Christian Materiality
An Essay on Religion in Late Medieval Europe
Caroline Walker Bynum
416 pages | ~12 hrs
Christian Materiality
An Essay on Religion in Late Medieval Europe
By Caroline Walker Bynum
Between 1150 and 1550, Western Christianity witnessed extraordinary phenomena that challenged believers' understanding of the sacred and material worlds. Paintings wept, statues bled, relics moved on their own, and ordinary objects like stones and pieces of wood seemed to come alive with divine presence. These miraculous events created a profound tension within Christian communities, simultaneously drawing believers toward deeper encounters with sacred matter while inspiring others to embrace a more inward spirituality that rejected physical devotional objects.
Caroline Walker Bynum explores this fascinating period when miraculous materials stood at the very center of religious life and heated debate. She examines not only the miracles themselves but also the complex challenges they presented to church leaders and everyday believers trying to navigate their faith. The author delves into the fundamental assumptions about matter and spirituality that shaped medieval understanding, revealing how these beliefs influenced both the creation of religious art and the fierce opposition it sometimes provoked.
This scholarly investigation illuminates how fourteenth and fifteenth-century Christians grappled with a paradoxical relationship to the natural world, seeing it as both glorious and threatening. Bynum's analysis extends beyond traditional studies of the body to examine how changing concepts of matter itself shaped Western attitudes toward spirituality and human experience. Her work offers fresh insights into the complex religious landscape that preceded the major reformations of the sixteenth century, providing readers with a deeper understanding of how material objects can serve as bridges between the physical and spiritual realms.
What You'll Discover
- ✓ Explore Reliquienkult
- ✓ Explore Matter
- ✓ Explore Bilderverehrung
- ✓ Explore Middle Ages
- ✓ Explore Church history
- ✓ Explore Wunder
- ✓ Explore Historia
- ✓ Explore Matter--religious aspects--christianity--history of doctrines
Topics
Details
- Published
- 2011
- Publisher
- Zone Books
- ISBN-13
- 9781935408109
- ISBN-10
- 1935408100
- Pages
- 416
- Language
- EN
