Medieval university: Difference between revisions

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With the increasing professionalization of society during the [[12th century|12th]] and [[13th century|13th]] centuries, a similar demand grew for professional [[clergy]]. Prior to the [[12th century]], the intellectual life of Europe had been relegated to [[monastery|monasteries]], which was mostly concerned with the study of the [[liturgy]] and prayer; very few monasteries could boast true intellectuals. Following the [[Gregorian Reform]]'s emphasis on canon law and the study of the [[sacrament]]s, bishops formed [[cathedral]] schools to train the clergy in [[canon law]], but also in the more secular aspects of church administration, including logic and disputation for use in preaching and theological discussion, and accounting to more effectively control finances.

Learning became essential to advancing in the ecclesiastical heirarchyhierarchy, and teachers attracted prestige as well. However, demand quickly outstripped the capacity of cathedral schools, which were essentially run by one teacher. On top of that, tensions rose between the students of cathedral schools and burghers in smaller towns. So, cathedral schools migrated to large cities, like [[Paris]] and [[Bologna]].

The predecessor of the modern [[university]] found its roots in [[Paris]], especially under the guidance of [[Peter Abelard]], who wrote ''Sic et Non'' ([[Latin]] "yes or no"), thewhich forerunnercollected oftexts thefor textbookuniversity study. Dissatisfied with tensions between burghers and students and the censorship of leading intellectuals by the Church, Abelard and others formed the ''Universitas'', modeled on the medieval [[guild]], a large-scale, self-regulating, permanent institution of higher education.

University studies took approximately 10 years, depending on the field of study. The first eight years taught the student [[logic]], [[dialectic]], and the [[liberal arts]], after which he received a BA[[bachelor's in,degree]]. and thenThen hethe student would choose a specific faculty in which to earnpursue anthe MA[[master's indegree]] - [[law]], [[medicine]], or [[theology]]. ByTheology was the 13thmost century,prestigious almost halfarea of study, and the highestmost officesdifficult in(often taking substantially more than ten years to complete), for the Churchwhole weremedieval occupiedperiod. by MAThe holdersbasic textbook for university study was the ''Sentences'' ([[abbot]]s,''Quattuor [[archbishop]]s,libri sententarium'') of [[cardinalPeter Lombard]]s),; andtheology overstudents one-thirdand ofmasters thewere second-highestrequired officesto werewrite occupiedextensive bycommentaries MAon holders.this Intext addition,as somepart of thetheir greatestcurriculum. theologians ofAs thea Highresult, Middlemuch Ages,of [[Thomasmedieval Aquinas]]thought in philosophy and [[Roberttheology Grosseteste]],can werebe bothfound productsin of[[scholastic]] thetextual medieval universitycommentary.

By the 13th century, almost half of the highest offices in the Church were occupied by degreed masters ([[abbot]]s, [[archbishop]]s, [[cardinal]]s), and over one-third of the second-highest offices were occupied by masters. In addition, some of the greatest theologians of the High Middle Ages, [[Thomas Aquinas]] and [[Robert Grosseteste]], were products of the medieval university.

The development of the medieval university coincided with the widespread reintroduction of [[Aristotle]] from [[Byzantine]] and [[Jewish]] scholars and the decline in popularity of [[Platonism]] and [[Neoplatonism]] in favor of Aristotelian thought.