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The Influence of St Francis on the Perception of Leprosy in the High Middle Ages

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The Influence of St Francis on the Perception of Leprosy in the High Middle Ages Courtney A. Krolikoski MALADY OR MIRACLE? THE INFLUENCE OF ST FRANCIS ON THE PERCEPTION OF LEPROSY IN THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES MA Thesis in Comparative History with the specialization in Interdisciplinary Medieval Studies CEU eTD Collection Central European University Budapest May 2011 MALADY OR MIRACLE? THE INFLUENCE OF ST FRANCIS ON THE PERCEPTION OF LEPROSY IN THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES by Courtney A. Krolikoski (United States of America) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Comparative History, with the specialization in Interdisciplinary Medieval Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU ____________________________________________ Chair, Examination Committee ____________________________________________ Thesis Supervisor ____________________________________________ Examiner ____________________________________________ Examiner CEU eTD Collection Budapest May 2011 MALADY OR MIRACLE? THE INFLUENCE OF ST FRANCIS ON THE PERCEPTION OF LEPROSY IN THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES by Courtney A. Krolikoski (United States of America) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Comparative History, with the specialization in Interdisciplinary Medieval Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU ____________________________________________ External Examiner CEU eTD Collection Budapest May 2011 MALADY OR MIRACLE? THE INFLUENCE OF ST FRANCIS ON THE PERCEPTION OF LEPROSY IN THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES by Courtney A. Krolikoski (United States of America) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Comparative History, with the specialization in Interdisciplinary Medieval Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU ________________________ Supervisor ____________________________________________ External Supervisor CEU eTD Collection Budapest May 2011 I, the undersigned, Courtney A. Krolikoski, candidate for the MA degree in Comparative History, with the specialization in Interdisciplinary Medieval Studies declare herewith that the present thesis is exclusively my own work, based on my research and only such external information as properly credited in notes and bibliography. I declare that no unidentified and illegitimate use was made of the work of others, and no part of the thesis infringes on any person’s or institution’s copyright. I also declare that no part of the thesis has been submitted in this form to any other institution of higher education for an academic degree. Budapest, 23 May 2011 __________________________ Signature CEU eTD Collection TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i QUOTATIONS ii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS iii I. Introduction 1 Understanding Leprosy 3 Current Scholarship on the History of Leprosy 7 Situating This Thesis: Aims and Goals 11 II. The Medieval Leper: “Cast Ye Them Out of the Camp” 15 Dealing with Lepers: The Old Testament 17 Dealing with Lepers: The New Testament 22 The Early Middle Ages: Living in Imitatio Christi 27 Lepers in Medieval Society 33 Summary 44 III. Saint Francis and the Treatment of Lepers in the High Middle Ages 47 The Franciscans: Rise and Controversy 48 Saint Francis of Assisi: Conversion by Lepers 52 Summary 75 IV. The Medieval Leper: Inclusion Through Exclusion 78 Changes in the Care of the Leprous 80 CEU eTD Collection Veneration of the Infected: Saints After Francis 86 Preaching: About Leprosy, To the Leprous 103 Summary 111 V. Conclusion: Malady or Miracle? 113 Looking Ahead: New Exclusions? 117 APPENDIX 120 A: Saints Before Francis Who Interacted With Lepers 120 BIBLIOGRAPHY 128 PRIMARY SOURCES 128 SECONDARY SOURCES 130 CEU eTD Collection ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It is impossible, and perhaps slightly ego-centric, to consider one’s work truly a solo project. This thesis is no exception to that rule and, as such, I owe my gratitude to many who helped me along the way. First, my eternal thanks and love must be given to my parents, Richard and Paula Krolikoski, who, for my entire life, have encouraged and supported every decision I make. Thank you for believing in me every day. I am blessed to have been given such great parents. (Thanks also for taking care of Phoenix for two years!) Thanks must also be given to my supervisor, Gábor Klaniczay, without who this thesis would be nothing more than a collection of ideas about the idea of leprosy. Thank you for giving me the freedom to explore a topic which I enjoy while also providing the boundaries which have allowed me to arrive at a work which I am proud to have written. Thanks must also be given to Brett E. Whalen, without whom I would never have given up the safety of my Carolina-Blue world. Thank you for passing along your love for the Middle Ages which has opened up so many new worlds to me over the last 6 (!) years. Thanks must also be given to Luke Demaitre whose enthusiasm, encouragement, and advice have been immensely valuable to the completion of this work. Thank you for formally introducing me to the world of the ‘history of leprosy.’ Thank you also to my colleagues (and friends!) who have traveled with this thesis over the last two years. Leprosy may not be the most appetizing topic to read about, but your friendship, encouragement, support, and suggestions have made all the difference: Daniel Asmare, Vedran Bileta, Csilla Dobos, Cristian Gaşpar, Zsuzsanna Godany, Laura Gousha, Sona Grigoryan, Kelly & Guy Hydrick, Laszlo Kaulics, Farida Mukazhanova, Mihail Mitrea, Sandro Nikolaishvili, CEU eTD Collection Annabella Pál, Madalina Toca, Judith Rasson, Branislav Vismek, and Pamela Zinn. And finally, a large thanks to YOU for picking up this thesis and finding interest in what lies between its pages. i QUOTATIONS Until lions have their historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunter. African Proverb Biff: I know that even now, having watched enough television, you probably won’t even refer to them as lepers so as to spare their feelings. You probably call them ‘parts-dropping-off- challenged’ or something. from Christopher Moore, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal, (New York: Harper Perennial, 2002), 342. For it is in the millions of small melodies that the truth of history is always found, for history only matters because of the effects we see or imagine in the lives of the ordinary people who are caught up in, or give shape to, the great events. from Orson Scott Card, Shadow of the Hegemon, (New York: Tor Books, 2001), 358. CEU eTD Collection ii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 1. The Bardi Altarpiece - c. 1250, Florence, Santa Croce, Bardi Chapel 2. The Bardi Altarpiece - Detail - Florence, Santa Croce, Bardi Chapel 3. Saint Elizabeth Caring for the Sick - Krumauer Bildercodex, c. 1350, ÖNB. Cod. 370, f. 88v. 4. St Elizabeth and the Lerposus turning into the Crucified Christ - Krumauer Bildercodex, c. 1350, ÖNB. Cod. 370, f. 93r. 5. Hedwig washes and kisses the feet of the lepers - Hedwig Codex, c. 1360, The Getty Museum, Malibu, CA., f. 30r. CEU eTD Collection iii I. Introduction Words are the most important thing we have. A few words, one word, can change history. Imagine the correct words had been spoken by those people who are in charge of our lives. A few well-thought-out words and things might have been different. Unfortunately they have chosen all the wrong words. The Pearl Diver, Jeff Talarigo1 In many ways leprosy has long been regarded as the disease of the Middle Ages. With a longstanding presence in the Western world, stories and images of the disease have been woven into a complex and often horrifying narrative. The earliest known archaeological evidence of leprosy in Europe dates to 600 years before Christ, but it may have developed earlier in either China2 or North Africa. Its spread into the western world was gradual, spreading as populations grew and expanded their territories. Unfortunately, contrary to Michel Foucault’s dramatic statement otherwise,3 leprosy is still prevalent today. At present it exists in over twenty countries around the world, most prominently India, and it continues to infect an estimated 100,000 new individuals every year.4 Overall there are an estimated two to three million people worldwide who are permanently disabled due to the effects of the disease. 1 Jeff Talarigo, The Pearl Diver (New York: Anchor Books, 2005), 150. The Pearl Diver is a modern historical fiction novel which follows the life of a 19-year-old Japanese pearl diver who is diagnosed with leprosy in 1948. Because of her diagnosis she is forced to leave her home; her name is even erased from her family register. This novel chronicles her subsequent life as a stigmatized member of society and her life in exile at the leprosarium on the island of Nagashima. CEU eTD Collection 2 The history of leprosy in China is a fascinating topic as, much like the study of leprosy in the Christian West, the disease was linked with religion and moral values throughout much of the Middle Ages. For an in-depth study of leprosy in China see: Angela Ki Che Leung, Leprosy in China: A History (New York: Columbia University Press, 2009). 3 In Folie et déraison Michel Foucault states “At the end of the Middle Ages, leprosy disappeared from the Western world.” Michel Foucault, History of Madness, trans. Jonathan Murphy and Jean Khalfa (New York: Routledge, 2006), 1. 4 Carole Rawcliffe, Leprosy in Medieval England (Rochester: Boydell Press, 2006), 2. 1 With such a long and dramatic history, leprosy is seemingly ever-present and ever- recognizable. Much in the same way that HIV/AIDS was viewed in the 1980s (and in some ways continues to be viewed today), the stigma of leprosy was pervasive and overpowering throughout the Middle Ages.
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