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Knihy o zarmúceniech Cierkve svaté | Books on the tribulations of the Holy Church
Pavlína Rychterová
Jan of Příbram († 1448) was an important theologian and preacher during the Bohemian Reformation. As a representative of the moderate Utraquists, he sought a compromise between the radical Hussites and the Roman Church. In his writings and sermons, he emphasized church unity, moral renewal, and the renunciation of all radicalism. His work had a lasting impact on the religious and political conflicts in 15th-century Bohemia. The edition project is dedicated to the “Books on the Tribulations of the Holy Church” (Knihy o zarmúceniech Cierkve svaté), a central work of early 15th-century Reformation literature written in Czech. The aim of the project is to republish this important text, which has been difficult to access until now, in a scientifically sound, annotated edition. The basis for this is the careful analysis of the manuscript tradition, its critical comparison, and the provision of a reliable text in accordance with the standards of a critical edition. The edition will be supplemented by contextualization within the Bohemian Reformation discourse and by studies that explore the historical, theological, and linguistic context. The aim is to make the work visible and usable for both international research and a broader interested public.
P. Rychterová, Preaching, the Vernacular, and the Laity, in: Companion Hussites
Pavlina Rychterová: Johannes von Přibram: Bücher über die Drangsale der böhmischen Kirche und die Gotteskrieger nach dem Krieg
Jan Odstrčilík
The project is dedicated to the edition and historical contextualization of the treatise on the art of self-study. De modulo studendi is a Central European handbook on the art of self-study. The text provides young scholars at universities and in religious orders with practical instructions on how to structure their spiritual self-education or theological studies, organize their daily lives, and develop intellectual and moral discipline. It addresses issues of time management, the selection and organization of teaching materials, and dealing with authorities and sources. In doing so, it combines practical advice with a clear moral and spiritual claim: the acquisition of knowledge serves not only to advance one's studies, but also to promote personal maturation and devotion to God. As part of medieval study culture, the work offers valuable insights into the ideals, expectations, and methods of education in the late Middle Ages and testifies to the growing importance of independent learning.
Importing Dissident Ideas to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the Christianisation and Local Pagan and Orthodox Responses to it in the proto-Reformation era
Aliaksandra Valodzina
Based on largely unpublished textual materials from the given region the project investigates the discourses on heresy in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (GDL) between the 14th and early 16th centuries, a period marked by Christianisation, political consolidation, and religious diversity. The study explores four key contexts: the persistence of pagan/magical practices, where clerical rhetoric often equated local beliefs and magical practice with devil worship; political rivalries, in which the term “heretic” functioned as a weaponized invective; engagement with Hussite dissent, reflecting tensions between societal religious identities and elite strategies of power; and the treatment of Orthodox Ruthenians, whose faith was reframed as heretical within broader attempts at Catholic-Orthodox union. Methodologically, the project applies discourse analysis, sermon studies, and recent historiographical approaches to legal and ecclesiastical sources. By examining heresy as both a semantic and political construct the research highlights the complex intersections of religion, identity, and authority, offering new insights into the dynamics of Christianisation and interconfessional relations in late medieval Eastern Europe.
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