Worlds of Difference: European Discourses of Toleration, C.1100-c.1550 Book

A recovery of a rich historical resource of ideas about toleration from the Latin Middle Ages. ?This is a superb book that finds toleration where most deny that it exists?in the Middle Ages. Nederman not only finds toleration in this ?monolithically intolerant? period, but demonstrates the various sources of medieval theories of toleration: Abelard's and Llull?s faith in interreligious dialogue, John of Salisbury?s skepticism, William of Rubruck?s view of a multireligious empire, Marsiglio of Padua?s conception of the secular state, Nicholas of Cusa?s acceptance of ritual heterogeneity based on national difference, and Barolome de la Casas?s Ciceronian rationalism. By focusing on medieval theories of toleration, Worlds of Difference complements other works that begin their study of toleration from the Renaissance or beyond. Nederman?s book will be required reading for all who want a complete view of the history of toleration. It is bound to be the authoritative work on medieval ideas of toleration for a long time to come.??Gary Remer, Tulane University ?Nederman?s work explicitly challenges the conventional view that theories of religious toleration are a distinctively modern product, usually described as a pragmatic adjustment to the fact of religious diversity and/or a theoretical by-product of the emergence of liberalism. The study is original, thoughtful, and based on the author?s detailed knowledge of the sources and the secondary scholarship.??Paul Sigmund, Princeton University Toleration has become a keystone of liberal political philosophy, but with liberalism under attack today as inadequate for dealing with all the problems of a pluralistic world, other resources are needed. Cary Nederman directs our attention to the creative thinking about toleration that preceded the rise of liberalism and canvasses the diverse ideas proposed then within Christianity as a response to religious, cultural, national, and ethnic differences.Read More