Lay Sanctity, Medieval and Modern

Inspired by the ecclesiology of Vatican II, which attributed a special apostolate to the laity and affirmed their calling to holiness, this volume of interdisciplinary essays focuses on the shifting points of intersection between the changing historical definitions of laity and sanctity. Ann W. Astell brings together this valuable collection, an examination of a series of individual lay "saints, " in order to explore how these figures perceived their own lay status and how this status was perceived by others. Lay Sanctity, Medieval and Modern: A Search for Models seeks to conjoin the concepts of laity and sanctity in a search for personal and conceptual models of lay sanctity. The essays contained in this volume consider questions such as why so few lay persons have been canonized and to what extent the pursuit of sanctity requires lay saints either to deny or affirm their lay condition. They examine viable models for inspiring and evaluating lay sanctity and ask whether, if the dominant model of Christian sanctity is quasi-monastic, it is possible in the post-Vatican II church for laypersons to realize their distinct calling to holiness.