Gregory the Great and his World

by R.A. Markus

R. A. Markus's new and accessible work is the first full study of Gregory the Great since that of F. H. Dudden (1905) to deal with Gregory's life and work as well as with his thought and spirituality. With his command of Gregory's works and of the entire Latin tradition from which he came, Markus portrays vividly the daily problems of one of the most attractive characters of the age. Gregory's culture is described in the context of the late Roman educational background and in the context of previous patristic tradition. Markus seeks to understand Gregory as a cultivated late Roman aristocrat converted to the ascetic ideal, caught in the tension between his attraction to the monastic vocation and his episcopal ministry, at a time of catastrophic change in the Roman world. The book deals with every aspect of his pontificate: as bishop of Rome, as landlord of the Church lands, in his relations to the Empire, and to the Western Germanic kingdoms in Spain, Gaul, and, especially, his mission to the English. Thus Gregory the Great and his world promises to be a major contribution to the study of late antique society.

The book is a study of Gregory the Great, the pope who sent Augustine (of Canterbury) and his fellow missionaries to convert the heathen English to Christianity (597). Markus gives a full account of Gregory's life and work, his thought and spirituality, within the setting of the world at the end of the sixth century. At a time of catastrophic change in Europe, Gregory's work as pope stands on the threshold of medieval Western Europe. The book deals with every aspect of his pontificate providing a major contribution to the study of late antique society.

Genres: History, Medieval History, Biography, Medieval

241 pages, Paperback

First published October 9, 1997

About the author

Robert Austin Markus was a distinguished medieval and ecclesiastical historian known principally for his writings on St Augustine and the history of the early Church.

Reviews

[Jack Schutt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty thorough look at Gregory’s impact on the medieval church, as well as how he was formed by the surrounding empire and the theological diversity of his time. By necessity of the far reaching influence of the Roman church and the context of his administration, the book gives a really solid historical overview of the whole Roman/Byzantine empire in the late 6th, early 7th centuries.

The constant tension between the “active” and “contemplative” life in Gregory’s understanding and pursuit of the Christian life and ministry is fascinating and interests me a ton. I’m not all there with his Catholic-yness, but there’s still much to learn from his pastoral instincts, even in midst of the ecclesiological and exegetical wackiness.
This pushed his “Pastoral Rule” way up on my to-read list.

[Ryan Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gregory is sometimes described as the first medieval pope, but the scholarly consensus would tend to negate this view. Gregory was fully steeped in the lingering world of imperial Rome, now centered on Constantinople. He was not really looking to advance what is sometimes seen as the general papal agenda of primacy, although he was certainly a firm defender of it within the status quo of his day. His missionary efforts to England and correspondence with the rulers and bishops of France and Spain do not reveal any grand plan to make the pope a true monarch or even imperial power in the West, in opposition to the emperor in the East.

Gregory was simply a devout Christian who accepted the burden of leadership in what were clearly dark and troubling times, and who sought to somehow balance his desires for the contemplative life of the monastery with his calling to the active life of church governance. I agree with Markus that the central text for understanding Gregory is not his Dialogues or his Moralia, although these are certainly significant works of Christian teaching, but his Pastoral Care-advice for being the pastor of a flock, written as he was undertaking those very burdens himself.