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Monastic Reform as Process : Realities and Representations in Medieval Flanders, 900–1100 / Steven Vanderputten.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: Ithaca, NY : Cornell University Press, [2017]Copyright date: ©2017Description: 1 online resource (264 p.) : 9 b&w halftones, 1 table, 1 map, 36 chartsContent type:
Media type:
Carrier type:
ISBN:
  • 9780801468117
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 230
Other classification:
  • online - DeGruyter
Online resources:
Contents:
Frontmatter -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1. Corporate Memories of Reform -- 2. The “Failed” Reforms of the Tenth Century -- 3. The “Dark Age” of Flemish Monasticism -- 4. Introducing the New Monasticism -- 5. Processes of Reformist Government -- 6. Shaping Reformed Identities -- 7. The “Waning” of Reformed Monasticism -- Conclusion -- Appendix A: Overview of the Leadership of Benedictine Monasteries in Flanders Reformed in the Tenth and Early Eleventh Centuries between c. 900 and c. 1120 -- Appendix B: Booklist of the Abbey of Marchiennes, c. 1025–1050 -- Bibliography -- Index
Summary: The history of monastic institutions in the Middle Ages may at first appear remarkably uniform and predictable. Medieval commentators and modern scholars have observed how monasteries of the tenth to early twelfth centuries experienced long periods of stasis alternating with bursts of rapid development known as reforms. Charismatic leaders by sheer force of will, and by assiduously recruiting the support of the ecclesiastical and lay elites, pushed monasticism forward toward reform, remediating the inevitable decline of discipline and government in these institutions. A lack of concrete information on what happened at individual monasteries is not regarded as a significant problem, as long as there is the possibility to reconstruct the reformers’ ‘‘program.’’ While this general picture makes for a compelling narrative, it doesn’t necessarily hold up when one looks closely at the history of specific institutions.In Monastic Reform as Process, Steven Vanderputten puts the history of monastic reform to the test by examining the evidence from seven monasteries in Flanders, one of the wealthiest principalities of northwestern Europe, between 900 and 1100. He finds that the reform of a monastery should be studied not as an "exogenous shock" but as an intentional blending of reformist ideals with existing structures and traditions. He also shows that reformist government was cumulative in nature, and many of the individual achievements and initiatives of reformist abbots were only possible because they built upon previous achievements. Rather than looking at reforms as "flashpoint events," we need to view them as processes worthy of study in their own right. Deeply researched and carefully argued, Monastic Reform as Process will be essential reading for scholars working on the history of monasteries more broadly as well as those studying the phenomenon of reform throughout history.
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Item type Current library Call number URL Status Notes Barcode
eBook eBook Biblioteca "Angelicum" Pont. Univ. S.Tommaso d'Aquino Nuvola online online - DeGruyter (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Online access Not for loan (Accesso limitato) Accesso per gli utenti autorizzati / Access for authorized users (dgr)9780801468117

Frontmatter -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1. Corporate Memories of Reform -- 2. The “Failed” Reforms of the Tenth Century -- 3. The “Dark Age” of Flemish Monasticism -- 4. Introducing the New Monasticism -- 5. Processes of Reformist Government -- 6. Shaping Reformed Identities -- 7. The “Waning” of Reformed Monasticism -- Conclusion -- Appendix A: Overview of the Leadership of Benedictine Monasteries in Flanders Reformed in the Tenth and Early Eleventh Centuries between c. 900 and c. 1120 -- Appendix B: Booklist of the Abbey of Marchiennes, c. 1025–1050 -- Bibliography -- Index

restricted access online access with authorization star

http://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_16ec

The history of monastic institutions in the Middle Ages may at first appear remarkably uniform and predictable. Medieval commentators and modern scholars have observed how monasteries of the tenth to early twelfth centuries experienced long periods of stasis alternating with bursts of rapid development known as reforms. Charismatic leaders by sheer force of will, and by assiduously recruiting the support of the ecclesiastical and lay elites, pushed monasticism forward toward reform, remediating the inevitable decline of discipline and government in these institutions. A lack of concrete information on what happened at individual monasteries is not regarded as a significant problem, as long as there is the possibility to reconstruct the reformers’ ‘‘program.’’ While this general picture makes for a compelling narrative, it doesn’t necessarily hold up when one looks closely at the history of specific institutions.In Monastic Reform as Process, Steven Vanderputten puts the history of monastic reform to the test by examining the evidence from seven monasteries in Flanders, one of the wealthiest principalities of northwestern Europe, between 900 and 1100. He finds that the reform of a monastery should be studied not as an "exogenous shock" but as an intentional blending of reformist ideals with existing structures and traditions. He also shows that reformist government was cumulative in nature, and many of the individual achievements and initiatives of reformist abbots were only possible because they built upon previous achievements. Rather than looking at reforms as "flashpoint events," we need to view them as processes worthy of study in their own right. Deeply researched and carefully argued, Monastic Reform as Process will be essential reading for scholars working on the history of monasteries more broadly as well as those studying the phenomenon of reform throughout history.

Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.

In English.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 26. Apr 2024)