Mother Of God Research Articles

The Role of Beauty and Perfection in Marian Iconography: Contemporary Responses to Controversial Images of Virgin Mary by Chris Ofili and Diane Victor

This paper considers the reaction of audiences to images of the Virgin Mary in contemporary art that deviate from historically sanctioned ideals of beauty. Twelfth century monk, Bernard of Clairvaux, for example states that Mary was chosen as the mother of God because of her physical beauty which supposedly illustrates her moral and spiritual worthiness. It follows that the physical beauty found in images of Mary is inextricably tied up with notions of her “divinity” and her efficacy as an intercessor. The contemporary examples discussed in this paper are atypical, one might say transgressive examples of Marian iconography. They have both received very strong negative reactions from the public. The examples I discuss are The Holy Virgin Mary (popularly known as the Dung Madonna) by British artist Chris Ofili and the Eight Marys by South African artist Diane Victor. I investigate public reaction to these images and try to ascertain how much of the response derives from historic expectations that imbue images of a perfectly beautiful (and therefore possibly divine) Mary. I argue that the conflation of Mary’s beauty and divinity has accumulated in religious iconography for centuries, to the degree that atypical contemporary images might be considered iconoclastic by those who believe that to undermine her beauty is to undermine her religious significance. Such beliefs could indicate a slippage between icon and prototype, or sign and signifier, that has become entrenched through historic repetition.

Festschriften & Collected Essays

Festschriften & Collected Essays Christopher T. Begg, Andrew E. Steinmann, Jaime A. Banister, Thomas Hieke, Bradley C. Gregory, Frederick E. Greenspahn, and Francis M. Macatangay 1996. Anneli Aejmelaeus and Tuukka Kauhanen (eds.), The Legacy of Barthélemy: 50 Years after Les Devanciers d'Aquila (De Septuaginta Investigationes 9; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2017). Pp. 230. $163. ISBN 578-3-525-54062-6. The majority of the ten papers making up this volume emanate from a conference held at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, in 2015 to commemorate the epoch-making text-critical monograph of Dominique Barthélemy entitled Les devanciers d'Aquila: Première publication intégrale du texte des fragments du Dodécaprophéton (VTSup 10; Leiden: Brill, 1963) more than half a century after its publication and to review the course of the discussion on topics raised by Barthélemy's work in the intervening years. The editors provide an orientation to the collection that includes summaries of the component papers. For abstracts of these, see ##1379, 1380, 1394, 1401, 1405, 1411, 1415, 1420, 1426, 1430, 1433, 1441.—C.T.B. 1997. Gary A. Anderson, Christian Doctrine and the Old Testament: Theology in the Service of Biblical Exegesis (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2017). Pp. 240. $29.99. ISBN 9 78-0-8010-9825-3. This volume comprises 10 essays, all but one previously published between 2001 and 2015 on the OT underpinnings of a variety of Catholic Christian doctrines. The essays are organized under four headings as follows: (1) "Who Is a God like You?" consists of: "Apophatic Theology: The Transcendence of God and the Story of Nadab and Abihu" (originally published 2015) and "The Impassibility of God: Moses, Jonah, and the Theo-Drama of Intercessory Prayer" (2008). (2) "In the Beginning" contains: "Creation: Creatio ex Nihilo and the Bible" (previously unpublished); "Original Sin: The Fall of Humanity and the Golden Calf" (2001); and "Election: The Beloved Son in Genesis and the Gospels" (2003). (3) "The Word Became Flesh" features: "Christology: The Incarnation and the Temple" (2008); "Mariology: The Mother of God and the Temple" (2007); and "Christology: Tobit as Righteous Sufferer" (2012). Finally, (4) "Conformed to the Image of His Son" has as its content: "The Treasury of Merits: Faith and Works in the Biblical Tradition" (2007); and "Purgatory: Sanctification in This Life and the Next" (2013). The essays are preceded by an introduction to the collection and followed by an epilogue and indexes of ancient sources, authors, and subjects. For an abstract of the one previously unpublished essay, see #1911.—C.T.B.] 1998. Hans Ausloos, Bénédicte Lemmelijn, and Julio Trebolle Barrera (eds.), After Qumran: Old and Modern Editions of the Biblical Texts—The Historical Books (BETL 246; Leuven/Paris/Walpole, MA: Peeters, 2012). Pp. xiv + 320. Paper €84. ISBN 978-90-429-2573-l. This book is a collection of papers from a symposium held in Alcala, Spain, in 2010. It contains sixteen papers organized under four headings: (1) Theological Tendencies—Historical Linguistics—Textual Criticism; (2) The Books of Samuel; (3) The Books of Judges and Joshua; and (4) The Books of Kings. For abstracts of the essays, see ##1381, 1382, 1389, 1392, 1402, 1403, 1407, 1410, 1421, 1425, 1429, 1431, 1432, 1434, 1436, 1437.—A.E.S. [End Page 652] 1999. Koert van Bekkum, Jaap Dekker, and Henk R. van de Kamp (eds.), Playing with Leviathan: Interpretation and Reception of Monsters from the Biblical World (Themes in Biblical Narrative: Jewish and Christian Traditions 21; Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2017). Pp. xvi + 315. $138, €130. ISBN 978-90-04-33795-4. The 16 papers on various dimensions of the monster thematic through the millennia making up this volume stem from a conference held in Kampen, the Netherlands, in April 2013. The papers, a number of which are accompanied by iconographic illustrations, are arranged under six headings: Ancient Near East (1 paper) Old Testament (5 papers); Early and Rabbinic Judaism (1 paper); New Testament and Early Christianity (3 papers); Theological Reflections (4 papers); and Iconographic Representations (2 papers). The volume opens with an introduction by the editors...

L’Atlas Marianus de Wilhelm Gumppenberg ed. by Nicolas Balzamo et al.

Reviewed by: L’Atlas Marianus de Wilhelm Gumppenberg ed. by Nicolas Balzamo et al. Damien Tricoire L’Atlas Marianus de Wilhelm Gumppenberg. Édition et traduction. Edited by Nicolas Balzamo, Olivier Christin, and Fabrice Flückinger. (Neuchâtel, Switzerland: Éditions Alphil—Presses universitaires suisses. 2015. Pp. 512. CHF 49.00 paperback. ISBN 978-2-88930-031-0.) This beautiful edition of the German original and translation into French of Gumppenberg’s Atlas Marianus is of great interest to scholars of Catholic history for several reasons. First, the Atlas Marianus was both a highly successful and peculiar book in seventeenth-century Catholic literature, which makes it an interesting object of study for the history of piety. It is not an atlas, but a collection of legends about miraculous images of the Virgin Mary, with engravings representing the miraculous image. Whereas such books were usually confined to specific places, regions, or polities, Gumppenberg’s project was to assemble all the known miraculous images and to show in this way that “the world is Marian.” His goal was to defend Marian piety against Protestants, to help preachers and missionaries, and to enable the readers to deepen their spirituality by making, so to speak, pilgrimages in their mind. According to him, the copies of the images had something miraculous, so that the engravings helped one to get in touch with the Mother of God. As a collection of legends from different countries, the Atlas Marianus gives insights into the way Catholics conceived the Virgin Mary and their relation to her in the seventeenth century. It displays a confident religion having gotten rid of the doubts of the early sixteenth century, accepting popular religiosity, and endorsing an optimistic view of the relationships between believers and Heaven. It shows also that Catholic culture was clearly universalistic. Second, the Atlas Marianus is interesting from the point of view of information history. To realize his ambitious goal, the Jesuit Gumppenberg asked the [End Page 142] provincials and college rectors of the Society for information about miraculous images in their regions. He then integrated the material he received. The sample of images is thus quite haphazard, including hardly-known images and ignoring major ones. But the fact that the Atlas is a collective product of the Jesuit network shows what a German Jesuit could know about the Marian cult in different parts of Europe and the world. Gumppenberg always gives precise information about his printed sources, and the names of Jesuits who have given him intelligence. The editors have decided to edit the Atlas’ first edition (1657), which comprises 100 legends, not the augmented Latin version of 1672 with 1,200 legends (but without engravings). They have added to the original engravings other baroque reproductions of the miraculous images, enabling comparisons. The translation into French is of high quality. The introduction is informative and stimulating, even if it contains some hazardous assertions. It claims that the Atlas shows the globalization of Marian cult in the seventeenth century although Gumppenberg’s book contains only two American images, and no information about images in Asia or eastern Christianity at all. To a modern reader, it is also striking that Gumppenberg thought Tenerife is in Chile. The Jesuit network obviously did not enable him to realize his universalistic project, and this may be a sign for a lower grade of globalization of information than assumed by the editors. The “ontology of images” developed by the editors is also somewhat bizarre because it suggests that, for the believers, the Marian images had a personality and acted on their own. Gumppenberg’s text, on the contrary, clearly attributes the miracles to the Virgin, not to the images. However, this does not diminish the great merit of this edition and translation which makes accessible and contributes to the exploration of a major product of baroque Catholicism. Damien Tricoire Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg Copyright © 2017 The Catholic University of America Press

“Shelter of the World, More Spacious than a Cloud”: Two Types of Iconography of Virgin Mother of Mercy in Western Ukrainian Icons on Canvas and Church Banners of the 1670–1730s

In the second half of the 17th and the 18th century the theme of the Intercession of the Theotokos gained considerable popularity in Ukrainian lands and featured various iconography. At that time a new image emerged, borrowed from Latin West, of the Virgin Mary Mother of Mercy spreading her cloak over faithful Christians. Under the influence of the liturgical texts dedicated to the Virgin and the cult of the Protection of the Theotokos, two main images of the Mother of Mercy appeared in Western Ukrainian iconography. The first and the most prevalent is the image of Mater Omnium representing Virgin Mary as a patroness of all people - rulers, the imprisoned, sinners and disabled. In the Mater Omnium image, people are standing on both sides of Mary Mother of God. The second variant represents people in need as reflected in the words from the sticheron “O Joy of all the afflicted”.

The Basilian Monks and their Missions in 17th–18th centuries to Chimara (Himara) Southern Albania

The study focuses on the 17th-18th century Basilian missions in Southern Albania, specifically in the region of Himara and the people behind these missions. The article is based on primary, never-before-published archival sources. The study explains that despite the zeal, knowledge, and dedication of the missionaries, the Basilian missions in Southern Albania were sporadic, not organized, and the monks were not particularly trained in missions. This by no means minimizes the contributions of Basilian missionaries Neofito Rodino, Nilo Catalano, and Giuseppe Schirò and their hard labors in Albania. On a positive note, the Basilian missions to convert the Orthodox (as requested by the Orthodox Himarriots) might have raised Rome’s sensitivities to recognize and appreciate Byzantine tradition beginning from its backyard - the Monastery of the Mother of God of Grottaferrata in Rome, and the Italo-Albanians or Italo-Greeks living in Calabria and Sicily. These missions paved the way to the beginning of an ecumenical thinking and changed attitude in the Latin Church regarding Christian East.

Book Review: <i>Absent Mother God of the West: A Kali Lover’s Journey into Christianity and Judaism</i>

Book Review: <i>Absent Mother God of the West: A Kali Lover’s Journey into Christianity and Judaism</i>

God Tutu and worshiped in Dakhla Oasis during the Roman era الإله توتو ومعبده فی واحة الداخلة خلال العصر الرومانی

Tutu is one of the main gods of the Dakhla Oasis during the Greco-Roman Period. The name Tutu and its places of worship were mentioned in the Dakhla Oasis, the relationship of God Tutu to the various gods and the connection of the god Tutu to the demons. And the relationship of God Tutu with his mother God Nate and the gifts of God Tutu and the relationship of God Tutu fate and power and the power of God Tutu, as illustrated by the images depicting the god Tutu in the Dakhla Oasis. This temple is dated to the Roman era and the earliest date associated with the construction of this temple is at the time of Emperor Nero (54 - 68 m) and the most recent evidence is back to (335 m), this temple has been explained in detail الإله توتو هو أحد أهم الآلهة الرئيسية فى واحة الداخلة خلال العصرين اليوناني والروماني، وقد تم توضيح اسم الاله توتو وأماکن عبادتة في واحة الداخلة، کم تم توضيح علاقة الاله توتو بالآلهة المختلفة و إرتباط الإله توتو بالشياطين، کما تم توضيح أيضا إرتباط الإله توتو بأسمنت الخراب و علاقة الإله توتو بوالدته الإلهة نيت وعطايا الإله توتو وعلاقة الإله توتو بالمصير والقدر وقوة الاله توتو، کما تم توضيح الصور التي تصور بها الإله توتو في واحة الداخلة. من أجل هذا الإله تم بناء معبد له فى کلليس (أسمنت الخراب) والذى والذي هو عبارة عن معبد حجري وسط مبانى من الطوب اللبن، هذا المعبد يرجع تاريخه إلى العصر الرومانى، ويعتبر أقدم تاريخ مرتبط ببناء هذا المعبد هو فى وقت الإمبراطور نيرون (54 – 68م) والدليل الأکثر حداثة هو يعود إلى (335م)، وقد تم شرح هذا المعبد بالتفصيل.

Duchowość maryjna Fultona J. Sheena

Autor artykułu bada znaczenie Najświętszej Maryi Panny w duchowości amerykańskiego biskupa Fultona J. Sheena. Pokazuje duchowość maryjną jako aspekt duchowości chrześcijańskiej, opartej na wzorze postawy Matki Bożej. Jego duchowość, oparta na biblijnych i dogmatycznych podstawach, realizuje się w specyficznej pobożności maryjnej. Autor najpierw ukazuje obraz Maryi, jaki wyłania się z pism Sheena. Następnie omawia najważniejsze formy pobożności maryjnej. Na koniec, ukazując jej wzorczość, zastanawia się, na ile ta forma duchowości spełnia zasady pogłębionej pobożności maryjnej zawartej w adhortacji Marialis cultus.

Saint and Sinner: Women in Christianity

Within the overall theme of women and the feminine in world religions this essay focuses on the role of women in Christianity, with particular emphasis on Roman Catholicism. The juxtaposition of “saint” and “sinner” in its title illustrates the complexity and equivocity of Christianity’s attitude towards women. Like most other religions, Christianity has a longstanding and ingrained ambivalence if not overt hostility toward women and the feminine. This ambiguity is enshrined in the dominance of two symbols of femininity in Christian history: Eve the primordial sinner and Mary the paradigmatic saint. Christianity inherits the Hebrew myth of Eve as one who is “created second and sinned first” (Gen 2:22; 3:6) and develops it into an anthropology in which woman is doubly subjected to man, in two respects, by nature (“created second”) and by punishment (“sinned first”). By contrast, Mary is exalted as the Mother of God, in whom the twin ideals of womanhood---virginity and motherhood---are perfectly realized. Consequently, one possible way to expound the Christian vision of womanhood and the feminine would be to examine the theology of womanhood underlying these two iconic figures. The disadvantage of this approach, however, is that it boxes itself within the patriarchal and hierarchical ideology which, though permeating the Christian tradition, would blind us to the monumental achievements of flesh-and-blood women, as individuals as well as collectives, to both church and society. A more helpful course is to look at Christian women as they live, move and have their being in history, and despite the enormous odds that would have crippled less hardy souls, have shaped the history of Christianity. Thus, in this article the author begins with a brief narrative of outstanding Christian women and the arenas in which they have made lasting contributions. Next he considers some key feminist theologies that have sought to break the stranglehold of patriarchy and androcentrism and to reconceive the church as a community of equal discipleship. Lastly, he examines women’s ordination, still a neuralgic issue for some Christian churches, as an example of where women’s struggle for equality is still ongoing.

Tradycja chrześcijańska na Bitolszczyźnie i we wsi Nowaci

The paper portrays the Macedonian folk Christianity, existing outside the official Church. Systematic scientific researches, also conducted nowadays, have shown that this phenomenon is not only still alive, but it is even growing – especially after 1989, when the Church in Macedonia started to recover. In the mainstream of popular Christianity, the Marian tradition is represented most strongly. Macedonians believe that the Mother of God since time immemorial until today has been personally involved in the construction of their church – as well in the spiritual as in the material meaning. An example could be the village Nowaci from Bitolszczyzna. Its population is convinced, that the church and monastery in the village were built on the order of Mary and according to her architectural project. The middleman between the Mother of God and the builders was supposed to be local clairvoyant Menka, called in a supernatural way to serve God.

Службы Сретению Владимирской иконы Божией Матери по рукописям из собрания Разумовского. РГБ. № 65, 66

Службы Сретению Владимирской иконы Божией Матери по рукописям из собрания Разумовского. РГБ. № 65, 66

Ivan the Terrible’s stichera: the idea of russia’s spiritual elevation

Based on extensive written sources, the authors of this article have for the first time examined two chant cycles created by Ivan the Terrible: one dedicated to St. Peter the Metropolitan of All Russia and the other in honour of the Vladimir Theotokos (Mother of God). The researchers have paid particular attention to the author’s realisation of a traditional Old Russian principle of hymnographical art: to compose chants on the basis of sample (“the podoben”). The implementation of this principle presupposes following a model completely or partially when the coincidence of separate lines (usually the initial or final lines, or those key to the formation of chants) is admitted. They conclude that Ivan the Terrible displayed a significant degree of creative freedom in revealing the images. He used not only the samples, but also some versions of earlier chants based on them. Ivan the Terrible demonstrated a deep understanding of the original sources, their artistic processing, as well as his education, expressed in the knowledge of the tradition and its creative implementation. In the new historical context of his reign, Tsar Ivan worked theintensively over these sources and added a more patriotic sounding content to the cycles. Thanks to the tsar’s skill, his stichera are a fine example of the creation of new meaning on the basis of the tradition.

Образ польской матери и Богородица: новое использование символики материнства

Образ польской матери и Богородица: новое использование символики материнства

Empress, Virgin, Ecclesia. The Icon of Santa Maria in Trastevere in the Early Byzantine Context

The paper is dedicated to the icon of the Mother of God in the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere in Rome. The panel was executed in the encaustic technique, which, together with the characteristics of style, allowed scholars to date the image from the late 6th to the early 8th century. The icon represents the Virgin as Queen, which is conveyed through her vestments that reproduce the dress of a Byzantine Empress. This iconography, generally known as Maria Regina, was widespread in early medieval Rome. For this reason it came to be regarded as a specific Western variant of Marian imagery, which emerged under the direct influence of the popes and served as an expression of their political aspirations. My research is dedicated to the analysis of the icon in the context of Early Byzantine culture. This paper concerns only one of a wide range of issues related to the topic. The iconographic peculiarities of the icon are considered from a new angle, suggesting that the Roman context alone cannot explain its o...

Aeiparthenos. Metaphors and Symbols of Virginity in Italian, Dutch and Byzantine Representations of the Annunciation around 1400

Western artists of the 14th and the early 15th centuries used a verse from medieval hymn literature that compared Mary’s virginity to the glass of a window in order to illustrate how she was able to conceive and still remain a virgin. While much is known about how this metaphor is visualized in the art of Dutch masters, its use in the works of their Italian colleagues has been studied less. Byzantine artists had totally different ways of illustrating the virginity of the Mother of God, although the hymn Dies est laetitiae includes words that may explain both the Eastern and the Western modes. This article examines the differences and similarities between these traditions and highlights one painting that may be considered as a synthesis between Eastern and Western iconographies with regard to this particular topic.

Learning to Look. The Meaning of the Unseen Icon in Dostoevsky’s The Idiot

Dostoevsky’s The Idiot is often approached as a failed masterpiece. The unseen presence of “text” or “word” icons, however, challenges this assumption. A reading of the novel on the “iconic” level demonstrates the possibility of spiritual renewal through the image of the Mother of God as represented textually in Dormition and Do Not Lament Me, Mother icon types. For Dostoevsky, verbal icons retain their transformative function for his characters as well as for his readers. Through verbal icons, Dostoevsky explores the role of the artist, the possibility of the literary text as a source of spiritual transformation, and the nature of the nineteenth-century Russian cultural mindset.

The Copy of the Chełm Icon of Mother of God in the Orthodox Church in Klesztów. Dating, Direct Inspiration, Cult

The article is a synthetic monograph of the, so far only mentioned, copy of the Chelm icon of Mother of God, which was located in the former Orthodox Church of the Assumption of Virgin Mary in Klesztow near Chelm. Controversies concerning the dating of the preserved paint layers of the icon were considered, which was not facilitated by the ambiguous results of the last conservation studies (1993). In this context, a detailed comparative analysis of the Klesztow icon was conducted, including with two poorly-known copies of the Chelm icon of Mother of God – namely the oil painting of Podhorce collection of Waclaw Rzewuski (1746) and the devotional engraving (1765), now in a private collection. Whilst reconstructing the cult of the copy of Klesztow, the relationship between Weglenscy from Klesztow and Waclaw Rzewuski, the personal attitude of the latter toward the Chelm and Klesztow icons, as well as the apotropaic function attributed in the Commonwealth of Poland not only to the original, but also to its copies, worshiped by both the faithful of the Orthodox Church and the Latins, were analysed.

The image of mother in the Oleksandra Kovaliova’s book «Obrii»

In the article the image of mother in the modern poet OleksandraKovaliova’s book «Obrii» is investigated.O. Kovaliova is a modern Kharkiv poet, novelist and translator. Herpoetry is philosophical and historiosophical; the author’s world is wideand panoramic, but there are a lot of specific details, images in it. There arenumerous intercommunications between texts in her verses. The author’s imageis not detached, not descriptive; O. Kovaliova passes every fact, every event,every figure through herself. The poetry of O. Kovaliova has been studied inapproximately 10 articles. But most of them are publicistic and there are noinvestigations of the historical in them. There is a need to create a systematicvision of all writer’s books, especially motives of her poetry, specificcorrelations of them and certainly there is a need to create the image of mother.In the article the realization of the image through the implementation ofindividual author's world, combining elements of naturalphilosophy,mythosophy has been studied. The image of the mother in OleksandraKovaliova’s book «Obrii» is bright and unusual. Its features are correlated withtraits of the same image in other works by the author, which collectively reflectthe traditional Ukrainian literature semantic series «the most native person –Ukraine – a symbol of the warm, genuine – Mother of God». But, beingparamount to any person, it gets special significance in poetess’s lyrics. We aretalking about the maximum sharpness, extremely candid, emotional, nudity ofauthor’s «I» and the most painful reconciliations to the most sacred feelings(mother – old child, etc.) – while other poetry by Oleksandra Kovaliova is oftencharacterized by a philosophical register, it shows a calm prudence and balance.Author’s lyrics combines realism and elements of modernism aesthetic:we note impressionistity, mythosophity, symbolism of her poetry. ForOleksandra Kovaliova inherent creativity of historiosophy, philosophy,«warmth» of all-presence, woman’s «softness», which actually is a hiddenforce. The image of mother, by the special appearance, illuminated frombeneath an original perception of the author’s world, and it gets the newsounding today above all things as a source of spiritual experience ofhumanity. The conclusion is that this image helps to open sharply personal traits ofthe poet, show the reader a picture of pain and courage. The author’s intentionsand lyrical details make an incredible effect on reader

The Oldest from Baikal to the Pacific Ocean

The article is devoted to the Temple of Dormition of the Mother of God in Kalinino village (Nerchinsky District, Zabaikalsky Krai), the oldest stone building from Lake Baikal to the Pacific Ocean. The author questions the decision relating to conservation of the temple, the project of which does not eliminate the main cause of its destruction.

Walsingham and the English Imagination by Gary Waller (review)

Walsingham and the English Imagination. By Gary Waller. (Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing. 2011. Pp. xii, $99.95. ISBN 978-1-4094-0509-2.)The shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham at Little Walsingham in Norfolk was England's principal Marian shrine during the later Middle Ages. It was destroyed during the Reformation and re-established as two separate shrines-one Anglican and the other Catholic-during the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. This book describes the history of the shrine, paying particular attention to its status in English religious culture and church history.The first chapter discusses the Pynson Ballad, a fifteenth-century poem that narrates a tale of the shrine's origin-apparently a vision of the Virgin to a Norman lady, Richeldis, in the eleventh century. In this vision, instructions were given for the building of a copy of the Holy House at Nazareth, where Our Lady lived with the infant Jesus. Waller gives a very good survey of the literature concerning what maybe known of any earlier tradition than that recorded here and follows the standard view that the whole narrative is of late origin.Chapter 2 then pursues the book's main argument. Waller accepts the view that the official construction of the Virgin Mary as sexually pure and completely sinless made her far removed from the condition of ordinary women; but, he contends, there is a certain amount of evidence-not least, from Walsingham's Protestant detractors-that real-life pilgrims to the shrine probably enjoyed lustful encounters of a kind that would normally have incurred considerable disapproval but were part and parcel of the carnivalesque character of a pilgrimage. Waller contends that, although church officials and theologians wanted to control both women and sexuality, the pilgrims practiced, and continue to practice, a more subversive kind of Christianity, ruled over by the female figure of the Blessed Virgin and characterized by a freer approach to sexual relationships.The next chapter examines the section on Walsingham from Desiderius Erasmus's Peregrinatio Religionis Ergo (Basle, 1526). Waller points out that the Latin text is gently critical of certain popular beliefs and practices but that it remains faithful to the notion that the Mother of God must be central to Christian practice. The standard English translation, by contrast, turned the work into a far more Protestant tract, drawing out any possibly lascivious implications of the Latin terms used in relation to the Walsingham cult.Chapter 4 considers the poetry and music of Walsingham during the Reformation period, considering such works as William Byrd's Walsingham Variations (c. 1580s). Waller shows how these works record a great sense of loss after the destruction of the shrine and a continuing sense of religious reverence for Our Lady's former home there. …