The Oath in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages
Religious Act, Social Bond, Holy Sacrament
Hardback (Published)
(September 2026)
ISBN: 9782503621005
6.14 x 9.21 inches
Price: $138.00
Focusing on the uses of oaths in Christian contexts between the first and eleventh centuries, and on theologians’ reflections on swearing of oaths, the contributions to this volume take a closer look into the inner fabric of late antique and early medieval societies and their religiously-shaped conceptions of political loyalty and social cohesion.
In societies both past and present, oaths appear to be an almost universal phenomenon and an indispensable tool for creating social relations and obligations. In Christianity, however, their use is characterized by a fundamental tension: in the Sermon on the Mount, its founder explicitly forbade the swearing of oaths. Despite Jesus’ prohibition, the period between the fourth and the eleventh centuries witnessed an enormous spread and diversification in the use of oaths. This process generated a great deal of reflection and debates on the swearing of oaths, on their legitimacy, significance, and meaning, and also on their limits.
This volume provides a history of the oath in the West, from classical Rome to the Carolingian era. The contributions deal with the Biblical foundations of and Patristic attitudes towards oath-swearing, before moving to Late Antiquity, when Christianity came to dominate the discourse on the topic. The volume then focuses on the ninth century, when theologians began to regard the oath as a holy sacrament, discussed its relation to other sacraments, and reflected on oath-bound political loyalty — a topic that played a major role in the Investiture Controversy.
In surveying the use and theory of oaths in Christian contexts between the first and eleventh centuries, this volume offers a new perspective on the inner fabric of late antique and early medieval societies and their religiously-shaped conceptions of political loyalty and social cohesion.
Other Titles in this Series
Between Personal and Institutional Religion
Self, Doctrine, and Practice in Late Antique Eastern Christianity
Volume 15
De Sion exibit lex et verbum domini de Hierusalem
Essays on Medieval Law, Liturgy and Literature in Honour of Amnon Linder
Volume 1
D’Orient en Occident
Les recueils de fables enchassees avant les Mille et une Nuits de Galland (Barlaam et Josaphat, Calila et Dimna, Disciplina clericalis, Roman des Sept Sages)
Volume 16
Women in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages
Studies from Western Europe and North Africa
Volume 44
The Introduction of Christianity into the Early Medieval Insular World
Converting the Isles I
Volume 19
Writing in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem
Inscription and Graffiti in a Multilingual and Multigraphic Perspective
Volume 45
Historiography and Identity VI
Competing Narratives of the Past in Central and Eastern Europe, c. 1200 -c. 1600
Volume 32
Incubation in Early Byzantium
The Formation of Christian Incubation Cults and Miracle Collections
Volume 41
Carolingian Scholarship and Martianus Capella
Ninth-Century Commentary Traditions on 'De nuptiis' in Context
Volume 12
Transforming Landscapes of Belief in the Early Medieval Insular World and Beyond
Converting the Isles II
Volume 23
Political Ritual and Practice in Capetian France
Essays in Honour of Elizabeth A. R. Brown
Volume 34
Motions of Late Antiquity
Essays on Religion, Politics, and Society in Honour of Peter Brown
Volume 20
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