CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2013
| Author | Hespen, Holger |
|---|---|
| Title | Conceptions of the Afterlife in the Works of Gregory the Great |
| Summary | Gregory the Great's descriptions of the afterlife, especially in the fourth book of his Dialogues, had a major influence on the perception of life after death in the Middle Ages. His vision narratives are vivid and colorful, emphasizing the corporeal aspects of eternal punishment (and reward) rather than a spiritual Judgment. Therefore, they have been interpreted as signs of a newly developing distinctive Medieval theology, differing from Antique tradition. Contrary to this ex post interpretation, I intend to understand Gregory's stories against the background of his very special cultural and historical circumstances. Focusing on the descriptions in the Dialogues, but also contrasting them with other of Gregory's works, I analyze the three major aspects of the afterlife: hell, purgatory, and (to a lesser extent) heaven. The omnipresence of the Beyond in the Dialogues can be explained in part by the contemporary curiosity in the destiny of the soul after death. However, in order to achieve a fuller understanding of Gregory's “eschatological urgency”, his perception of the world has to be considered thoroughly. Seeing signs of the approaching apocalypse everywhere, Gregory tried to convince as many people as possible that just a proper Christian lifestyle can save them from eternal damnation. The dreadful conditions of sixth-century Italy shaped his conceptions of the afterlife significantly and explain why his ideas differ in many respects from Augustine's eschatology. |
| Supervisor | Geréby, György László |
| Department | Medieval Studies MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2013/hespen_holger.pdf |
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