medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Dear Cecilia,
I've just been reading Jacques Le Goff, The Birth of Purgatory, and
although I'm hardly an expert in these matters, this probably relates to
a place often identified as "the bosom of Abraham". From Augustine
until the theory of Purgatory itself was formalized in the 13th century,
there were generally four places to which the souls of the dead were
thought to go, pending the arrival of the Last Judgement, corresponding
to the perfectly good (the saints), who would go directly to Paradise,
the perfectly bad, who would go directly to hell, and then the not
perfectly good and the not perfectly bad, who would both have to stand
judgement after the resurrection of the dead. The not perfectly bad
were often thought to go to a sort of upper region of hell, while the
not perfectly good would go to a place of refreshment (refrigerium)
which, as I said, was sometimes characterized as the bosom of Abraham.
It seems to me from what I've been reading that it would be altogether
too hasty to conclude that this neat system constituted a general,
consistent belief, since the other world appears to have been conceived
of in rather fuzzy and often contradictory terms. But that seems the
most likely interpretation of your phrase. Crusaders began to be
offered plenary indulgences, which might be construed, I suppose, as
offering them direct access to Paradise at death, but the 10th century
seems too early for that.
Cheers,
Jim
Cecilia Gaposchkin wrote:
> medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
> Doctissimi,
>
> At 10th century prayer (in honor of those "about to journey" but not
> explicitly about pilgrimage) talks of the "iustae dispensationis
> loca". May God lead them to the "iustae dispensationis loca". How
> would you all interpret this phrase?
>
> tx,
> cecilia
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