medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
A striking example of the power of an oath sworn on the Gospels (stolen, in this
case) is provided by the last three stanzas of the "Contrasto" of Cielo d'Alcamo
(Sicilian, between 1231 and 1250).
"Ben sazzo, 'arma dòleti, com'omo ch'ave arsura.
Esto fatto non pòtesi per null'altra misura;
se non ha' le Vangel[i]e, che mo'ti dico 'Jura''
avere me non puoi in tua podesta;
inanti pren[n]i e taglami la testa"'
"Le Vangel[i]e, càrama? ch'io le porto in seno;
a lo mostero présile (non ci era lo patrino).
Sovr'esto libro jùroti mai non ti vegno meno.
Arcompli mi' talento in caritate,
ché l'arma me ne sta in sut[t]ilitate".
"Meo sire, poi jurastimi, eo tut[t]a quanta incenno.
Sono a la tua presenz[i]a, da voi non mi difenno.
S'eo minespreso àjoti, merzé, a voi m'arenno.
A lo letto ne gimo a la bon'ora,
ché chissa cosa n'è data in ventura".
I hope this will be useful.
Best wishes,
Brian M.
Quoting Jonathan Elukin <[log in to unmask]>:
> medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
>
> Dear Colleagues,
>
> I am beginning a project on how medieval people took oaths. We know, of
> course, that they either swore oaths over Gospel books or over relics. I am
> interested in studying the interrelationship of these two practices. Did one
> take precedence over the other? Were certain oaths taken over the Gospels
> and others over relics? Was there a chronology where oaths over Scripture
> displaced oaths over relics? I would be grateful for any suggestions of
> scholarly works touching on this issue or of references to accounts of oath
> taking involving either the Gospels or relics. Many thanks in advance for
> any help or guidance.
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
> Jonathan Elukin
> Associate Professor
> Department of History
> Trinity College
> Hartford, CT 06106
> 860-297-4264
> [log in to unmask]
>
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