Item Details

abstract

Medieval holy women were revered for their power and efforts, by both their communities and the Church. However, what are contemporary women to make of these female saints? This paper will examine Blessed Angela of Foligno (1248 – 1309), a Franciscan tertiary, and Saint Catherine of Siena (1347 – 1380), a Dominican tertiary. They were Catholic holy women from medieval Italy. These two women had mystical visions and practiced extreme mortification. While such behaviors may seem strange and somewhat detrimental to the modern feminist scholar, we must examine these behaviors from the context of the time period of Angela and Catherine. This paper will attempt to contextualize the actions and texts of both women, to show that though they appear on the surface to be the submissive ‘lambs’ of the Church which today’s feminists vilify, underneath the ‘lamb’s clothing’ of orthodoxy they are more akin to the ‘wolves’ contemporary feminists are seeking for inspiration. Angela and Catherine submitted to the Church by practicing imitatio Christi, becoming part of official orders as tertiaries and revealing their actions and visions to confessors. In their behavior and writings, both women supported the ideals of the Church. This conformity allowed Angela and Catherine to avoid charges of heresy and to carve out a space for themselves within the Catholic Church. However, both women threatened to cross the line into heterodoxy with their critiques of the Church and the extreme degree to which they took their asceticism. In addition to their sanctity amongst the laity, both women were able to usurp some of the Church’s spiritual authority through their actions and texts. Thus, though both women wore the ‘lamb’s clothing’ of conformity, they were ‘wolves’ underneath.

subject

fasting

self-harm

female mysticism

papacy

lay Religious

stigmata

hagiography

medieval society

religious Orders

denial of the body

flagellation

body theory

contributor

Roberson, Caroljane (author)

Foskett, Mary (committee chair)

Wiethaus, Ulrike (committee member)

Atwood, Craig (committee member)

date

2009-05-06T15:56:03Z (accessioned)

2010-06-18T18:58:34Z (accessioned)

2009-05-06T15:56:03Z (available)

2010-06-18T18:58:34Z (available)

2009-05-06T15:56:03Z (issued)

degree

Religion (discipline)

identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/14778 (uri)

language

en_US (iso)

publisher

Wake Forest University

rights

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide. (accessRights)

title

Wolves in Lamb's Clothing: Redeeming the Images of Catherine of Siena and Angela of Foligno

type

Thesis