Le corps et le cœur : comment équilibrer ces deux vaisseaux à Port-Royal ?

Abstract

This paper proposes that the Port-Royal nuns imagined their bodies as oil lamps. This image derives from the Galenic theory of the body as a vessel of fluids and from the nuns’ descriptions of the body in their Constitutions. The Constitutions frequently evoke Augustine of Hippo’s concept of a burning heart and Bernard of Clairvaux’s concept of the Holy Spirit as a divine unction. An image of the perfect nun emerges as one who keeps her heart well-oiled with divine unction and well-lit with the spirit of charity, so that it stays suspended above the dark humors of her corruptible body. The Constitution’s call for the nuns’ constant vigilance over their burning hearts evokes the parable of the Wise and Foolish virgins, further inviting a comparison between their bodies and oil lamps.