Debating Medieval Natural Law: A Survey

171 Pages·2016·1.104 MB·English

by  Riccardo Saccenti

Debating MeDieval natural law

Debating
Medieval
natural law
a Survey
riccarDo Saccenti
University of Notre Dame Press
Notre Dame, Indiana
University of Notre Dame Press
Notre Dame, Indiana 46556
www.undpress.nd.edu
Copyright © 2016 by the University of Notre Dame
All Rights Reserved
Published in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Saccenti, Riccardo, author.
Title: Debating medieval natural law : a survey / Riccardo Saccenti.
Description: Notre Dame : University of Notre Dame Press, 2016. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016028707 (print) | LCCN 2016032539 (ebook) | ISBN
9780268100407 (hardcover : alk. paper) | ISBN 0268100403 (hardcover :
alk. paper) | ISBN 9780268100421 (pdf) | ISBN 9780268100438 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Natural law. | Law, Medieval—Influence.
Classification: LCC K460 .S23 2016 (print) | LCC K460 (ebook) |
DDC 340/.112—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016028707
ISBN 9780268100421
∞ This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992
(Permanence of Paper).
This e-Book was converted from the original source
file by a third-party vendor. Readers who notice any
formatting, textual, or readability issues are encouraged
to contact the publisher at [email protected].
To Donatella,
for our love,
and to Matilde Maria,
for her future

contentS
acknowledgments ix
Preface xi
introduction: Questions and research 1
Chapter 1. objectivity versus Subjectivity 13
Chapter 2. the Foundation of Political and Moral order 22
Chapter 3. the long road to a common lexicon 35
Chapter 4. breaks, continuities, and Shifts 44
Chapter 5. Highlights and Shadows of a Portrait 57
conclusion 76
notes 81
bibliography 131
index 149
vii

acKnowleDgMentS
i am in debt to the many people who supported the research and
writing of this book, although of course i alone am responsible for
its contents. this book is the first product of a research project con-
cerning the relation between the historical development of the idea
of natural law and the magisterium of the church. the Fondazione
per le Scienze religiose giovanni XXiii in bologna has supported
this research since 2012. alberto Melloni, director of the Fonda-
zione, took special interest in my research, offering invaluable sug-
gestions and comments. i would like to express my deep gratitude
for his support and his trust in my work. at the Fondazione my
interest in natural law was shared by cinzia Sulas, who always of-
fered keen observations during our discussions. i am grateful to her
for this exchange of ideas and for her kindness.
on several occasions, i presented and discussed the contents
of this book with all my colleagues at the Fondazione in bologna.
with some of them i had the opportunity to discuss my research
on a daily basis, and i profited greatly from their friendly notes and
comments. i would like to thank especially Patrizio Foresta, Dino
buzzetti and Davide Dainese, as well as Pier cesare bori, who
passed away before i completed my research project.
Several friends and colleagues read the manuscript and offered
wise suggestions. i am grateful to gianfranco Fioravanti, christian
Moevs, timothy noone, constant Mews and Francesco borghesi.
i also would like to thank Julia Schneider for her essential and pa-
tient revision of the english text and Frederick lauritzen for his
stylistic advice. the anonymous reviewers who read the text dur-
ing the peer review process offered useful comments, for which i
would like to thank them. i also offer my gratitude to the staff of
the university of notre Dame Press for their care and assistance as
i prepared the manuscript for publication.
ix