This text includes a number of writings by or about women saints, as well as a large percentage of material which, prior to this book, was not available in English.

"Medieval Saints is a collection remarkable both for its range and for its respect for the richness of the individual texts." - Peter Brown, Princeton University

List of Illustrations

Chronological Guide

Introduction

Suggestions for Further Reading

Chapter One: Martyrs of the Early Church

1.       The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna

2.       The Martyrs of Lyons and Vienne

3.       The Passion of SS. Perpetua and Felicitas

4.       Tertullian's Address to the Martyrs

5.       Augustine Preaches on the Feast of SS. Perpetua and Felicitas

6.       The Trials and Execution of Cyprian

7.       The Age of Martyrs in Legend: The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus

Chapter Two: The Desert Fathers and Mothers

8.       Christianity in the Desert: St. Antony the Great

9.       Antony's Disciples: Paul the Simple

10.     The First Hermit: St. Paul of Thebes

11.     A Harlot in the Desert: Mary of Egypt

12.     A Famous Pillar Saint: Symeon Stylites

13.     A Transvestite Saint: Mary/Marina

Chapter Three: Bishops, Monks, and Nuns

14.     St. Martin of Tours

15.     The Life and Miracles of St. Benedict

16.     Venantius Fortunatus's Life of St. Radegund

17.     Radegund Writes to the Bishops

18.     An Irish Missionary: St. Gall, by Walahfrid Strabo

19.     A Mirror for Monks: The Life of St. Maiol, Abbot of Cluny

Chapter Four: Royal Saints

20.     Ælfric's Life of St. Edmund, King and Martyr

21.     St. Margaret, Queen of Scotland

Chapter Five: Pilgrimage

22.     St. Augustine on the Rites at the Martyrs' Tombs

23.     Pilgrimage and Miracles in North Africa

24.     Sæewulf Makes a Pilgrimage to the Holy Land

25.     The Pilgrim's Guide to St. James of Compostella

26.     Pilgrimage as Metaphor: The Canterbury Tales

27.     Jerusalem Pilgrimage in 1480: The Tribulations of Brother Felix

Chapter Six: Relics

28.     Gregory of Tours: The Power of Relics

29.     The Humiliation of St. Mitrias

30.     The Affair of St. Sergius's Fingerbone

31.     Criticism of the Cult of Relics: Claudius of Turin

32.     Theft of Relics: The Translation of SS. Marcellinus and Peter

33.     False Relics and Imposters

34.     Fundraising with Relics: The Monks of Laon

35.     Fire at the Shrine of St. Edmund

Chapter Seven: New Directions

36.     The New Hermits: Godric of Finchale

37.     Women's Spirituality I: Christina the Astonishing

38.     Women's Spirituality II: Umiltà of Faenza

39.     The Conversion of St. Francis of Assisi and the Founding of his Order

40.     Humanistic Hagiography: The Writings of St. Francis's Companions

41.     The Official Life of St. Francis: The Stigmata

42.     The Canticle of Brother Sun

43.     The Canonization of St. Francis

Chapter Eight: Hagiographic Romances

44.     St. Ursula and the Eleven Thousand Virgins

45.     Four 'Lives' from The Golden Legend

46.     'Lives' of St. Christopher: The Irish Libar Breac

47.     'Lives' of St. Christopher: The South English Legendary

48.     An Old French Life of St. Margaret of Antioch

Chapter Nine: Epilogue

49.     A Reformer's View of the Cult of the Saints

50.     A Heretic's Confession

51.     Erasmus: A Pilgrimage for Religions Sake

Index of Topics

Acknowledgements of Sources in Copyright