A History of Medieval Heresy and Inquisition (Critical Issues in History)

329 Pages·2011·1.42 MB·english

by  Jennifer Kolpacoff Deane

A History of Medieval
Heresy and Inquisition
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CRITICAL ISSUES IN HISTORY
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A History of Medieval
Heresy and Inquisition
Jennifer Kolpacoff Deane
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC.
Lanham (cid:129) Boulder (cid:129) New York (cid:129) Toronto (cid:129) Plymouth, UK
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Published by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
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Copyright © 2011 by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
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without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Deane, Jennifer Kolpacoff, 1970–
A history of medieval heresy and inquisition / Jennifer Kolpacoff Deane.
p. cm. — (Critical issues in history)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-7425-5575-4 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-7425-5576-1 (pbk. : alk.
paper) — ISBN 978-0-7425-6811-2 (electronic : alk. paper)
1. Church history—Middle Ages, 600–1500. 2. Heresy. 3. Inquisition. I. Title.
BR163.D43 2011
272'.2—dc22
2010037504
™
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American
National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library
Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
Printed in the United States of America
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Contents
Acknowledgments vii
Introduction: The Contours of Authority in Medieval Christendom 1
1 Good Christians, Heresy, and the Apostolic Model 25
2 Poverty, Preaching, and the Poor of Lyon 57
3 Lawyer Popes, Mendicant Preachers, and New
Inquisitorial Procedures 87
4 Spiritual Franciscans, the Poverty Controversy,
and the Apocalypse 123
5 Mysticism, Lay Religious Women, and the Problem
of Spiritual Authority 153
6 Medieval Magic, Demonology, and Witchcraft 185
7 Wyclif, the Word of God, and Inquisition in England 217
8 Reform, Revolution, and the Lay Chalice in Bohemia 247
Epilogue 289
Notes 293
Index 305
About the Author 319
v
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Acknowledgments
Although the process of writing a concise volume might suggest the accu-
mulation of relatively few debts, the opposite seems rather to be the case. I
am deeply grateful to the many colleagues, friends, and family members who
have helped me bring this book to the page, only some of whom I will be able
to thank directly here. First, I wish to thank my teachers: Robin Chapman Sta-
cey, whose wonderful classes at the University of Washington first inspired
my fascination with medieval history, and whose words of encouragement
to a shy undergraduate changed the course of a life; and Robert Lerner, a
peerless adviser, generous mentor, and monumental scholar who profoundly
shaped my approach to questions of medieval faith and persecution. Richard
Kieckhefer also contributed mightily to my understanding of religious encul-
turation, heresy, and inquisition. Any value in these pages derives from their
influence, for which I am most grateful. Thanks also to Michael Bailey for
originally suggesting the project and for the great influence of his scholarship
and friendship alike.
The volume has benefitted enormously from the incisive comments of
those who generously agreed to read portions or entire drafts. Christine
Caldwell Ames, Patrick Hornbeck, Stephen Lahey, Charlotte Radler, and the
anonymous readers provided crucial corrections and valuable suggestions. I
have endeavored to incorporate their insight as fully as possible, and I take
full responsibility for any errors and omissions in the pages that follow.
Julie Eckerle and Jennifer Rothchild kept the writing momentum under
way with their marvelous combination of critical insight, personal encour-
agement, and humor; and David Estrin was a delight to work with as he
clarified and polished the entire manuscript. Finally, Susan McEachern and
Carrie Broadwell-Tkach at Rowman & Littlefield smoothed every step of the
vii
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viii Acknowledgments
process and provided much-needed advice along the way. Their contributions
have been vital, and I have learned much through our various conversations
and exchanges.
I have incurred many debts of gratitude to colleagues at the University of
Minnesota, Morris. My sincerest thanks to the library staff: to LeAnn Dean,
for so graciously enhancing the BR–BX shelves of the Briggs Library col-
lection; and to Sandy Kill, interlibrary loan manager extraordinaire, whose
lightning speed and efficiency (even when dealing with multiple languages
and sometimes perplexing diacritical marks) make her a truly invaluable
colleague. I appreciate the administrative support of Terri Hawkinson, Sha-
ron Severance, and Laura Burks of the Social Science division office, as
well as their friendship and patience through the years. My fellow historians
have been a great source of encouragement and collegiality, particularly
Marynel Ryan van Zee. I am also grateful to Roger Wareham in the grants
management office for his assistance, and for financial support secured
through UMM faculty research enhancement funds and the University of
Minnesota Imagine Fund.
UMM students have also contributed significantly to this volume. In par-
ticular, I would like to acknowledge those who took my “Popular Religion,
Heresy, and Inquisition” course in the spring of 2007, especially my able
Dominicans Ashley Deering and Adam Gorecki. All of the students’ ques-
tions, quaestiones, and inquisitiones prompted me to consider the material
from new angles, and I wrote the volume with them very much in mind. I am
also grateful to everyone who attended the public lecture series on medieval
heresy and inquisition in the fall of 2007 and participated in conversations
that helped me to formulate the book’s themes and tone. Thanks also to Seth
Harrington and the Morris Academic Partnership (MAP) program for his in-
sightful suggestions on early drafts, and to Emily Holstrom for her engaging
thoughts on the final draft.
Much of this volume was written while on retreat at the St. John’s Ab-
bey Guesthouse in Collegeville, Minnesota. Sincere thanks to Father Robert
Pierson (OSB) and his staff for their gracious hospitality over the course of
my visits. The remainder of the book was composed at Common Cup Cof-
feehouse in Morris, Minnesota, and so I would like to salute Sue Bruer, Rose
Wagner, and their terrific student staff for the unfailing supply of good cof-
fee and equally good cheer. Finally, deepest gratitude to my dear ones, who
continue to show me how to live well in the world: parents Mary and Ivan,
Sarah and Chad and the boys, and Sioban. Above all, I dedicate the book to
my beloved Brad, Lucy, and Tess, who are my own bit of heaven on earth.
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Introduction
The Contours of Authority
in Medieval Christendom
Reflecting on events that occurred in southern France around the year 1022, a
monk named Adémar of Chabannes penned a brief account of “Manichaean”
heretics “who appeared throughout Aquitaine leading the people astray. They
denied baptism and the Cross and every sound doctrine. They abstained from
food and seemed like monks; they pretended chastity, but among themselves
they practiced every debauchery. They were ambassadors of Antichrist and
caused many to turn away from the faith.”1 A century and a half later, in
the 1160s, the famous Rhineland abbess and prophet Hildegard of Bingen
preached thunderously against Cathars who hypocritically appeared pale,
chaste, and austere, but were “scorpions in their morals and snakes in their
works.”2 Over fifty years after Hildegard’s death, the Italian Franciscan friar
James Capelli wearily remarked: “We know that they [heretics] suppose their
behavior to be virtuous and they do many things that are in the nature of good
works; in frequent prayer, in vigils, in sparsity of food and clothing, and—let
me acknowledge the truth—in austerity of abstinence they surpass all other
religious.” Yet he warned his reader that “under this cloak of good works”
their sweet words steal away the hearts of the foolish.3
These three short accounts should provoke some questions, and probably
different questions for different readers. One might ask, for example, “Who
were these people, these Manichaeans, Cathars, and heretics? Where did they
come from, and what did they believe and practice? And why were they so
upsetting to contemporaries as to draw comparison to scorpions, snakes, and
even Antichrist?” Some might wonder why these authors were so invested
in and angry about the beliefs of ostensibly pious people. Others might pose
slightly different questions that focus less on the story of what happened, and
more on the credibility and usefulness of the accounts themselves (in other
words, on the method, or how we piece the story together). For instance,
1
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