Concentrates on a single problem in medieval theology: the relationship between Christ¿s bodily presence in the Eucharist & the conversion of the Eucharistic elements, bread & wine, into Christ¿s body & blood. Traces discussion of this problem in the Franciscan order during the late 13th cent. from St. Bonaventure to John Duns Scotus. Contents: The Thomist-Bonaventuran Thesis; Eucharistic Thought in the 1240s: Albert the Great, Wm. of Militona, & Richard Fishacre; Reception of the Thomist-Bonav. Thesis outside the Franciscan Order; The Franciscan Critique: Wm. de la Mare, Matthew of Aquasparta, John Pecham, Peter Olivi, Roger Marston, & Wm. of Falgar, Richard of Middleton, Vitalis de Furno, & Wm. of Ware, John Duns Scotus; Conclusion.

Rory Fox challenges the traditional understanding that Thomas Aquinas believed that God exists outside of time. His study investigates the work of several mid-thirteenth century writers providing a wealth of material on medieval concepts of time and eternity.

This is the first of two volumes on theological quodlibeta, records of special disputations held before Christmas and Easter ca. 1230-1330, mostly at the University of Paris, in which audience members asked the great masters of theology the questions for debate, questions de quolibet, "about anything." The variety of the material and the authors’ stature make the genre uniquely fascinating. In Volume I, chapters by acknowledged experts introduce the genre, cover the quodlibeta of Thomas Aquinas, Henry of Ghent, Giles of Rome, Godfrey of Fontaines, and 13th-century Franciscans, and demonstrate how the masters used quodlibeta to construct and express their authority on issues from politics and economics to two-headed monsters. For all those interested in medieval studies, especially intellectual history.

This collection of essays, written by leading experts, showcases historiographical problems, fresh interpretations, and new debates in medieval and Renaissance history and political thought. Recent scholarship on medieval and Renaissance political thought is witness to tectonic movements. These involve quiet, yet considerable, re-evaluations of key thinkers such as Thomas Aquinas and Machiavelli, as well as the string of lesser known "political thinkers" who wrote in western Europe between Late Antiquity and the Reformation. Taking stock of thirty years of developments, this volume demonstrates the contemporary vibrancy of the history of medieval and Renaissance political thought. By both celebrating and challenging the perspectives of a generation of scholars, notably Cary J. Nederman, it offers refreshing new assessments. The book re-introduces the history of western political thought in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance to the wider disciplines of History and Political Science. Recent historiographical debates have revolutionized discussion of whether or not there was an "Aristotelian revolution" in the thirteenth century. Thinkers such as Machiavelli and Marsilius of Padua are read in new ways; less well-known texts, such as the Irish On the Twelve Abuses of the Age, offer new perspectives. Further, the collection argues that medieval political ideas contain important lessons for the study of concepts of contemporary interest such as toleration. The volume is an ideal resource for both students and scholars interested in medieval and Renaissance history as well as the history of political thought.

Examines how thirteenth-century clergymen used pastoral care - preaching, sacraments and confession - to increase their parishioners' religious knowledge, devotion and expectations.

For generations, early Franciscan thought has been widely regarded as unoriginal: a mere attempt to systematize the longstanding intellectual tradition of Augustine in the face of the rising popularity of Aristotle. This volume brings together leading scholars in the field to undertake a major study of the major doctrines and debates of the so-called Summa Halensis (1236-45), which was collaboratively authored by the founding members of the Franciscan school at Paris, above all, Alexander of Hales, and John of La Rochelle, in an effort to lay down the Franciscan intellectual tradition or the first time. The contributions will highlight that this tradition, far from unoriginal, laid the groundwork for later Franciscan thought, which is often regarded as formative for modern thought. Furthermore, the volume shows the role this Summa played in the development of the burgeoning field of systematic theology, which has its origins in the young university of Paris. This is a crucial and groundbreaking study for those with interests in the history of western thought and theology specifically.