Dissimilar Similitudes - Devotional Objects in Late Medieval Europe

Autori

• Caroline Walker Bynum

Parametri

• 424 pagine
• 15 ore di lettura

• Arte / Cultura
• Esoterismo e religione
• Saggistica
• Tema stórico
• Temi religiosi

Maggiori informazioni sul libro

Between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries, European Christians incorporated a wide range of objects into their worship, including prayer books, statues, natural materials like stones and earth, dolls of Jesus and Mary, and even bits of consecrated bread and wine believed to be preserved flesh and blood. These items were subject to various interpretations and justifications by theologians and worshippers, often intertwined with anti-Semitic sentiments and the promise of heaven. Their prevalence and the reactions to them provide essential context for the European-wide movements known as "reformations" (both Protestant and Catholic). In a series of independent yet interconnected essays, Caroline Bynum explores examples of these holy objects, such as beds for the baby Jesus and the footprints of Christ brought back by pilgrims. Building on her previous work on materiality, Bynum presents two main arguments. First, she illustrates that these objects embody a paradox of dissimilar similitude, reflecting heaven's glory while highlighting its inaccessibility through earthly representations. Second, she critiques current comparative history practices, urging scholars to focus on the diverse and visually dissimilar objects that worshippers and theorists associate with the "other," which imparts lasting power to their religions.

Lingua: Inglese

Pubblicato: 2020

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