The politics of ignorance between theology and imperial power, with Lea Niccolai
A conversation with Lea Niccolai on the challenge faced by emperors and theologians who claimed authority on the basis of their religious positions while simultaneously admitting that the truth about God lay beyond reach. How did they cope with this self-professed ignorance or deploy it as an asset in polemics, e.g., against heretics who presumed to know too much?
Lost Carolingian Text Written for Charlemagne Discovered
A newly identified Carolingian text written for Charlemagne offers insights into biblical interpretation, Islam and intellectual life at the emperor’s court.
The Emperor as God’s Representative: Political Theology in the Byzantine Empire
Discover how Byzantine emperors ruled as God’s representatives, shaping politics, religion, and imperial authority through the empire’s unique political theology.
Lost Writings of Saint Augustine Found in Medieval Manuscript
Two previously unknown sermons by St Augustine have been identified in a twelfth-century manuscript preserved in Poland, adding new texts to the extensive body of writings left by one of Christianity’s most influential thinkers
The Book of Daniel, the Four Kingdoms, and Imperial Eschatology, with Chris Bonura
A conversation with Christopher Bonura about the apocalyptic tradition of identifying the Four Kingdoms prophesied in the Book of Daniel. Which one was the Roman empire? The fourth, scheduled to fall with the others, or something that came afterward (a tradition sometimes called imperial eschatology)? Among other topics we discuss Eusebios of Caesarea and the reign of Herakleios as possible turning points in this tradition.
New Medieval Books: The Philokalia
This collection of texts may date from the eighteenth century, but the works it contains are all medieval in origin. Together, they offer a diverse glimpse into the Eastern Orthodox tradition that shaped the religious life of the Byzantine world.
Medieval Discovery: Richard Rolle’s Original Emending of Life Survives in One Copy
New research identifies a medieval manuscript as the only complete original copy of Richard Rolle’s Emending of Life, restoring lost passages and language.
The First Bible Map Turns 500 – And It Helped Shape How We See Borders Today
The 1525 Holy Land map, the first ever printed in a Bible, not only revolutionised biblical illustration but helped shape early modern concepts of territory and nationhood, a new study finds.
Who Could Baptize? Clerical Authority and Emergency Baptisms in the Middle Ages
During the Middle Ages, baptism was essential for salvation—but who could perform it? This article explores how the medieval Church balanced clerical authority with the necessity of emergency baptisms by lay people and midwives.
Medieval Councils to Feature in New Edition of the Denzinger Compendium
A new edition of the Denzinger compendium will spotlight medieval reform councils like the Council of Constance, highlighting their enduring influence on Church governance.
How the Council of Nicaea Shaped the Medieval Church
Discover how the Council of Nicaea not only defined early Christian doctrine but also laid the foundations for the medieval Church’s authority, canon law, and institutional structure, shaping the course of European history for centuries.
New Medieval Books: Writings (1416-1432)
The writings of Pawel Wlodkowic, a 15th-century Polish canon lawyer, are translated in this book. It offers a fascinating view from Poland of their rivalry with the Teutonic Order, their relations with pagan peoples, and Wlodkowic’s opinions on human rights.
New Medieval Books: A Brief Life of Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas stands as a pivotal figure in the medieval history of Christianity. This biography of the 13th-century theologian, penned by one of the foremost experts on Aquinas, offers deep insight into his life and legacy.
A Holy Blueprint with Karl Kinsella – The Medieval Podcast, Episode 267
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Karl Kinsella about the great twelfth-century scholar Richard of St. Victor, his efforts to make the vision of Ezekiel clear, and why this set of biblical blueprints is such an important contribution to the history of architecture.
Constitutionalism and Consent: The Roles of Quod omnes tangit in the Political Thought of William of Ockham
Translated into English as “what touches all must be approved by all,” it has ordinarily been understood by scholars to express a nascent justification of constitutionalism, democracy or popular sovereignty, or at any rate a principle underlying some system of representative government that limited the power of rulers.
New Medieval Books: God’s Own Language
An examination of twelfth-century architecture using the writings and drawings of Richard of Saint Victor. These drawings appear in a biblical treatise depicting a temple, and might be the earliest architectural representations that we have.
William of Auvergne with Lesley Smith
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Lesley Smith about William of Auvergne, the thirteenth-century upstart bishop of Paris who shaped a royal saint, changed the university forever, and gently guided the lives of ordinary Parisians with wit and compassion.
Phantomology: from soul to brain. Medieval Studies meets Neuroscience
This joint lecture investigates what the speakers are calling ‘phantomology’, ranging from medieval theology to modern neuroscience.
How the Forbidden Fruit Became an Apple with Azzan Yadin-Israel
Everyone knows that the fruit Eve was tempted to eat in the Garden of Eden was an apple – or was it? This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Azzan Yadin-Israel about the original fruit of original sin, how written culture and art worked together to transform it, and why it took centuries to settle on the apple.
Fragment of Christian gospel discovered hidden in medieval manuscript
Using ultraviolet photography, a researcher in Austria has discovered a fragment of the Christian gospels written in Old Syriac. The original text was written in the 6th century, but then later erased and copied over hundreds of years later.
Medieval views of hell project receives $60,000 fellowship
Why were medieval people so fixated on hell?
Angels in Medieval Literature
Angels played many roles in medieval literature: they were defenders of justice, bringers of dire warnings, givers of dark tasks, and bringers of good news.
Scriptural Reasoning, Medieval Style: Interfaith Dialogue in Twelfth-Century Paris
Andrew of Saint Victor’s commentary on Isaiah caused a scandal almost as soon as it was written, around 1150. Unlike most of his contemporaries, Andrew often spurned the Christian meaning of the text, in favor of interpretation he found in contemporary Jewish commentators.
How to gain an audience and influence readers in the Middle Ages?
How to gain an audience and influence readers? No one actually knows for sure. People have been struggling to understand the mechanics behind a text’s success since the very emergence of writing systems, trying to elaborate an arsenal of means to enhance the popularity of a written work, secure its widespread dissemination, and make it more influential.