Synopses & Reviews
Historians have no record of what the people who lived in medieval Europe between 1100-1500 did or did not believe regarding their Christian faith. This penetrating study sifts through the traces of evidence left across Europe to assemble a more complete picture. While religion in medieval Europe was a central part of people's lives and affected even the most mundane aspects of everyday existance, the period was far from uniform as the "Age of Faith". By focusing on lay people, this comprehensive analysis unlocks the multiple meanings of religion, asking how it functioned and what effect it had on the population, revealing the meanings and struggles that lay behind the misleading, commonly held myth of ubiquitous religious life in medieval Europe.
Review
"An ambitious book...Presents a new and challenging way of interpreting the history of lay religious practices between 1000 and 1500 and the ways in which those practices interacted with the official positions of the church hierarchy."—H-France Review
Review
"An ambitious book...Presents a new and challenging way of interpreting the history of lay religious practices between 1000 and 1500 and the ways in which those practices interacted with the official positions of the church hierarchy."H-France Review
Review
"This is an ambitious book. In it, John H. Arnold presents a new and challenging way of interpreting the history of lay religious practices between 1000 and 1500 and the ways in which those practices interacted with the official positions of the church hierarchy." --H-France Review
Synopsis
For most people in the middle ages--for thousands upon thousands who lived within Christendom in the period considered by this book, 1100-1500--we have no record of what they believed or did not believe. John Arnold sifts through the traces left behind by our ancestors across Europe and assembles a more complete picture than ever before. Religion in mediveal Europe was hugely important, and impinged upon the most mundane aspects of everyday life. But was the period a uniform "Age of Faith?" By focussing on lay people, this fascinating account unlocks the multiple meanings of religion, asking how it functioned and with what effects.
This book deftly reveals for today's readers, as none have before, the meanings and struggles that lay between the smooth surface of medieval religious life.
Synopsis
Historians have no record of what the people who lived in medieval Europe between 1100-1500 did or did not believe regarding their Christian faith. This penetrating study sifts through the traces of evidence left across Europe to assemble a more complete picture. While religion in medieval Europe was a central part of people's lives and affected even the most mundane aspects of everyday existance, the period was far from uniform as the "Age of Faith". By focusing on lay people, this comprehensive analysis unlocks the multiple meanings of religion, asking how it functioned and what effect it had on the population, revealing the meanings and struggles that lay behind the misleading, commonly held myth of ubiquitous religious life in medieval Europe.
About the Author
John H. Arnold is a Professor of Medieval History at Birkbeck College, University of London.