Description:
New Discourses in Medieval Canon Law Research offers a new narrative for medieval canon law history which avoids the pitfall of teleological explanations by taking seriously the multiplicity of legal development in the Middle Ages and the divergent interests of the actors involved. The contributors address the still dominant 'master narrative', mainly developed by Paul Fournier and enshrined in his magisterial Histoire de collections canoniques. They present new research on pre-Gratian canon collection, Gratian's Decretum, decretal collections, but also hagiography, theology, and narrative sources challenging the standard account; a separate chapter is devoted to Fournier's model and its genesis. New Discourses thus brings together specialized research and broader questions of who to write the history of church law in the Middle Ages.
Contributors are Greta Austin, Katheleen G. Cushing, Stephan Dusil, Tatsushi Genka, John S. Ott, Christof Rolker, Danica Summerlin, Andreas Thier and John C. Wei.
Review Quotes: "...the valuable historiographical and methodological reflection provided in this volume makes it a must-read for anyone interested in canon law, theology, and church history in the eleventh and twelfth centuries". John Burden, in The Medieval Review 20.05.05 (2020). The full review is accessible at this link: https: //scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/tmr/index.
"Christof Rolker has edited an excellent volume of essays on research on canon law in the long twelfth century [...] this volume represents an important engagement and challenge to long-standing assumptions. Every scholar of law and the papacy in this period should consult the volume, and it should give sobriety and pause to those wishing to make a long-lasting mark on scholarship". Atria A. Larson, in Speculum 95/3, July 2020.