IMC 2016: Sessions
Session 838: The Dominican Order, IV: Renewal and Reform in the 15th Century
Tuesday 5 July 2016, 16.30-18.00
| Sponsor: | Institut zur Erforschung der Geschichte des Dominikanerordens im deutschen Sprachraum (IGDom), Köln |
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| Organisers: | Elias H. Füllenbach, Institut zur Erforschung der Geschichte des Dominikanerordens im deutschen Sprachraum, Dominikanerprovinz Teutonia e.V., Köln Sabine von Heusinger, Fachgruppe Geschichte und Soziologie, Universität Konstanz |
| Moderator/Chair: | Sabine von Heusinger, Fachgruppe Geschichte und Soziologie, Universität Konstanz |
| Paper 838-a | Making Up Their Own Choices?: Religious Knowledge of Observant Dominican Sisters (Language: English) Index terms: Ecclesiastical History, Gender Studies, Theology, Women's Studies |
| Paper 838-b | Dominican Friaries between Observant Movement and Architectural Renewal in 15th-Century Transylvania (Language: English) Index terms: Archaeology - Artefacts, Ecclesiastical History, Monasticism |
| Paper 838-c | Providing a Mutual Impulse to Write: Elisabeth Kempf and Johannes Meyer (Language: English) Index terms: Gender Studies, Language and Literature - German, Monasticism, Women's Studies |
| Abstract | The papal confirmation of Dominic's community of preachers in Toulouse 800 years ago in 1216 led to the expansion of the Friars Preachers within the Christian world and beyond. The panels want to shed new light on central topics of Dominican existence during the Middle Ages, namely Dominican identity and Dominican innovations. Other important themes like the order's contribution to scholasticism are touched briefly, too. The dark side of the Dominicans, namely the inquisition, is not to be neglected. Finally the 'reformation before the reformation' via the observant movement sheds again an interesting light on Dominican identity and the power of Dominican innovation. The context of an important jubilee necessitates an historical and critical approach to the Middle Ages as the heyday of the Dominican order. The order is characterized by a function - preaching - and less by its founder Dominic. The 13th century with the foundation of the order and its expansion was crucial for the identity of the order. Being true to the chosen identity at least occasionally demands a re-orientation in order to re-form for changing times. The observant movement was de-constructing and re-constructing the order, its aim was to go right to the core of its very existence. The reform movement wanted to return to the ideals of the founder and his first followers - nevertheless something new was created. Although the observant movement was an important movement in many religious orders, there were features, which were unique for the Dominican observant movement. The three contributions of this panel look at the observant movement of the Friars from different perspectives. |