Monastic Preaching to the Laity in Thirteenth-Century England

ABSTRACT The accepted narrative concerning monastic preaching to the English laity suggests that it happened occasionally in the twelfth century and then disappeared until the fourteenth century when monks and canons regular, belatedly following the friars’ example, began to preach again. This paper calls that narrative into question. Records of episcopal administration and surviving sermon books of monastic provenance, including manuscripts from Worcester and Durham cathedrals, provide evidence for pastoral care of the laity and popular preaching by cloistered religious in thirteenth-century England. This would indicate that some monks and canons were contributors and not mere bystanders to the pastoral revolution that shaped later medieval lay religion. In addition to providing evidence, the article points towards previously neglected sources where more is likely to be found.