In the Letters of Abelard and Heloise, the 11th-century theologian Abelard was ashamed of being a eunuch due to beliefs widely held in Western European culture about castration. The term "eunuch" was commonly used to refer to male slaves who had their genitals removed via castration, but castration was sometimes performed voluntarily among free men. Abelard felt conflicted about his religious status after his castration due to previous castration controversies in the Bible. Abelard's beliefs against castration were exacerbated by the use of Germanic law codes in Western Europe. Abelard's views on eunuchs were not held by other Christians in Eastern Europe. The Byzantine Empire in Eastern Europe had desired eunuchs since the days of the Roman Empire and shared these values ​​with the Islamic world. Slavery in Europe during the Viking Age localized eunuchs in the East and further divided Christians in the West and East. Christian beliefs about eunuchs varied during the Early Middle Ages due to the ethnographic characteristics of Western and Eastern Europe. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The letters of Abelard and Heloise described eunuchs in Western Europe as spiritually impure because castration was used to punish the misconduct of the clergy. Abelard, a French philosopher and cleric, was castrated by his wife Heloise's male relatives after sending her to a convent once word of their affair spread. Abelard was not only punished for breaking his clerical celibacy, but for deposing Heloise after their escape. After Abelard's castration, he emphasized his embarrassment and said that his reputation was "tarnished or rather completely obliterated". The castration itself embarrassed Abelard because it tarnished his reputation by symbolizing Abelard's contempt for the priority of clerical principles and philosophy over carnal pleasure. Furthermore, Abelard wallowed in his own shame by quoting canon law when he stated that "No man whose testicles have been crushed or whose organ has been amputated shall become a member of the assembly of the Lord." This statement meant that eunuchs were not welcome among the Western European clergy. However, Abelard immediately joined the Abbey of St. Denis to teach philosophy after rumors of his castration spread. The contradiction between Abelard's statements and his actions showed that male eunuchs were able to join and/or remain in the clergy but were most likely rejected. due to the cultural stigma of castration in Western Europe. Abelard felt discouraged from affiliating with the Western European clergy because his castration meant punishment for his amoral actions. Early Christian doctrine and the canons of late antiquity contributed to Abelard's negative cultural attitude towards eunuchs in the 11th century. In the Bible, the original Gospel of Matthew (c. 70 AD) specifically discussed eunuchs in 19:12 stating that "... there are eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 19 also mentions eunuchs “who have been so from birth” and eunuchs “who have been made eunuchs by others.” While Abelard stated that eunuchs were “abominations to the Lord,” the original scripture mentioning eunuchs foretold their place in heaven. According to the Church historian Eusebius (ca. 263-339 AD), the theologian Origen of Alexandria (c. 184-253 AD) castrated himself asliteral interpretation of Matthew 19. Origen's self-castration showed that some Christians believed that the complete elimination of temptation was the correct way to maintain abstinence. The metaphorical interpretation of Matthew 19 was shown by the polemic of Clement of Alexandria (c. 132-217 AD) against castration who argued that "...a true eunuch is not he who is unable, but he who is not willing to indulge in pleasure." Clement's polemic demonstrated that physically castration was seen by other Christians as an excuse for not maintaining self-control through celibacy. In retrospect, Abelard's disdain for castration was partly due to the Constantinian Revolution. The Council of Nicaea directly endorsed the metaphorical interpretation of Matthew 19 by adhering to Hellenistic views of philosophical legitimacy. During the Constantinian Revolution of the 4th century AD, the Edict of Thessaloniki by Emperor Constantine (r. 306-337 AD) in 380 AD legally made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire. Hellenistic views in the time of Emperor Constantine reinforced the idea that celibacy was necessary for philosophical authority.11 To be considered as philosophically legitimate as they were legally, Christians had to practice celibacy. Constantine supported the metaphorical interpretation of Matthew 19 when he called the Council of Nicaea in AD 325. The Council of Nicaea prohibited self-castration in the Nicene Creed by stating that “If anyone in good health has castrated himself…his membership in the clerical state it's being at the end...". Furthermore, the Nicene Creed allowed eunuchs to join the clergy if they “had been made eunuchs by barbarians or by their masters.” This part of the Nicene Creed directly contradicted Abelard's claim that he could not enter the clergy after being forcibly castrated. The Nicene Creed's acceptance of eunuchs into the clergy meant that the social stigma surrounding castration was what really upset Abelard. Stigma surrounded castration in Western Europe during the Early Middle Ages due to Germanic legal influences. The Leges barbarorum were a collection of Latin laws created for Germanic converts to Christianity during the Early Middle Ages. The Leges barbarorum classified castration among sexual crimes such as rape and as an alternative punishment to the payment of fines. The Lex Frisionum (c. 802 AD), for example, included castration as a punishment and as a crime worthy of a fine. Similarly, the Lex Salica of the Franks used castration as punishment if a virgin was raped to death by a slave and the Lex Ribuaria of the Ripuarian Franks used castration as punishment if a female slave was raped by another slave. Eunuchs in Germanic societies symbolized the crimes of the flesh. Abelard's reputation was ruined after rumors spread of his castration because it reflected his immoral lack of celibacy as a member of the clergy. Abelard's Western view of eunuchs was somewhat based on Roman culture due to the Roman value of manhood. Within the Roman Empire there were two groups of eunuchs: the eunuch slaves and the Gauls. Eunuch slaves in the Roman Empire were usually males who were castrated before puberty and served the Roman emperors. The Gauls were a Greek cult that worshiped a goddess called Matra Mater and practiced self-castration as adult men in the 2nd century BC. Roman sources as early as the 2nd century BC described eunuchs as desirable, but the Gauls were ridiculed for this reason. voluntarily emasculating himself. The attitude towards the Gauls showed that masculinity was extremely valued in the Roman Empire and self-castration was considered a.