Date of Award
12-2017
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
History
First Advisor
Dr. Robert F. Berkhofer III
Second Advisor
Dr. Larry Simon
Third Advisor
Dr. James Palmitessa
Keywords
Cathars, heretics, Inquisition, Perfectae, preaching
Access Setting
Masters Thesis-Open Access
Abstract
This Master’s Thesis builds on the work of previous historians, such as Anne Brenon and John Arnold. It is primarily a study of gendered aspects in the Cathar heresy. Using inquisitorial registers from the mid-thirteenth century to the early-fourteenth, as well as a few poetic and prose sources, it seeks to understand how the Cathar “Good Women” were perceived by their lay believers. The methodology of prosopography is utilized throughout to measure witness testimonies against one another and to compare the connections between the Cathar constituency and the female ministers.
Two main inquiries are investigated: the sacerdotal and pastoral roles of the Good Women. In chapter one, an investigation of a single village of the Lauragais, Fanjeaux, shows how the perfectae interacted with the lay population. In chapters two and three, their preaching is underscored. In both areas, it becomes evident that while men and women equally participated in their audiences, this equality is restricted to the nobility. Non-nobles within the Lauragais are repeatedly shown to have undervalued the Good Women’s ministry. Ultimately, the thesis concludes that a single interpretation of female Cathar spirituality, and the Good Women themselves, fails to adequately explain their origins and activities.
Recommended Citation
Benson, Derek Robert, "Life among Good Women: The Social and Religious Impact of the Cathar Perfectae in the Thirteenth-Century Lauragais" (2017). Masters Theses. 2008.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/2008