Nicholas Terpstra, ed.. The Politics of Ritual Kinship: and Social in Early Modern Italy. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2000. xii + 317 pp. $69.95, cloth, ISBN 978-0-521-62185-4.

Reviewed by Kathleen M. Comerford

Published on H-Italy (January, 2001)

Piety, Politics, and the Poor in Italian Confra‐ will focus in detail on chosen articles and mention ternities several general points about the collection. When asked to review this book, I jumped at The introductory material by editor Nicholas the chance, and I was not disappointed. The ff‐ Terpstra and the historiographical essay by teen articles by scholars from Italy, Britain, the Christopher Black set the stage for the volume. United States, and Canada are examples of fne Confraternies, once relegated to the background work in progress or recently completed in the of historical studies, have since the 1960s received growing felds of studies and Italian attention from social as well as religious histori‐ church history during the late Renaissance and ans, and from scholars in other disciplines, no‐ the Reformation. The book clearly refects its tably anthropologists. No longer understood as as‐ -- articles consider not only the organizational sociations based on empty ritual observances, the and devotional aspects of confraternal organiza‐ brotherhoods are recognized as political, social, tions, but also questions of social order, social charitable, and religious entities-indeed, as enti‐ control, charity, discipline, and politics -- and it ties which defned political, social, charitable, and succeeds at something few collected-studies vol‐ religious behavior, rather than simply participat‐ umes can claim to do: it reads like a monograph. ed in it. They were not limited to the major urban Each article is well-integrated into a whole, and if centers, but were found throughout Italy. They stylistic diferences emerge among the diferent did not have static relations with the church or scholars, they are less noticeable than expected state hierarchies. Clearly, much of the book's in‐ because of the quality and interrelatedness of in‐ terest lies in the political impact of the ritual kin‐ dividual work as well as the organization of the ship. On the other hand, there is much more to whole. As reviews do not permit lengthy discus‐ the collection than that: individual articles exam‐ sion of each argument, and as the volume in‐ ine such issues as membership (in general, among cludes summaries in the introductory essays, I women, among marginalized groups, across class H-Net Reviews lines, etc.), duties of the societies (charity, educa‐ In a similar vein, Nicholas Terpstra's article tion, ritual, etc.), and relationship with the world "In Loco Parentis: Confraternities and Abandoned (political participation, patronage, etc). Children in and Bologna" (114-131) ex‐ Black's historiography feshes out many of the plains the political strategies of institutions which points Terpstra raises as well as rehearses the cared for youth. He expands the perspective to in‐ most important theses in confraternity studies clude abandoned children, which is to say over the decades. He also notes important devel‐ marginalized ones, and to discuss ways in which opments in confraternal organizations from the confraternities prepared children not only for medieval through early modern periods, particu‐ civic life, but also family life. Confraternities man‐ larly the efect of the Reformation. His "landmark aged orphanages and conservatories, creating for developments in the emergence of confraternity the children housed there an atmosphere very un‐ studies from a historical backwater into the main‐ like the workhouses, one which, by virtue of its stream" include the adoption of social history and emphasis on education and morality, gave the sociology methodology; synthesizing of local stud‐ children marriageability. The lay brothers and sis‐ ies; and increasing interdisciplinarity (11-13). ters acted as parents, creating kinship for groups of children for which none had existed. This, Lorenzo Polizzotto's article, "The Medici and therefore, was a method of molding societal val‐ the Youth Confraternity of the Purifcation of the ues of kin and hierarchy. Virgin, 1434-1506" (98-113) is an example of the type of socio-political-historical article the intro‐ Marginalization appears as a theme in several duction leads the to expect. Acknowledg‐ other articles, principally Lance Lazar's "The First ing that the confraternities were manipulated Jesuit Confraternities and Marginalized Groups in from many angles, Polizzotto sets out to investi‐ Sixteenth-Century Rome" (132-149) and Elliott gate the reasons for manipulation and the efects Horowitz' "Jewish Confraternal Piety in Sixteenth- it had. He focuses on a confraternity placed under Century Ferrara: Continuity and Change" the protection of Cosimo de' Medici and housed in (150-171). The former treats non-Christians, con‐ the of S. Marco, which served as a disci‐ verts, prostitutes, and their daughters. The latter plinary and educational institution with duties of examines Jewish confraternities in terms of, ritual and observance. In addition, because of the among other things, their care of the poor; these fourteenth- and ffteenth-century factionalism institutions seem rather like contempo‐ within the city, youth confraternities, including raries. In addition, Horowitz studies the increas‐ the Purifcation, served an important civic func‐ ingly elite membership during the course of the tion: training the new generation for public and sixteenth century, and then the opening of mem‐ political as well as religious duties. Cosimo had an bership around the turn of the seventeenth centu‐ interest in the Purifcation for a number of rea‐ ry, in part as a result of declining Jewish popula‐ sons, not the least of which was the important tion in Ferrara. economic role of the confraternity: "Patronage of Confraternities were often lay organizations, such an institution could not but enhance Cosi‐ not religious orders, but the Jesuits are the subject mo's reputation as a benefactor in districts which of two articles: Lazar's, and Mark Lewis' "The De‐ were feeling the efects of a recession in the wool velopment of Jesuit Confraternity Activity in the trade and were already committed to him politi‐ Kingdom of Naples in the Sixteenth and Seven‐ cally because of the promise of an economic re‐ teenth Centuries" (210-227). Lazar's study demon‐ covery he represented" (111). strates how the Jesuits used confraternal organi‐ zations as a , "co-opting the elites to

2 H-Net Reviews work for the poor and marginalized groups... gious orders, Christianization, charity, ritual, reli‐ [which advanced] their plan for the reform of the gious practice, Tridentine reforms, and the En‐ whole of society" (227). Lewis describes the rela‐ lightenment are all considered. A general bibliog‐ tionship between Jesuits and confraternities in raphy is included, a welcome surprise for a col‐ the Kingdom of Naples, notably the activities of lected-articles volume. Each article has footnotes, the order with the Bianchi of Justice (which be‐ which are preferred by some readers to endnotes; came a confraternity of clerics) and associations however, the arrangement of the notes is less which the Society of Jesus itself founded to spread than optimal as they are rather crowded on the Jesuit devotions, including frequent communion. pages, often squeezed together-an especially con‐ By encouraging such devotions, along with public fusing example is p. 53, and one wonders why it , missionary activity, and religious was necessary to ft four notes on one line on p. vocations, Jesuit-infuenced confraternities in 218. One may argue that typesetting is a small Naples acted like those Lazar described in Rome: point, yet difculty in accessing references is not they helped reform society. minor. Although the frst is explicitly de‐ In general, this fne book is a must-read for signed as historiographical, state-of-the-feld re‐ scholars of Italian religious history, , frater‐ ports are also featured in other articles, which is nal organizations, Christianization, and what John one of the strengths of the collection: each scholar O'Malley has named Early Modern Catholicism. demonstrates not only familiarity with re‐ Many of the articles do contain the basic explana‐ search, but ease with terminology and issues. tions necessary for non-specialists, for example Studies of women in "brotherhoods" (e.g. Giovan‐ Anna Esposito's statement on the organization of na Casagrande's "Confraternities and Lay Female most ffteenth-century Roman confraternities (p. Religiosity in Late Medieval and Renaissance Um‐ 86), but the collection really will best serve gradu‐ bria," 48-66 and Anna Esposito's "Men and Wom‐ ate students and faculty members in history, reli‐ en in Roman Confraternities in the Fifteenth and gious studies, anthropology, and sociology; it is Sixteenth Centuries: Roles, Functions, Expecta‐ too specialized for most undergraduates. tions," 82-97) are frmly grounded not only in con‐ Copyright (c) 2001 by H-Net, all rights re‐ studies, but also in women's history. served. This work may be copied for non-proft Studies of Florence (Terpstra's, Polizzotto's, and educational use if proper credit is given to the au‐ Konrad Eisenbichler's "The Suppression of Confra‐ thor and the list. For other permission, please con‐ ternities in Enlightenment Florence," 262-278) tact [email protected]. make use of Medici political history as well as pri‐ or work on rituals, notably that of Richard Trexler. This is not to suggest that the collection lacks primary-source research; indeed, each study (excepting Black's) is rich in archival material. A few words on the format of the book itself are in order. The articles are arranged with some attention to chronology, but not slavishly. The geo‐ graphical coverage is excellent: not only major cities like Rome and Florence, but also Ferrara, Genoa, and Cortona. The range of subjects is also laudable: gender issues, childhood, Judaism, reli‐

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Citation: Kathleen M. Comerford. Review of Terpstra, Nicholas, ed. The Politics of Ritual Kinship: Confraternities and Social Order in Early Modern Italy. H-Italy, H-Net Reviews. January, 2001.

URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=4842

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