On Tue, 21 Oct 1997 21:21:54 -0400 (EDT) "Frederick S. Roden"
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> > >
> Personally, I've always loved the passage in the _Ancrene Wisse_ that
> suggests it's a good thing for anchoresses to have cats. But then I
> suppose they're closer to monks than mendicants, so...
>
A throwaway remark, I know, but I can't resist replying. One of the
things which distinguishes AW is its apparent hostility at times to
traditional monasticism (in the narrow sense), and the
relatively high value it attaches to extra-monastic forms of
religious life, both preaching in the world and anchoritism. Since it
seems to have been written for lay-anchoresses (i.e. women outside a
traditional religious institution), and quite possibly by a Dominican
(there are some striking parallels in both the original version and
the revision in Corpus 402 to the early Dominican constitutions),
this isn't (perhaps) surprising. But I am working on an article on
this at the moment...
----------------------
Bella Millett
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