F.
Donald Logan.
A
History of the Church in the Middle Ages.
London: Routledge,
2002.
xiv,368pp,
illustrated.
Publisher's
recommended price
Hardback ISBN 0415132886, £50.00
Paperback
ISBN 0415132894
A
History of the
Church in the Middle Ages traces the story of the Christian church
in Western Europe over the thousand years or so that comprise the
medieval
age. While this period witnessed the continuities of belief, ritual and
even institutions, it also experienced remarkable changes when old
forms
were renewed or replaced and when new forms were created. Saint Francis
of Assissi, the gentle poverello of Umbria, the martyr Thomas
Becket,
the ill-fated lovers Abelard and Heloise, the visionary Hildegard of
Bingen,
all testify to the diversity and richness of the medieval church.
In
this fascinating
survey, Donald Logan introduces the reader to the Christian church,
from
the conversion of the Celtic and Germanic peoples up to the discovery
of
the New World. He reveals how the church unified the people of Western
Europe as they worshipped with the same ceremonies and used Latin as
the
language of civilized communication. From the remote, rural parish
church,
where simple peasants came to pray, to the magnificent urban cathedral,
where choirs chanted the psalms, A History of the Church in the
Middle
Ages explores the role of the church as a central element in
determining
a thousand years of history.
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