. i. (1891) 519-528 (cf. Preface, pp. 65-66). His life, written immediately after his death, at the request of
Matilda, by Bardo, a priest who had been his close associate, is in MPL, cxlviii. and, with extracts from some of his works, ed. R. Wilmans, in MGH, Script., xii. (1856) 1-35. Consult A. Overmann, Die vita Anselmi Lucensis episcopi des Rangerius, in NA, vol. xxi., 1896; W. von Giesebrecht, Geschichte der deutschen Kaiserzeit, vol. iii., Leipsic, 1890; J. Langen, Geschichte der romischen Kirche von Gregor VII. bis Innocenz III., Bonn, 1893; C. Mirbt, Die Publizistik im Zeitalter Gregors VII., Leipsic, 1894- W. Martens, Gregor VII., 2 vols., ib. 1894; G. Meyer'von Knonau, Jahrbiicher des deutschen Reichs unter Heinrich IV. undHeinrichV., vol. ii., ib. 1894; Wattenbaeh, DGO ii (1894). '
ANSGAR or ANSKAR {Aasgejr, Osgejr, " God's Spear"; the modern Oscar): .The apostle of Scandinavia, first archbishop of Hamburg (831- 865); b. of prominent Frankish parents near the monastery of Corbie (9 m. e. of Amiens), probably in 801; d. at Bremen Feb. 3, 865. After his mother's early death he was brought up at Corbie, and made rapid progress in the learning of the time. In 822 he was one of a colony sent to found the abbey of Corvey (New Corbie) in Westphalia, and became there a teacher and preacher. When, four years later, Harold, king of Denmark, made an alliance with the Franks which included the acceptance of their religion, Ansgar was among those chosen to accompany the king to Denmark to evangelize the people. He and his companion Autbert founded a school at Harold's court after the Frankish model, but their work had to be abandoned on account of the downfall of Harold (827) and the illness and death of Autbert. In the autumn of 829, probably, Swedish ambassadors appeared at the imperial court and asked that Christian missionaries be sent to their country. Again Ansgar was selected, and with him, Witmar, his former colleague in the abbey-school at Corvey. After a perilous journey, they reached Sweden and were allowed to preach freely, with considerable success, at Bjorko (Birka) on an island in Lake Malar.
Ansgar spent two years in Sweden, returning home in 831 to report to the emperor. The time was now ripe for the accomplishment of a plan of great importance for the northern missions, which Charlemagne had had in mind, and for which his son had now found the right man, viz., the establishment of a bishopric of Hamburg. Besides a diocese formed from those of Bremen and Verden, the new metropolitan was to have the right to send missions into all the northern lands and to consecrate bishops for them. Ansgar was consecrated in Nov., 831, and, the arrangements having been at once approved by Gregory IV., went to Rome to receive the pallium directly at the hands of the pope and to be named legate for the northern lands. This commission had previously been bestowed upon Ebo, archbishop of Reims; but an amicable agreement was reached by which the jurisdiction was divided, Ebo retaining Sweden for himself. For a time Ansgar devoted himself to the needs of his own diocese, which was still missionary territory with but a few churches. He founded in Hamburg a monastery and a school; the latter was to serve the Danish mission, but accomplished little.
After the death of Louis le Debonnaire (840), Ansgar lost the abbey of Turholt, which had been given as an endowment for his work, and in 845
Ansgrar Anthropomorphism