Abstract

The doctrinal condemnation issued by the bishop of Paris, Stephen Tempier, on March 7, 1277, is usually considered a chaotic collection of incoherent propositions. A textual analysis of the document, however, suggests instead that an organizational structure can be found there. Following a pattern not uncommon among theologians, the articles are organized in a series of ‘chapters’, ranging from the most noble topic to the least. This structure also suggests that the bishop, who personally supervised the judicial procedure, had a global view of the errors he wanted to condemn