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8th out of 223 books
—
130 voters
Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe
by
John Boswell
Both highly praised and intensely controversial, this brilliant book produces dramatic evidence that at one time the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches not only sanctioned unions between partners of the same sex, but sanctified them--in ceremonies strikingly similar to heterosexual marriage ceremonies.
Paperback, 464 pages
Published
May 30th 1995
by Vintage
(first published 1994)
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This huge work of scholarship brings to light pre-modern documents concerning heterosexual marriages and same-sex unions. Don't be fooled by the title! Our modern sense of the phrase "same-sex unions" sometimes gets interpreted as "same-sex marriages," which really isn't the case with this book.
Sure, there may have been same-sex unions that entailed more than strong friendship or spiritual unity, but reading this book made me realize how diluted our sense of friendship - and how uneducated our k...more
Sure, there may have been same-sex unions that entailed more than strong friendship or spiritual unity, but reading this book made me realize how diluted our sense of friendship - and how uneducated our k...more
Superb book altho' too scholarly and too footnoted for the average reader....makes the undeniable case that throughout much of Europe--both East and West--same-sex "unions" were widely known and recognized, and often accompanied by formal nuptial ceremonies...in many cases, with priests as witnesses or officiants. Both the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern church had formalized liturgies, and several dozen have been found in various archives and libraries. Observers recall witnessing such ce...more
John Boswell's meticulously researched book may find its audience limited because of its title. While the author is mostly interested in same-sex marriages the entire first half of the book is necessarily dedicated to an exploration of the origins of marriage in general. I almost found tracing the evolution of marriage more interesting than the same-sex union ceremonies he has uncovered. The roots of marriage (even Christian marriage) are quite different from what one might expect.
Boswell goes t...more
Boswell goes t...more
Despite a certain amount of enlightenment, I did not enjoy reading this book one bit. It was too academic for me and how could it be anything other than that seeing as it contained 20 pages of ancient Greek text, pages and pages of translated documents and hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of footnotes.
A large part of this book was about trying to understand the meaning of words, such as brother or sister, in the context that they were used and attempting to put aside the modern meaning. It als...more
A large part of this book was about trying to understand the meaning of words, such as brother or sister, in the context that they were used and attempting to put aside the modern meaning. It als...more
This book blew my mind. As a historian of Roman religion, early Christianity and the Medieval Church, I never dreamed that the documents he's uncovered would actually exist out there. He's unearthed actual Christian liturgy for same-sex unions, prayers and blessings that couldn't be clearer about giving sanction to the spiritual bond between two people of the same sex the same way the Church does for opposite sex couples. As logical evidence in the current debate, this feels like "game, set, mat...more
Make no mistake, this is a scholarly text. It is not fluffy, it is not an easy read. There are numerous inclusions of Greek, Arabic, Latin, Russian and Hebrew in the text, in the footnotes, and, in some cases, entire works in these languages in the appendix. It is a well documented, well researched treatise on Same Sex Unions in Premodern Europe (meaning from the time of Ancient Greek and Roman culture up through the end of the "Dark Ages" in Europe)
Truthfully, I had no idea how much I didn't k...more
Truthfully, I had no idea how much I didn't k...more
Before reading this book, I was under the impression that there was no history of same sex unions in premodern europe. It turns out that, in fact, there was enough to fill a very large book with things you'll never learn about in school. Most notable is the discussion of early Christianity and it's view of marriage vs. the marriage beliefs of judaism at the time. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is not already a scholar of the subject.
Although Boswell made some effort to make this accessible to a general audience (in terms of what information was included), it is at heart a scholarly text. Things like heavily academic vocabulary ("misprision" instead of "misunderstand", and "adduced" instead of "caused"), abundant untransilterated Greek and Cyrillic, and copious footnotes make this something of a slog to read. The information itself is interesting, but not presented with the average reader in mind.
It is a difficult read. It is a book of scholarship written in the language of the serious scholar. This does not mean that the interested reader should not scale this mountain. If one has the discipline and the interest to read through its pages, the rewards are many.
The controversies that exist today within the Christian religions in regard to same-sex relationships/ unions/ marriages are not rooted in the history, philosophy or theology of the early Christian church. Records of ceremonies in...more
While the sections on Ancient Greece and Rome are quite Interesting, it was the later chapters on the early Catholic church that were most eye-opening. The material in the appendix, which includes translations of the ceremonies themselves, is also worth wandering through. Overall, a recommended read for any interested in premodern sexuality and marriage, not just those interested LGBTQ history.
Boswell has drawn on a wide range of sources from a number of countries which seem to describe same sex unions which were santified and sanction by the church and other legal and administratove bodies. Accessible read supported by very thorough footnotes!
Fascinating. Marriage is not even close to what you probably thought it was. Especially not Christian concepts of marriage. Those squawking about gay marriage not being traditional (and heck, those on the other side of the debate) should take a gander at this work. Super academic, but accessible and interesting as well.
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While some have criticized this work, I don't find such criticism credible. Just because the evidence is rare doesn't exclude it from our common history.
Wow, this is a dense read. But just documenting that the church, at one time, sanctions same-sex marriage is important.
Wishful thinking at best, Ridiculous and revisionist in all truth.
A lot of the larger picture was lost in an overwhelming amount of attention to detail - need he waste so much time on the concept of brothers and sisters? We got it, Boswell, move on. Is it also necessary to use the original Greek letters in every other sentence? If only the average reader of this academic text were fluent or even functionally literate in ancient Greek. To be sure, Boswell assumed he would be.
I feel like this had the potential to be a much more enlightening book. Unforunately, i...more
I feel like this had the potential to be a much more enlightening book. Unforunately, i...more
Overall fascinating. Who would have thought that Christians had a same-sex marriage ceremony established from Ireland to Armenia? While occasionally dry (as I find most books by historians can be) Boswell's book is full of great stories and insights. A useful book to think about the possibilities for structuring human relationships that fall outside what we would think of as "normative" (and to point out how "normative" is relative!).
This book was simply amazing! Boswell explains everything from the linguistics of the ceremony to the prudish attitudes that made it relatively unknown in the modern world. An excellent example of a thorough study of not only the historical record, but also of the underlying social causes which caused the unfortunate changed in attitude.
Sep 04, 2007
Jen
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anthro/religion/history folks, gay activism
Shelves:
recentlyfinished
Not the most well-written book in the world, but it preceded the current hullabaloo about civil unions for same-sex couples in medieval Europe by... oh, at least a few years.
Now, whether or not this research actually holds the same kind of water - that I can't tell you off the top of my head. It's an interesting read, though, with a lot of intriguing evidence that does certainly seem to stack up in the right direction.
Now, whether or not this research actually holds the same kind of water - that I can't tell you off the top of my head. It's an interesting read, though, with a lot of intriguing evidence that does certainly seem to stack up in the right direction.
Both highly praised and intensely controversial, this brilliant book produces dramatic evidence that at one time the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches not only sanctioned unions between partners of the same sex, but sanctified them--in ceremonies strikingly similar to heterosexual marriage ceremonies.
So far, this is by turns intensely dry and intensely interesting. My biggest complaints would have to do with transphobia and other authorial biases. The work itself is well-researched and lucid, with a heavy emphasis on close readings of antiquity texts. Kind of neat.
Church-sanctioned marriage between two men in Western history? Believe it, read this book, then know it was so.
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John Eastburn Boswell was a prominent historian and a professor at Yale University. Many of Boswell's studies focused on the issue of homosexuality and religion, specifically homosexuality and Christianity. (from wikipedia)
Librarian note: There is more than one author by this name in the database. See authors with similar names.
More about John Boswell...
Librarian note: There is more than one author by this name in the database. See authors with similar names.
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Dec 01, 2008 03:43pm