Academic literature on the topic 'Asceticism History Middle Ages, 600-1500'

Tall Abu al-Kharaz, in the central Jordan Valley, was occupied during approximately five millennia. A walled town, which had a dominant position in the Jordan Valley, existed already in the Early Bronze Age IB, viz. before 3050 BC. Walled settlements also flourished at the end of the Middle Bronze Age (around 1600 BC), during the Late Bronze Age (roughly 1500–1200 BC) and throughout the entire Iron Age (roughly 1200–600 BC). It is most likely that Tell Abu al-Kharaz is identical with Jabesh Gilead: this city is mentioned frequently in the Old Testament. During earlier seasons most of the Early Iron Age remains were found to have been disturbed by later settlers. It is, therefore, essential for the documentation of the settlement history of this city, that the expedition of 2009 unearthed an extremely well-preserved city quarter dating to the 12/11th century BC (according to high-precision radiocarbon dates). The excavations were extended in autumn 2010 and a stone-built, architectural compound was uncovered. Fourteen rooms (state October 2010), with walls still upright and standing to a height of more than 2 m, were exposed. The inventories of these rooms, which comprised more than one hundred complete vessels and other objects, were remarkably intact. Amongst the finds were numerous imports from Egypt and Lebanon. There are also finds which should be attributed to the Philistines, according to several Aegean-style vessels. The find context points to a hasty abandonment of the city. In the past, the beginning of the Iron Age has often been described as “the Dark Ages”—a period of cultural regression: this categorization is not relevant to the find situation at Tall Abu al-Kharaz where the remains of a wealthy society, which had far-reaching intercultural connections, can be identified.

The early history of the mouldboard plough – from the Late Roman Iron Age to the Middle AgesUntil quite recently, the introduction of the mouldboard plough to Denmark was seen as being closely linked to a new efficient Medieval cultivation system, the open-field system, which was considered to be the foundation for dynamic social changes evident in the area from c. AD 1000-1300. The open-field system is often explained in the context of a Medieval agricultural and technological revolution, whereby the mouldboard plough, ridge-and-furrow cultivation and crop rotation were introduced as a kind of package solution. Studies of Danish Medieval written sources suggest that these agrarian changes took place in AD 1000-1200, with use of the mouldboard plough consequently not being thought of as much older.Until the late 1990s, this idea was not contradicted by the significant body of evidence in the Danish archaeological record relating to the mouldboard plough, which in many ways is unique in a European perspective. Subsequently, new archaeological finds of well-preserved furrows made by a mouldboard plough have been discovered which clearly show that this implement was introduced to Denmark about 700-800 years earlier than previously thought, i.e. in the Late Roman Iron Age, c. AD 200-400. This challenges our understanding of the introduction of the mouldboard plough and the history of cultivation systems in Denmark prior to the Middle Ages and the evidence has therefore been subjected to new investigations.Archaeological finds of plough componentsThe archaeological record contains the only known finds of wooden plough components such as the beam, sheath, sole and mouldboard, as well as finds of the coulter, draught chains and shares (fig. 1). These finds can be dated to the period from the Late Viking Age to the Late Middle Ages or Renaissance.The archaeological record, together with pictorial representations on frescoes and seals from Denmark, provides a relatively tangible picture of the plough as basically a quadrilateral construction with the mouldboard attached to the right side. How far back in time this plough construction was used is not known for sure, but it is possible that it was developed by farmers as far back as the Iron Age, possibly being best suited to the asymmetrical function of the plough. It is obviously unlikely that an implement which was used for more than 1500 years remained static and unchanged in every way. As a consequence, the possibility cannot be ruled out that other versions of the mouldboard plough, either simpler or more complex, have existed over time.Ploughing tracesArchaeological investigations have unearthed several minor occurrences of fossil ploughing traces dated to between the Late Iron Age and the Middle Ages. These take the form of ridge-and-furrow systems, turned furrows and furrow strips possibly correlated with the plough (fig. 6).In the light of the traces found at Tating-Haferacker, St. Peter-Ording, Joldelund and Danevirke, it must be assumed that the mouldboard plough was known and used across larger parts of South Schleswig in the Late Roman Iron Age. It may be possible to show that the plough was used even further north Jutland at this time, as the ploughing traces found in Henneby may date from the Late Roman Iron Age rather than the Germanic Iron Age. Notwithstanding the uncertainty regarding Henneby, the traces from Dommerhaven in Ribe and Klinkerne (figs. 2 and 3) show that the plough was known and used in significant parts of western Jutland by the Late Germanic Iron Age at the latest. There are presently no ploughing traces from other parts of Denmark dating from this period, although the furrows found beneath the burial mound Grydehøj on Zealand could have been produced by this plough. Similarly, the traces dated to the Viking Age, found at Hedeby, Fjand, Viborg (fig. 4), Lindholm Høje and Löddeköpinge, show that the plough must have been known and used across significant parts of Jutland and in Scania before the end of the Viking Age. Early Middle Ages ploughing traces have been found at Filsø and some other locations in Jutland and on Funen, but so far no definite ploughing traces are known from Zealand and Scania. There are only a few localities with ploughing traces dating from the rest of the Middle Ages: Ringkøbing, Puggårdsgade in Ribe, Amrum and Südfall in the western part of Denmark. The traces found at Ulbjerg Klint are unlikely to be later than the 15th-16th centuries (fig. 5).At first sight, this review of the fossil ploughing traces can be broadly interpreted as showing that the introduction of the plough to Denmark was an extended process, which began in South Schleswig no later than the Late Roman Iron Age and continued into the western parts of Denmark no later than the Germanic Iron Age, and reached the remaining parts of Denmark no later than the Viking Age. The question is, however, whether the review has given a better basis for determining when and how the mouldboard plough became a regular implement in various parts of Denmark. All things considered, the archaeological record only shows where the conditions for preservation have been particularly good for these specific types of finds, and where excavators happen to have found turned furrows when carrying out archaeological investigations. In western Jutland, peaty/boggy soils and sand drift have given good conditions for the preservation of fossil turned furrows, while the same conditions seldom exist in other parts of Denmark. This is emphasised by the fact that the finds of turned furrows dating from the Middle Ages have almost exclusively been found in western Jutland, even though the plough is considered to have been common across most of Denmark at this time. Consequently, the absence of fossil turned furrows cannot be used as evidence of the plough not having been known and used in the area in question. It would therefore be irresponsible to make dogmatic unambiguous statements about regional variations in the introduction of the plough to Denmark.Rye cultivation as an indicator of the use of the ploughThe problem can be addressed indirectly by turning to another source material. Perhaps the the more widespread cultivation of rye may be used as an indicator of the presence of the plough in a given area.Rye, as known from historical times, does not make great demands as to the type of soil, but it does require that the soil has been loosened and is not waterlogged; surface water can also destroy the rye. The mouldboard plough has therefore been considered as a prerequisite for more widespread and systematic cultivation of rye, especially winter rye, on the wet northwest European lowlands. This is because the plough could efficiently loosen the soil and gather it into ridged strips, facilitating field drainage.General developments clearly show that, after a cautious start in Late Roman Iron Age, rye was found increasingly during the Germanic Iron Age and subsequent periods. It would be irresponsible to draw too far-reaching conclusions with respect to relations between rye and the plough. However, if we accept the idea of a connection between the mouldboard plough and the more widespread and systematic cultivation of rye – especially winter rye, then it is tempting to claim that the results of the present review reflect a form of agriculture in which the mouldboard plough was in use across most of Denmark during the Germanic Iron Age.Perspectives on the early introduction of the mouldboard ploughThe mouldboard plough is interesting in both an ecological and a socio-economic context, because it was of major significance for tillage and prompted a reorganisation of field structures that, with time, had a knock-on effect on the structures of settlements and properties.The idea of a technological revolution around AD 1000 acting as a catalyst for dynamic social changes is no longer tenable. The earlier dates now established for the mouldboard plough, the ridged strips and crop rotation clearly show that these significant agricultural prerequisites for a new and effective Medieval system of cultivation, the open-field system, were very well-known in Denmark before this form of agriculture took shape at the beginning of the Early Middle Ages, AD 1000-1200. There is, therefore, no reason to stick to the idea of a technological revolution at this time. The dynamic changes evident in the Middle Ages are, instead, more likely to be a consequence of a general economic expansion, which saw expression for example in an increase in new villages and an associated expansion of the cultivated landscape during the Early Middle Ages.The context in which the earlier introduction of the mouldboard plough should be understood is as yet far from clear. Our knowledge of the plough is still very inadequate and unevenly distributed in time and space, and the archaeological record relating to the cultivation systems of the Late Iron Age, AD 200-1050, is similarly very sporadic.It seems that the introduction of the plough was very likely associated with the significant changes that took place at the transition between the Early and Late Roman Iron Age, c. AD 200, and which characterised society in the subsequent centuries.The earlier introduction of the plough and of ridged- and/or flat-field systems of cultivation must have influenced the organisation of the infield and gradually rendered it impractical to move the settlement around within the resource area, as had been the case since the last centuries BC. Estimates of the percentage of cultivated land at different locations in Denmark show that some settlements must have had cultivated areas corresponding to those of Medieval times as early as the Germanic Iron Age, while other settlements had far smaller areas. This could be one of the reasons that some villages clearly became fixed at their present location already in Late Germanic Iron Age, and not exclusively at the transition between the Viking Age and Middle Ages, c. AD 900-1100, as was previously thought.There are a number of indications that the agrarian society of the Late Iron Age was increasingly able to generate a surplus, which could mobilise an ever more complex social structure: For example, the establishment of large, rich productive sites, especially in the 6th and 7th centuries AD, the founding of the earliest towns, such as Ribe, Aarhus and Hedeby in the 8th and 9th centuries, the emergence of regional kingdoms and the waging of several wars for resources in the period AD 200-600. The earlier introduction of the effective mouldboard plough fits well into this sequence of developments – as one of several significant factors.Lars Agersnap LarsenViborg Museum

Throughout the course a long life in which he served as a cleric, a Cluniac monk, and an archbishop, Hugh of Amiens (c. 1085-1164) wrote a number of works including poems, biblical exegesis, anti-heretical polemics, and one of the early collections of systematic theology. This dissertation aims to provide an intellectual biography of Hugh which grants a better understanding not only of his motivations and ideals, but also some of those of the wider clerical and monastic world of the twelfth century. It examines each of Hugh's theological and literary compositions with their manuscript distribution, chronology, and contemporary setting, giving an in-depth exegesis of the texts including their concerns, sources of material, and their meaning within the context of their day. So too does it compare him with contemporaries who were writing similar works, from the compilers of sentences to biblical versifiers. Many themes surface in this work. One of these is the influence that both the scholastic and the monastic worlds had on Hugh. His writings show that he, along with many of his contemporaries, was secure in drawing inspiration from the contemplative spirit of the cloister as well as the methodical and disputatious endeavours of the schools. Another key theme is the extensive influence of St. Augustine, not just upon Hugh's thought, but also upon the thought of most of Hugh's contemporaries. The role of Hugh's works in the origin of systematic theology also emerges, as does their relation to events in the larger religious, social, and political scene, such as the rise of popular heresies and new religious movements, the condemnation of Gilbert de la Porree (c. 1076-1154), and the schism under Pope Alexander III (c. 1100-81). It concludes that Hugh was not only an intriguing individual, but also a representative of many of the important and widespread trends of his day.

The subject of this thesis is the theology of the late 13th- early 14th century churchman 'Abdisho' bar Brikha. Better known by modern scholars for his poetry and canon law, he is far less recognised as a religious controversialist who composed works in Arabic as well as Syriac to answer Muslim criticisms. My overall argument contends that 'Abdisho''s hitherto neglected theological works are critical to our understanding of how anti-Muslim apologetics had by his time become central to his Church's articulation of a distinct Christian identity in a largely non-Christian environment. 'Abdisho' wrote his apologetic theology at a time when Christians experienced increasing hardship under the rule of the Mongol Ilkhans, who had officially converted to Islam in 1295. While the gradual hardening of attitudes towards Christians may well have informed 'Abdisho''s defensive stance, this thesis also demonstrates that his theology is built on a genre of apologetics that emerged as early as the mid-8th century. Our author compiles and systematises earlier debates and authorities from this tradition while updating them for a current authorship. In doing so, he contributes to the formation of a theological canon that would remain authoritative for centuries to come. My analysis of 'Abdisho''s oeuvre extends to three doctrinal themes: the Trinity, the Incarnation, and devotional practices (viz. the veneration of the Cross and the striking of the church clapper). I situate his discussion of these topics in a period when Syriac Christian scholarship was marked by a familiarity with Arabo-Islamic theological and philosophical models. While our author does not engage with these models as closely as his better-known Syriac Christian contemporary Bar Hebraeus (d. 1286), he nevertheless appeals to a literary and theological idiom common to both Muslims and Christians in order to convince his coreligionists of their faith's reasonableness against centuries-long polemical attacks.

The Red Jews are a legendary people; this is their history. From the late thirteenth to the late sixteenth century, vernacular German texts depicted the Red Jews, a conflation of the Biblical ten lost tribes of Israel and Gog and Magog, as a savage and unnaturally foul nation, who are enclosed in the 'Caspian Mountains', where they had been walled up by Alexander the Great. At the end of time, they will break out and serve the Antichrist, causing great destruction and suffering in the world. The hostile identification (c. 1165) of Jews with the apocalyptic destroyers of Ezekiel 38-39 and Revelation 20 expresses a new and virulent antisemitism that was integrated into the powerful apocalyptic traditions of Christianity. None of the few scholars who have noticed the Red Jews in medieval and early modern vernacular texts has sought out, collected and examined the complete body of medieval and early-modern sources that feature the Red Jews. This study provides a long-term analysis of the intimate connections between antisemitism and apocalypticism via a forgotten and submerged piece of German 'medievalia', the Red Jews. The legend gradually dissipated. Until the beginning of the seventeenth century it was a medieval lens through which Germans saw events relating to the Turkish threat in the East; after that time, the Red Jews disappeared from European texts.

The thesis attempts a portrait of The Cloud in the context of its position in the history of Christian mysticism. That the anonymous work owed much to spiritual writers of the preceding twelve hundred years is not debatable; what it owed maybe slightly less obvious. The Cloud is essentially a work of Dionysian mysticism, and various writers within that tradition who may have influenced or affected the teaching of The Cloud are examined. At the same time, however, the anonymous writer owes much to the western tradition of Augustinian theology, and the role of this, complementary to the Dionysian mysticism, is also considered. In Chapter II we look at the theological doctrine underlying the mystical doctrine of the Cloud corpus. Chapter III has two major parts, both concerned with the influence of The Cloud on the subsequent development of spiritual writing in England. The first considers the relationship with Walter Hilton. The second examines aspects of Puritan thought which may indicate that the influence of The Cloud, after the Reformation, was not restricted to Catholic thought.

John of Damascus was an early eighth century theologian in the Jerusalem Patriarchate. His family supplied financial administrators in Syro-Palestine for most of the seventh century, who were involved in surrendering Damascus to the Arabs if not also to the Persians. They thrived in the sectarian environment under the Umayyads. Numerous Greek Lives paint John in legendary terms; however, these are late and unreliable. I deconstruct the Lives decoupling his timeline from Byzantine Iconoclasm, arguing that there is no evidence and good reason to think that he did not leave the Arab administration because of vexed piety, persecution or administrative language change. Rather, focusing on the chronicler's treatment of John's family, I argue that John left office for his own reasons. I propose that John was instrumental in a quid pro quo: cathedral for patriarchate negotiation. Consequently, the Arabs built the Damascus Mosque on the site of the cathedral church of St John the Baptist, and the (dyothelite) Chalcedonian party moved to Jerusalem, where they reestablished the Jerusalem Patriarchate. Thus, I argue the context of John's polemical works is Jerusalem and patriarchal policy. Further, I argue that John was commissioned to produce something like 'proto-school' texts in the context of debate in the Anastasis with internal Maronite and external West and East Syrian interlocutors. Then I look at one example of John's theological creativity to show how this context impinged on his theological program. John appropriates Maximus the Confessor's term perichoresis and reduces its scope to the Incarnation while moving it into the doctrine of God for the first time. I show that he does this for polemical reasons in order to contravene each of his interlocutors with a simple biblical rhetorical model providing Chalcedonian monks in debate with a simple formula against better educated foes. This thesis demonstrates that reading John out of context fails to appreciate his creative response to these local exigencies.

This thesis examines the representation of weeping rulers in early medieval sources, focusing on the Carolingian empire between 790 and 888. The meanings applied to tears are culturally specific: thus, exploring how, why, when and where rulers cried can illuminate the dynamics of power and ideals of kingship in this period. This thesis provides a survey of a poorly understood phenomenon. It also challenges several assumptions about the nature of early medieval power. Rulers wept not only over their own sins (a well-recognised phenomenon), but also over the sins of others and out of a desire for heavenly glory. Thus, they wept in a ‘monastic' or ‘priestly' way. This was something associated more with certain rulers than others. As such, tears can be used as a lens through which developments in ideas about the relationship between secular rulers and the ecclesiastical hierarchy can be traced. The thesis is divided into six sections. The historiographical importance of this topic is discussed in the introduction. Chapter one assesses the understanding of tears in biblical, Roman and Merovingian sources. Chapter two focuses on the representation of tears in texts associated with the court of Charlemagne (d. 814). Chapter three explores how authors loyal to Louis the Pious (d. 840) used tears to respond to criticisms of him and his wife, the Empress Judith (d. 843). Chapter four turns to exegetical material written between 820 and 860 and examines how biblical rulers were represented weeping. In particular, the reception of these previously unrecognised images in royal courts and their influence on narrative sources will be considered. Chapter five explores sources from the later ninth century, focusing particularly on the writings of Hincmar of Reims (d. 882) and Notker of St Gall (d. 912). Chapter six considers tears in three case studies drawn from post=Carolingian sources. Finally the concluding section outlines the significance of this thesis for our understanding of Carolingian and post Carolingian political culture and the history of weeping in the middle ages.

Visitatio, however, is driven by the same forces that drive equally dramatic liturgical commemorations year-round, climaxing in but not exclusive to the period around Easter. Beginning with an account of late Anglo-Saxon baptism, I examine the liturgy for the high festivals from Christmas to Ascension Day. For each chapter, I describe the liturgical forms for the day and their intended relationships with the participants, focussing on the establishment of dramatic associations between the celebrants and certain figures in the commemorated events. I then compare the liturgical forms with vernacular treatments of a particular festival, looking both for overt instruction and more subtle influence of the liturgy on the preaching texts. Anglo-Saxon preachers and homilists openly assumed the themes and symbolic images of the dramatic ritual in their attempts to make their congregations understand and take on Christian imperatives. Recursively, vernacular preaching helped solidify the meanings of the symbolic elements of the dramatic ritual and their significance to the lives of Christians. Anglo-Saxon appreciation of the dramatic potential of the liturgy was realized both in creative expansion of the liturgy and in the vernacular preaching texts that identified and enhanced this dramatic dynamic.