Skáldskaparmál - 01.01.1997, Qupperneq 64

62
Marianne Kalinke
Notwithstanding, the homily that follows turns out to be substantial. We are
reminded that while the old Adam broke God’s law by being obedient to the
devil, the new Adam, that is, Christ, was obedient to God the Father, lowering
himself — “en hi»n nyie Adaw? sa er Cristr. var lyðin guði fæðr ok lægðe sic”
(42:32—33) — to take on human form; he appeared on earth that he might lead
mankind away from earth and to heaven. The sermon concludes with an
exhortation to love Jesus Christ, who was born in our body, so that we might see
him as king of glory living and ruling in his power without end: “at vér megem
sia hann konung. dyrðar lifanda ok rikianda í sinu velde fyr utan enda ame»”
(43:25-27).
As they are recounted in Óláfi saga Tryggvasonar the stories of Hallfreðr’s
relationship to both his own father and King Óláfr and of his conversion take
their meaning from the events celebrated at Christmas. Just as the Incarnation is
the manifestation of the Son’s obedience to God the Father, Hallfreðr’s conversion
is an incarnation of sorts, the putting on of the new man, and his relationship to
the Christian God is that of a son to his father. Seen in this light, Hallfreðr’s plea
for God’s love, his fear of the Son’s anger, and his reference to the pater omnium,
are an expression of the Iast stage of his problematic relationship to the father
figure. At the same time, the prayer to God is a plea for acceptance by King Óláfr
— recall that the strophe is a response to the king’s command: “ok kueð þu nv visu
til yfir bota” (1:390,5—6) — the man who on the spiritual plane mediated between
him and the Christian God, and on the familial plane supplanted his biological
father.
Hallfreðr’s testing to see how far he can go before being forced to submit to
another’s authority, which is verbally evident in the stanzas he recites before the
king, is transferred to the realm of deeds when he quarrels with Óttarr and Kálfr,
and slays the former with the very sword the king has given him. Although the
immediate cause of the slaying is a quarrel presumably generated by excessive
drink, the underlying reason seems to be jealousy. King Óláfr had taken Óttarr’s
part against Hallfreðr in an argument (1:391,10-12), and in Hallfreðr’s mind this
may have been tantamount to being rejected by Óláfr. As had happened on two
different occasions in Iceland, Hallfreðr is put in shackles, but now he is to be
executed, since the crime had been committed under the king’s own roof. This
time Hallfreðr does not submit to the sentence of expulsion - in this case absolute
expulsion in the form of death — as he had done in Iceland; instead, he confronts
the king to remind him of his promise never to reject him: “Minniz þer nu þess
herra at þer hafit mer þvi heítit at segia mik yðr alldri af hendan ok verðit eigi
heít rofi við mik” (1:393,2—3). If the king were to repudiate his oath, their
relationship will be shortlived; furthermore, he reminds the king that he is his
godfather: “þu ert guð faðir miN” (1:393,5). Hallfreðr wins, but subsequently
Óláfr is remarkably cool toward him. The anger Hallfreðr feared from Christ he
now experiences in the person of the king. This is such a devastating experience
for him that he reveals to Óláfr feelings he never divulged to his own father. Far