Religion and Society in the Middle Ages, (Hist. 310)

This course examines the role of religion and its impact on western society from the fourth to the fifteenth centuries.  Relying mainly on primary source materials, topics covered in the course include: Christianization and the Roman world, asceticism, monasticism, missionaries, Church and State struggles, the Crusades, heresy, the mendicant orders, and lay piety.  We will also examine our theme through the work of pivotal  figures such as Augustine of Hippo, Bernard of Clairvaux, Peter Abelard, Francis of Assisi, and Catherine of Siena.  Through weekly discussion sections this course aims to make its participants active interpreters of the past.