Audiobook21 hours
Medieval Christianity: A New History
Written by Kevin Madigan
Narrated by Pete Larkin
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
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About this audiobook
For many, the medieval world seems dark and foreign-a miraculous, brutal, and irrational time of superstition and strange relics. The pursuit of heretics, the Inquisition, the Crusades, and the domination of the "Holy Land" come to mind. Yet the medieval world produced much that is part of our world today, including universities, the passion for Roman architecture and the emergence of the Gothic style, pilgrimage, the emergence of capitalism, and female saints.
This new narrative history of medieval Christianity combines what is familiar and unfamiliar to modern audiences. Elements of novelty in the book include a steady focus on the role of women in Christianity; the relationships among Christians, Jews, and Muslims; the experience of ordinary parishioners; the adventure of asceticism, devotion, and worship; and instruction through drama, architecture, and art. Kevin Madigan expertly integrates these areas of focus with more traditional themes, such as the evolution and decline of papal power, the nature and repression of heresy, sanctity and pilgrimage, the conciliar movement, and the break between the old Western church and its reformers.
This new narrative history of medieval Christianity combines what is familiar and unfamiliar to modern audiences. Elements of novelty in the book include a steady focus on the role of women in Christianity; the relationships among Christians, Jews, and Muslims; the experience of ordinary parishioners; the adventure of asceticism, devotion, and worship; and instruction through drama, architecture, and art. Kevin Madigan expertly integrates these areas of focus with more traditional themes, such as the evolution and decline of papal power, the nature and repression of heresy, sanctity and pilgrimage, the conciliar movement, and the break between the old Western church and its reformers.
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Reviews for Medieval Christianity
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
30 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The narration of the story of medieval Christianity was - considering the length of the historic period- very engaging and enlightening the treatment of the content was relevant and appropriate excellent reading. The narrator did an excellent job and hearing the narration was very pleasing. The information given help to understand better the Christian heritage and many of our current Christian landscape.
Thanks for such good material4 people found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pleasant and insightful listening material! If you are interested in the people, movements, politics, and religion of the Middle Ages, you will enjoy this treatment.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fantastic and really interesting overview. Some parts were a little dry for myself particularly the parts related to law but through it I also became aware of some fascinating figures from this age and intend to do more research
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A very balanced presentation of many opposing views on Church history.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nicely done; Madigan is much better (or so it seemed to me) on the high and later middle ages; the early chapters drag a little, with too much written about comparatively unimportant matters. It's not clear to me, in particular, why there are two chapters on Christianity and 'the Jews', but almost nothing at all about western and eastern Christianity. You only know the latter exists because there's a paragraph or so about the schism. Of course, it is clear to me: this is not a book about 'Medieval Christianity,' but a book about medieval Christianity in western Europe, and it was written recently, so the recent historical preoccupations find their way in. But I'm not sure that's a responsible thing to do in what is meant to be an introductory textbook.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Medieval Christianity: A New History, by Kevin Madigan, is a comprehensive overview of western Christianity during the Medieval period. Madigan makes sense of a long, rich and often conflicted period in history. His viewpoint is sympathetic but never hesitates to delve into the messy bits of medieval Christianity. I particularly enjoyed the chapters on spirituality of everyday people, the religious orders, and women. Madigan left me with a thirst to find out more on this fascinating period.