Article
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Why Did People ‘Invent’ Relics in the Roman East Between the Fourth and Sixth Centuries?
Estelle CRONNIER
Published in Pleasure in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Church, Inventions, Politics, Relics, Roman East.
The cult of relics did not exist in the first centuries of the Christian era, but only came into being in the fourth century. After the Peace of the Church and the Christianisation of the Roman Empire, it became a constitutive element of the new religion. However, a very small number of holy graves known to exist and could be pinpointed. This could explain why a series of ‘inventions’ or miraculous discoveries happened in this time – first of all in the Eastern provinces of the Empire –, that is to meet the needs of worship. But relics were not found at just any time or place. A careful examination of the different cases in their historical context gives us a better understanding of this phenomenon.
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The Rejection of the Epicurean Ideal of Pleasure in Late Antique Sources: Not Only Misunderstandings
Ilaria L. E. RAMELLI
Published in Pleasure in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Christian reception, Epicureanism, Gregory Nazianzen, Origen, Pleasure.
Epicureanism was seen by its opponents, both ‘pagan’ and Christian, as the philosophy of pleasure and atheism. From the theological point of view, the accusation of atheism was incorrect, since Epicurus and the Epicureans admitted of the existence of deities, and posited them as models of moral perfection, while denying their interest in human affairs, i.e. providence. This denial aimed at guaranteeing their imperturbability (ataraxia). From the ethical point of view, the ideal of pleasure (hēdonē), on which I shall concentrate here, was grossly misunderstood or distorted by the opponents of Epicureanism, who generally did not take into consideration the moderation, equilibrium, and serenity that the superior ‘catastematic pleasure’ (Epicurus’s real ideal of pleasure) involved. I shall analyse the attitude of late-antique sources, especially Christian, toward Epicureanism and its ethics. A great many of Usener’s and Arrighetti’s fragments of Epicurus indeed come from Christian late-antique authors, such as Clement, Origen, Eusebius, Lactantius, and Augustine, but other patristic authors should be added, such as Basil and Gregory of Nyssa. Even if patristic interest in Epicureanism is often critical, and sometimes imprecise or distorted, nevertheless it is tangible. I shall focus on the authors who make the most interesting use of Epicurean sources, particularly with respect to the ethical doctrine: Origen, Dionysius of Alexandria, Lactantius, Ambrose, Jerome and Augustine, Gregory Nyssen, and Nazianzen, the only one who really understood and praised Epicurus’s notion of hēdonē. I shall also argue that the fading away of the availability and use of good sources on Epicureanism, along with the disappearance of the Epicurean school itself, brought about an impoverishment in the understanding of, and hostility to, Epicurus and Epicureanism.
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Benedicta in mulieribus. The Virgin Mary as a paradigm of women in the patristic tradition and its possible reflection in Spanish Gothic painting
José María SALVADOR GONZÁLEZ
Original title: Benedicta in mulieribus. La Virgen María como paradigma de la mujer en la tradición patrística y su posible reflejo en la pintura gótica española
Published in Mulier aut Femina. Idealism or reality of women in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Iconography, Mariology, Paradigm, Patristics, Spanish Gothic painting., Theology, Women.
From the first centuries of the Christian era the Virgin Mary became in respect of the believers a sublime and inimitable model of human, moral and spiritual virtues. This fact has been staged by researchers on Marian iconography as a self-evident axiom, which need not be explained or justified documentarily. Going against this uncritical stance, this paper aims to explain, through a lot of theological and patristic citations, three fundamental aspects or attributes, in which, among many others, the paradigmatic character of Mary becomes real: her supereminence in comparison with the other women, her supereminence in comparison with the other creatures, including angels and saints, and her intercession before God on behalf of human beings. We complement our study by a comparative analysis through which we attempt to relate these patristic and theological sources with some Spanish Gothic paintings in which the three mentioned aspects of the analyzed Marian doctrine could be reflected in some way.
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Palaeochristian Art: Mirror of the worldview of the early Christians
Rosa Maria Blanca CEDILHO, Ana Paula Bernardo de SOUSA
Original title: Arte Paleocristã: espelho da visão de mundo dos primeiros cristãos
Published in Mulier aut Femina. Idealism or reality of women in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Christianity, Iconology, Imperial Rome, Pagan Art, Paleochristian Art.
This research aims to present what are the main aspects of Paleochristian art. This artistic representation was intended to convey the gospel message and educate the followers of this new , who lived between the ages II and IV. However, according to research, it is clear that the Christian themes are mixed with pre-existing pagan art, or with classical art.
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The image of women in the Crónica del Halconero de Juan II
María del Pilar RÁBADE OBRADÓ
Original title: La visión de la mujer en la Crónica del Halconero de Juan II
Published in Mulier aut Femina. Idealism or reality of women in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Castile, Chronicles, Juan II, Querelle des femmes, XVth Century.
This work analyzes the image of women in the Crónica del Halconero de Juan II. The chronicle was written during the reign of this king, and his author, Pedro Carrillo de Huete, was a courtier of the Castilian monarch. Through its study we’ll try to verify if the image that it offers of women is or not influenced by the debate concerning women that developed during the reign of Juan II.
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The Funeral in the Monastery of Batalha
Renata Cristina de Sousa NASCIMENTO
Original title: As Exéquias Fúnebres no Mosteiro da Batalha
Published in Monastic and Scholastic Philosophy in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Death, Imaginary, Pantheon, Rites, Symbolic Power.
The aim of this article is to analyze the funeral rites as a power representation. In this path was elected the narratives about the royal exequies occurred at Santa Maria da Vitória’s (Batalha) Monastery in XV century. The chronics talks about the importance of the funeral’s cerimonials happened at the Monastery. The “departure” of kings also showed the great religious pomp lived in the interior of the batalinho yard to D. João II. The Royal Pantheon of the Battle has a great symbolic and political importance, specially related to Avis’ Dinasty (1385-1581).
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The Historical Development of the Logica vetus
Guilherme WYLLIE
Original title: A evolução histórica da Logica vetus
Published in Monastic and Scholastic Philosophy in the Middle Ages
Keywords: History of Logic, History of Philosophy, Logica Vetus, Medieval Logic, Medieval Philosophy.
This paper is a historical survey of the logica vetus, which is distinguished by characterizing and contextualizing the main contributions of the most significant logicians of that period.
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The language in the medieval scholasticism
Ivanaldo SANTOS
Original title: A linguagem na escolástica medieval
Published in Monastic and Scholastic Philosophy in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Language, Medieval, Problem, Scholasticism, Thomas Aquinas.
This article aims introducing the problem of the language in the medieval scholasticism, specifically in the work by Tomás de Aquino, thinker of greater notoriety in the scholasticism. In order to achieve this goal this article was divided in two parts: 1) The medieval scholasticism; 2) The language in the thought of Tomás de Aquino. Finally, it is confirmed that is necessary perceive that the medieval scholasticism provided relevant discussions about themes that centuries later, guided the modernity, for example, the method, the logic and the language.
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The holiness of the hagiographies Venancius Fortunatus
Ruy de Oliveira ANDRADE FILHO, João Paulo CHARRONE
Original title: A santidade nas hagiografias de Venâncius Fortunatus
Published in Monastic and Scholastic Philosophy in the Middle Ages
Keywords: Christianity, Hagiography, Problem, Sanctity, Venantius Fortunatus.
We chose to do a quick presentation about the authenticity of hagiographies of Venantius Fortunatus. Then began a debate on the concept of holiness and medieval saint. After this discussion, which this author worked with two main models of holiness: the acetic-monastic and episcopal. The first model is present in hagiographies devoted to Patern and Radegund. In these descriptions abound this lifestyle choice: the pursuit of withdrawal from the world, the martyrdom, miracles and temptations related to this kind of choice. However, their hagiographies have, in most cases, the model of episcopal sanctity. In this model, the sanctity appears as a condition for becoming a bishop, and more, the miraculous virtue is clearly a feature of such positions.
