Dear Gary Dickson [and everyone else]
I've just read with some pleasure your review of Richard Fletcher's The
Conversion of Europe in today's Times Higher Ed Supplement. I am
intrigued by your notion of 'conversion' that you mention in critique and
supplement to what Fletcher puts forward: in particular, your account of
people who are nominally christian experiencing 'conversion' when (for
example) entering a monastery, or (even more interesting example) going
on crusade. This you characterize as a 'passage from a nominal eternality
[externality?] to an intensely experienced [and behaviourally
manifested] internality'.
I have some questions here - particularly about the relationship between
that 'internality' and the 'behavioural' bit; and about how conversion in
this way comes about - but I would really like to hear a bit more about
your thoughts in this area. That is, if you feel able to share them with
the rest of this list...
[To the rest of the list:]
I'm also interested in what anyone else thinks about Fletcher's book. I
haven't read it myself yet, but he taught me as an undergraduate, and I
have a fair idea of what his thoughts and interests will be.
cheers
john arnold
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