History 220 / Religion 390 Topics in European History: Medieval Christianity

Course: HIST 220.1D1 RELG 390.1D1 Spring Semester, Second Term 2011 Thursdays 5:30-9:45 PM Office: ACC 388 Office Hours: Before / after class, and via phone and email Mercer University, College of Continuing and Professional Studies Professor Andrea L. Winkler, Ph.D. E-mail: winkler_al@mercer.edu Phone: 678.547.6042 (office) 404-297-2073 (home)

Course Objectives: This course is an introduction to aspects of medieval Christianity. Specifically, my objective in this course is to focus on clerical and popular religious practices and beliefs in order to answer the question, What did being Christian or having Christian identity mean in the central and late middle ages? Far from being a homogeneous time period in which there was only one understanding of Christianity, belief and practices varied by time period, location, and gender. We will explore these varieties of belief and practice by reading a wide array of primary sources on various topics, including the conversion of Europe and religious acculturation of pagan peoples; changes in medieval and spiritual beliefs; the appeal of Christian saints, relics, and pilgrimage; monastic, scholastic, and lay piety; holy violence and Christians' reactions to non Christians, and the advent of the Reformation. The class goal is to provide a nuanced view of the tensions between the spiritual goals of the Church and the beliefs and practices of its members, lay and clerical. Readings: Bornstein, Danil. A Peoples History of Christianity: Medieval Christianity. Fortress Press, 2010. Rubin, Miri, ed. Medieval Christianity in Practice. Princeton Readings in Religions, Princeton University Press, 2009. Articles, Readings, Videos, and Web Pages on Blackboard Prerequisites: LBST 175 & 180 & willingness to work hard and ask questions! Blackboard Access: I am building this course on the NEW Blackboard shell. The URL is https://bb-mercer.blackboard.com, and I have put a link to it on the OLD Blackboard. EMAIL: This semester I will only use students' MERCER EMAILS for class communication. I hate being a procedure stickler, but I have missed several important emails because I simply deleted a spammy looking personal address, or my email filter rejected the address out of hand. I will hand out instructions for accessing your Mercer Email, and forwarding it to your regular account (so you won't have to check two boxes, which I hate, too). I have also posted instructions on Blackboard. Increasingly Mercer is moving to requiring students to use Mercer email, so consider this requirement the Wave of the Future.

Schedule of Classes, Readings, and Assignments:

PLEASE NOTE: This syllabus is subject to change based on class interest and instructor's reassessment. Readings will be discussed on the day they are assigned; have them read before class. Students must bring the textbooks under discussion to class each week, NO EXCEPTIONS!!! (You do not need to bring in a book from which there was no assigned reading). Please also bring either PRINTOUTS of the Blackboard readings or, if you want to save paper, very good notes about the points you read and wish to make. Remember, a blog post is due every class day except the first! March 17: Introduction: Doing History / Primitive Christianity *Recommended: Bornstein, Living Christianity, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 1-28. Blackboard: Was the Medieval Church Corrupt? The Formation of the Church and the Conversion of Europe Blackboard: (Read this first!) Bredero, Religion and Church in Medieval Society, pp. 1-17. Blackboard: (Read this second!) Bernard Hamilton, Part I: The Western Church, pp. 7-14. * Converting the Barbarian West, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 29-52 Assignment: Article Analysis #1, submitted online. You may do your analysis on any one item marked with an asterisk (this week ONLY you may also use the recommended reading from the first week. All other weeks you must do your analysis on the reading for that week only). Remember to analyze only one chapter if there are more than one asterisked possibilities! Monks and Nuns in the Middle Ages Blackboard: (Read This First!) Bredero, Religion and Church in Medieval Society, pp. 18-25. Blackboard: (Read this second!) Bernard Hamilton, Part I: The Western Church, pp. 15-36. *(Read this third!) Relics, Ascetics, and Living Saints, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 75-108 (Read this Fourth!) Rubin: 318-326. *(Read this Last!) Caroline Walker Bynum, Jesus as Mother and Abbott as Mother Assignment: Article Analysis #2, submitted online. Assignment: Have your research journal topic selected and your wiki page set up. The Secular Clergy and the Church Hierarchy Blackboard: Bredero, Religion and Church in Medieval Society, pp. 26-35. Blackboard: Bernard Hamilton, Part I: The Western Church, pp. 68-84. *The Impact of Architecture, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 109-147. Rubin: 103-116, 126-134. *Blackboard: Ruth Mazo Karras, Thomas Aquinas' Chastity Belt: Clerical Masculinity in Medieval Europe. Assignment: Article Analysis #3, submitted online. Assignment: List of at least three scholarly articles on your topic on your wiki page.

March 24:

March 31:

April 7:

April 14:

Orthodoxy? I: Lay Beliefs Blackboard: Bernard Hamilton, Part I: The Western Church, pp. 37-67. Parish Life, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 303-328. Rubin: 35-66, 173-188. Blackboard: Basic Christian Prayers, A Handbook for Parish Priests. OPTIONAL: Blackboard: Bernard Hamilton, Part II: The Practice of the Christian Life. Contains pages on Christian world views, enduring paganism, knowledge of the faith, what sacraments were and how they were justified theologically, popular devotions, daily practices.) April 21: Orthodoxy? II: Lay Devotional Practices Blackboard: Bredero, Religion and Church in Medieval Society, pp. 36-52. Jews, Muslims, and Christians, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 265-303. Domestic Religion, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 303-328. Rubin: pp. 86-94, 109-114, 135-170. OPTIONAL: Blackboard: Riley-Smith, Crusading as an Act of Love. OPTIONAL: Rubin, 222-230. Assignment: Two required precis posted on your wiki pages. Pushing the Boundaries of Orthodoxy: Mysticism, Prophecy, and Heresy Rubin: pp. 14-18, 189-199, 265-295. Heresy and Dissent, in Bornstein, Medieval Christianity, 205-228. Readings on Blackboard: Hildegard of Bingen, the Confession of NaProus Boneta; Vauchez, Female Prophets, Visionaries, and Mystics in Europe. Assignment: Research Wikis Due Online. Please note that this is NOT a class day! Due by midnight. The Dissolution of Christendom Assignment: Comments on wikis due

April 28:

Medieval May 1: May 5:

ONLINE ACCESS TO READINGS: Blackboard: https://bb-mercer.blackboard.com

Evaluation of Student Learning and Grading Policy (220/390)

Your grade in this course is based on: Participation: 5% Informal weekly responses (Blackboard): 5% In-Class Writing: 10% 2 of 3 Chapter Analyses: 20% Research Wiki Analyses: 20% Research Wiki Text: 40% **FURTHER EXPLANATION OF ASSIGNMENTS IS IN YOUR ASSIGNMENT PACKET (Separate). Grading is on the 90-100 points is an A scale; a summary of my expectations for each letter grade is in your assignment packet. Late and missed assignments will be treated as listed in the class policies. NOTE WELL: You cannot pass this course unless you complete every

assignment. Also NOTE: Grades like B+/A- are numerically in the middle: B+ = 88, A- =92, B+/A- = 90

Course Policies:
1) Attendance: Attendance in this class is mandatory. Each four-hour session covers two

weeks worth of material, so a premium is placed on class attendance. *If you miss up to one full class (i.e. are late by half an hour every class, have to come late/leave early, etc.), you will lose 10 points from your total class score (highest possible grade= B+) UNLESS you complete a makeup assignment. *If you miss up to TWO full classes, you will HAVE to complete a makeup assignment, AND you will lose 10 points from your total class score. If you fail to complete a makeup you will lose 20 points from your total class score. *If you miss more than two classes I will drop you unless there is a good, solid reason (i.e. you have completed enough of the class to make an extensive research paper manageable.). NOTE: I teach two sections of this course in Summer 2010. If you are a Douglas student and you miss one night, you may attend the Henry County Center Wednesday class instead of incurring a makeup. If you are a Henry County Student and you know ahead of time that you will miss a class, please plan to attend the Douglas County Center's Tuesday night class, if possible.

2) Please do everything possible to be on time. I understand Atlanta area traffic and

I generally begin a few minutes late to try to accommodate those who get caught in it. But if you cannot consistently arrive on time, you will miss important material. Also note that tardiness or leaving early counts toward the one fullsession limit for absence. 3) All writing assignments are due when listed. Any conflicts must be cleared with the professor in advance.

4) Cheating and/or plagiarism will result in a grade of zero points for the
ENTIRE COURSE. PERIOD. Plagiarism is defined as submitting work as your own that came directly (or with minor modification or interpretation) from another source, published or unpublished, without proper attribution or citation. Quite simply, if the ideas are not your own, you must cite the source of those ideas. Also, you must understand the work you submit. If you cannot explain or define the terms, words, or concepts you have used, it will be assumed that they came from another source. In short: Do your own work!!! Know what you have written!!! When in doubt, cite!!! This applies to everything you ever write. ***THIS MEANS IF I CATCH YOU IN A CUT AND PASTE JOB FROM ANY SOURCE INCLUDING THE TEXTS, READINGS, JOURNALS, OR THE INTERNET, YOU WILL FAIL THE CLASS. I MEAN THIS AND HAVE DONE THIS.*** 5) The professor subscribes to the Mercer University Honor Code, which applies to this class. The Honor Code, as included in the Student Handbook reads as follows: I pledge myself to neither give nor receive aid during tests or for any individual assignments or papers, nor to use any information other than that allowed by the instructor. I further pledge that I will not allow to go unreported to the proper persons any violation of the Honor System and that I will give true and complete information to the Honor Council. The Student Handbook defines the honor system as follows: The Honor System is a

student code, established, interpreted, and administered by the student body. The aim of the Honor System is to promote complete freedom within the academic community-a freedom which is based on a trust between students and faculty. The Honor Council, in its role as the judiciary body for the System, supports that freedom and guards that trust. At Mercer University, the System is subscribed to by everyone enrolling in any class; faculty subscribes to and supports fully the Honor System. The Honor System places responsibility for honesty where it belongs and ultimately must rest on the individual. The individual is responsible for reporting any academic dishonesty he or she may see as well as being responsible for his own honesty. By placing the responsibility on the individual, each student becomes the guardian of the Honor System. A complete explanation of the Honor Code can be found in the student handbook or at http://www.mercer.edu/stuaffairs/html/mer.htm#honor. 6) If a student disagrees with the grade received on any assignment, the professor expects her/him to follow this procedure. The student should reread the assignment, his / her work, and all the professors comments. Then, and only then, the student should approach the professor (personally, by phone, or email) stating briefly why he/she disagrees with the grade. The professor and student will then make an appointment to discuss the assignment and the grade it received. At that appointment, the professor will reread the assignment, the students work, and the professors comments, at which point he and the student can discuss the assignment, the professors expectations, the students response, and the grade. If no resolution is possible at this meeting we will jointly follow the grade appeals process. Students should retain all graded work until they have received their final grades.

7) Any work submitted late will receive a 10% reduction in the point value of the
assignment for the first class session. No credit will be given for an assignment submitted more that one week late. Unless arrangements have been made in advance, I expect students to submit their work in person. NOTE: It is the students responsibility to see that their work reaches the professor. Due to extenuating circumstances, I have occasionally permitted a student to submit an assignment by email. If that is the case, the student should not consider the assignment submitted until the professor has responded with an email confirming receipt of the assignment. If the professor has not responded within 24 hours, the student must contact the professor to be certain that he received the work. The responsibility for this rests entirely upon the student. 8) Even though a late assignment may receive no credit toward the final grade, all assignments must be submitted no later than the final examination to receive a passing grade in the course. An incomplete will only be granted in those rare cases when the student can document that some extraordinary circumstances prevented her/him from completing the course on time. The professor will be the sole judge of whether an incomplete should be permitted. 9) Students are expected to come to class prepared to discuss the assigned material. Lectures do not repeat the textbook. You will not do well in this class without a good set of lecture notes which you review regularly.

10) The professor reserves the right to change the syllabus as circumstances dictate.
11) My office hours, telephone, and EMAIL are stated on the front page of the syllabus. I strongly with enthusiasm encourage you to stop by, make an

alternatively-timed appointment, or EMAIL rather than be stalled or frustrated because of a question or concern. You may also telephone me at home, although please do not do so after 10 p.m. or before 8 a.m. If you get the answering machine, talk to it and leave your phone number. I may be at home, but I screen my calls--I do not want to talk with the siding salesperson! I always pick up for students if I am home, however. 12) DISABILITIES POLICY. I subscribe to the Mercer University disabilities policy, which is as follows: Students requiring accommodations for a disability should inform the instructor at the close of the first class meeting or as soon as possible. The instructor will refer you to the Disability Support Services Coordinator to document your disability, determine eligibility for accommodations under the ADAAA/Section 504 and to request a Faculty Accommodation Form. In order to receive accommodations in a class, students with sensory, learning, psychological, physical or medical disabilities must provide their instructor with a Faculty Accommodation Form to sign. Students must return the signed form to the Disability Services Coordinator. A new form must be requested each semester. Students with a history of a disability, perceived as having a disability or with current disabilities who do not wish to use academic accommodations are still strongly encouraged to register with the Disability Services Coordinator and request a Faculty Accommodation Form each semester. For further information, please contact Richard Stilley, Disability Support Services Coordinator / Assistant Dean for Campus Life, at (678) 547-6823 or visit the website at http://campuslife.merceratlanta.org/disabilityservices.html.