Contesting Christendom (eBook)

Readings in Medieval Religion and Culture

James L. Halverson (Herausgeber)

eBook Download: EPUB

2007
254 Seiten
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (Verlag)
978-0-7425-7519-6 (ISBN)

Infos

This reader fills a gap in classroom offerings by exploring historians' ongoing attempt to understand the social and cultural aspects of medieval Christianity. James L. Halverson organizes his selections around two central questions: what do we mean when we say that medieval Europe was a Christian culture, and what did it mean to be a Christian in the Middle Ages? He argues that the diversity of medieval society over time and space defies the simple answers given in textbooks and that students of medieval religion must have more exposure to issues such as class, gender, and literacy. This carefully selected and provocative collection of key works in the field will provide an invaluable introduction to the medieval world.

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The pervasiveness of the Christian religion has long been treated as one of the key features of medieval society. Indeed, Europe in the Middle Ages is often described simply as a Christian culture. Yet what do we mean when we say that medieval Europe was a Christian society, and what did it mean to be a Christian in the Middle Ages? These questions are fundamental to any understanding of the Middle Ages, yet the variety of theoretical approaches and conclusions represented in this carefully selected and provocative collection of key works in the field highlights the complexity of the answers. Introducing students to medieval Christianity, James L. Halverson presents a rich array of readings that offers a variety of ways to study the history of religion within a chronological setting. His opening chapter and introductions to each section and selection frame the essays and provide a strong conceptual framework to build upon. Making it clear that scholars have approached religion from many perspectives and used many different methodologies, this collection presents some of the best scholarship of religion as culture and practice, emphasizing the ongoing attempt to understand the social and cultural aspects of medieval Christianity.Contributions by: Rudolf Bell, Constance Brittain Bouchard, Peter Brown, Marcus Bull, Caroline Walker Bynum, Mark R. Cohen, Georges Duby, Eamon Duffy, Joan Ferrante, Richard Fletcher, Katherine L. French, Thomas A. Fudge, Herbert Grundmann, James L. Halverson, Karen Louise Jolly, Lester Little, Rob Means, Bernd Moeller, Andrew P. Roach, Jane Tibbets Schulenburg, Keith Thomas, and Ian Wood.

Autor

James L. Halverson is professor of history and chair of social sciences at Judson College.

Inhalt

IntroductionPart I: The Extent of Christianization in the Early Middle AgesChapter 1: Some Historical Reidentification and the Christianization of KentChapter 2: Background to Augustine's Mission to Anglo-Saxon EnglandChapter 3: The Barbarian Conversion from Paganism to ChristianityChapter 4: Popular Religion in Late Saxon England: Elf Charms in ContextChapter 5: Forgetful of Their Sex: Female Sanctity and Society, ca. 500–1100Chapter 6: The Rise of Western ChristendomPart II: The Development of ChristendomChapter 7: The Knight, the Lady, and the Priest: The Making of Modern Marriage in Medieval FranceChapter 8: Knightly Piety and the Lay Response to the First CrusadeChapter 9: Sword, Mitre, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in BurgundyChapter 10: Under Crescent and Cross: The Jews in the Middle AgesChapter 11: To the Glory of Her SexPart III: The Apostolic LifeChapter 12: Religious Movements in the Middle AgesChapter 13: Religious Poverty and the Profit Economy in Medieval EuropeChapter 14: Holy AnorexiaChapter 15: Women Mystics and Eucharistic Devotion in the Thirteenth CenturyChapter 16: The Devil's World: Heresy and Society, 1100–1300Part IV: Popular Religion in the Late Middle AgesChapter 17: Religious Life in Germany on the Eve of the ReformationChapter 18: The Stripping of the Altars: Traditional Religion in England, ca. 1400–1580Chapter 19: Religion and the Decline of MagicChapter 20: Women in the Late Medieval English ParishChapter 21: The Magnificent Ride: The First Reformation in Hussite Bohemia

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 27.7.2007
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Geschichte / Politik ► Mittelalter
• Themenwelt: Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► Mittelalter
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte
• Themenwelt: Geschichte ► Teilgebiete der Geschichte ► Religionsgeschichte
• Themenwelt: Religion / Theologie ► Christentum ► Kirchengeschichte
• ISBN-10: 0-7425-7519-5 / 0742575195
• ISBN-13: 978-0-7425-7519-6 / 9780742575196