The Miracle of the Bloody Foreskin at the Council of Charroux in 1082: Legatine Authority, Religious Spectacle, and Charismatic Strategies of Canonical Reform in the Era of Gregory VII
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: In 1082, at the council of Charroux convened by the papal legate Amatus of Oloron, astonished witnesses observed the Holy Prepuce, a rare body relic of Christ himself, to be miraculously spotted with fresh blood. This spectacular miracle holds implications for our understanding of charismatic strategies of religious reform in France in the era of Pope Gregory VII. Gregory’s use of standing legates with regional mandates, such as Amatus, was a novelty in papal administration, but the legates, though empowered as proxies of the pope, were often weak lieutenants. When they could not induce or coerce cooperation, they frequently confronted the impotence of their legal–canonical mandates. The miracle at Charroux, I will show, exemplifies an alternative charismatic strategy, harnessing liturgical art and spectacle to magnify the legate’s stature as an authority in the context of the Eucharistic controversy and religious reform.
Source: Religions
DOI: 10.3390/rel14030330
Author: Peter Scott Brown
Institution: University of North Florida
Language: English
Subfield: History
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,557
OpenAlex ID: W4322770843