Magna Carta, canon law and pastoral care: excommunication and the church's publication of the charter
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Authors
Hill, Felicity G
Publication Date
2016-11Journal Title
Historical Research
ISSN
0950-3471
Publisher
Wiley
Volume
89
Issue
246
Pages
636-650
Language
en
Type
Article
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Hill, F. G. (2016). Magna Carta, canon law and pastoral care: excommunication and the church's publication of the charter. Historical Research, 89 (246), 636-650. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2281.12151
Abstract
This article argues that the church's strenuous efforts to publicize Magna Carta can only be fully understood when viewed in the context of canon law and pastoral care. The automatic sentence of excommunication that fell on anyone who infringed Magna Carta meant that every Christian in medieval England needed to know not just the general principles of the charter, but the contents of every clause. Clergymen had a duty to ensure that their parishioners did not unwittingly incur the sanction, thereby endangering their souls. Thus the threat of excommunication had a profound effect on the political awareness of English society, as a result of the church's obligation to look out for the spiritual welfare of its members.
Identifiers
External DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2281.12151
This record's URL: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/280031
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