Scholastic and University Preaching in the Middle Ages

Among the many institutions that shaped medieval European civilization, none exercised a more profound influence upon the formation of religious thought and intellectual culture than the schools and universities that emerged between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries. At the same time, few instruments proved more effective in disseminating ideas, doctrines, values, and theological interpretations than preaching. The intersection of these two realities, the world of higher learning and the practice of public religious instruction, produced one of the most distinctive phenomena of medieval Christianity: scholastic and university preaching. This book explores that phenomenon, examining how the intellectual methods developed within medieval schools and universities transformed the sermon into a sophisticated medium of theological reflection, pastoral care, moral instruction, and social communication.