The Memory and Motivation of Jan Hus, Medieval Priest and Martyr (Europa Sacra, 11)

"Jan Hus (1371-1415) gave his name to a social and religious revolution which captured the attention of Europe. The central figure in a late medieval reform movement, he died a condemned heretic. Martyrdom made him famous but his essential identity has remained a point of controversy. Who was Jan Hus? This work explores the driving forces in the life and work of this medieval priest as he moved from obscurity to the vulnerability of a publicly accused heretic and the disgraceful prelude to martyrdom. It also focuses on the construction and facilitation of the memory of Jan Hus. Historical facts are often compelling but these postulations cannot be approached apart from the manner and process in which those events are remembered.This book illuminates the life and work of the medieval priest and martyr who rose from humble origins to national hero and popular saint on the platform of a unique and renewed practice of the Christian faith. So profound were his challenges to the church and so bellicose were the reactions to his untimely demise, that the name Jan Hus was destined never to fade into oblivion."--Back cover This publication explores the identity and significance of Jan Hus (1371-1415), Czech priest, philosopher, reformer, and master at Charles University in Prague. Jan Hus (1371-1415) gave his name to a social and religious revolution which captured the attention of Europe. The central figure in a late medieval reform movement, he died a condemned heretic. Martyrdom made him famous but his essential identity has remained a point of controversy. Who was Jan Hus? This work explores the driving forces in the life and work of this medieval priest as he moved from obscurity to the vulnerability of a publicly accused heretic and the disgraceful prelude to martyrdom. It also focuses on the construction and facilitation of the memory of Jan Hus. Historical "facts" are often compelling but these postulations cannot be approached apart from the manner and process in which those events are remembered Who was the martyred priest? What did Jan Hus think he was doing? 'One-eyed' Hus and the challenge of ethics as reform Enemies of the Gospel : answering the priest in the kitchen Michael de Causis and the politics of heresy hunting Hus in popular songs and hymnody The medieval 'lives' of the priest and the martyr The spirit of Hussite religion The priest and the martyr defined and confined.