Through a close study of both primary and secondary materials in theology, spirituality, aesthetics, and social history, this course will introduce students to the major forms and institutions of religious thought and practice in medieval, Christian Europe (from Saint Augustine to the rise of humanism).
The course will begin by studying the theological foundations of self and world in the work of Augustine and Pseudo-Dionysius, before turning to an elucidation of central religious institutions such as the papacy (and its relationship to imperial Rome), the monastery (we will study the rule of Saint Benedict and will visit a Benedictine monastery), the cathedral (we will visit San Giovanni in Laterano and Saint Peter’s), and the university (and the scholastic philosophy to which it gave rise). We will then turn to alternative expressions of medieval religious faith in the work of several mystics, notably Meister Eckhart and Angela of Foligno. Finally we will study the reactions of the Church to the rise of science in the fifteenth century (we will look at the trial of Giordano Bruno) and will end with an appraisal of the continuity and renewal of Renaissance Humanism and its influence on the humanities as studied in a Liberal Arts Curriculum today.
Learning outcomes:
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Define and delimit the medieval period from antiquity and modernity both historically and thematically.
- Understand the particular and interdependent ways in which the medieval period was shaped by the institutions of the Papacy, the monastery, the cathedral and the university.
- Recognize and be able to compare and analyze the reflection of and contribution to the medieval worldview of such thinkers as Pseudo-Dionysius, Saint Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, William of Ockham, Meister Eckhart and Angela of Foligno.
- Express the above understanding in active class discussion and fine writing, in which students demonstrate their ability to form a thesis statement and justify it with textual citation and analysis.
Method of presentation:
Lecture, discussion, and field study
Required work and form of assessment:
Class participation (20%), Midterm (20%), Papers (15% each), Final Examination (30%)
In addition to studying the major forms and institutions of medieval Christianity, this course will seek to cultivate student’s skills in reading and analyzing primary texts, and expressing this analysis in both active class discussion and strong writing. Students will write two short papers on two of the figures studied in class (Augustine and Thomas Aquinas) in which they demonstrate that they have critically engaged the readings and the themes discussed in the classroom. The course encourages students to approach their education as a process that both requires and rewards their cooperation and active engagement. Preparation for, attendance at, and participation in lectures are all required and will count toward the student’s final grade.
content:
I. Introduction and Overview
Session 1 Introduction
Session 2 Historical Overview
Readings: R.W. Southern, Western Society and the Church in the Middle Ages, Chapters 1 and 2 (“Church and Society”, pp. 15-23; “The Divisions of Time”, pp.24-52).
II. Theological Foundations of Medieval Christianity: Self and World
Session 3 Theological Anthropology: Augustine
Readings: Confessions, Book II, entire (pp.24-34); Book VII, Chs. 1-5 (pp. 111-116), 7-21 (pp.119-132); Book VIII, Chs. 1 (pp. 133-134), 5 (pp. 139-141), 7-12 (pp. 144-154).
Session 4 Theological Anthropology: Augustine
Readings: Confessions, Book X, Chs. 1-8 (pp. 179-187), 16-20 (pp. 193-197), 25-28 (pp. 198-202); Book XI, chs. 9-14 (pp. 225-231), 18 (pp. 233-235), 20 (pp. 240-245), 27-29 (pg. 273); Book XIII, Chs. 1, (pp. 278-279).
Session 5 Theological Cosmology and the Birth of Mystical Theology: Pseudo-Dionysius
Readings: The Mystical Theology, entire (pp. 133-141); The Divine Names, chs. 1 (pp. 49-58).
III. Institutions of Religious Life and Thought
A. The Papacy
Session 6 On-Site Visit: Saint Peter’s Tomb
Session 7 Conceptual Foundations
Readings: Eamon Duffy, “Upon this Rock” (pp. 1-37).
First paper due at the end of class.
Session 8 The Growth of Papal Authority
Readings: Duffy (2002) “The Age of Gregory the Great” (pp. 59-72); “Empires of the West” (pp. 86-97); Cantor (1968) “The Donation of Constantine” (pp. 131-139).
B. The Monastery
Session 9 Social Structure and Function of the Monastery
Readings: Norman Cantor, “The Rise of Monasticism” (pp. 145-155);
Saint Benedict, The Rule, chs. 1-7, 33-41, 48-64, 69-73.
Session 10 Embodying the Monastic Ideal: The Monastic Orders
Readings: Lawrence, “The Quest for the Primitive” (pp. 146-168); “The Cistercian Model” (pp. 172-195).
Session 11 Monastic Culture and Theology: Bernard of Clairvaux
Readings: Jean Leclerq, The Love of Learning and the Desire for God, Chs. 5 (pp. 71-88);
Bernard of Clairvaux, “On Loving God” (pp. 173-205) (Note: the letter on pp. 200-205 summarizes this treatise)
Screening of the film The Name of the Rose
Session 12 MIDTERM
C. The Cathedral
Session 13 On-Site Visit: Cathedrals of Rome: San Giovanni in Laterano
Session 14 The Theological Foundations of Gothic Aesthetics
Readings: Georges Duby, The Age of the Cathedrals, Part Two (pp. 93-135).
Session 15 The Religious, Social, and Political Functions of Gothic Aesthetics
Readings: Georges Duby, Part Two (pp. 136-165).
D. The University
Session 16 On-Site Visit: Santa Maria Sopra Minerva
Readings: Cantor, “The Cathedral of the intellect” (pp. 435-448).
Session 17 Scholastic Method in Action: The Thomist Summit
Readings: Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part One, Questions 2-3 (pp. 53-85); Question 12, articles 1, 4-7, 11-13 (pp. 113-122); Question 13, articles 1-2, 5 (pp. 123-128), 11 (pp. 130-131).
Session 18 Breakdown of the Scholastic Synthesis between Faith and Reason: Nominalism
Readings: Rubinstein, Aristotle’s Children, “Ockham’s Razor” (pp.239-270).
IV. Mysticism
Session 19 Late Medieval Mysticism and Vernacular Language: Meister Eckhart
Readings: Meister Eckhart, The Papal Bull (pp. 77-81); “On Detachment” (pp. 285-294); German Sermons 2, 52, 83 (pp. 177-181; 199-203; 206-208).
Second paper due at the end of class.
Session 20 Late Medieval Mysticism and Women
Readings: Caroline Walker Bynum, “Woman as Body and as Food” (pp. 260-276).
Session 21 Late Medieval Mysticism and Women: Angela of Foligno
Readings: “The Book of the Blessed Angela of Foligno,” Part One, chs. 1, 2 (pp. 121-133); ch. 3 (pp. 138-146); Second Supplementary Step (pp. 149-153); Third Supplementary Step (pp. 162-163); Fifth Supplementary Step (pp. 182-185); Sixth Supplementary Step (pp. 196-206).
V. From Theocracy to the Renaissance
Session 22 The Renaissance
Readings: Norman Cantor, “The Italian Renaissance” (pp. 540-566)
Session 23 Science and Religion: The Heretic Trial of Giordano Bruno
Readings: Paul Oskar Kristeller, Eight Philosophers of the Italian Renaissance, “Bruno” (pp. 127-144).
FINAL EXAMINATIONS
Required readings:
A reader will be made available to the students. Each student must buy the reader and bring it to each class meeting.
Brief Biography of Instructor:
Arianne Conty is a PhD in Philosophy of Religion from the University of California Santa Barbara. She conducts research in the history of religious and philosophical ideas, particularly in the field of medieval and post modern theories of subjectivity. She has published articles in medieval mysticism and postmodern thought.
Mystics, Philosophers, Saints And Sinners: Studies In The Roman Catholic Tradition
Through a close study of both primary and secondary materials in theology, spirituality, aesthetics, and social history, this course will introduce students to the major forms and institutions of religious thought and practice in medieval, Christian Europe (from Saint Augustine to the rise of humanism).
The course will begin by studying the theological foundations of self and world in the work of Augustine and Pseudo-Dionysius, before turning to an elucidation of central religious institutions such as the papacy (and its relationship to imperial Rome), the monastery (we will study the rule of Saint Benedict and will visit a Benedictine monastery), the cathedral (we will visit San Giovanni in Laterano and Saint Peter’s), and the university (and the scholastic philosophy to which it gave rise). We will then turn to alternative expressions of medieval religious faith in the work of several mystics, notably Meister Eckhart and Angela of Foligno. Finally we will study the reactions of the Church to the rise of science in the fifteenth century (we will look at the trial of Giordano Bruno) and will end with an appraisal of the continuity and renewal of Renaissance Humanism and its influence on the humanities as studied in a Liberal Arts Curriculum today.
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Define and delimit the medieval period from antiquity and modernity both historically and thematically.
- Understand the particular and interdependent ways in which the medieval period was shaped by the institutions of the Papacy, the monastery, the cathedral and the university.
- Recognize and be able to compare and analyze the reflection of and contribution to the medieval worldview of such thinkers as Pseudo-Dionysius, Saint Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, William of Ockham, Meister Eckhart and Angela of Foligno.
- Express the above understanding in active class discussion and fine writing, in which students demonstrate their ability to form a thesis statement and justify it with textual citation and analysis.
Lecture, discussion, and field study
Class participation (20%), Midterm (20%), Papers (15% each), Final Examination (30%)
In addition to studying the major forms and institutions of medieval Christianity, this course will seek to cultivate student’s skills in reading and analyzing primary texts, and expressing this analysis in both active class discussion and strong writing. Students will write two short papers on two of the figures studied in class (Augustine and Thomas Aquinas) in which they demonstrate that they have critically engaged the readings and the themes discussed in the classroom. The course encourages students to approach their education as a process that both requires and rewards their cooperation and active engagement. Preparation for, attendance at, and participation in lectures are all required and will count toward the student’s final grade.
I. Introduction and Overview
Session 1 Introduction
Session 2 Historical Overview
Readings: R.W. Southern, Western Society and the Church in the Middle Ages, Chapters 1 and 2 (“Church and Society”, pp. 15-23; “The Divisions of Time”, pp.24-52).
II. Theological Foundations of Medieval Christianity: Self and World
Session 3 Theological Anthropology: Augustine
Readings: Confessions, Book II, entire (pp.24-34); Book VII, Chs. 1-5 (pp. 111-116), 7-21 (pp.119-132); Book VIII, Chs. 1 (pp. 133-134), 5 (pp. 139-141), 7-12 (pp. 144-154).
Session 4 Theological Anthropology: Augustine
Readings: Confessions, Book X, Chs. 1-8 (pp. 179-187), 16-20 (pp. 193-197), 25-28 (pp. 198-202); Book XI, chs. 9-14 (pp. 225-231), 18 (pp. 233-235), 20 (pp. 240-245), 27-29 (pg. 273); Book XIII, Chs. 1, (pp. 278-279).
Session 5 Theological Cosmology and the Birth of Mystical Theology: Pseudo-Dionysius
Readings: The Mystical Theology, entire (pp. 133-141); The Divine Names, chs. 1 (pp. 49-58).
III. Institutions of Religious Life and Thought
A. The Papacy
Session 6 On-Site Visit: Saint Peter’s Tomb
Session 7 Conceptual Foundations
Readings: Eamon Duffy, “Upon this Rock” (pp. 1-37).
First paper due at the end of class.
Session 8 The Growth of Papal Authority
Readings: Duffy (2002) “The Age of Gregory the Great” (pp. 59-72); “Empires of the West” (pp. 86-97); Cantor (1968) “The Donation of Constantine” (pp. 131-139).
B. The Monastery
Session 9 Social Structure and Function of the Monastery
Readings: Norman Cantor, “The Rise of Monasticism” (pp. 145-155);
Saint Benedict, The Rule, chs. 1-7, 33-41, 48-64, 69-73.
Session 10 Embodying the Monastic Ideal: The Monastic Orders
Readings: Lawrence, “The Quest for the Primitive” (pp. 146-168); “The Cistercian Model” (pp. 172-195).
Session 11 Monastic Culture and Theology: Bernard of Clairvaux
Readings: Jean Leclerq, The Love of Learning and the Desire for God, Chs. 5 (pp. 71-88);
Bernard of Clairvaux, “On Loving God” (pp. 173-205) (Note: the letter on pp. 200-205 summarizes this treatise)
Screening of the film The Name of the Rose
Session 12 MIDTERM
C. The Cathedral
Session 13 On-Site Visit: Cathedrals of Rome: San Giovanni in Laterano
Session 14 The Theological Foundations of Gothic Aesthetics
Readings: Georges Duby, The Age of the Cathedrals, Part Two (pp. 93-135).
Session 15 The Religious, Social, and Political Functions of Gothic Aesthetics
Readings: Georges Duby, Part Two (pp. 136-165).
D. The University
Session 16 On-Site Visit: Santa Maria Sopra Minerva
Readings: Cantor, “The Cathedral of the intellect” (pp. 435-448).
Session 17 Scholastic Method in Action: The Thomist Summit
Readings: Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part One, Questions 2-3 (pp. 53-85); Question 12, articles 1, 4-7, 11-13 (pp. 113-122); Question 13, articles 1-2, 5 (pp. 123-128), 11 (pp. 130-131).
Session 18 Breakdown of the Scholastic Synthesis between Faith and Reason: Nominalism
Readings: Rubinstein, Aristotle’s Children, “Ockham’s Razor” (pp.239-270).
IV. Mysticism
Session 19 Late Medieval Mysticism and Vernacular Language: Meister Eckhart
Readings: Meister Eckhart, The Papal Bull (pp. 77-81); “On Detachment” (pp. 285-294); German Sermons 2, 52, 83 (pp. 177-181; 199-203; 206-208).
Second paper due at the end of class.
Session 20 Late Medieval Mysticism and Women
Readings: Caroline Walker Bynum, “Woman as Body and as Food” (pp. 260-276).
Session 21 Late Medieval Mysticism and Women: Angela of Foligno
Readings: “The Book of the Blessed Angela of Foligno,” Part One, chs. 1, 2 (pp. 121-133); ch. 3 (pp. 138-146); Second Supplementary Step (pp. 149-153); Third Supplementary Step (pp. 162-163); Fifth Supplementary Step (pp. 182-185); Sixth Supplementary Step (pp. 196-206).
V. From Theocracy to the Renaissance
Session 22 The Renaissance
Readings: Norman Cantor, “The Italian Renaissance” (pp. 540-566)
Session 23 Science and Religion: The Heretic Trial of Giordano Bruno
Readings: Paul Oskar Kristeller, Eight Philosophers of the Italian Renaissance, “Bruno” (pp. 127-144).
FINAL EXAMINATIONS
A reader will be made available to the students. Each student must buy the reader and bring it to each class meeting.
Arianne Conty is a PhD in Philosophy of Religion from the University of California Santa Barbara. She conducts research in the history of religious and philosophical ideas, particularly in the field of medieval and post modern theories of subjectivity. She has published articles in medieval mysticism and postmodern thought.