The Waldensian Dissent: Persecution and Survival, c.1170–c.1570 (Cambridge Medieval Textbooks)
Cambridge University Press, 9/2/1999
EAN 9780521550291, ISBN10: 0521550297
Hardcover, 252 pages, 21.6 x 14 x 1.8 cm
Language: English
The Poor of Lyons, whom their detractors called 'Waldensians' - after the name of their founder Waldo (or Vaudès) - first emerged around 1170 and formed in common with other groups of the period a sect which embraced evangelism, prophecy and poverty. By challenging their prohibition by the lay clergy, and by following the Scripture to the last letter, they suffered excommunication and were condemned as heretics. Forced underground and dispersed widely, they nevertheless managed to maintain contact across Europe, through an established network of itinerant preachers, in Provence and Dauphiné, Calabria and Piedmont, Austria and Bohemia, Pomerania, Brandenburg, Silesia and beyond. The Poor of Lyons constituted the only medieval heresy to have survived to the dawn of the so-called 'modern' period. Their tale of simple devotion mixed with a fierce tenacity serves to illuminate aspects of religious belief that have persisted to the present day. This book was first published in 1999.
List of maps
Preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. 1170–1215
decisive and purposive origins
2. The thirteenth century
the need to adapt
3. The fourteenth century
the challenge of believing differently
4. The fifteenth century
the risks of longevity
5. The constraints of a life in hiding
6. The need to organise
7. A culture of their own
the written and the spoken word
8. The sixteenth century
the end as a way forward?
9. Epilogue
the Waldensian Church
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index.