REL 32.07 Medieval Practices of Ascension
This course considers medieval western Christianity through the lens of practices related to “ascending towards” or “becoming like” God. A central feature of western religiosity prior to the Reformation, men and women, secular and religious, sought to transcend the shackles of base matter in order to become new, spiritual creatures. In this course, we investigate their journeys, and we question why the Reformation sought to curb practices of ascent and whether or not it succeeded.
Distributive and/or World Culture