The Time of Preparation for the Pasch in the Light of Medieval Allegory

Abstract

In the medieval liturgy, especially in the celebration of the Mass, allegorical interpretation of the texts and gestures played a very meaningful role. Among the most prominent representatives of the allegorical interpretation of the liturgy were: Isidore of Seville, Alcuin, Amalarius of Metz, Rabanus Maurus, Walafrid Strabo, Rupert of Deutz, John Beleth, Pope Innocent III, and William Durand. These ideas were laid out in treatises with the titles Expositiones Missae, Rationale Divinorum Officiorum, or Liber de Divinis Officiis. This study presents the allegorical interpretation of the paschal preparation period, from Septuagesima Sunday to Holy Saturday, and its associated liturgical rites.