Roberto Rusconi

Women and religion in medieval and Renaissance Italy

Between the 12th and the 16th centuries, women assumed public roles of unprecedented prominence in Italian religious culture. Legally subordinated, politically excluded, socially limited and ideologically disdained, womens active participation in religious life offered them access to power in all its forms. These essays explore the involvement of women in religious life throughout northern and central Italy and trace the evolution of communities of pious women as they tried to achieve their devotional goals despite the strictures of the ecclesiastical hierarchy. The contributors examine relations between holy women, their devout followers and society at large. This book shows how women were able to carve out broad areas of influence by carefully exploiting the institutional church and by astutely manipulating religious precepts.

La historia del fin: cristianismo y milenarismo

The paper offers an overview of the presence of millenarist elements in the history of Christianity form its very early days until the XVIII century. Ruscon...

Le devozioni nella società di massa

Il volume analizza i mutamenti del culto dei santi e delle forme devozionali nella societa di massa attraverso contributi dedicati ai singoli media, dal teatro, ai settimanali illustrati, dal cinema alla televisione, dal fumetto a Internet.