The American Society of Church History is soliciting proposals for papers and panels for its meeting 7-10 January 2016 in Atlanta.

The program committee would very much like to have a significant number of medieval sessions. While the proposed overarching theme is reform, paper and especially panel proposals on any topic are welcome.

The call for papers may be accessed at http://www.churchhistory.org/upcoming-events/

On Sunday morning, August 3, 2014, our friend and colleague Riccardo Quinto passed away after a long illness. He was born in Italy in 1961, and he taught the History of Philosophy at the University of Padua. As a scholar of medieval philosophy and theology, he has published several studies on Stephen Langton and on the Masters of the sacred page. For the series "Auctores Britannici Medii Aevi", he coordinated the critical edition of Stephen Langton's "Quaestiones Theologiae". As a member of the International Medieval Sermon Studies Society, he contributed to the organization of the XII Symposium of the IMSSS (Padua, 2000), and he was co-editor of both Medieval Sermon Studies (Maney Publishing, Leeds) and the series "Sermo: Studies on Patristic, Medieval, and Reformation Sermons and Preaching" (Brepols Publishers, Turnhout). His death leaves a big loss in our hearts and in the international community of medieval sermon studies. 

 A collection is under way for Riccardo’s widow Hilary and their two children, who are probably in for a rather tight time financially. It is a practical way to show our affection for Riccardo. Anyone who wants to contribute can do so by transferring money into the account of his colleague Giovanni Catapano (University of Padua), who is making the collection:

Bank Name = Cassa di Risparmio del Friuli Venezia Giulia Bank Address = Via Mazzini, 12 - 33170 Pordenone (PN) - Italy Bank Branch = 03056 - Pordenone sede IBAN = IT 89 G 06340 12500 07407800109P BIC = IBSPIT2U

The keyword for the transfer could be ‘Quinto fund’. 

For anyone who wants to send an accompanying message, his email is [email protected]

This workshop will be held in November 2011 in Warsaw (Poland). 

Its theme is dedicated to sermonic issues.

Please see the program, in Polish and English.

In case of questions please contact us by e-mail at [email protected]

- Tomasz Ossowski

European Medieval culture was based largely on oral transmission and preaching was one of the most important vehicles of teaching and learning. Numerous preachers across Europe condemned vices and praised virtues in order to instruct and exhort both lay and religious people in regard to faith and morals. Considering the role sermons played in religious life, preachers were exhorted to act following rules established by Artes praedicandi, manuals on formal composition, so to find the best way to convey the religious message. These treatises (which depicted different models of sermon) provided preachers with directives regarding sermon contents, structure, rhetoric; nonetheless they also listed a lot of rules preachers were expected to follow in their daily activity and in their habits. As it is clear, Artes Praedicandi defined the theory of sermon, still preaching was a lively event, subjected to the context in which it took place, continually changing for the differences both of the preachers and of audiences. This session of the IMC, which is sponsored by the International Medieval Sermon Studies Society, seeks to decline the theme of Leeds 2012 (“Rules to follow... or not”) addressing three constitutive elements of preaching: sermons, preachers, audiences.

See the Call for Papers for more information. 

Dear members - please find here our call for papers for the upcoming 18th Symposium, to be held in Brescia, 20-24 July 2012.