Religious communities and monasticism Books

Book SynopsisThe experience of loneliness is as universal as hunger or thirst. Because it affects us more intimately, we are less inclined to speak of it. But who has not known its gnawing ache? The fear of loneliness causes anguish. It prompts reckless deeds. To this, every age has borne witness. No voice is more insidious than the one that whispers in our ear: ''You are irredeemably alone, no light will pierce your darkness.'' The fundamental statement of Christianity is to convict that voice of lying. The Christian condition unfolds within the certainty that ultimate reality, the source of all that is, is a personal reality of communion, no metaphysical abstraction. Men and women, made ''in the image and likeness'' of God, bear the mark of that original communion stamped on their being. When our souls and bodies cry out for Another, it is not a sign of sickness, but of health. A labour of potential joy is announced. We are reminded of what we have it in us to become. That our labour may be fruitTrade ReviewThe Shattering of Loneliness is an extraordinary book: not too long but richly dense; profound in its insights and scholarship yet eminently readable; and though clearly written by a monk happy to be a monk, it has as much relevance to the ordinary Christian as to the Trappist monks in the author's care. * Catholic Herald *Intimately personal but never self-indulgent, it is at once arresting and challenging, uplifting and reassuring, and profoundly moving … The richness of this remarkable book is impossible to convey adequately in so few words. No reader will remain unchanged. * Tablet *Absorbing and fascinating ... It is a book to be read more than once. * Methodist Recorder *Generates deep and unexpected insights [...] Like the memory of a meaningful conversation long after you’ve forgotten what was said. It is unforgettable. * Catholic World Report *The Shattering of Loneliness is a book of extraordinary importance. It is, with prophetic clarity, aware of the depravity, the weakness and the glory of the human condition. * Times Literary Supplement *A work that intelligently renews the vocabulary and the very genre of spiritual literature. * La Croix *This is one of the finest books that I have read in recent years and one which should, in time, become a classic. It acknowledges and articulates the essential contribution of the Christian tradition as inspirer of remembrance for a generation that is beginning to forget. * The Furrow *Varden’s work is the fruit from a tree for the healing of the nations, from a monk who has his feet firmly and incarnationally on the ground. * Lutheran Theological Journal *I’ve read thousands of books. This one has stunned me. -- Mary Margaret Funk, spiritual writer and author of 'The Practice of the Spiritual Life'This wide-reading reviewer hasn’t for ages read such a completely satisfying book […], written in poetic, resonant language. -- Bonnie Thurston, New Testament scholar and authorTable of ContentsList of illustrations Introduction 1 Remember you are dust 2 Remember you were a slave in Egypt 3 Remember Lot's wife 4 Do this in memory of me 5 The Counsellor will call everything to mind 6 Beware lest you forget the Lord Afterword: In Memoriam Notes on the Text and on Sources Permissions

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Book Synopsis‘This book really, really will stay with me forever. It’s not only laced with the most incredible wisdom, but it’s also gentle and beautiful and eloquent. It brought me so much joy and so much comfort’ FEARNE COTTON ‘Life-changing. This book is sensational. If you’re struggling, feeling a little lost, anxious or in need of a mental lift, please read it’ ELLA MILLS, FOUNDER OF DELICIOUSLY ELLA The Sunday Times bestselling book of comfort and timeless wisdom from former forest monk, Björn Natthiko Lindeblad We like to think we can determine the path our life takes, but events rarely unfold the way we plan for or expect. In this international bestseller, former forest monk Björn Natthiko Lindeblad draws on his humbling journey towards navigating uncertainty – helping you, with kindness and good humour, to: - Let go of the small stuff - Accept the things you cannot control - Manage difficult emotions - Find stillness at busy times - Face yourself – and others – without judgment Infusing the everyday with heart and grace, this is a wise and soothing handbook for dealing with life’s challenges.Trade ReviewA multiple prize-winner across Europe, and you can quickly see why . . . This is a book of some brilliance * Daily Mail *With our potential to maintain a peaceful state of mind, it is possible to remain optimistic in the face of difficulties. Björn Natthiko Lindeblad, a former forest monk in Thailand, relates his experience of training to properly direct his thoughts which can benefit all -- His Holiness the Dalai LamaGenuinely stays with you . . . Will encourage you to let go of the small stuff, accept the things you cannot control and open your heart and mind to a more happy and peaceful life * Woman & Home *[An] extraordinary life . . . A book that, improbably, mixes elements of profundity and sweetness in equal measure. I read it, turning down the corners of pages I wished to refer back to, and marking certain passages with a pencil. By the end, almost every page was folded and marked * Telegraph *Phenomenal. Steeped in wisdom. Best book I've read in a long time -- Ella MillsI loved every single page . . . It’s not only just laced with the most incredible wisdom, but it’s also gentle and beautiful and eloquent. There’s so much storytelling . . . I literally could not put this book down -- Fearne CottonContains so many wisdoms that tie in with the big issues that the world wrestles with today . . . Heart-rending, yet at the same time so beautiful * Nyhetsmorgon (Sweden) *

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Book SynopsisThe Desert Fathers were the first Christian monks, living in solitude in the deserts of Egypt, Palestine, and Syria. In contrast to the formalised and official theology of the founding fathers of the church, the Desert Fathers were ordinary Christians who chose to renounce the world and live lives of celibacy, fasting, vigil, prayer and poverty in direct and simple response to the gospel. Their sayings were first recorded in the 4th century and consist of spiritual advice, anecdotes and parables. The Desert Fathers'' teachings and lives have inspired poetry, opera and art, as well as providing spiritual nourishment and a template for monastic life.Table of ContentsThe Desert FathersIntroductionFurther ReadingA Note on the Text1. Progress in Perfection2. Quiet3. Compunction4. Self-Control5. Lust6. Possessing Nothing7. Fortitude8. Nothing Done for Show9. Non-Judgement10. Discretion11. Sober Living12. Unceasing Prayer13. Hospitality14. Obedience15. Humility16. Patience17. Charity18. VisionsSome Names from the Text

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Book SynopsisOne of the most influential texts in the Middle Ages, The Rule of Saint Benedict offers guidance about both the spiritual and organizational dimensions, from the loftiest to the lowliest, of monastic life. This new Latin-English edition has features for both first-time readers and scholars of medieval history and language.

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Book SynopsisIn this volume of the TRADITIONS OF CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY series, the author examines the roots of the Franciscan order and then explores persistent themes such as incarnation, suffering, poverty, peace and creation. Through his insights we see the relevance of their spirituality for our lives today.

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Book SynopsisJust as a whole world of beauty can be discovered in one flower, so the great grace of God can be tasted in one small moment.'This observation is central to the probing spiritual journey of Henri Nouwen written during his seven-month stay in a Trappist monastery: the Abbey of the Genesee in upstate New York.During this period he had a unique opportunity to explore crucial issues of the spiritual life and discover a quiet stream underneath the fluctuating affirmations and rejections of our little world'.Insightful, compassionate, often humorous, always realistic, The Genesee Diary is both an inspiration and a challenge to those who are in search of themselves.

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Book SynopsisMount Athos was the most famous center of Byzantine monasticism and remains the spiritual heart of the Orthodox Church today. Holy Men of Mount Athos presents the Lives of five holy men who lived there at different times, from the ninth century to the last decades of the Byzantine period in the early fifteenth century.Trade ReviewWith this corpus of translations of Athonite saints’ Lives, a scholarly platform has been created for the future investigations on an interesting branch of Byzantine hagiography and on the life of a monastic polity. -- Stephanos Efthymiadis * Speculum *

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Book SynopsisThe eleventh-century monk Ekkehard IV’s Fortune and Misfortune at Saint Gall chronicles the 880s to 972, near the end of the famous Swiss monastery’s two-century-long golden age, bearing witness to the struggles of the tenth-century church reform movement. This volume publishes the Latin text alongside its first complete English translation.Trade ReviewMake[s] this text and its author accessible to a new generation of scholars. -- Rutger Kramer * Speculum *

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Book SynopsisBede Griffiths was well-known during his lifetime for his efforts to harmonize the spiritual practices of East and West, but the full range of his influence is only just becoming widely appreciated. In this biography, Shirley du Boulay shows his transformation from an idealistic, highly intelligent schoolboy into a man of profound wisdom who was revered by many as a holy man and a living saint. After a long and eventful journey, often filled with controversy and anguish, Griffiths eventually attained a spiritual wholeness at the Shantivanam ashram in India that is granted to few. It enabled him to express in simple and direct terms the underlying unity of religions, that beyond the darkness is "that Great Person, of the brightness of the sun".

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Book SynopsisDaily Prayer with the Corrymeela Community draws on the spiritual practices of Northern Ireland's longest established peace and reconciliation organisation. For over fifty years, it has been bringing fractured communities together and resourcing others in the work of healing conflict. At the heart of its life is a simple pattern of daily worship. This prayer book captures the essence of the Corrymeela prayer experience to help you incorporate its spirituality into your practice of prayer. Structured over 31 days, it offers a daily Bible reading with accompanying prayer by Pádraig Ó Tuama. as well as an introduction to the spirituality that sustains Corrymeela’s remarkable work.Trade ReviewThese poem-prayers are compassionate, contemporary and formally innovative. Improvising key moments in scripture, they offer a fresh perspective, linguistic rhythms grounded in truth and love. Savour them on the tongue, learn them off by heart, customise them, make them your own. Patience Agbabi, poet, author of Telling Tales, former Poet Laureate of Canterbury. -- Patience Agbabi, poet, author of Telling Tales, former Poet Laureate of Canterbury

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Book SynopsisCollection of letters and texts offering guidance for nuns, and including selections from Abelard's letters to Heloise. These translated letters and texts composed for younger and older women in twelfth-century convents illuminate the powerful medieval ideals of virginity and chastity. Abelard's history of women's roles in the church and his letteron women's education, both written for Heloise in her work as abbess, are seen here alongside previously untranslated letters and texts for abbesses and nuns in England and France. An interpretive essay explores the practical and spiritual engagement of women's convents with medieval commemorative and memorial practices, showing that the professional concern of women religious with death goes far beyond the stereotype of nuns as dead to the world, or enclosed in living death. VERA MORTON gained an MA in Medieval Studies at the University of Liverpool in 1994. JOCELYN WOGAN-BROWNE is Professor of English at Fordham University, NY.Trade ReviewA significant and lasting contribution to the field of medieval women's religious literature and culture. -- DIANE WATT, THE MEDIEVAL REVIEW

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Timely and inspiring." * Paradigm Explorer *

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Book SynopsisA distinctive and modern telling of the history of the Society of Jesus in America The history of America cannot be told without the history of religion, the history of American religion cannot be told without the history of Catholicism, and the history of Catholicism in America cannot be told without the history of Jesuits in America. Jesuits in the United States offers a panoramic overview of the Jesuit order in the United States from the colonial era to the present. David J. Collins, SJ, describes the development of the Jesuit order in the US against the background of American religious, cultural, and social history. He covers the papacy’s suppression of the order and its restoration period. The author also compares Jesuit activities in the US to those in Europe and, by the twentieth century, to those around the world, as the political and religious connections between the US and the world, especially Latin America, grow.. Collins also reflects on the future of the order in light of its past. Readers familiar with the Jesuit tradition and those who are new to it will learn from this book’s distinctive and modern perspective—using twenty-first century scholarship on Jesuit slaveholding, the sexual abuse crisis, and other contemporary issues—on 500 years of Jesuit history in the United States.Trade Review[M]akes the fascinating and complex history of the order accessible to a new generation of readers. * National Catholic Reporter *This is an excellent short history of the Society of Jesus, or Jesuits, in the US. * CHOICE connect *Collins's ability to interest readers in an ever-changing set of people and events while orienting them to key moments and trends in a welter of shifting imperial, national, and denominational histories is striking. * Journal of Jesuit Studies *Table of ContentsAcknowledgementsList of FiguresPrefaceIntroduction1. Colonies, 1566-17732. Suppression, 1762-18403. Haven, 1821-19004. Upswing, 1900-19605. Upheaval, 1960-2000EpilogueGlossaryIndex

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Book SynopsisIncluding a comparison of the arrest of the Templars in France with the Templar Inquisition at Holyrood, and an examination of the part they played at Bannockburn, this is an essential book for anyone with an interest in the history of the Knights Templar.

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Book SynopsisThe growing scholarly attention in recent years to the religious world of late antiquity has focused new attention on the quest for holiness by the strange, compelling, often obscure early Christian monks known as the desert fathers. Yet until now, little attention has been given to one of the most vital dimensions of their spirituality: their astute, penetrating interpretation of Scripture. Rooted in solitude, cultivated in an atmosphere of silence, oriented toward the practical appropriation of the sacred texts, the desert fathers'' hermeneutic profoundly shaped every aspect of their lives and became a significant part of their legacy. This book explores the setting within which the early monastic movement emerged, the interpretive process at the centre of the desert fathers'' quest for holiness, and the intricate patterns of meaning woven into their words and their lives.Trade ReviewWith its extensive notes and bibliography it is a scholarly work which assumes a fairly intimate knowledge of the text on which it is commenting, written by someone in sympathy with the monastic desert tradition, but not of it. Hence it has a certain objectivity of regard, while providing a careful exegesis of the text which can enhance a reading of the Sayings...that it is an excellent contribution towards increasing our understanding of the desert tradition there is no doubt. * Fairacres Chronicle Vol 28 no 2 *The focus of this stimulating book is the growth of monasticism in fourth-century Egypt...The Word in the Desert competently survey s the raison d'etre of Egyptian monasticism and challenges the notion that it was an insignificant minority sect... Stimulating book ... This scholarly work will delight and stimulate all who desire a firmer understanding of ancient asceticism. * Theology *excellent...The final section considers the realistationof the desert fathers' encounter with the word of scripture in their lives. These are rich pages which will repay rereading...Perhaps the best thing about the book is the way in which it will facilitate reading of the Apophthegmata themselves, by providing a framework in which to understand them * Sobornost *The focus of this stimulating book is the growth of monasticism in fourth-century Egypt. The Word in the Desert competently surveys the raison d'être of Egyptian monasticism and challenges the notion that it was an insignificant minority sect. This book broadens our understanding in two important areas: it makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the history of biblical interpretation, and it also furnishes our general knowledge of early Egyptian monasticism with detailed insights. This scholarly work will delight and stimulate all who desire a firmer understanding of ancient asceticism. * Laurence Kirkpatrick, Theology, May '96 *

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Book SynopsisThis is a study of the life, monastic writings and spiritual theology of John Cassian (c.365-430). Cassian''s writings were the bridge between eastern monasticism and the developing Latin monasticism of Southern Gaul, and exerted a major influence on the Rule of Benedict and the theology of Gregory the Great.Trade ReviewThough eight years have elapsed since its publication, this remains an important book * Graham Gould, Theology *Table of ContentsPreface 1: Cassian the Monk 2: Cassian the Writer 3: Cassian the Theologian 4: Flesh and Spirit, Continence and Chastity 5: The Bible and Prayer 6: Unceasing Prayer 7: Experience of Prayer Appendix: Cassian on Monastic Egypt Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn this book, William Harmless provides an accessible introduction to early Christian monastic literature from Egypt and beyond. He introduces the reader to the major figures and literary texts, as well offering an up-to-date survey of current questions and scholarship in the field. The text is enhanced by the inclusion of chronologies, maps, outlines, illustrations, and bibliographies. The book will not only serve as a text for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses on early Christianity, the Desert Fathers, and Christian asceticism, but it should stimulate further research by making the fruits of recent scholarship more readily and widely available.Trade ReviewDr Harmless has produced a comprehensive introduction to the major figures in the Egyptian tradition...the book is thoroughly impressive and will undoubtedly prove very useful...splendid resource. * Augustine Casiday, SJT *this volume offers a solid, balanced, well-researched, and clearly written introduction to and survey of early Egyptian monasticism. * Tim Vivian, Sobornost *There is no doubt that this is an engaging, fascinating, and informative study...It belongs on the shelf of any student of early church history and monasticism. * A. D. Rich, Journal of Theological Studies *Why waste words? - this is a thoroughly admirable book ... an accomplished and unassuming piece of scholarship. * David Satran, Scripta Classica Israelica *

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Book SynopsisThis first published edition of the Latin cartulary of Godstow Abbey outside Oxford is an important text for the history of medieval religious women. Compiled in the early fifteenth century, and probably written by Godstow''s prioress Alice of Eaton, it contains more than 900 documents written for and preserved by this well-known community of Benedictine nuns.The contents include a unique Anglo-Norman verse life of Ediva of Winchester, whose dreams prompted her to found the abbey in the early twelfth century. Numerous early charters in the cartulary identify other twelfth-century nuns and their relatives, and shed light on the founding of the abbey, its royal and private patronage, and its extensive real estate holdings. Other documents in the volume are excellent sources for women''s literacy and culture, religious practices in the diocese of Lincoln, social relations between the nuns and the larger community, and the local urban and rural economy in Oxfordshire and nearby counties.ThTrade ReviewThe Latin cartulary is an important source for the history of medieval Oxford ... a fine achievement. This is a distinguished addition to an important series. * Edmund King, History *The indexes provide a particularly full and helpful guide not only to persons and places but also to subjects. This is work of high quality which will not need to be done again. * J.R. Maddicott, English Historical Review *I can say with some confidence that this volume will supplant the earlier EETS edition as the principal source of reference for Godstow abbey's estate in the country. * Mark Page, Oxoniensia *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; The Manuscript ; The Contents of the Cartulary ; The Foundation of the Abbey ; The Foundation Legend Text ; Patronage and Benefactions ; Financial and Property Management ; Abbesses of Godstow ; Editorial Method ; TEXT ; Appendix A: Flyleaves ; Appendix B: Strays ; Appendix C: English Register Documents

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Book SynopsisConvent Autobiography reveals how English Catholic women wrote about themselves, their families, and their lives in a period where it was illegal to practice Catholicism in England. These nuns went into a two-fold kind of exile for their beliefs. They moved abroad and they died to the world, trying to cut ties with family and friends. Yet their convents needed support from outsiders to thrive. The nuns studied here reveal how they navigated this through their letters, printed works, paintings, and prayers. Often times these women wrote anonymously, a common practice for nuns, monks, and devout people of many religious persuasions up until the twentieth century. But anonymity was not just a neutral way of signalling humility or deep religious belief; it could allow people to write about themselves a lot more than they would have while writing under their own name. Exploring how some nuns exploited this to shape their convent''s chronicle around their own points of view, Convent AutobiogTrade ReviewThis book should be welcomed by those whose own interests lie beyond the spheres of Catholic history and women's writing. The book was undoubtedly framed with a broad readership in mind. Indeed, the author at all times assists in making it as accessible as possible to those unfamiliar with the topic. * Cormac Begadon, Journal of Ecclesiastical History *Readers will also value the glossary of conventual terms, the painstakingly detailed index and the fulsome bibliography, all of which are in keeping with the rigorous and methodical work offered in this study of conventual texts through the lens of autobiography studies. * Laurence Lux-Sterritt, Journal of Religious History *One of the most impressive aspects of Van Hyning's findings is her ability to isolate what she refers to as "acts of self-betrayal" (32), or moments where an individual nun inadvertently reveals facts about her own identity. When combined with palaeographic observations, manuscript analysis, and prosopographical data, Van Hyning convincingly identifies individual nuns as authors, often for the first time. * Liam Peter Temple, Church History *Convent Autobiography is a major contribution to criticism on early modern Catholicism, and it belongs on the bookshelves of scholars interested in autobiography, the convents abroad, cloistered writing, and monastic history. Van Hyning's intrepid detective work and ground-breaking treatment of autobiography will open up valuable new terrain for anyone specializing in history, literary studies, religious studies, and women's studies. * Jaime Goodrich, Wayne State University, British Cathlic History *

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Book SynopsisMonasticism is a social and religious phenomenon which originated in antiquity and which still remains relevant in the twenty-first century. But what, exactly, is it, and how is it distinguished from other kinds of religious and non-religious practice?In this Very Short Introduction Stephen J. Davis discusses the history of monasticism, from our earliest evidence for it, and the different types which have developed from antiquity to the present day. He considers where monasteries are located, from East Asia to North America, and everywhere in between, and how their settings impact the everyday life and worldview of the monks and nuns who dwell there. Exploring how monastic communities are organized, he also looks at how aspects of life like food, sleep, sex, work, and prayer are regimented. Finally, Davis discusses what the stories about saints communicate about monastic identity and ethics, and considers what place there is for monasticism in the modern world. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Trade Review...excellent... * Patricia Rumsey, Modern Believing *... the book of Stephen J. Davis deserves to be read, understood and used not only by the curious people who want to find more about the approached topic, but also by the specialists in their future scientific enterprises. * Iuliu-Marius Morariu, Studia Monastica *This pocket-size text is concise without sacrificing necessary illustrations, expert but free from pedantry, and skilfully arranged by significant themes. * Patrick Horn, Reading Religion *Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION; REFERENCES; FURTHER READING; INDEX

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Book SynopsisDiscovered in a secret Vatican archive, this is the true, never-before-told story of poison, murder, and lesbian initiation rites in a nineteenth century convent.In 1858, Katherina von Hohenzollern, a German princess recently inducted into the convent of Sant''Ambrogio in Rome, wrote a frantic letter to her cousin, a confidant of the Pope, claiming that she was being abused and feared for her life. The subsequent investigation by the Church''s Inquisition uncovered the extraordinary secrets of Sant''Ambrogio and the illicit behavior of the convent''s beautiful young mistress, Maria Luissa. What emerges through the fog of centuries is a sex scandal of ecclesiastical proportions, skillfully brought to light and vividly reconstructed in scholarly detail by one of the world''s leading papal historians. Offering a broad historical background on female mystics and the cult of the Virgin Mary, and drawing upon written testimony and original documents, Hubert Wolf tells an incredible story of Trade Reviewa masterly telling of a 19th-century scandalanalysed in a consummate way by Hubert Wolf * Metro, Iain Pears *Wolf's absorbing unravelling of the Inquisition trial convincingly recovers a lost world of rancidly overheated religiosity, rendered toxic by the force of a monstrous ego. It also opens a disturbing window on a closed ecclesiastical establishment in which unquestioning support for authority might excuse almost anything. To that extent, it can stand as a salutary tract for the times. * Guardian *astonishing story * History Today *an extraordinary and fascinating book * New Shiny Books *microhistory at its best * Tablet *It has taken Hubert Wolf's... skill as a historian to retell their story and let his readers contemplate a moving case study of the crimes, follies and tragedies of humankind. * Literary Review *Wolf has not only provided us with a fascinating narrative that is compulsive reading, but also with an illuminating insight into the high politics of the papacy in one of the most crucial periods in its history. * English Historical Review *Makes for fairly amazing reading ... Wolf has not held anything back. The result is an account that reads a bit like a crime novel. * Chris Clark, University of Cambridge *an extremely intriguing retelling of events, and Wolf's highly structured narrative unpicks the trial in meticulous detail. He assesses the characters with unbiased opinion and does not stray into speculation or theory, using direct transcriptions from the trial to leave it up to the reader to form their own judgement ... the story is told expertly, and Wolf deals with the diverse layers of intrigue in a systematic yet compelling style. * Ms Sara Charles, Reviews in History *Table of ContentsDramatis Personae ; Prologue ; 1. "Such Turpitudes" ; 2. "The Delicatezza of the Matter as Such" ; 3. "I Am the Little Lion of My Reformed Sisters" ; 4. "Wash Me Well, for the Padre Is Coming" ; 5. "An Act of Divine Splendor" ; 6. "It Is a Heavenly Liquor" ; 7. "That Good Padre Has Spoiled the Work of God" ; 8. "During These Acts I Never Ceased My Inner Prayer" ; 9. "Sorrowful and Contrite" ; Epilogue ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisSt Symeon the New Theologian (949-1022) is regarded as one of the most significant figures in Byzantine mysticism. His four epistles are now published in their entirety for the first time in this scholarly edition using the Greek text, established by Joseph Paramelle, It is edited with an introduction, translation and notes by H. J. M. Turner.Trade ReviewTurner's translation brings to our attention som authentic gems produced by one of the greatest Christian mystics. The book is a most valuable contribution to ancient Christian literature and could prove inspirational for anyone interested in fiery spiritual guidance. * Liviu Barbu, Journal of Theological Studies *Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION ; I: The Life of Symeon ; II: Symeon's Epistles ; TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS ; Epistle 1 ; Epistle 2 ; Epistle 3 ; Epistle 4 ; Notes ; Select Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review'for its simplicity and clarity it is a joy to read' Bury Free Press'A very readable translation of a text that gives a substantial impression of life - especially monastic - in the 12th century.' Dr J. Hines, University of Wales, Cardiff'gives a precious insight into the soul of a mediaeval monastery ... It is difficult to choose between the delights of this piece. Diana Greenway and Jane Sayers are to be congratulated on a translation which is plain prose, on an introduction and notes which really present the text, and on sub-editing the text in a way which much increases its accessibility.' Peter Hackett, Month'The translation is clear and unfussy, up-to-date but not colloquial.' Edmund King, University of Sheffield, Journal of Ecclesiastical History

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Book SynopsisA long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns'' importance.... This very readable book is ideal for classroom use.-Religious Studies ReviewArai''s sensitive first-hand account is at times emotional, but the reflexive recollections that derive from her personal experiences and interactions with the nuns are insightful and well documented....the book is valuable in providing us with a different mode of appreciation in order to understand the position of women living in [an]other religious and cultural context.--Japanese Journal of Religious StudiesThis is an anthropological study, carried out with love, care, and attention to detail...By the end of the journey, readers will find themselves moved, their humanity reassured and refreshed.--Journal of Asian StudiesIn this study, based on both historical evidence and ethnographic data, Paula Arai shows that nuns were central agents in the foundation of Buddhism in Japan in the sixth century. They were actTrade Review...a long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns' importance.... This very readable book is ideal for classroom use. * Religious Studies Review *...a long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns' importance.... This very readable book is ideal for classroom use. * Religious Studies Review *A long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns' importance . . . This very readable book is ideal for classroom use. * Religious Studies Review *Arai's sensitive first-hand account is at times emotional, but the reflexive recollections that derive from her personal experiences and interactions with the nuns are insightful and well documented....the book is valuable in providing us with a different mode of appreciation in order to understand the position of women living in another religious and cultural context. * Japanese Journal of Religious Studies *This is an anthropological study, carried out with love, care, and attention to detail...By the end of the journey, readers will find themselves moved, their humanity reassured and refreshed. * Journal of Asian Studies *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ; Transliteration Guide ; Prologue ; One: Introduction ; Scholarly Contexts ; Theoretical Considerations ; Methodological Considerations ; Two: Historical Background ; Pioneering Monastics ; Dogen and Women ; Tokugawa Encroachments ; Meiji Reclamations ; Three: Twentieth-Century Leadership ; First Generation: Rapid Ascent Through Education ; Second Generation: Stategists of Egalitarianism ; Third Generation: Zen Master of a New Tradition ; Four: The Monastic Practices of Zen Nuns ; Nuns' Vision of Monastic Life ; Daily Life in a Monastery of Zen Nuns ; Divisions within the Monastery ; Ceremonial Rituals and Activities ; Educational Curriculum and Degrees ; The Aesthetics of Discipline ; Five: Motivations, Commitments, and Self-Perceptions ; Changing Life Patterns of Twentieth-Century Zen ; Buddhist Practice: Meaning and Action ; Nuns' Views on Monastic Life ; Six: Conclusion: Innovators for the Sake of Tradition ; Preservers and Creators of Buddhist Tradition ; Bearers and Transmitters of Traditional Japanese Culture ; Notes ; Appendix A: Questionnaire ; Appendix B: Glossary of Japanese Terms ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisDescribes the life of a Mongolian Buddhist monastery - the Mergen Monastery in Inner Mongolia - from inside its walls. From the Qing occupation of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries through the Cultural Revolution, the authors tell a story of religious formation, suppression, and survival over a history that spans three centuries.Trade Review"A Monastery in Time is a tremendously original product of almost fifteen years of painstaking scholarship. Caroline Humphrey and Hurelbaatar Ujeed combine an ethnography of a particular site, the Mergen Monastery in Inner Mongolia, with a theoretically informed description of what a tradition - the Mongolian Buddhist tradition or any tradition - actually is. The results are impressive both for the theory and for the ethnography of an important but little-known religious community." (Christopher P. Atwood, Indiana University)"

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Book SynopsisDescribes the life of a Mongolian Buddhist monastery - the Mergen Monastery in Inner Mongolia - from inside its walls. From the Qing occupation of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries through the Cultural Revolution, the authors tell a story of religious formation, suppression, and survival over a history that spans three centuries.Trade Review"A Monastery in Time is a tremendously original product of almost fifteen years of painstaking scholarship. Caroline Humphrey and Hurelbaatar Ujeed combine an ethnography of a particular site, the Mergen Monastery in Inner Mongolia, with a theoretically informed description of what a tradition - the Mongolian Buddhist tradition or any tradition - actually is. The results are impressive both for the theory and for the ethnography of an important but little-known religious community." (Christopher P. Atwood, Indiana University)"

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Book SynopsisPresents an argument that Additional MS 37049, a Carthusian miscellany housed in the British Library closes the gap between group spectatorship and private study in late medieval England. This book addresses the manuscript's texts and illustrations to examine connections between reading and performance within the solitary monk's cell and outside.Trade Review"Jessica Brantley's Reading in the Wilderness is an impressive, thorough, and thoughtful analysis of one of the most important of all fifteenth-century English manuscripts. In addition to providing a much-needed discussion of a densely illustrated compendium, the book provides a good general discussion of Carthusian patronage of the arts and attitudes towards the visual arts, which has long represented a lacuna in the literature." - Jeffrey F. Hamburger, Harvard University"

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Book SynopsisAna de San Bartolome (1549-1626) was a contemporary and close associate of St Teresa of Avila. Her life was a blend of religious activism and spiritual forcefulness that characterized the first generation of Discalced, or reformed Carmelites. This book presents her autobiography.Trade Review"The Other Voice in Early Modern Europe series allows little-known women's voices to be heard, with translations of sixteenth- to eighteenth-century European texts. The approach is feminist, and each volume is prefaced with a historical account of the systematic oppression and frustration of women." - Maya Slater, Times Literary Supplement"

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Book SynopsisSome nuns in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Italy strayed far from the paradigms of monastic life. In this book, the author resurrects forgotten tales and restores to life the long-silent voices of these cloistered heroines. The nuns of early modern Italy, it shows, set the standard for religious transgression in their own age - and beyond.Trade Review"Monson, a... self-proclaimed 'archive mouse,' happily scurries into this forgotten repository, retrieving tales of sororal transgressions, which range from affairs to arson." (New Yorker) "Nuns Behaving Badly wears its learning with a smile, but it throws a sharp light into dark Roman Catholic corners." (Economist) "A gem of a book.... Monson writes with wry humour and a novelist's eye for detail, but the stories he uncovers would be extraordinary even without his narrative skill." (Literary Review)"

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Book SynopsisSome nuns in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Italy strayed far from the paradigms of monastic life. In this book, the author resurrects forgotten tales and restores to life the long-silent voices of these cloistered heroines. The nuns of early modern Italy, it shows, set the standard for religious transgression in their own age - and beyond.Trade Review"Monson, a... self-proclaimed 'archive mouse,' happily scurries into this forgotten repository, retrieving tales of sororal transgressions, which range from affairs to arson." (New Yorker) "Nuns Behaving Badly wears its learning with a smile, but it throws a sharp light into dark Roman Catholic corners." (Economist) "A gem of a book.... Monson writes with wry humour and a novelist's eye for detail, but the stories he uncovers would be extraordinary even without his narrative skill." (Literary Review)"

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Book SynopsisThis chronicle recount the history of the collective life of nuns in the convent of Corpus Domini, whose cloistered life was touched by the Great Western Schism and the Council of Constance. The necrology provides details of the lives of nearly 50 nuns who lived and died in the convent.

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Book SynopsisThis chronicle recount the history of the collective life of nuns in the convent of Corpus Domini, whose cloistered life was touched by the Great Western Schism and the Council of Constance. The necrology provides details of the lives of nearly 50 nuns who lived and died in the convent.

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Book SynopsisMaria de San Jose Salazar took the veil as a discalced (barefoot) Carmelite nun in 1571, becoming one of Teresa de Avila's most important collaborators in religious reform. This work is a defense of the practice of setting aside hours of the day for conversation, music and plays.

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Book SynopsisMaria de San Jose Salazar took the veil as a discalced (barefoot) Carmelite nun in 1571, becoming one of Teresa de Avila's most important collaborators in religious reform. This work is a defense of the practice of setting aside hours of the day for conversation, music and plays.

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Book SynopsisExamines the turbulent modern history and sociology of the Sri Lankan Buddhist Monkhood and its effects upon contemporary society. Using translated Sinhalese documents and interviews with monks, this text unravels the inner workings of this New Buddhism and the ideology on which it is based.Table of ContentsPreface Note on Usage 1: Buddhism, Civil Society, and the Present Study 2: Dharmapala and the Definition of the Monk's Mission 3: The Economic Stage: Vidyodaya and Rural Development 4: Vidyalankara: The Descent into Ideology 5: Social Service: The Anatomy of a Vocation 6: The Critique of Monkhood 7: Conclusion: From Regeneration to Degeneration Index ??

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Book SynopsisExamines the turbulent modern history and sociology of the Sri Lankan Buddhist Monkhood and its effects upon contemporary society. Using translated Sinhalese documents and interviews with monks, this text unravels the inner workings of this New Buddhism and the ideology on which it is based.

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Book SynopsisBuilding upon the empirical foundation provided by the historical studies in the first volume of this project, this book brings together historians, sociologists, theologians and ethicists for an interdisciplinary conversation on the study of American congregations.

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Book SynopsisThis volume builds upon the historical studies in Volume One and addresses three crucial questions: where is the congregation located in American cultural and religious life? What are congregations' qualities, tasks and roles? and, What patterns of leadership characterize American congregations?

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Book SynopsisA detailed study of this famed religious-military order, written by the world's pre-eminent Crusades historian, and focusing on the years between the First Crusade and the Knights' conquest of Malta.Trade Review'I think this is an excellently clear book and results from an original vision of the subject; it will obviously be the new standard work' - Dr Anthony Luttrell, Honorary Research Fellow, Royal Holloway College '...impressive and substantial...' - Robert Irwin, Literary ReviewTable of ContentsList of Abbreviations Explication and Acknowledgements Prologue PART I: INCEPTION Origins, c.1070-1160 Militarization, 1126-1182 Reaching Maturity, 1177-1206 The Order and the Politics of the Latin East, 1201-1244 PART II: THE MISSION Nursing the Sick and Burying the Dead Defending Christians PART III: THE ORDER Members Conventual Life The Master, his Convent and the Chapter General The Conventual Bailiffs and their Departments PART IV: ASSETS An Exempt Order of the Church The Estate in the Levant Provincial Government and the Estate in Europe PART V: THE END OF THE BEGINNING The Loss of the Mainland, 1244-1291 Interlude on Cyprus, 1291-1309 Epilogue Appendix: Masters of the Hospital Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn this volume of TRADITIONS OF CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY series, the author explores the Carmelite tradition, emphasising the formative place of the Rule. He looks at key figures such as John of the Cross, and especially considers the contribution of women to the order's life.

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Book SynopsisTalbot surveys the forms of monastic life in the Byzantine Empire, highlighting distinctions for men and women and comparing Byzantine monasticism with its Western medieval counterpart.Trade Review"This book makes a major contribution in discussing a deceptively simple question: 'What was it like to live as a monk or nun in Byzantium?' In doing so, the author has combed a vast array of texts, particularly hagiographies, in order to gather together material on subjects as varied as clothing, food, handicrafts, access to fire and water, travel, attitudes to the natural environment and the fundamental issue of whether the communal or the solitary was the higher form of monastic life. She is an acknowledged expert on Byzantine nuns and it is refreshing to see female monasticism treated on an equal level with the male experience." —Rosemary Morris, University of York"Varieties of Monastic Experience brings together the author’s remarkable work as an editor, translator, and deeply learned commentator of Byzantine monastic texts. Richly detailed and engagingly written, this groundbreaking study of the various forms of middle and late Byzantine monasticism includes a comparison with medieval Western monasticism and an unparalleled study of female monastic life in the Byzantine world. This volume will not only be recognized as essential reading in the field but will also deservedly attain the status of a true classic" —Fr. Maximos Constas, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology"This is an important and long overdue study of the fascinating, complex field of Byzantine monasticism. In Varieties of Monastic Experience in Byzantium, 800–1453, Alice-Mary Talbot distills her vast knowledge of the subject into a series of lucid, informative, and meticulously researched essays. Her emphasis on the rich variety of Byzantine monastic experience challenges the traditional binary of community and solitary and paints a compelling image of the extraordinary wealth of opportunities available in the Byzantine world for men, women, and eunuchs to pursue their religious calling." —Richard Greenfield, Queen's University"Drawing on decades of reading, translating, and interpreting Byzantine Orthodox Christian monastic texts, Alice-Mary Talbot offers an invaluable handbook to the practicalities of Byzantine monasticism." —Speculum"No other scholar possesses greater facility with the foundation documents and hagiography of Byzantine Christianity than Talbot." —Reading ReligionTable of ContentsPreface Abbreviations List of Illustrations Introduction 1. Monks and Male Monasticism 2. Nuns and Nunneries 3. Hermits and Holy Mountains 4. Alternative Modes of Monasticism Conclusion Glossary Bibliography Index

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