Equal in Monastic Profession: Religious Women in Medieval France (Women in Culture and Society Series)

In This Study Of The Manner In Which Medieval Nuns Lived, Penelope Johnson Challenges Facile Stereotypes Of Nuns Living Passively Under Monastic Rule, Finding Instead That Collectively They Were Empowered By Their Communal Privileges And Status To Think And Act Without Many Of The Subordinate Attitudes Of Secular Women. In The Words Of One Abbess Comparing Nuns With Monks, They Were Different As To Their Sex But Equal In Their Monastic Profession. Johnson Researched More Than Two Dozen Nunneries In Northern France From The Eleventh Century Through The Thirteenth Century, Balancing A Qualitative Reading Of Medieval Monastic Documents With A Quantitative Analysis Of A Lengthy Thirteenth-century Visitation Record Which Allows An Important Comparison Of Nuns And Monks. A Fascinating Look At The World Of Medieval Spirituality, This Work Enriches Our Understanding Of Women's Role In Premodern Europe And In Church History. Connecting Links -- The Secular Community -- The Ecclesiastical Community -- Organizing Structures -- The Search For Perfection -- The Structure -- The Finances -- Assessments -- Religious Person Rather Than Woman -- Closing The Doors. Penelope D. Johnson. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 277-287) And Index. Frontmatter (page N/A) Series Editor's Foreword (page ix) Acknowledgments (page xiii) List of Abbreviations (page xv) 1. Introductions (page 1) 1. Connecting Links (page 11) 2. The Secular Community (page 13) 3. The Ecclesiastical Community (page 62) 2. Organizing Structures (page 103) 4. The Serch for Perfection (page 105) 5. The Structure (page 166) 6. The Finances (page 207) 3. Assessments (page 227) 7. Religious Person Rather than Woman (page 229) 8. Closing the Doors (page 248) Appendix A: The Twenty-six Female Monasteries Studied (page 267) Appenddix B. (page 269) Glossary (page 273) Selected Bibliography (page 277) Index (page 289) DURING THE CENTRAL MIDDLE AGES in northern France a rider entering a medieval city like Saintes, Rouen, or Troyes and passing the gates of handsome convent buildings could see in the courtyards a scene of bustling activity.