World Chronicle Research Articles

Devotion and Dissent in Late‐Medieval Illuminated World Chronicles

Devotion and Dissent in Late‐Medieval Illuminated World Chronicles

Worlds of Learning: The Library and World Chronicle of the Nuremberg Physician Hartmann Schedel (1440–1514) ed. by Bettina Wagner (review)

Worlds of Learning: The Library and World Chronicle of the Nuremberg Physician Hartmann Schedel (1440–1514) ed. by Bettina Wagner (review)

- Verdenskrøniken 1812 som verdenslitteraturhistorie

Verdenskrøniken 1812 som verdenslitteraturhistorie[The World Chronicle 1812 as a history of world literature]By Flemming Lundgreen-NielsenHidden in Grundtvig’s World Chronicle, 1812, is a history of world literature, infact the first published attempt of its kind written in Danish by a single scholar.This easily escapes attention as Grundtvig’s numerous paragraphs on poetry andliterary history are not marked typographically. This paper examines and discusses his most important statements chronologically. Even if Grundtvig’s brief portrayals of poets often describe a short bloom followed by rapid decay and an inevitable fall, he ends in foreseeing a renewal of Nordic literature led by Steffens, Oehlenschläger and himself. Thus Grundtvig, as early as 1812, introduces the Danish romantic breakthrough (1802 onwards) as a poetological paradigm which otherwise is first acknowledged by literary historians writing in the 1870s, ‘80s and ‘90s. Grundtvig’s survey of world literature has been overshadowed by more conspicuous and provocative qualities of his text but deserves a sober-minded consideration.

Verdenskrøniken 1812 læst igen -

Verdenskrøniken 1812 som verdenslitteraturhistorie[The World Chronicle 1812 as a history of world literature]By Flemming Lundgreen-NielsenHidden in Grundtvig’s World Chronicle, 1812, is a history of world literature, infact the first published attempt of its kind written in Danish by a single scholar.This easily escapes attention as Grundtvig’s numerous paragraphs on poetry andliterary history are not marked typographically. This paper examines and discusses his most important statements chronologically. Even if Grundtvig’s brief portrayals of poets often describe a short bloom followed by rapid decay and an inevitablefall, he ends in foreseeing a renewal of Nordic literature led by Steffens, Oehlenschläger and himself. Thus Grundtvig, as early as 1812, introduces the Danish romantic breakthrough (1802 onwards) as a poetological paradigm which otherwise is first acknowledged by literary historians writing in the 1870s, ‘80s and ‘90s. Grundtvig’s survey of world literature has been overshadowed by more conspicuous and provocative qualities of his text but deserves a sober-minded consideration.

- Den teologiske modtagelse af Verdenskrøniken 1812

Den teologiske modtagelse af Verdenskrøniken 1812[The Theological Reception of Grundtvig’s World Chronicle 1812]By Kim Arne PedersenTaking as its starting point William Michelsen’s characterization of the Danish literary and artistic Golden Age and of Grundtvig’s position in Danish intellectual life after the publication in 1812 of Kort Begreb af Verdens Krønike i Sammenhæng (A Brief View of the World Chronicle in Context, VK 1812), this paper analyses Grundtvig’s ensuing discussions with theologians up until 1815. Grundtvig’s antagonists all bore the mark of Enlightenment theology while at the same time each taking up a different position, and the analysis shows the need to rework Michelsen’s stylization of Grundtvig’s isolation after 1812 as a result predominantly of his antagonism to German idealistic philosophy.Grundtvig’s dispute with the vicar Johan Harder (1768-1831) is the first to be considered. Harder was characterized by a Kantian rationalism from which Grundtvig had dissociated himself after having read Kant’s treatise Die Religion innerhalb der Grenzen der blossen Vernunft. In his correspondence with the curate Andreas Krag Holm (1767-1851), Grundtvig encountered a defence of the theological principle of accommodation, i.e. the idea that Christ in his earthly life had adapted himself to the notions of his contemporaries, originally forwarded by J. G. Zollikofer (1730-88).The most important discussion caused by VK 1812 is the one between Grundtvig and professor of Divinity Jens Møller (1779-1833), who stood for an early supranaturalistic theology of a Wolffian stamp combined with respect for the historical revelation. Grundtvig’s own historically based theology of revelation would seem to make a mutual approach possible, but Møller’s publishing of an article in his periodical Theologisk Bibliothek (Theological Library) by the Kantian-rationalistic supranaturalist H. G. Tzschirner (1778-1828) was cause for controversy. The fact that Møller admitted historical-critical reason to play an essential part in theology and did not assume reason to be determined exclusively by faith caused Grundtvig to criticize him, even though he acknowledged Møller as a fellow Christian. Thus, Grundtvig’s evaluation of Møller is reminiscent of his characterization in VK 1812 of the German supranaturalist F. V. Reinhard (1753- 1812).Grundtvig’s discussions with contemporary theologians place his controversies with writers influenced by idealism such as the natural scientist H. C. Ørsted (1777-1851) and the historian Christian Molbech (1783-1857) in a largercontext; in particular this is true in relation to Ørsted.Grundtvig was positive yet still guarded in his stimation of Kant’s setting a limit to human knowledge in Kritik der reinen Vernunft, but he rejected the concept of faith as based on the autonomy of reason as it had been proposed by Kant in his works on religion. Grundtvig’s sympathy for Kant’s assertion of the limits of reason might seem to bring him close to a Kantian supranaturalism, however, Grundtvig’s emphasis on the unconditional dependence of reason on faith separates him from the thinking of all other contemporary academic theologians. In his periodical Danne-Virke, Grundtvig stuck to this evaluation of Kant in an argumentation for reason as ruled by faith.

- Luthertolkningen i 1812-krøniken

Luthertolkningen i 1812-krøniken[The Interpretation of Luther in Grundtvig’s World Chronicle of 1812]By Anders HolmGrundtvig grew up in two Lutheran vicarages. Both homes were characterized by Lutheran orthodoxy but could not ignore the critical thoughts of the Enlightenment. During his studies at the University of Copenhagen Grundtvig was convinced of the truth of the new philosophy of reason. His father’s wish in 1810, however, that he become his curate demanded that he reconsidered the world-view which he thought to have left behind. It all ended in a crisis and a nervous breakdown, which resulted in his return to a faith strongly inspired by Luther.Grundtvig’s book Brief View of the World Chronicle in Context, 1812, aimed to find God in the course of events of world history. His method was to describe and evaluate the past and the present with the Bible as the standard, and he chose to concentrate on Luther and Melanchthon as the principal characters of the Reformation. Luther dismissed everything that was not based upon clear words from scripture as lies and delusions; Melanchthon was a skilful interpreter of Luther’s radical statements, expressing himself distinctly and unequivocally. After the deathof Luther, however, Melanchthon was influenced by Reformed theology. The principal difference between Reformed and Lutheran cultures, Grundtvig claimed, sprung from the fact that Zwingli had emphasized reason whereas Luther wasmore poetically inclined. Accordingly, two cultures with diverging directions developed. The belief in reason and inborn abilities had led the followers of the Reformed Church to social uprising, and their mentality made them oppose people of other opinions. Lutheran believers and supporters on the other hand, Grundtvig conceived of as more obedient to authority. In contrast to the Reformed culture, the Lutherans appreciated elements of beauty in their churches such as art, music and hymn singing.Finally, the assessment of the young Grundtvig as a Lutheran orthodox is discussed, with the result that this view cannot be confirmed. Grundtvig does not show any tendency towards building coherent dogmatics from single biblicalpassages. But the Bible still has a role to play in the judging of the past because, as a whole, it points to the true Christianity in history.

- En historisk Theodice

En historisk Theodice[A Historical Theodicy]By Ole VindGrundtvig’s first World Chronicle from 1812 (VK 1812) is noted especially for itssharp criticism of contemporary culture. It can be read as a Lutheran revivalistsermon passing judgment on great historical as well as contemporary figures who are condemned for their lack of orthodox Christian faith. Read in the light of Grundtvig’s later works, however, the book carries the seeds of that philosophy of history which from 1832 onwards became the mainstay of all his writings.Thus, in VK 1812 are found the first traces of that original vision which inChristenhedens Syvstjerne (The Seven Sisters of Christendom, Grundtvig’s greatcycle of church historical poems written 1854-55, published 1860) follows churchhistory through seven national Churches of which the future Hindu (Christian)Church is the last. Likewise, in the chronicle are found Grundtvig’s first speculations on ethnic origins, later clarified into his idea of four principal peoples in World History (i.e. the Jews, the Greeks and the Romans in antiquity and the Scandinavians in modern times).In spite of his harsh condemnation of his contemporaries, Grundtvig concludesVK 1812 optimistically, prophesying a spiritual and Christian renewalin Scandinavia through the future university in Kristiania (i.e. Oslo) in Norway(founded 1811 and opened 1813). Such a trust in learning and scholarship wascharacteristic of the European age of Enlightenment with its belief in progress. In later major works, Grundtvig expressed this attitude in an original Nordic version which also formed the basis of his thoughts about education and folk high schools.In VK 1812 Grundtvig briefly characterizes the German thinkers who werethe foundation of his philosophy of history. Even if they are all blamed fortheir lack of orthodox faith, his delineation of them is remarkably mild. Later,rather surprisingly, Grundtvig appeared to reconcile himself to a great extentwith the German “naturalists imbued with spirit”.The quite positive words about those German philosophers whom he otherwiserather criticized, presage the deep inspiration in Grundtvig’s mature worksparticularly from Herder and Fichte. An exceptional role is played to Grundtvigby Lessing who raised the principal question of Protestant religious philosophyabout the relationship between Christianity and history. Already in VK 1812,Grundtvig’s philosophy of history is also a philosophy of religion in the shapeof a historical theodicy. As in his works to come, Grundtvig’s answer to Lessing’s question is thus quite the opposite of Søren Kierkegaard’s to whom Lessing, too, meant a serious philosophical challenge.

Det jødiske folk og folkelighedsbegrebet i 1814-krøniken

Det jødiske folk og folkelighedsbegrebet i 1814-krønikenKim Arne PedersenThe Jewish people and the Concept of “folkelighed” in the World Chronicle of 1814The article describes Grundtvig’s concept of “folkelighed” in The World Chronicle from 1814 and its relationship with Grundtvig’s political opinions, theology, and history. The study confirms discoveries of previous researchthat Grundtvig was inspired by J.G. Herder’s ideas about national identity and Fichte’s idea of “normal people,” but it argues that Grundtvig opposed a number of contemporary discussions about Judaism. Grundtvig was quite familiar with the Old Testament research of his day which followed the general negative attitudes toward Jews in society. In the 1814 Chronicle, he offers a clear alternative to these negative views through his popular concept, which surprisingly turns out to be an essential component of his later political thought. Therefore, the article demonstrates a crucial aspect in Grundtvig’s thinking as a young man, which previous research has failed to highlight even though it is in many ways a prerequisite for understanding how his political ideals and worldview developed from the 1830s to find consistent expression in his writing.

Dažbog vo hronikata na Malala i negovite relacii so drugi srednovekovni i folklorni izvori<br>Dažbog in Malalas’ Chronicle and His Relations with Other Medieval and Folkloristic Sources</br>

This article introduces new perspectives on the Slavic pagan god Dažbog (or Dajbog/Dabog) on the basis of medieval historical sources, folk traditions, linguistic analyses and artistic depictions on archeological objects. Special attention is focused on remarks concerning Svarog and Dažbog in the Slavic translation of the “World Chronicle” (Hronografia) of Ioannes Malalas. Thus this article contributes to discussions concerning Svarog published by the same author in previous issues of this journal.

In the Wake of Lombard

This article investigates the new attitude toward the reception and use of Augustine in the early thirteenth century as seen in the works of Helinand of Froidmont and Robert Grosseteste. Both scholars were products of the Twelfth Century Renaissance of Augustine, represented in Peter Lombard’s Sentences, the Glossa Ordinaria, and Gratian’s Decretum. Yet both Helinand and Grosseteste reconstructed Augustine’s texts for their own purposes; they did not simply use Augustine as an authority. Detailed and thorough textual analysis reveals that the early thirteenth century was a high point in Augustine’s reception, and one which effected a transformation of how Augustine’s texts were used, a fact [has] often been obscured in the historiographical debates of the relationship between “Augustinianism” and “Aristotelianism.” Moreover, in point to the importance of Helinand’s world chronicle, his Chronicon, this article argues for the importance of compilations as a major source for the intellectual and textual history of the high Middle Ages. Thus, the thirteenth century appears as the bridge between the Augustinian Renaissance of the Twelfth Century, and that of the Fourteenth, making clear the need for further research and highlighting the importance of the early thirteenth century for a thorough understanding of the historical reception of Augustine.

The ‘Alexandrian World Chronicle’, its Consularia and the Date of the Destruction of the Serapeum (with an Appendix on the List of Praefecti Augustales)

Article The ‘Alexandrian World Chronicle’, its Consularia and the Date of the Destruction of the Serapeum (with an Appendix on the List of Praefecti Augustales) was published on December 1, 2013 in the journal Millennium (volume 10, issue 1).

An Eleventh-Century Chronologer at Work: Marianus Scottus and the Quest for the Missing Twenty-Two Years

Between 1069, the year of his arrival at St. Martin in Mainz, where he spent the rest of his life in voluntary enclosure in a cell, and his death in 1082, the Irish monk Marianus Scottus dedicated countless hours to assembling the most sophisticated and comprehensive work on historical chronology that had ever been produced by a Latin writer up to that time. The fruits of his labors became a massive world chronicle, completed in 1076, whose most famous innovation consisted in a far-reaching correction to the Christian, or “common,” era, which had been introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the sixth century. Having compared the data of the Easter computus with the chronological parameters traditionally associated with the passion of Christ—the fifteenth day of the moon on Friday, 25 March—Marianus found that the only year in which the numbers could be made to fit was AD 12 rather than the traditionally accepted AD 34. As a result, he decided to predate the life of Jesus by twenty-two years, assigning his birt...

The De Rebus Hispanie and the Mature Latin Chronicle in the Iberian Middle Ages

The De Rebus Hispaniae is one of three Latin chronicles produced at the court of Fernando III of Leόn-Castile (1218–1252), and its near contemporary translation into the Spanish of the period made it the most influential of them on the subsequent development of historical writing in Iberia. Its author was the then archbishop of Toledo, Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada (1210–1247), an intimate actor in and eyewitness of the many major events in Iberia. He himself was raised in Spanish Kingdom of Navarre and was educated in the universities of Bologna in Italy and Paris in France. That background enabled him to realize that the history of Iberia could not any longer be reduced simply to the history of Leόn-Castile. Writing from semiretirement after 1238 he reworked the traditional world chronicle to produce the first true history of Iberia.

The Winchcombe and Coventry Chronicles. Hitherto Unnoticed Witnesses to the Work of John of Worcester: Vol. 1: Introduction and Commentary; Vol. 2: Texts and Translations (review)

The Winchcombe and Coventry Chronicles. Hitherto Unnoticed Witnesses the Work of John of Wbrcester: Vol. 1: Introduction and Commentary; Vol. 2: Texts and Translations. Edited and translated by Paul Antony Hayward. [Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies, Vol. 373] (Tempe: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, Arizona State University. 2010. Pp. xxxiv, 353; iii, 354-750. $140.00. ISBN 978-0-866-98421-8.) The significance of the annals edited and translated by Paul Antony Hayward is minor from an historical point of view but rather greater from a historiographical one. Thus, although they add little our knowledge of events in England during the twelfth century, they are potentially more revealing about the practice of writing history then. It is this latter aspect that justifies the expansive presentation of them here- a two-volume set with a combined total of 750 pages, the entirety of the first volume being devoted introduction (nearly 200 pages) and commentary (some 150 pages). The principal concern of the commentary is note sources and analogues for individual entries in the chronicles; and, although these occasionally include charters or privileges (notably sub anno 811, the dedication of Winchcombe church; pp. 251-70), they are principally other chronicles and annals. The scattered evidence thus furnished is drawn together in the substantial introduction that highlights the facts that the Winchcombe and the Coventry Annals share a common stock for their entries 1122, and that more than 90 percent of this shared material is also be found in the Chronica chronicarum of John of Worcester. From this it is deduced: first, that the Winchcombe and Coventry Annals and John's depended on the same source; and second (more daringly) that since the lost source shared affinities of method, purpose and outlook with the known works of John of Worcester (p. 97), it was probably also his work. The motive imputed John for the hypothetical text was to reach out a new and different audience from that which was likely use Chronica chronicarum or Chronicula (p. 97), a proposition that rests on, and supports, Hayward's analysis of the functions of annals more generally (chapter 1). Rather than representing a more primitive form of history writing than chronicles, they met a different need, here identified as pedagogical- annalistic world chronicles, it is argued, were teaching tools (pp. …

Fra Hamann til Fasc. 209.10. Om Grundtvigs forhold til Johann Georg Hamann og dennes samtidige

Fra Hamann til Fasc. 209.10. Om Grundtvigs forhold til Johann Georg Hamann og dennes samtidige[From Hamann to Fascicle 209.10. On Grundtvig's relation to Johann Georg Hamann and his contemporaries]By Bent ChristensenThe German critic and Enlightenment philosopher Johann Georg Hamann (1730-88) can be seen as a German forerunner of Grundtvig who according to a few places in his Verdenskrøniken (World Chronicle), 1817, has known about his writings and perhaps felt a spiritual kinship to him. By all accounts, the only other mention of him at all by Grundtvig occurs in a brief and somewhat enigmatic manuscript entitled “Synchronismer” (synchronisms) (The Grundtvig Archive, Fascicle 209 nr 10). It lists names of 24 German authors supplied with dates marking periods in their careers between the years 1741 and 1781 and has been regarded as a preliminary study for the World Chronicle 1817. But it can also be seen as a view of these authors from a specific “synchronistic” angle, resulting in a particular profile of these 40 years. The list also reflects Grundtvig’s detailed knowledge of German literary history.After a presentation of Hamann, Grundtvig’s evaluation of him in the World Chronicle of 1817 is quoted and commented upon, followed by a an examination of the manuscript list author by author, inclusive of references to treatments in the World Chronicle.The list begins with “Rabener 1741-57” and finishes with “Bürger 1769- 78”; the latest year brought up, however, is “1781” (under the names of Kant and Hamann). In his World Chronicle, Grundtvig states that the period he wants to depict, covers the reign of the Prussian king Frederick the Great (1740-86). The list corresponds almost exactly to this ambition. Hamann’s first year, 1759, is the year in which Sokratische Denkwürdigkeiten appeared, his first work addressing a general public. Hamann’s last year, 1781, indicates that he at that time started to write a critical review of Kant’s Kritik der reinen Vernunft, having read the proofs of it, as a personal friend of the philosopher, before its publication that same year. At first, however, Hamann did not print his text but only communicated it to Herder in a personal letter. The Metakritik über den Purismum der Vernunft was finished in 1784 but not published until 1800. When Kant in his work asks for a foundation of cognition prior to and independent of experience, Hamann accuses him of aiming at constituting a new kind of metaphysics. Two later works published by Hamann (1784 and 1786) are of a retrospective and summary nature.Concerning the other authors listed, the “first year” in most cases presents the very first step in their literary careers, and the “last year” marks the ending of their initial period. This applies, for example, to Rabener’s “last year”, 1757, when his satires had started already to appear in book form. In Lessing’s case, 1761 is the year in which he accepted a position as secretary for the governor of Breslau. Wieland was appointed town clerk in Biberach in 1760, but in the World Chronicle Grundtvig emphasizes the importance of his Shakespeare translations which did not begin to appear until 1762, though it is likely that Wieland had been encouraged to take up this project as early as 1759. Herder’s “last year” is 1767, the date of publication featured on the title page of Fragmente über die neuere deutsche Literatur—a date often considered to be the prime year of the “Sturm und Drang” (“Storm and Stress”) movement. Goethe’s “last year” is 1774 due to the publication of his best-seller novel Die Leiden des jungen Werthers.In several cases the often paired dates of Grundtvig’s list differ from those found in ordinary histories of literature as well as in the World Chronicle of 1817. A closer study of them—and a study of Grundtvig as compared to Hamann—might cause important contributions to Grundtvig research and to the study of German intellectual and literary history.

Another Look at the Newly-Discovered ‘Leipzig World Chronicle’

A study and translation of the recently published ‘Leipzig World Chronicle’, which argues that this work is neither Christian nor a chronicle but a poorly compiled and highly corrupt example of a pagan, Hellenistic-style chronograph, which includes excerpts from a chronicle and two king lists.

Barbarian interest in the Excerpta Latina Barbari

Joseph Justus Scaliger dubbed the text of Parisinus Latinus 4884, the sole surviving witness to a Merovingian Latin translation of a now lost Greek world chronicle, the Excerpta Latina Barbari. The name was essentially a judgement on the linguistic abilities of the translator, but it is suggestive. What is there in the chronicle to appeal to the ‘barbarian’ inhabitants of Gaul? An answer to this question can offer some insight into the provenance of a neglected, but intriguing text. It will be proposed that the Greek original of the Excerpta was composed as a gift for the Austrasian king Theudebert I and was intended to elicit his aid in the war against the Ostrogothic rulers of Italy. The translation is another matter. It seems to have been undertaken about two centuries later in the context of the missionary push to the north and east from Frankish territory.

Die Leipziger Weltchronik – die älteste christliche Weltchronik?

This paper argues that the new Leipzig world chronicle (see above Colomo et al.), dated to the first half of the second century AD, might very well be the earliest known Christian world chronicle. The genre of world chronicle is known to be a specific Christian literary genre. The text covers the same broad geographical range that we know only from Christian world chronicles. The dating of the papyrus fits in with the emerging chronographic interest of Christian apologists. And we know of Christian chronographers before Iulius Africanus, who has, perhaps wrongly, been termed the ‘father of Christian chronography’.

The Written World: Past and Place in the Work of Orderic Vitalis (review)

Reviewed by: The Written World: Past and Place in the Work of Orderic Vitalis Judith Collard Hingst, Amanda Jane, The Written World: Past and Place in the Work of Orderic Vitalis, Notre Dame, University of Notre Dame, 2009, paperback; pp. 296; 2 b/w illustrations; R.R.P. US$40.00; ISBN 9780268030865. Using the twelfth-century chronicle of the Anglo-Norman monk, Orderic Vitalis, as her base, Amanda Hingst has constructed an elegantly written, engaging text that explores medieval understandings of place and time. This ambitious work takes the unusual approach of grounding the historian's understanding of his wider world by locating him within his physical environment. As those who study Britain and France during the eleventh and twelfth centuries would be well aware, Orderic Vitalis was an important observer of his society whose world chronicle is now available in excellent modern editions. This makes him an ideal subject for such a study. [End Page 218] The book is divided into six chapters that each act as a case study that explores different aspects of the physical world addressed in the chronicle. The first locates the site of authorship within the region of the Pay d'Ouche in Normandy where the monastery that Orderic Vitalis entered at the age of 10 was situated. Here, Hingst recounts the history of the monastery, a community established on the site of a previous foundation founded by St Evroul some four centuries before. This allows Hingst to discuss the relic-cult of St Evroul, including the theft and recovery of the saint's relics, and the significance of locality for such cults. It also provides her with an opportunity to briefly explore the legacy of the desert and the eremetical life in monastic intellectual culture. In her next three chapters Hingst discusses the broader geopolitical landscape, beginning with her second chapter, 'Classical geography and the Gens Normannorum', where she examines not only Orderic's sources and his knowledge of models such as Bede's Historia Anglorum, which he had personally copied, but also their impact on the shaping of his history. Ironically, given the focus of this book, Orderic had rejected the geographical introduction, so much a feature of these histories. Instead his world is one 'driven by change', with less focus on a static physical world such descriptions provided. Orderic's world is one reflecting the complicated concept of the gens Normannorum, a group defined less by ethnicity than by ethos, by their conquest of a new homeland, an identity that was not diminished as their territorial control extended into Apulia and Britain. In the third chapter Hingst argues that the Norman concept of the world differed from earlier western imaginings because of the importance of the sea. For example, Britain, which for the Mediterranean Isidore of Seville was an island cut off from the world by the ocean, becomes for the Normans united with the mainland in a community where the sea is at the centre, ringed by land. While this is an engaging insight, one of my frustrations with this chapter is the lack of evidence drawn from Orderic Vitalis's own writings. More detail is needed to explore this idea further and to examine whether this was an attitude associated specifically with him or one generally held by Norman writers. At the heart of this understanding of the world was the conquest of Britain. In her chapter on Britain, Hingst takes up Orderic's use of the noun 'Albion' to present a unification of both pre and post-Conquest British history as well as a conceptualization of the British Isles as a single geographical and, [End Page 219] potentially, political unit, that includes Scots, Irish, English, Welsh, Danes and Normans. This chapter rounds out and completes the ideas embodied in gens Normannorum. The final three chapters concern, to a certain extent, a more spiritual landscape, although they lack the coherence of the preceding three. In the first, Hingst examines the idea of Jerusalem, not just geographically, but also metaphorically, finding a new Jerusalem in the altar of Orderic's own monastic church, as well as temporally. She also discusses the diagrammatic construction of the world as found in...

LITERARY GENRE OR RELIGIOUS APATHY? THE PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF THEOLOGY AND RELIGIOUS THOUGHT IN SECULAR WRITING IN THE LATE ANTIQUE EAST

John Malalas, author of a Christian world chronicle compiled initially ca. 532 and completed ca. 565, shows only token interest in the Christian trappings of the world around him: he records items of ecclesiastical bureaucracy such as councils and the election or deposition of patriarchs. Of far more real concern to him are rituals and strands of belief that are barely Christian, as shown by his references to ‘mystikoi’ and his millennial preoccupations.