Carine van Rhijn, <i>Leading the Way to Heaven: Pastoral Care and Salvation in the Carolingian Period</i>. London and New York: Routledge, 2022, xii, 274 pp.
Scott G. Bruce
Abstract Early medieval manuscripts give up their secrets in this excellent monograph by Carine van Rhijn, who studies the books that enabled parish priests to perform duties Carolingian countryside. Recognizing lineaments of pastoral project outlined royal normative texts issued Charlemagne and his advisors were expressive “ideals intentions” (5), she argues convincingly practical challenges implementing expanding deepening knowledge Christians required assure salvation fell increasingly local period. By eighth century, a fundamental reorganization secular clergy resulted being assigned specific churches, where they lived, preached, administered sacraments small communities for rest lives.
Mediävistik