„The Confessor is the physician of your soul”: the idea of medicinae salutisin penitencials and pastoral guidance

Abstract

Penitentials, “penance books,” confessional summonses, manuals of confessional practice – these are the guides instructing catholic priests on how to deal with the faithful, mainly in the situation of confession. These texts are realizations of the rhetorical advisory mode (to encourage and discourage). Teaching the clergy to work with the faithful and preparing them for the healing of souls (in­cluding bodies), the authors of the manuals made use of numerous persuasive means. At the same time, they provided ready-made rhetorical tools, which they could use during conversations with penitents. The strongly persuasive rhetorical devices used here are first of all apostrophes, comminatio – containing the announcement of punishment for the “foolish physician” – as well as congeries, enumeratio, and, above all, numerous amplifications through comparisons (the very concept of the confessor as physician is based on comparatio). In addition to arguments from analogy and from similitude, the argument from authority is commonly used: the authors of the guides refer to the Bible and to the authority of the Church Fathers. There are many cases of sentences and personifications. All these endeavors are aimed at making the believer aware of the important role of the spiritual doctor in his life – the priest with whom he has daily contact. However, the spiritual medicine man also faces punishment if, using his office, he leads the sick person astray. The sources used in this article are from different centuries (from the Middle Ages to the 20th century) and from different areas of Europe.