RLB257 Sanctity and Authority in the History of Christianity

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2009
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
doc. PhDr. David Zbíral, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Dušan Lužný, Dr.
Department for the Study of Religions – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Lucie Čelková
Timetable
Tue 15:00–16:35 N41
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 30 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/30, only registered: 0/30
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course aims to capture various relations between sanctity and authority in the history of Christianity. It seeks, particularly, to frame the link between sanctity claims and authority - a specific, difficult-to-define, non-legal power. The course tracks consists more in analysis of particular cases than in broad overviews, these cases being interesting for their implications for general representations of Christianity as well as for the theory of the study of religions.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to::
- recall and analyze the problems and cases from the field of Christian sanctity addressed by the course (cult of Boris and Gleb, cult of Wenceslas, Christian holy kingship, canonization procedure, testifying of miracles, living saints, holiness in colonial Mexico, etc.);
- interpret Christian sanctity as a claim bound with politics, power relations, and activity of specific pression groups;
- identify the contribution and consequences of the analyzed cases to the general theory and method in the study of religions;
- define the basic theoretical field for the study of non-juridical powers.
Syllabus
  • (1) Introduction, requirements.
  • (2) Sanctity and authority in the history of Christianity - introduction.
  • (3) The beginnings of the Christian cult of saints.
  • (4) Sanctity in the early Middle Ages.
  • (5) “State saints” - example of Kievan Rus’ and Bohemia.
  • (6) The kings’ holiness.
  • (7) Relics and politics.
  • (8) Canonisation process.
  • (9) Miracle reports.
  • (10) Saints in the colonies and colonial saints.
  • (11) Female sanctity in the history of Christianity.
  • (12) Living saints.
  • (13) Final revision.
  • See Study materials for details.
Literature
  • DINZELBACHER, Peter. Světice, nebo čarodějky? : osudy "jiných" žen ve středověku a novověku. Translated by Petr Babka. Vyd. 1. Praha: Vyšehrad, 2003, 283 s. ISBN 8070216506. info
  • Saints and cities in medieval Italy. Translated by Diana Webb. 1st pub. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2007, 261 s. ISBN 9780719072932. info
  • LE GOFF, Jacques. Svatý František z Assisi. Translated by Kateřina Vinšová. Vyd. 1. Praha: Vyšehrad, 2004, 187 s. ISBN 8070216514. info
  • SCHUTTE, Anne Jacobson. Aspiring saints : pretense of holiness, inquisition, and gender in the Republic of Venice, 1618-1750. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University, 2001, xvi, 337. ISBN 0801865484. info
Teaching methods
Lectures, discussions, home reading of (a) literature and (b) essays by other participants.
Assessment methods
1) Written essay (9,000-18,000 characters including spaces) with notes and bibliography (evaluated: passed × failed).
2) Passing of final oral revision (evaluated: passed × failed).
See Study materials for details.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught once in two years.
Information on course enrolment limitations: Zápis mimo religionistiku je podmíněn souhlasem vyučujícího.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2011.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2009, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/spring2009/RLB257