00938 - History of Christianity

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide the indispensable foundations for a knowledge of the ecclesiastical and religious history of Europe in its most original and dynamic aspects (doctrines, institutions, rituals, vectors and communication processes) and in relation to other major religious cultures of the ancient and medieval world until the evangelization of the New World. At the end of the course, the student will possess the methodological tools for the proper evaluation and critical use of Italian and European cultural heritage regarding archaeology, history, art, literature, archives and libraries , especially in relation to the crucial role of production and documentary-monumental transmission played by ecclesiastical institutions and major religious orders.

Course contents

The course will be divided into two teaching modules, each of thirty hours. They will be taught, respectively, by the main lecturer (Prof. Luigi Canetti) and Prof. Donatella Tronca.

The first module will analyse a variety of documents, literary texts, images, and objects that illustrate the main historical and religious issues in Late Antique and Medieval Christianity, with special emphasis on health, the body, and salvation.

The second module will focus on the topic Gesture, sin and sickness. These areas have strong ties with the religious realm and are closely interwoven into Christian sources. To this end, a case study will focus on the ways in which dancing was regulated, first in literary and homiletic texts (patristic sources and medieval religious literature) and then in canonical literature (such as the so-called ‘penitential handbooks’). The regulation of gesture is closely connected to penance, which is in turn expressed in terms of medicine and treatment (sin as contagion and intrusion by an external agent). Examples of this include what was known as ‘St Vitus Dance’ and dancing epidemics, always interpreted as a sign of social guilt. The implications surrounding descriptions of such practices – often the result of retrospective intellectual constructs – will be dissected by reading late-antique, medieval and early-modern sources (such as seventeenth-century medical literature). These texts will be made available to students online.

 

Readings/Bibliography

A) Handbooks (only the chapters indicated here for each of the following volumes):

Storia del cristianesimo, I. L'età antica (secoli I-VII), a cura di E. Prinzivalli, Roma, Carocci, 2015: chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15.

Storia del cristianesimo, II. L'età medievale (secoli VIII-XV), a cura di M. Benedetti, Roma, Carocci, 2015: chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16.

Alternatively, one of the following handbooks can be chosen:

G. L. Potestà - G. Vian, Storia del cristianesimo, n. ed. Bologna, il Mulino, 2014;

R. Rusconi, Storia del cristianesimo e delle Chiese. Dalle origini ai giorni nostri, Brescia, Morcelliana, 2019.

 

B) Reading list (second teaching module):

In-depth knowledge of one of the following monographs is required:

H. C. Kee, Medicina, miracolo e magia nei tempi del Nuovo Testamento, Paideia, Brescia 1993

M. G. Muzzarelli, Penitenze nel Medioevo. Uomini e modelli a confronto, Pàtron, Bologna 1994

E. Dal Covolo - G. Sfameni Gasparro (a cura di), Cristo e Asclepio. Culti terapeutici e taumaturgici nel mondo Mediterraneo antico fra cristiani e pagani, LAS, Roma 2008

P. Brown, Il riscatto dell'anima. Aldilà e ricchezza nel primo cristianesimo occidentale, Einaudi, Torino 2016

D. Tronca, Christiana choreia. Danza e cristianesimo tra Antichità e Medioevo, Viella, Roma 2022

T. Duranti, Ammalarsi e curarsi nel Medioevo. Una storia sociale, Carocci, Roma 2023

Teaching methods

The traditional lecture format will be supported by texts and images, which will be shown and made available online to students on the Virtual Learning Environment of the University website.

On this page, students will also have specific sections dedicated to learning how to research sources, edited by Prof. Donatella Tronca (teaching tutor and course teacher).

Students who are affected by learning disability (DSA) and in need of special strategies to compensate it, are kindly requested to contact the Teacher, in order to be referred to the colleagues in charge and get proper advice and instructions.

Assessment methods

Class attendance is recommended to achieve a good result. All those who cannot attend the course for demonstrable reasons of work are required to agree their syllabus in advance during the lecturer’s office hours.

The oral examination will be held at the end of the course, and it will assess:

- basic knowledge relating to the course program (the assessment is carried out on the basis of the materials examined in class and the texts indicated in the program);

- the ability to understand the problems faced during the lectures;

- knowledge of the discipline in its historical development;

- the ability to frame the sources examined in class in their context, and to discuss them critically;

- the quality of oral expression and the ability to construct a logical-argumentative type of speech.

For students attending the course, the examination consists of checking the knowledge acquired during the course, above all the sources and other materials progressively uploaded on the website Virtual Learning Environment. In addition, they are required to know the general outlines of the history of ancient and medieval Christianity on the basis of one of the Handbooks recommended in Section A of the "Reading/Bibliography".

For non-attending students, in addition to in-depth knowledge of one of the Handbooks (point A in the "Reading/Bibliography"), they are also obliged to make a critical reading of a monograph or a collection of essays to be agreed with the lecturer during office hours.

The final evaluation will follow these criteria:

- insufficient grade: lack of basic knowledge and inability to produce a correct interpretation of the texts and / or problems;

- sufficient grade: possession of basic knowledge; mainly correct interpretation, but carried out with imprecision and little autonomy;

- good grade: possession of intermediate level knowledge; fully correct interpretation, but not always precise and autonomous;

- excellent grade: possession of high level knowledge; interpretation of problems not only correct but conducted with autonomy and precision. Excellent oral expression skills.

To apply for the thesis, it is necessary to have presented for the examination a final paper on a topic defined together with the lecturer. It is also highly recommended to register on the website and take part in the workshops of the Laboratorio sulle fonti per la ricerca storica organised by Prof. Donatella Tronca.

As the timeframe for drafting a thesis needs to be carefully calculated, arrangements should be made with the lecturer well in advance: at least six months for a three-year degree and at least a year for a master’s degree. The most appropriate graduation session will be suggested by the lecturer on the basis of the work done.

Teaching tools

The main teaching support tools, which will be illustrated in class and on the Virtuale course page, are available at the Campus Central Library (Palazzo Corradini) and at the website AlmaRe - the Library of Bibliographic and Documentary Electronic Resources of the University of Bologna.

Office hours

See the website of Luigi Canetti

See the website of Donatella Tronca