The Humanities Colloqium Series is presenting “The (Re)Writing of Saints’ Lives and the Ideology of Religious Reform” by Chad Turner on Thursday, October 19th from 11:00 to 11:50am in UCB 209. Aelred of Rievaulx (c. 1110-1167) was a prolific author and prominent abbot in northern England. While he has been the recipient of much scholarly attention, his writings about saints (hagiography), all commissioned by well-known individuals for public events, have received very little interested among scholars. This presentation is part of a larger study on these works, and addresses the ways in which these texts can help us think about religious reform in the twelfth century. For years the idea of a broad, monolithic reform (the Gregorian Reform) was accepted as fact, but a recent trend in historiography has begun to counter this thinking. Aelred’s hagiographical works can help provide a glimpse into how a renowned churchmen conceived of religious reform. All are welcome. Light refreshments provided.
For more information, please contact Rachel Foulk at .