In recent years, international economic pressures have induced Nigeria to adopt a program of economic liberalization and deregulation. Advocates of the reforms tout their potential not only for generating greater economic growth, but also for contributing to more responsible corporate governance. Sceptics abound. This paper provides an account of the nature of corporate governance in Nigeria and investigates the prospects for recent reforms contributing to more responsible governance and development.

A collective choice mechanism can be viewed as a game in normal form; in this article it is shown, for very attractive rules and for sets with any number of alternatives, how individuals involved in a collective decision problem can construct the preferences they choose to express. An example is given with a version of plurality rule. Manipulability results are deduced from such a characterization.

Le principe d’induction est lié à la définition des nombres entiers d’une façon à la fois essentielle et sujette à controverse. Fonde-t-il ces nombres, ou bien trouve-t-il en eux son fondement ? Son statut lui-même peut être conçu de diverses manières. Est-il donné par l’expérience, par l’intuition, par la logique, par convention ? Ces questions furent l’objet d’une âpre discussion, autour des années 1905-1906, dans le cadre plus large d’un débat sur les fondements des mathématiques qui opposa Poincaré aux logicistes (...) et aux « axiomatistes » . Nous proposons dans cet article de faire le point sur les termes et les enjeux de cette discussion. Nous montrerons en outre qu’elle fut l’occasion d’une redéfinition de l’analytique et, par suite, des frontières de la logique.The principle of induction is linked essentially to the definition of “integers”, but at the same time has been the subject of controversy : Is the principle founded on integers or, on the contrary, are integers founded on it ? The principle itself can be understood in different ways : as a result of experiment, intuition, logic or convention. These topics were hotly debated in the years 1905-06, in the context of a larger debate on the foundations of mathematics, in which Poincaré opposed the logicists and the “axiomatists” . This article reconsiders what is at stake by looking at the debate in detail and also shows that the debate provided an opportunity for redefining analyticity, and in doing so, redefining the domain of logic. (shrink)

La conscience démocratique est aujourd'hui en proie à une querelle sourde qui oppose les universalistes et les relativistes dans la défense des idéaux des droits de l'homme et de la démocratie. L'idéal démocratique est-il, oui ou non, un impératif catégorique universel valable pour toute société humaine quels qu'en soient l'héritage culturel et les particularismes socio-politiques, ou n'est-il qu'un idéal contingent promu par une civilisation occidentale triomphante? Telle est la question lancinante au cœur d'une controverse qui échoue in fine dans une (...) confrontation sans issue entre raison universaliste et raison historiciste sur le statut normatif de l'idéal démocratique. L'objectif premier de ce livre est d'apporter une solution théorique à cette impasse dans une interprétation formaliste-universaliste inspirée du formalisme kantien visant à préserver, contre les dérives dogmatiques, la valeur normative intrinsèque de l'idéal démocratique. Il en découle, au point de vue de l'éthique politique, un enseignement pratique qui est qu'on ne peut légitimement universaliser un modèle particulier de la démocratie, quel qu'il soit, ni relativiser sous aucun prétexte l'universel démocratique, qui demeure tout à la fois de portée universelle et d'application historique. Car, en effet, comment concilier l'aspiration à l'universel, gage de notre commune humanité, et le respect des particularismes nourri par la conviction que l'expérience humaine se tisse, toujours et tout entière, dans et par une histoire particulière? Partant donc de la nécessité d'accorder l'exigence d'universalité avec la vérité de l'historicité - le double héritage structurant l'univers intellectuel contemporain -, l'auteur s'efforce de raffermir sur des bases théoriques solides, autrement dit de transformer en certitude démontrée le sentiment aujourd'hui répandu qui veut que les idéaux normatifs à vocation universelle puissent être adaptés et réappropriés au sein de chaque contexte socio-historique et culturel. S'il est vrai que la démarche critique se déclare plus souvent ennemi du sens commun, il est des moments où elle doit voler à son secours. C'est le pari que fait ce livre. (shrink)

La conscience democratique contemporaine est heritiere de deux traditions de pensee antagonistes qui sont, d'un cote, l'universalisme des Lumieres symbolise par la Declaration universelle des droits de l'homme et du citoyen, et de l'autre le relativisme historique legue par l'Ecole historique du droit et les courants de pensee historicistes. Il tient en deux positions de principe: l'affirmation peremptoire, d'une part, de l'universalite des ideaux de la democratie et des droits de l'homme; la legitimation, d'autre part, des particularismes identitaires et socio-culturels (...) comme source constitutives de valeurs. D'ou precisement l'antagonisme entre vision universaliste et vision relativiste sur le statut axiologique de l'ideal democratique. ;C'est a cette question, redefinie a l'interieur du paradigme de la philosophie morale de Kant, que nous avons tente d'apporter une solution theorique qui fait droit aussi bien a la pretention universaliste de la norme democratique qu'a la "verite" de la conscience historique. ;L'ideal democratique ou l'Idee republicaine, s'il peut etre considere comme l'analogue politique de l'imperatif categorique, c'est d'abord parce qu'il peut etre pense, au titre de principe de l'ordre politique juste absolument, comme forme a priori de la raison, bien qu'il soit apparu dans une periode historique determinee et dans une ere culturelle particuliere, c'est-a-dire en Europe au XVIII$\rm\sp{e}$ siecle s'agissant specifiquement de l'ideal moderne de la democratie. ;Cette interpretation kantienne du statut de l'ideal democratique nous amene a prendre partie pour un universalisme formel, qui s'articule autour du lien etroit et necessaire devant prevaloir entre l'universel et le particulier. C'est ce lien que nie, en meme temps qu'elle le rompt, la rivalite traditionnelle entre l'universalisme dogmatique et le relativisme sans reserve. Aussi bien, contre le premier, l'universalisme formel inscrit l'universel dans la forme a priori de la raison comme en son lieu axiologique propre, jamais dans un contenu reel ou historique. Au second, il oppose l'horizon du formalisme kantien comme celui du discours universaliste, l'horizon qui rend possible et legitime la reference a l'universel democratique. ;C'est a cette condition qu'il nous parai t possible de justifier a la fois l'idee d'un imperatif categorique democratique et l'historicite essentielle des "experiences de l'universel" nourries par les singularismes socio-culturels et historiques. Ainsi, sommes-nous parvenu a esquisser les grandes lignes d'une interpretation kantienne du statut de l'ideal democratique, une interpretation universaliste-formaliste qui tient tete autant au dogmatisme moral qu'au relativisme sans bornes. (shrink)

Partant du principe que l’idéal démocratique est une norme universelle, la discussion au coeur de ce travail soulève une série de questions causuistiques liées à la mise en oeuvre concrète des démocratiques dans toute société humain, quels que soient ses particularismes socio-historiques et culturels. Cette démarche découle entièrement de l’hypothèse suivant laquelle le problème fondamental de la démocratisation, autrement dit de la domiciliation de l’idéal démocratique, se ramène à celui de son ap-propriation, d l’adaption du principle universal aux structures de (...) base d’une société donnée, produit de conditions socio-culturelles, religieuses, politiques et économiques. Dans le but de dévoiler l’enjeu primordial qui polarise les différents aspects de la question, nous tentons, en premier temps, de mettre en évidence la ‘particularité culturelle’ du modèle de la démocratie libérale. Cette tenative débouche, en fin de compte, sur une remise en question de la prétention universaliste de la démocratie occidentale. Nous discutons ensuite des difficult ensuite des difficultés practiques qu’entraînent l’exigence traditionnelle du multipartisme et la définition des droits et libertés de base dans tout processus de démocratisation. Notre objectif, en abordant ces différentes questions, est de faire ressortir, avant tout, le caractére inextricable, voire insoluble, des problèmes practiques que soulève l’appropriation socio-culturelle de l’idéal démocratique, lesquels problèmes imposent de recourir à une méthode d’analyse cauistique des processus de démocratisation et de ne plus se satisfaire de l’universalisme abstrait et dogmatique. (shrink)

Le formalisme qui caractérise si bien la morale kantienne demeure sans conteste un des aspects les plus critiqués de sa pensée. Pour notre part, nous nous situons ici dans une perspective qui considère que le formalisme kantien est victime d'une longue tradition critique qui a fini par perdre de vue la portée réelle, sinon l'essence même de la morale de Kant. Notre propos ne sera pas pour autant une réponse directe aux différentes critiques qui ont été adressées à Kant sur (...) cette question. Nous éviterons autant que possible ce que d'aucuns seraient tentés de qualifier de veine et anachronique plaidoirie du formalisme kantien. (shrink)

On réduit habituellement les idées de Kronecker sur les fondements des mathématiques à quelque boutade ou à quelques principes rétrogrades. Ces idées constituent pourtant une doctrine originale et cohérente, justifiée par des convictions épistémologiques. Cette doctrine apparaît dans un article intitulé ‘Sur le concept de nombre’, paru en 1887 dans le Journal de Crelle, et surtout dans le dernier cours professé par Kronecker à Berlin au semestre d’été 1891. Le but de cet article est d’en préciser les principes et les (...) éléments en la comparant aux autres entreprises de fondement, afin d’en souligner l’originalité, et de montrer comment elle a déterminé la pratique mathématique de Kronecker. (shrink)

On réduit habituellement les idées de Kronecker sur les fondements des mathématiques à quelque boutade ou à quelques principes rétrogrades. Ces idées constituent pourtant une doctrine originale et cohérente, justifiée par des convictions épistémologiques. Cette doctrine apparaît dans un article intitulé ‘Sur le concept de nombre’, paru en 1887 dans le Journal de Crelle, et surtout dans le dernier cours professé par Kronecker à Berlin au semestre d’été 1891. Le but de cet article est d’en préciser les principes et les (...) éléments en la comparant aux autres entreprises de fondement, afin d’en souligner l’originalité, et de montrer comment elle a déterminé la pratique mathématique de Kronecker. (shrink)

Trustworthiness is typically regarded as a desirable feature of national identification systems (NISs); but the variegated nature of the trustor communities associated with such systems makes it difficult to see how a single system could be equally trustworthy to all actual and potential trustors. This worry is accentuated by common theoretical accounts of trustworthiness. According to such accounts, trustworthiness is relativized to particular individuals and particular areas of activity, such that one can be trustworthy with regard to some individuals in (...) respect of certain matters, but not trustworthy with regard to all trustors in respect of every matter. The present article challenges this relativistic approach to trustworthiness by outlining a new account of trustworthiness, dubbed the expectation-oriented account. This account allows for the possibility of an absolutist (or one-place) approach to trustworthiness. Such an account, we suggest, is the approach that best supports the effort to develop NISs. To be trustworthy, we suggest, is to minimize the error associated with trustor expectations in situations of social dependency (commonly referred to as trust situations), and to be trustworthy in an absolute sense is to assign equal value to all expectation-related errors in all trust situations. In addition to outlining the features of the expectation-oriented account, we describe some of the implications of this account for the design, development, and management of trustworthy NISs. (shrink)

Arguments for extended cognition and the extended mind are typically directed at human-centred forms of cognitive extension—forms of cognitive extension in which the cognitive/mental states/processes of a given human individual are subject to a form of extended or wide realization. The same is true of debates and discussions pertaining to the possibility of Web-extended minds and Internet-based forms of cognitive extension. In this case, the focus of attention concerns the extent to which the informational and technological elements of the online (...) environment form part of the machinery of the (individual) human mind. In this paper, we direct attention to a somewhat different form of cognitive extension. In particular, we suggest that the Web allows human individuals to be incorporated into the computational/cognitive routines of online systems. These forms of computational/cognitive extension highlight the potential of the Web and Internet to support bidirectional forms of computational/cognitive incorporation. The analysis of such bidirectional forms of incorporation broadens the scope of philosophical debates in this area, with potentially important implications for our understanding of the foundational notions of extended cognition and the extended mind. (shrink)

It has been reported by some studies that the desire to be involved in decisions concerning one’s healthcare especially with regard to obtaining informed consent is related to educational status. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to assess the influence of educational status on attitude towards informed consent practice in three south-eastern Nigerian communities.

Recent national and international debates on truth and reconciliation in Uganda have emphasized the importance of incorporating local-level mechanisms into a national transitional justice strategy. The Juba Peace Talks represented an opportunity to develop and articulate sufficient and just alternatives and complementary mechanisms to the international criminal model. The most commonly debated mechanism is the Acholi process known as mato oput (drinking the bitter root), a restorative justice approach to murder. Drawing on 2 months of research in nine internally displaced (...) persons’ camps in 2007, we examine local justice practices in the region of northern Uganda to consider their potential, promise and pitfalls to realizing a successful truth-telling process. We find that although local mechanisms could help facilitate reconciliation in the region, truth-telling is but one part of a conciliatory process complicated by a national context of fear and the complexity of the victim–perpetrator identity at the community level. These locally informed insights help move forward the debate on such mechanisms in Uganda and add useful insights into community processes in the field of transitional justice more generally. (shrink)

Augustine’s Epistulae 23A*, 23*, and 22*, written in late 419 and early 420, present his involvement in the dispute concerning the translation of Honorius to Caesarea Mauretaniae (modern Cherchell), a city Augustine had visited in September 418 while fulfilling a commission from Zosimus of Rome. The translation of bishops from one church to another had been condemned by the 325 Council of Nicaea. The three letters are difficult to interpret because the information to his three correspondents (Possidius of Calama, Renatus, (...) a monk of Caesarea Mauretaniae, and Alypius of Thagaste, who was in Italy at the time) seems to differ. A careful reading reveals that not only did Augustine’s knowledge of the situation change over time, but that the stress he placed on differing elements of that situation also changed depending upon the correspondent. The letters also disclose the involvement of Boniface I of Rome, Zosimus’ successor, and the complex relationship of the African churches with the bishop of Rome, especially in the matter of judicial appeal. What is suggested here is that Augustine, without saying so, seemed to be aware of the criteria Boniface had employed in another translation controversy, which was the approved translation of Perigenes as bishop of Corinth, and that, if applied to Honorius, this would lead the Roman bishop to reach a very different conclusion. (shrink)

Bonifac Badrov, a Neo-Scholastic philosopher, in his “History of Philosophy”, a textbook for students at Franciscan Theology in Sarajevo, defines the scholarly subject of the history of philosophy as a systematic representation of solving philosophical problems in various historic periods and a critical examination of their internal dynamics. Considering this clear and informative, well-structured, balanced and goaloriented text, we should not forget that his “History of Philosophy” was written for very specific type of students, with full awareness that some of (...) these students are encountering philosophy for the first time, and that, complementary to the educational system in theological universities, they are listening to it in parallel with scholastic philosophy. We should also bear in mind the author’s Neo-Scholastic philosophical orientation, and also mention that the religious aspect was not emphasised because the author was merely informing about some philosopher’s position on God and divine. This paper deals with Greek-Roman philosophy, and in accordance with Badrov’s structure it offers a review of the development of Greek-Roman philosophy in three periods with three distinctions: cosmological in Presocratics, emphasising monism, evolutionism, hylozoism, pantheism, anti-intellectualism and finally naturalism, metaphysical in classical antiquity, with an emphasis on subjectivism, relativism, agnosticism, ethics and monotheism, and dualism in all areas, that is metaphysics, and finally, ethical in Hellenistic period. The focus of the paper is Badrov’s critique of philosophers and philosophical systems, while historical data is put aside. For some philosophers, other places in Badrov’s other works are mentioned. (shrink)

Liber pontificalis records that, during the disputed Roman episcopal election, which started at the end of 418 and lasted several months, between Eulalius and Boniface, the latter took up residence in the cemetery of Felicity when the two candidates were expelled from the city. It also records Boniface, after his ultimate victory as legitimate bishop, refurbishing this cemetery and eventually being buried there. Although Liber pontificalis is wrong on a number of points withregard to the disputed election, as (...) revealed through letters preserved in the Collectio Avellana, there is no reason to doubt Boniface’s attraction to this martyrial complex on the via Salaria nova. This paper considers the catacomb and Boniface’s connection with it in the context of what we know about Roman episcopalburials of the early fifth century. (shrink)

Reagon, Bellin and Boniface argue that traditional models of evidence-based practice focus too much on randomised controlled trials and neglect 'the multiple truths of occupational therapy'. This opinion piece points out several flaws in their argument, and suggests that it is unethical to rely on weaker evidence sources when higher quality evidence exists. Ironically, the evidence that they provide to support their argument regarding different types of evidence is itself very weak.

The axiom Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus was drawn up by Cyprian of Carthage in the middle of the third century. In the Middle Ages it was essential for the pontifical theocracy with popes like Gregory VII (Dictatus papae, 1075) Inocent III (IV Lateran Council, 1215) and Boniface VIII (Bull Unam Sanctam , 1302).With the necessary adaptations and nuances (St. ThomasAquinas in the XIIIth century; the theologians of Salamanca in the XVIth century, the II Vatican Council in the XXth century) (...) the controversy around this maxim has reached our days. (shrink)

It would be hard to find a more effective visual source for understanding the political ideology that underscores Dante's relationship to Boniface VIII in the Divina Commedia than the frescoes that line the walls of the Oratorio di San Silvestro in the Basilica of the Santi Quattro Coronati in Rome. These frescoes, which depict episodes from the life of St. Sylvester and his relationship to the emperor Constantine, express as their clear subtext the thirteenth-century papacy's view of the proper (...) relationship between ecclesiastical and secular power . Their vivid dramatization of these events synthesizes and, more importantly, interprets two well-known literary sources: the life of St. Sylvester that was thought to have been composed by Eusebius of Caesarea and the text of the Donation of Constantine, the Constitutum Constantini. The account of the life of St. Sylvester that is contained in the Golden Legend also provides a readily accessible point of reference for the cycle, since it is roughly contemporaneous with it and is itself a compilation based on these earlier texts. (shrink)

The concepts of representation and perception, which are specially employed and contextualised in this article, were introduced for cultural reflection by Arūnas Sverdiolas. Pamėklė is a Lithuanian equivalent of “simulacrum,” which can be associated with images that are distinguished by a doll effect and provoke spectator-participant reaction and involvement, and can therefore be associated with reckoned instruments of experience. Another strategy for representing a person encompasses the phenomenon of relics, the fragmentary remains of the body. The article shows how these (...) kinds of anthropomorphic representations of the body can be detected individually and how they can co-exist in a hybrid structure. The example of such a structure we can find in the exposition of relics from the body of St Boniface in the church in Valkininkai. (shrink)

Ptolemy of Lucca's sympathetic description of republican self-rule together with his unfavourable view of monarchy in the De regimine principum has led many scholars to categorize him as a pioneer of civic republicanism. The present study refutes this common opinion. It illuminates Ptolemy's theory of government through its relationship to the papalism he repeatedly expressed in several works. This study argues that Ptolemy's theory of government in the De regimine principum was inspired by his papalist convictions, and demonstrates how that (...) theory clearly reflected Ptolemy's papalist point of view, especially in the context of the feud between Pope Boniface VIII and the kings of Western Europe, in particular, Philip the Fair of France. (shrink)

Through a focused and systematic examination of late medieval scholastic writers - theologians, philosophers and jurists - Joseph Canning explores how ideas about power and legitimate authority were developed over the 'long fourteenth century'. The author provides a new model for understanding late medieval political thought, taking full account of the intensive engagement with political reality characteristic of writers in this period. He argues that they used Aristotelian and Augustinian ideas to develop radically new approaches to power and authority, especially (...) in response to political and religious crises. The book examines the disputes between King Philip IV of France and Pope Boniface VIII and draws upon the writings of Dante Alighieri, Marsilius of Padua, William of Ockham, Bartolus, Baldus and John Wyclif to demonstrate the variety of forms of discourse used in the period. It focuses on the most fundamental problem in the history of political thought - where does legitimate authority lie? (shrink)

The confrontation between Philip the Fair and Boniface VIII has long been seen as a major turning point for the medieval papacy, for the rise of national monarchies, and for the political shaping of public opinion in late-medieval France. Philip's campaign to gain and display the support of the clergy, the nobility, and townspeople throughout the realm also generated a large body of documentation, much of which survives today. Although frequently explored and exploited during the last four centuries, the (...) archival record is not as straightforward as it appears. While recognizing it as part of a masterly propaganda campaign, one needs to look not simply at the shaping of opinion, but at the shaping of the written record—a case in which the silences, what is not recorded, are often as important as the voices on which our attention has been focused. But before turning to that issue, a brief review of events may be useful. (shrink)

In the year 748 Pope Zachary, in a letter to St. Boniface, mentioned among other matters a complaint which he had received from the latter concerning an Irish cleric named Virgil, active at that time in Bavaria.

The consilia which will be examined here were written in the vicinity of the papal Rota at Avignon by Oldradus da Ponte. Educated at Bologna, he appears to have arrived at the Lateran in the entourage of Peter Colonna just before the Colonna fled from the wrath of Boniface VIII, and after a short spell as assessor for the Capitano del Popolo at Bologna and then as a teacher at Padua, to have migrated to Avignon where he was still (...) active in 1337. Initially, Oldradus' consilium 69 will be examined on the assumption that even a document which has long been described as �famous�, �important�, �celebrated� and �interesting�, will reward reconsideration. It will be argued that Oldradus did in fact sound a discordant note which failed to harmonizewith what has been presented as a contemporary consensus, namely that Justinian's legislation ought to be treated with a �veneration similar to that accorded to Holy Scripture�. This will be followed by a broader analysis of the deployment and nature of biblical and other extra-legal authorities in his consilia. An epilogue examines the wider significance of Oldradus' consilia. (shrink)

Neste artigo, inicialmente, discorremos sobre o contexto histórico que suscitou a 1ª fase do conflito em torno às relações de poder, entre Bonifácio VIII e Felipe IV de França, e as fundamentações teóricas em que o Papa e o Rei se apoiavam. A seguir, analisamos um dos opúsculos anónimos, escrito em defesa da política do Rei contra parte da clerezia franca, que não queria ser taxada em seus bens, e contra a bula papal Clericis laicos. Por último, apresentamos a tradução (...) do opúsculo Antequam essent clerici. We begin by discussing the historical context of the first phase of the power struggle between Boniface VIII and Philip IV of France, and the theoretical foundations upon which the Pope and the King supported their positions. We then consider one of the anonymous opuscula written in defense of the King's policy against the French clergy faction , and in opposition to the papal bull Clericis laicos. Finally, we present a translation of this opusculum. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:The Relationship between Theology and Canon Law: Another Context of Political Thought in the Early Fourteenth CenturyTakashi ShogimenPolitical thought and ecclesiology in the early fourteenth century have often been assessed as a series of responses to the question of the relationship between church and state. The conflict between Pope Boniface VIII and Philippe IV at the turn of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries acutely demonstrated the conflict between (...) the spiritual and temporal powers. The conflict between Pope John XXII and the claimant to the imperial throne, Ludwig of Bavaria, also seems to have formed the historical background against which contemporary intellectuals expounded their political and ecclesiological thought. Two recent excellent textbooks on medieval political thought discussed the early fourteenth century from such a perspective and situated Marsilius of Padua and William of Ockham, along with their papalist adversaries, in this context. 1It is indeed a fair treatment of the period; however, it is not the only legitimate perspective. For instance, an alternative perspective can be developed through an examination of the Poverty Controversy between Pope John XXII and the Franciscans. This dogmatic dispute over the question of whether Christ and the apostles did not own anything individually or communally had a political dimension: it involved discussions on the nature of papal power over the church and resulted in the refinement of the idea of natural rights. 2 The dichotomy [End Page 417] between the papal and imperial camps can also mislead historical interpretation if the fact that each camp was not monolithic is overlooked. Just as Marsilius and Ockham embraced different political views in the alleged imperial camp, so the alleged papal ideologists did not always share the same views. It has even been argued that the doctrines propounded by “papalists” and “anti-papalists” were not irreconcilable but differed only in emphasis. 3 It is easy to see that the problem of Church and State is not the all-embracing concern of the period.What, then, are the possible benchmarks against which we can evaluate the political views of contemporary thinkers? This paper is intended to suggest that there is another context against which political thought and ecclesiology in the early fourteenth century may be assessed: that is, the relationship between theology and canon law. The contemporary polemicists’ view on the role that theology and canon law should play in an ecclesiastical dispute such as the Poverty Controversy largely determined their political or ecclesiological perspectives. To show this, I should like to compare, in the context of the poverty dispute, the ecclesiological views of two theologians in the so-called “papalist” and “anti-papalist” camps respectively: Guido Terreni and John Baconthorpe on the one hand, and William of Ockham and Michael of Cesena on the other. The comparison between Terreni and Baconthorpe will elucidate clearly that their contrasting attitude toward the role of canon law in contemporary ecclesiastical disputes determined the paradigms of their ecclesiologies, resulting in two entirely different ecclesiologies, save the fact that they were both aimed at defending the position of Pope John XXII on Franciscan poverty. The comparison between Ockham and Michael of Cesena will reveal how their contrasting views on the nature of the Poverty Controversy—theological or canonistic—determined not only the pattern of their defense of the Franciscan doctrine of poverty but also the development of their polemics.The relationship between theology and canon law had been a perennial problem ever since the latter had grown into an independent discipline. Scholastic theologians in the thirteenth century were critical of canon law studies. Bonaventure, for example, affirmed theology’s superiority over canon law: he wrote that theology questioned propter quid, whereas canon law enquired into [End Page 418] quia. Bonaventure, following Aristotle, asserted that there are higher and lower sciences, and what for the higher science, theology, is the conclusion of its enquiry is for the lower science, canon law, its starting point. 4 Thomas Aquinas considered that the intrusion of the decretalists into theological matters was disagreeable and ridiculous, 5 as did Roger Bacon. 6 These theologians’ comments testify to the antagonism between theologians and canonists in the thirteenth century. Lawyers, too, were fully aware of this situation, as seen... (shrink)

The Venerable Bede has often been held as creator of a single collective identity for the Germanic inhabitants of Britain: the English. This article examines how Bede crafted his notion of Englishness, reviewing his use of terms for nation, race and peoples to exclude those of whom he did not approve. It included the Northumbrians and the people of Kent whom Bede regarded as the progenitors of the English Church. It excluded the Mercians who were rivals and sometime enemies of (...) Bede‘s own people, the Northumbrians. By the time Bede finished his account the term gens Anglorum had begun to lose its usefulness in binding together the Northumbrians and Kentishmen as custodians of a unitary Church. After Bede terminology remained unstable, writers such as Boniface or Alcuin being as likely to call the people of England Saxons as Angles/English. Bedes role as the father of Englishness is thus here nuanced and seen to be historically contingent. (shrink)

James of Viterbo OESA,, let us only one political treatise, the De regimine christiano,, writen during the climax of the conflict between Boniface VIII and Philip IV of France,, in which, among other subjects, he also explained how must be the behavior of the king, under a religious-ethical perspective. The main theme of the XIV Congress of Medieval Philosophy: Continuity and discontinuities, allows to explain about this matter and to check that it well corresponds the whises of some societies (...) and peoples of our time. Thus, according the Doctor Gratiosus’ sight, we will discuss about the king’s duties to God, to himself and to his subjects. (shrink)

A teoria política medieval possui uma singularidade, pois trata de “dois poderes” distintos – reino e o sacerdócio –, sendo necessário definir como se dão as relações entre eles. Durante o debate entre Bonifácio VIII e Filipe, o Belo, foi importante a obra de João Quidort. Ele criticou a teoria da plenitude do poder, atribuída pelos curialistas ao papa, e procurou mostrar a diferença entre os modos de causalidade que explicam cada um dos dois poderes. PALAVRAS-CHAVE – Teoria política medieval. (...) Dois poderes. Plenitude do poder. João Quidort. Egídio Romano. ABSTRACT The medieval political theory has a singularity, for it deals with two distinct powers – kingdom and priesthood –, and it is necessary to define how the relations between these powers are given. During the debate between Boniface VIII and Philip, the Fair, the works of John Quidort was important. He criticized the theory of plentitude of power, which was held by the curialists to the pope, and aimed to show the difference between the manners of causality that explained each of the two powers. KEY WORDS – Medieval political theory. Two power. Plentitude of power. John Quidort. Giles of Rom. (shrink)

_De regimine Christiano_, produced at the height of the great conflict of 1296-1303 between Pope Boniface VIII and Philip the Fair of France, is a detailed and rigorous defence of the papacy’s claim to supremacy even in temporal matters.

In the year 1308, Cardinal Giacomo Colonna was a tremendously busy man. He had returned to Rome only a few years earlier in the aftermath of a devastating papal war waged against his family by Boniface VIII. The papal court had been absent from the city for years, leaving an administrative void in Rome as it established itself first in Poitiers, then in Avignon from 1308 under the leadership of the Gascon pope Clement V. In 1306 Giacomo was fully (...) reinstated to the cardinalate, and set about rebuilding his family's fortunes and reputation, as well as a number of the city's churches. He commissioned a new mosaic facade for the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, and in 1308 he oversaw repairs... (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:There are only three surviving biographical notices regarding Marcus of Orvieto: two as colophons of Vatican manuscripts and a third as an entry in a catalog of the papal library in Avignon where we read: "Item, liber de mortalitatibus septem Martini de Urbevetani Ordinis Minorum." While the spelling of the book title and its author can be attributed to scribal errors or misreadings, the 'seven,' place of origin, and (...) religious order affiliation are accurate. Marcus's Liber de Moralitatibus is indeed divided into seven treatises: On the celestial bodies, On the elements, On the birds, On the fish, On the animals, On trees and plants and On precious gems. The colophons of the two Vatican manuscripts attest to his being a Friar Minor: Ego frater Marcus Urbis Veteris Fratrum Minorum Ordinis pauperculus. The prooemium of the Liber de Moralitatibus attests to the fact that Marcus's patron was Benedict Gaetani cardinal of St. Nicholas in carcere Tulliano,' the future pope Boniface VIII. This would put the time of composition circa 1290. Several allusions in Marcus's work to Paris, viz. the Parisian masters, its patron Ste. Genevieve, indicate that Marcus was at one time a student there and it is conceivable that Benedict commissioned the work while he was a papal legate there. Marcus's opus falls into the category of exempla literature, i.e. a source book for preachers.We offer the English translation of the chapter on pelicans as typical of Marcus's way of proceeding which, generally speaking, is threefold. First a physical description, which was generally copied from Bartholomew of England's 'On the Properties of Things,' secondly its spiritual signification attested to by pertinent passages from Scripture and bolstered by citations from the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, and thirdly examples of persons who exemplify the spiritual lesson either supportively or adversely. The legend of the pelican piercing its breast in order to revivify its dead chicks was familiar in Christian literature and art signifying analogously Christ's salvific blood redeeming the human race from its fallen state. The following is the English translation of Marcus's treatise 3, 'De avibus,' chapter 31.Chapter 31: On the pelicanThe pelican is seen to possess the following conditions or properties according to the doctors.1. First of all, as Isidore says, it is a "bird dwelling in solitude along the banks of the Nile." This signifies preachers and contemplative persons who flee the vanities of the world and occupy themselves with heavenly consolations or delightful and re-creative consolations of Sacred Scripture, Psalm 54, 8-9: Far away I would flee; I would lodge in the wilderness. I would hasten to find shelter from the violent storm and the tempest. Bernard, On the Canticle of Canticles and in his sermons: "Divine consolation is delicate, it is not given to those preoccupied with what is alien to it." Ambrose, On Luke: "Those preoccupied with secular vanities cannot know what is divine."2. Secondly, as Isidore says, whatever it eats, it first dips in water with its foot and having done so, using the foot as a hand as it were, puts it [the morsel] in its mouth. This signifies doctors [i. e. teachers] and preachers who practice what they teach or preach after the example of the Apostle, Romans 15, 18: I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me. Jerome, To Nepotian: "Make sure your deeds do not 'confound' your words, lest when you speak in the assembly someone might say to himself: 'Physician, cure yourself'."3. Thirdly, as Isidore says, of all the birds, with the exception of the phylargum, only the pelican uses its foot as a hand. This signifies a devout religious who frequently, motivated by holy desires and affections, prefers holy meditations rather than manual labor. 1Tim. 4: 7-8: Train yourself for devotion, for while physical training is of.. (shrink)

This book is a critical edition based on the Assisi and Merton College manuscripts of Scotus's question on restitution of ill-gotten goods. The question, entitled "Is one bound to restitution who may have unjustly taken or retained something belonging to another, so that he could not be truly penitent without making such restitution?" is theological in nature and pertains to Scotus's treatment of the sacrament of penance, but it provides him the occasion to set forth his philosophical theories of the (...) origin of private property, political authority, and the ethical rules governing a wide variety of business transactions, especially loans. It is in the latter sections of the question that Scotus treats of usury. The text is preceded by a detailed and very interesting historical introduction by Wolter which describes the struggle between King Philip the Fair of France and Pope Boniface VIII and how this political context affected the life and career of Scotus himself. Scotus reflected on the origin of the state at a time when some claimed that all political authority came through the pope, while others defended a king's right to resist a pope when necessary for the common good. But according to the Subtle Doctor, political authority is derived from the consent of the community. Rulers or legislators have the right and duty to regulate economic transactions between individuals for the sake of the common good. (shrink)