medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
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Besides these authors there are works by Raymond de Roover, Julius Kirshner and others. The most recent to come my way:
Credito e usura fra teologia, diritto e amministrazione :
linguaggi a confronto, sec. XII-XVI /
Diego Quaglioni; Giacomo Todeschini; Gian Maria Varanini
2005
Italian Book Book 308 p. ; 24 cm.
Tom Izbicki
Thomas Izbicki
Collection Development Coordinator
Eisenhower Library
Johns Hopkins
Baltimore, MD 21218
(410)516-7173
fax (410)516-8399
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medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Dear Sharon,
first a few references concerning the subject:
For the scholastic discussion:
J. T. Noonan, The Scholastic Analysis of Usury (1957)
T.P. Mc Laughlin, The Teaching of the Canonists on Usury (XII, XIII and XIV
Centuries), Mediaeval Studies 1 (1939) and 2 (1940)
O. Langholm, Economics in the Mediaeval Schools. Wealth, Exchange, Value,
Monea and Usury according to the Paris Theological Tradition 1200-1300
(1992)
For the earlier times is H. Siems, Handel und Wucher im Spiegel
frühmittelalterlicher Rechtsquellen (Schriften der Monumenta Germaniae
Historica 35, 1992) an excellent analysis.
Usury and interest was already in pre-Christian antiquity a rather
disreputable business which was disdained i.a. by Aristotle, Plautus und
Cicero.
The Bible forbids usury at several locations: more or less unequivocally in
Ps. 14, 5 and Lucas 2, 34 sq. Deut. 23. 19 sq. forbids it except in treating
with foreigners.
The rather few biblical condemnations became extremely important as
practically all Fathers condemned usury, and Leo I even found it "difficult
that any trade between seller and buyer takes place without sin" - a verdict
taken up by Gratian and thus part and parcel of canon law until the early
20th century.
c. 17 of Nikaia threatened clerics taking usury with deposition and again
Leo I extended the interdiction to all christians. That those interdictions
had to be repeated often e.g. by Charlemagne and Louis the Pious shows,
however, that the effect of such laws was rather limited indeed.
In Carolingian penitentials usury normally entails three years of penance
with bread and water only as meals and one could quote extensively
condemnations of usury.
However, already in the early Middle Ages we find different tendencies: Cod.
Theod. 2,33,1 forbids to take more than 1 p.c. interest per month (or 12
p.c. per year) ("vetatur"). Some Frankish copist of Cod Theod. simply wrote
"non vetatur" instead of "vetatur" and thus made life much easier for
money-lenders.
But official ecclesiastical doctrine remained hostile to usury. The second
Lateran Council (10. Ecumenical. 1139) punished usury with infamy and
forbade to bury the usurer in the church yard unless he had given back
whatever he had taken as interest from the debtor(s). 40 years later the
next Ecumenical Council (3rd Lateran 1179) hardened this attitude further:
Even if the usurer had given back his turpe lucrum on his deathbed he was
not to buried in the churchyard. This official attitude culminated in the
canons of 15. Ecumenical Council: all city statutes are null and void if
they allow interest; any judge is to be excommunicated if his sentence
allows a moneylender to take interest, and whoever speaks against the
interdiction of interest, or even only doubts it, is a heretic (since the
13th centuy heretics were to be burnt at the stake).
Martin Luther prescribed that his pastors had to preach without intermission
agains usury and only Calvin among the reformers permitted interest taking
unequivocally.
I would generally be skeptical about such sweeping generalizations as "Had
the church of piety prevailed Christianity probably would have continued to
denounce usury and to oppose profit and materialism in general, just as
Islam still does." In the case of interest and usury they are simply
counterfactual.
Regards and a Happy New Year
Karl-Georg Schon
-----Original Message-----
From: medieval-religion - Scholarly discussions of medieval religious
culture [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Sharon Dale
Sent: Freitag, 30. Dezember 2005 18:34
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [M-R] usury and the church
Sapienti: In reading a book review this AM,
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/30/books/30book.html
I came upon the following:
Mr. Stark sneaks in one of his most intriguing theories late in the book. He
notes that soon after the Roman emperor Constantine converted to
Christianity in 312, he began showering the church with money and
privileges, making it an attractive career for the upper classes. The
"church of piety," run by dedicated, poorly paid and ascetic clergy, gave
way to the "church of power," which was far less likely to impede the growth
of commerce. Had the church of piety prevailed, he writes, "Christianity
probably would have continued to denounce usury and to oppose profit and
materialism in general, just as Islam still does."
What was the Church's view of usury in the middle ages? Happy New Year to
all. Best, Sharon
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