The Sermons at the Council of Constance, 1414-1418

康斯坦斯会议(1414-1418)是众所周知的15世纪重要的普世会议之一，但在那里举行的布道并没有引起特别的兴趣。事实上，历史研究一般不太重视布道，尽管布道是印刷术出现之前唯一的大众媒介，但布道从未被视为中世纪晚期政治文化不可分割的一部分。此外，还没有关于15世纪议会政治文化的更大规模的研究。对于这些议会来说，布道可能发挥了重要作用，因为他们的具体任务是根据圣经和基督教信仰的原则，向听众提供规范的-这意味着也是精神的-导向。在过去的几年里，许多出版物研究了中世纪的政治文化，但它们几乎都是关于世俗的王子和权力。然而，15世纪的议会也采取了政治行动，因为它们为欧洲世俗势力之间的争端提供了一个平台，最重要的是，它们试图决定教会内部的政治。这两个政治领域相互影响，事实上，它们不能分开，就像宗教和政治在中世纪不能分开一样。作为对这一研究愿望的回应，本项目将考察布道在康斯坦斯议会政治文化和实践政治中的作用：布道在议会政治沟通中的功能，它们在政治谈判中的作用，它们对话语阐述的影响，以及它们如何影响议会及其成员的自我认知，以及它对后代的形象。这种创新的方法将获得新的，对康斯坦斯委员会的运作以及中世纪晚期的政治和政治文化有深刻的洞察。

The Council of Constance (1414-1418) is well known as one of the important ecumenical councils in the 15th century, but the sermons which were held there have attracted no particular interest. In fact, historical research generally did not pay much attention to sermons, although they were the only mass media before the introduction of printing.Above all, the sermons have never been treated as an integral part of late medieval political culture. Moreover, no larger study has yet been consecrated to the political culture of a 15th-century council. For these assemblies, sermons probably played a major role, for it was their specific task to offer to the audience normative – and this means, also spiritual – orientation, based on the Bible and the principles of Christian faith.In the last years, many publications have examined the political culture in the Middle Ages, but they almost all concern secular princes and powers. However, 15th-century councils, too, acted politically, as they provided a platform for the disputes among the secular powers in Europe, and, above all, they tried to determine politics within the Church. These two areas of politics influenced each other, and in fact, they cannot be separated from each other, just as religion and politics could not be separated in the Middle Ages.As a reaction to this research desideratum, this project will examine the role of sermons in the political culture and practical politics of the Council of Constance: the function of sermons in the political communication at the assembly, their role in political negotiations and their influence on the elaboration of discourses as well as the way in which they influenced the self-perception of the council and its members and as well as its image for the ensuing generations.This innovative approach will gain new, deep insight into the functioning of the Council of Constance as well as in politics and political culture in the late Middle Ages.