Theoda

(fl. 847/848)

   Religious prophetess who appeared in the Carolingian Empire from the country of the Alemanni in the mid-ninth century, Theoda (also spelled Theuda or Thiota) preached the coming of the end of the world. She attracted a large following, which was quickly suppressed by the bishop of Mainz. Her appearance, however, challenged Carolingian ideas about the nature of the ministry in the church.

   In the year 847 or 848, according to a contemporary chronicler, Theoda appeared in the city of Mainz, arriving from somewhere in Germany. According to the chronicler, Theoda claimed to know many divine mysteries. She preached the coming of the end of the world and declared that it would arrive on the last day of the year. Apparently she was a skilled preacher, because many men and women began to follow her. They offered her gifts and asked her to pray for them. She also inspired many priests, according to the chronicler, to give up their vows and follow her as though she had been sent from heaven. She was quickly brought before a council of bishops of Mainz, who interrogated her about her teachings. When asked about them she admitted that she learned those things from a certain priest and then began to teach them herself. The council denounced her teachings and had her publicly flogged. She accepted the verdict of the council, admitted that she had "irrationally seized" upon the right of preaching, and gave up her ministry in shame. After the council, Theoda disappears from all records, and her ultimate end is unknown.

   See also

   Alemanni; Carolingian Dynasty; Franks

   Bibliography

 ♦ McKitterick, Rosamond. The Frankish Kingdoms under the Carolingians, 751-987. London: Longman, 1983.

 ♦ Russell, Jeffery Burton. Dissent and Reform in the Early Middle Ages. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1965.

 ♦ Wemple, Suzanne. Women in Frankish Society: Marriage and the Cloister, 500-900. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1985.