The Privilege of Poverty
Clare of Assisi, Agnes of Prague, and the Struggle for a Franciscan Rule for Women
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Pennsylvania State University Press
Published:15th Nov '07
Should be back in stock very soon
This paperback is available in another edition too:
- Hardback£43.95(9780271028934)
This book explores the life of Clare and her dedication to poverty, revealing the significant roles women played in the early Franciscan movement, particularly in The Privilege of Poverty.
In the early thirteenth century, a young woman named Clare was profoundly influenced by the teachings of Francis of Assisi, prompting her to renounce her possessions and commit to a life of radical poverty. While Clare is often remembered for her connection to Francis, her own journey toward establishing a Franciscan Rule for women deserves greater recognition. In The Privilege of Poverty, Joan Mueller uncovers this compelling narrative, reshaping our understanding of early Franciscan history and the pivotal role women played within it.
Clare understood, as did Francis, the necessity of a Rule to safeguard the 'privilege of poverty'—a papal exemption allowing women’s monasteries to exist without relying on endowments. Women in the early Franciscan movement, like Clare, made significant sacrifices, including giving their dowries to the poor, demonstrating both holiness and political acumen. Mueller highlights the influential role of Agnes of Prague, a close collaborator of Clare, who turned down an engagement to Emperor Frederick II to establish a monastery in Prague. Agnes adeptly leveraged the papacy's need for political alliances to secure the privilege of poverty for her community and initiated a hospital for the needy in the city.
The dedication of Clare and Agnes bore fruit when Pope Innocent IV approved a Franciscan Rule for women, centered around the privilege of poverty, at Clare's deathbed in 1253. Just two years later, Clare was canonized, and the Poor Clares emerged as contemplative and active communities, upholding the ideals that inspired both Francis and Clare. The Privilege of Poverty not only sheds light on Franciscan history but also redefines it, emphasizing the essential contributions of women in the early Franciscan movement.
“This is an extraordinary contribution to the field. Mueller brings together all the available primary and secondary sources in multiple languages. The result is a book that will appeal to medievalists of every discipline, as well as to scholars of women’s and religious history.”
—Larissa J. Taylor, Colby College
“This is a very impressive work. Mueller sets out to pursue the long series of negotiations that went into designing a Franciscan life for women. She begins with Clare and Agnes, who were inspired by the model provided by St. Francis, or at least the model as they saw it. When they attempted to gain the papal permission to pursue that model, they found that the popes whose permission they required saw the life proper to a female religious quite differently. Mueller does a good job of explaining how the models differed and why. She places the ongoing struggle between the two women and the popes in a credible ecclesiastical context.”
—David Burr, Virginia Tech, author of The Spiritual Franciscans: From Protest to Persecution in the Century After Saint Francis
“It will be important for academic study and for those leading religious lives. Brava!”
—Constance Hoffman Berman International History Review
“In demonstrating that Franciscan women were from the beginning courted by Franciscan brothers and the papacy as devout contemplatives, Mueller redefines early Franciscan history by showing that women were essential partners with Franciscan friars.”
—J. M. B. Porter CHOICE
“Mueller knows the texts intimately and although she is less secure on the wider background. . . . She brings to life a world which is at once fascinating and problematic.”
—Frances Andrews Ecclesiastical History
“Mueller provides an accomplished description of ecclesiastical and imperial politics, while at the same time honoring the spiritual ideals that motivated Clare and Agnes. The reader is treated to an engaging narrative that ably balances the world of secular politics with the spirituality of the cloister.”
—Elizabeth A. Lehfeldt Canadian Journal of History
“This well-researched book presents an impressive bibliography that includes primary and secondary sources in various languages. Moreover, this study integrates both male and female Franciscan sources, offering an interesting ‘mutual’ reading of such sources, as Mueller herself points out in her introduction to the volume. The Privilege of Poverty is a significant contribution to the field of religious history and women’s history as well as medieval studies.”
—Maria Esposito Frank Sixteenth Century Journal
ISBN: 9780271027692
Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 14mm
Weight: 295g
192 pages