The Mediaeval Church

by Roland H. Bainton

In this volume the author examines the role of the Christian Church in the formation of Western civiliation, tracing institutional developments as well as the religious and intellectual life during the period 400-1500 A.D......It is a history of the medieval Church that combines both source material and narrative. Within each discussion, the author refers the reader to pertinent documentary readings, included for reference and analysis. Most of these documents have been freshly translated by the author, and many of their passages are little known though highly characteristic oof the period. Significant biographical details and anecdotes are interspersed throughout the essay.

Genres: History, Christianity, Religion

192 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1963

About the author

Roland Herbert Bainton, Ph.D. (Yale University; A.B., Whitman College), served forty-two years as Titus Street Professor of Ecclesiastical History at Yale Divinity School. A specialist in Reformation history, he continued writing well into his twenty years of retirement. His most popular book, Here I Stand, sold more than a million copies.

Ordained as a Congregationist minister, he never served as the pastor of a congregation.

Reviews

[Joel Zartman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bainton tells the overview competently and in an engaging way. Any book of his I see, I buy. Half of this book is the story, the second half of the book is a selection of primary texts that the reader can use to move between the evidence and the story. Many of these samples from primary literature are in Bainton's own translation.

[Kenneth · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent survey of medieval church history, with extensive quotations from original sources.

[Sean McGowan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, but really good overview.

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excerpts of key documents from the Medieval period. It wets one's appetite to read the full documents.