Worlds of Difference: European Discourses of Toleration, C. 1100-C. 1550

by Nederman, Cary J.

• ISBN13: 9780271020167
• ISBN10: 0271020164
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-09-01
• Publisher: Pennsylvania State Univ Pr

Summary

Toleration has become a keystone of liberal political philosophy, but with liberalism under attack today as inadequate for dealing with all the problems of a pluralistic world, other resources are needed. Cary Nederman directs our attention to the creative thinking about toleration that preceded the rise of liberalism and canvasses the diverse ideas proposed then within Christianity as a response to religious, cultural, national, and ethnic differences.

Author Biography

Cary J. Nederman is co-editor of Difference and Dissent: Theories of Toleration in Medieval and Early Modern Europe (Rowman and Littlefield, 1996) and Beyond the Persecuting Society: Religious Toleration Before the Enlightenment (Penn, 1998)

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Introduction: Toward a More Tolerant Middle Ages	1	(10)
Beyond Intolerance: Sources and Sites of Medieval Religious Dispute	11	(14)
Demonstration and Mutual Edification in Inter-religious Dialogue	25	(14)
Skepticism, Liberty, and the ``Clash of Ideas'' in John of Salisbury's Writings	39	(14)
Negotiating the Tolerant Society: The Travail of William of Rubruck	53	(16)
Heresy and Community in Marsiglio of Padua's Political Thought	69	(16)
Nationality and the ``Variety of Rites'' in Nicholas of Cusa	85	(14)
Equality, Civilization, and the American Indians in the Writings of Las Casas	99	(24)
Conclusion: Tolerating Different Worlds	117	(6)
Notes	123	(20)
Bibliography	143	(10)
Index	153