Sainthood in the later Middle Ages

Introduction Book 1. The church and the cult of the saints in the medieval west: Part 1. Control of the Cult of the Saints from its Origins to the Thirteenth Century: 1. Late antiquity and the early middle ages: 'vox populi' and episcopal power (third to tenth century) 2 .Towards papal reservation of the right of canonisation (eleventh to thirteenth centuries) 3. The process of canonisation from its origins to its classical form (c. 1200 to c. 1270) 4. The evolution of the role of canonisation: from control to selection 5. 'Sancti' and 'beati' Part 2: The Rise of the Cult of the Saints and the Assertion of 'Modern' Sanctity: 6. The role of the papacy 7. The role of the regulars 8. The secular clergy and the laity Conclusion: the cult of the saints between universalist aims and the rise of particularism Book 2. Typology of medieval sanctity: Part 1. Popular Sanctity and Local Sanctity: 9. Popular sanctity 10. Local sanctity Part 2. Official Sanctity: Forms and Criteria of Christian Perfection According to Processes of Canonisation: 11. Typology of official sanctity: quantitative aspects 12. Forms of sanctity and ways of life 13. The evolution of the criteria of sanctity from the late twelfth to the early fifteenth centuries Conclusion: the Roman church faced with popular and local sanctity: a silent rejection Book 3. The signs and significations of sanctity: Part 1. The Manifestations and Effects of Sanctity in the Popular Mind: 14. 'Virtus': the language of the body 15. The structures and expansion of the field of the miraculous Part 2. The Roman Church and Sanctity: 16. The Holy See and the critique of miracles 17. Life and virtues of the saints in the processes of canonisation Conclusion: the hagiographical mentality and the popular mind General conclusion Appendices List of sources Bibliography Bibliographical update Index of places Index of persons Subject index.