Those Who Worked, Those Who Fought, and Those Who Played: Exploring Scenes of Clerical Homosexuality in the Middle Ages

For the most part, little is known of the lives and experiences of the homosexual clergymen of the Middle Ages. Due to the frequently aggressive opposition to homosexuality within medieval society, few documents exist... [ view full abstract ]

For the most part, little is known of the lives and experiences of the homosexual clergymen of the Middle Ages. Due to the frequently aggressive opposition to homosexuality within medieval society, few documents exist detailing the lives of homosexual monks and priests; however, this is not to say that such documents do not exist. This project relies upon available primary sources as well as major secondary research, to uncover the lives of homosexual clerics as well as the trends, themes, and factors that would have influenced them. Citing a diverse cast of primary literature including the Benedictine rule, inquisitorial and court documents, and religious treatises and polemics, this research project examines the roles played by hierarchy, persecution, secrecy, and love in the homosexual experiences of medieval clerics as well as their position within the larger contexts of the Church and of Medieval society. Due to the general scarcity of documents that directly address this topic, each primary source is treated as a case study detailing certain elements of the nature of clerical homosexuality and the relationships that developed from it.