This is the first study to highlight the significance of nuns' writings in early modern Germany. Combining scholarly analysis with illuminating case studies - such as an abbess's account of the Reformation, a prioress's diary from the Thirty Years' War, and a biography of a fifteenth-century visionary - Charlotte Woodford introduces the much neglected female historians of the era, and sets their writings in an historical and literary context.

During the first half of this century the forests of Thailand were home to wandering ascetic monks. They were Buddhists, but their brand of Buddhism did not copy the practices described in ancient doctrinal texts. Their Buddhism found expression in living day-to-day in the forest and in contending with the mental and physical challenges of hunger, pain, fear, and desire. Combining interviews and biographies with an exhaustive knowledge of archival materials and a wide reading of ephemeral popular literature, Kamala Tiyavanich documents the monastic lives of three generations of forest-dwelling ascetics and challenges the stereotype of state-centric Thai Buddhism. Although the tradition of wandering forest ascetics has disappeared, a victim of Thailand's relentless modernization and rampant deforestation, the lives of the monks presented here are a testament to the rich diversity of regional Buddhist traditions. The study of these monastic lineages and practices enriches our understanding of Buddhism in Thailand and elsewhere.

This study examines the post-medieval reception of Vienna's women's monastic institutions as historical icons of the medieval past. Over time, the eight major women's convents of Vienna become linked in the popular mind with the broader mythology of "Alt-Wien," the old Vienna. Accounts of the city in geographical materials of the fifteenth through nineteenth centuries - maps and panoramas, topographies, travel literature, and Vienna-centric folktale collections - frequently allude to the convents' former identities at the expense of their ongoing presence as active female religious establishments. By teasing out the way people think about the physical and historical place such women's institutions held in this important urban and political center, Received Medievalisms provides a new picture of the ways in which the medieval shapes later understandings of women's role and agency within the city.

The prominent role of monasteries in the early medieval period is explored in detail in this study of the relations between monasteries and the nobility in Lotharingia in the ninth and tenth centuries. The book focuses on three renowned monasteries during this period of monastic reform in Europe. The author challenges accepted views of the monasteries' role and explores the complex links with kings, bishops, and noble families which gave monasteries a central place in politics and society.

Taiz?--the word is strangely familiar to many throughout the contemporary church. Familiar, perhaps, because the chanted prayers of Taiz? are well practiced in churches throughout the world. Strangely, however, because so little is known about Taiz?--from its historic beginnings to how the word itself is pronounced. The worship of the Taiz? community, as it turns out, is best understood in the context of its greater mission. On the day Jason Brian Santos arrived in the Taiz? community its leader was brutally murdered before his eyes. Instead of making Santos want to leave, the way the community handled this tragedy made him long to stay and learn more about this group of people who could respond to such evil with grace and love. In this book he takes us on a tour of one of the world's first ecumenical monastic orders, from its monastic origins in the war-torn south of 1940s France to its emerging mission as a pilgrimage site and spiritual focal point for millions of young people throughout the world. InA Community Called Taiz? you'll meet the brothers of the order and the countless visitors and volunteers who have taken upon themselves a modest mission: pronouncing peace and reconciliation to the church and the world.

Some evangelicals perceive monasticism as a relic from the past, a retreat from the world, or a shirking of the call to the Great Commission. At the same time, contemporary evangelical spirituality desires historical Christian manifestations of the faith. In this accessibly written book Greg Peters, an expert in monastic studies who is a Benedictine oblate and spiritual director, offers a historical survey of monasticism from its origins to current manifestations. Peters recovers the riches of the monastic tradition for contemporary spiritual formation and devotional practice, explaining why the monastic impulse is a valid and necessary manifestation of the Christian faith for today's church.

A fascinating glimpse into the world of Medieval Monasticism. Durham Cathedral is one of the most complete sets of monastic buildings in Europe, housing clues to the life of a prominent and thriving medieval Benedictine community. Through its buildings, and the books, treasures and records housed within, the world of Durham's monastic past comes alive once more, offering clues to the history of this vital Norman stronghold, and providing a critical exemplar of the medieval monastic life. "In republishing this excellent little book, we hope that the monastic tradition that was lived at Durham for nearly five centuries will come alive for contemporary readers. Today, Benedictine values continue to undergird our life as a Christian community in Durham ...so I hope that this book will help people of all ages to understand more about this cherished aspect of our history and heritage, and that through its insights into the past, it will add to visitors' enjoyment of the Cathedral and its precincts today." - The Very Revd Michael Sadgrove, Dean of Durham from the foreword

Over the course of the last millennium in Tibet, some tantric yogins have taken on norm-overturning modes of behavior, including provoking others to violence, publicly consuming filth, having sex, and dressing in human remains. While these individuals were called "mad," their apparent mental unwellness was not seen as resulting from any unfortunate circumstance, but symptomatic of having achieved a higher state of existence through religious practice. This book is the first comprehensive study of these "holy madmen," who have captured the imaginations of Tibetans and Westerners alike. Focusing on the lives and works of three "holy madmen" from the fifteenth century - the Madman of Tsang (Tsangnyon Heruka, or Sangye Gyeltsen, 1452-1507, and author of The Life of Milarepa), the Madman of U (Unyon Kungpa Sangpo, 1458-1532), and the Madman of the Drukpa Kagyu (Drukpa Kunle, 1455-1529). DiValerio shows how literary representations of these madmen came to play a role in the formation of sectarian identities and the historical mythologies of various sects. DiValerio also conveys a well-rounded understanding of the human beings behind these colorful personas by looking at the trajectories of their lives, their religious practices and their literary works, all in their due historical context. In the process he ranges from lesser-known tantric practices to central Tibetan politics to the nature of sainthood, and the "holy madmen" emerge as self-aware and purposeful individuals who were anything but crazy.

Over the course of the last millennium in Tibet, some tantric yogins have taken on norm-overturning modes of behavior, including provoking others to violence, publicly consuming filth, having sex, and dressing in human remains. While these individuals were called "mad," their apparent mental unwellness was not seen as resulting from any unfortunate circumstance, but symptomatic of having achieved a higher state of existence through religious practice. This book is the first comprehensive study of these "holy madmen," who have captured the imaginations of Tibetans and Westerners alike. Focusing on the lives and works of three "holy madmen" from the fifteenth century - the Madman of Tsang (Tsangnyon Heruka, or Sangye Gyeltsen, 1452-1507, and author of The Life of Milarepa), the Madman of U (Unyon Kungpa Sangpo, 1458-1532), and the Madman of the Drukpa Kagyu (Drukpa Kunle, 1455-1529). DiValerio shows how literary representations of these madmen came to play a role in the formation of sectarian identities and the historical mythologies of various sects. DiValerio also conveys a well-rounded understanding of the human beings behind these colorful personas by looking at the trajectories of their lives, their religious practices and their literary works, all in their due historical context. In the process he ranges from lesser-known tantric practices to central Tibetan politics to the nature of sainthood, and the "holy madmen" emerge as self-aware and purposeful individuals who were anything but crazy.

Looking at the crossroads between heritage and religion through the case study of Moravian Christiansfeld, designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in July 2015, this anthology reaches back to the eighteenth century when the church settlement was founded, examines its legacy within Danish culture and modern society, and brings this history into the present and the ongoing heritagization processes. Finally, it explores the consequences of the listing for the everyday life in Christiansfeld and discusses the possible and sustainable futures of a religious community in a World Heritage Site.

An essential guide to what it's like to spend a week inside
a Zen Buddhist monastery.

The notion of spending days at a time in silence and meditation amid the serene beauty of a Zen monastery may be appealing but how do you do it, and what can you really expect from the experience?

"Waking Up" provides the answers for everyone who's just curious, as well as for all those who have dreamed of actually giving it a try and now want to know where to begin.

Jack Maguire take us inside the monastery walls to present details of what it's like: the physical work, common meals, conversations with the monks and other residents, meditation, and other activities that fill an ordinary week. We learn: What kind of person resides in a Zen monastery? Why do people stay there/ And for how long? Must you be a Buddhist to spend time there? What do the people there do? What is a typical day like? How does the experience affect people's spiritual life once they're back home? How can I try it out?

A detailed "Guide to Zen and Buddhist Places" and a glossary of terms make "Waking Up" not only a handbook for the curious seeker, but an excellent resource for anyone wanting to know more about the Buddhist way.

A collection of extraordinary oral histories of American nuns, Habits of Change captures the experiences of women whose lives over the past fifty years have been marked by dramatic transformation. Bringing together women from more than forty different religious communities, most of whom entered religious life before Vatican II, the book shows how their lives were suddenly turned around in the 1960s--perhaps more so than any other group of contemporary women. Here these women speak of their active engagement in the events that disrupted their church and society and of the lives they lead today, offering their unique perspective on issues such as peace activism, global equality for women, and the clergy sexual abuse crisis. The interviewees include a Maryknoll missionary who spent decades in Africa, most recently in the Congo; an inner-city art teacher whose own paintings reflect the vibrancy of Haiti; a recovering alcoholic who at age 71 has embarked on her fourth ministry; a life-long nurse, educator, and hospital administrator; and an outspoken advocate for the gay and lesbian community. Told with simplicity, honesty, and passion, their stories deserve to be heard.

Written by a brilliant scholar, this book is the first volume of a major work, which makes full use of the very rich documentary material still surviving and relates it to the evidence of the chronicles. Oriental sources are not disregarded: use is made of Arabic material and the latest archaeological discoveries in the Near East. The author has concentrated upon the Order as an institution in the crusader states and as a powerful international religious corporation. He considers its growth to power, its participation in the polititcs of the Latin settlement in the East, its organisation, its position as an exempt Order of the Church, its properties and its methods of administration as a landlord in feudal states. For the first time, the Order of St John is treated in a way that is neither hostile nor romantically partisan: and the author's conclusions differ from those of other historians. In his description of the Hospitallers' policies, the place they occupied in the government of Latin Syria, their privileges and the way they lived, he shows how it was thay they - individuals as well as the corporate body - played such a significant part in the history of the Christian East in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. This book is important to all those interested in the Knights of St John, the international Orders of mediaeval Christendom or the extra-ordinary states established by western Europeans on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean.