Papers by Michael F Pettinger
New York University Press eBooks, Dec 31, 2020
Choice Reviews Online, Apr 21, 2015
To my knowledge, there is no widely available English translation of the "De Schismate" of Dietri... more To my knowledge, there is no widely available English translation of the "De Schismate" of Dietrich of Niedheim (or Nyem) (ca. 1345-1318), one of the most important accounts of the chaos unleashed by the Great Western Schism (1378-1417). He worked as a papal bureaucrat, first at the Curia in Avignon and then in Rome, after Gregory XI returned the papacy to the Eternal City in 1377. Dietrich remained reluctantly loyal to Gregory's Roman successor, Urban VI, even as the French cardinals revolted, declared Urban's election invalid, and elected one of their number, Robert of Geneva, who took the name Clement VII, as the "legitimate" pontiff. Clement would eventually establish an alternative Curia in Avignon, and the Church would remain divided between two popes until 1409, when a council in Pisa "deposed" the popes in Rome and Avignon, and elected Peter of Candia, who took the name Alexander V -- at which point there were three claimants to the papal throne. While Dietrich's original Latin can be cumbersome and his memory is faulty, the "De Schismate" has its moments. Dietrich was an eyewitness and occasionally a participant in the events he describes. Book One, which is devoted to the papacy of Urban VI, offers a disturbing portrait of a man known for his simple, austere piety transformed into a paranoid ruler. This is only an initial draft of part of an ongoing project. Suggestions, corrections, and questions are, of course, welcome.
Religion and Same-sex Behaviors: Christianity The theology on, and practice of, same-sex acts in ... more Religion and Same-sex Behaviors: Christianity The theology on, and practice of, same-sex acts in Christian traditions, both historically and in modern times. Michael F. Pettinger Whether posed as an historical or a theological challenge, any consideration of the role of same-sex acts in the Christian tradition must begin with the observation that such acts stand as signs for other issues. They have been variously interpreted as rebellion against the order of creation, oppression of fellow human beings, free choices, ingrained orientations, and potential union with the Son of God. It is obviously difficult to find anyone who will accept all these interpretations. For some, the acceptance of same-sex acts seems like accommodation to the fallen world, rationalization of the flesh, or diabolical deception. For others, it seems the product of a secularizing modernity that frees individuals from the bonds of Christianity. Hence the meanings assigned to same-sex acts become themselves indicators of what it means to be Christian. As Heather White (2015) argues, historical narratives of secularization are often difficult to distinguish from the liberal Protestant project of purifying and dematerializing religion. Christians who affirm sex acts as part of their Christian practice might be "queering" the boundaries between Christianity and the secular world-or they might simply be putting into practice the Gospel which, they argue, was from its very beginning a "queer" message of liberation.
Books by Michael F Pettinger
A brief encyclopedia article on the discussions of homosexuality and scripture in the works of Gr... more A brief encyclopedia article on the discussions of homosexuality and scripture in the works of Greek and Latin Church writers from the Second to the Fifth Centuries
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Papers by Michael F Pettinger
Books by Michael F Pettinger