Academic Activities
Recapping the World History Seminar “Polemics and Confessionalization: The Case of Christian Church History” conducted by Dr. Stefan BAUER on 15 September 2022
Dr. Stefan BAUER from the Department of History, King’s College London, was invited by the Centre for Comparative and Public History to deliver a lecture entitled “Polemics and Confessionalization: The Case of Christian Church History” on 15 September 2022. To explore how the Protestant and Catholic Churches used history to justify their religious doctrines, Dr. BAUER started the lecture by revealing the inextricably intertwined relationship between history and Christianity. Specifically, he examined the case of Martin LUTHER and his followers such as Philipp MELANCHTHON, Matthias FLACIUS, and John FOXE. Drawing upon sources including Hartmann SCHEDEL’s World Chronicle and Onofrio PANVINIO’s The Invention of Papal History, he scrutinized the authenticity of the story regarding Pope Joan, indicating the imaginary power of popular polemics. This formula could apply to question the authenticity of The Donation of Constantine and St. Peter’s tomb. The Catholic responses to the polemics, on the other hand, tended to be more homogeneous, with Johann ECK providing the polemic blueprints. The lecture concluded that polemical passion stimulated research in which history served as both intra-confessional and inner-confessional weapons used by churches. Despite many reasons to appeal to history, there lies a continuity with the previous humanists.
Upcoming Events
World History Seminar (2022-23)
| Date: | 29 September 2022 (Thursday) |
| Time: | 5:00pm-6:30pm |
| Venue: | Conducted online via ZOOM (Meeting ID: 990 8868 4183) |
| Topic: | “It is Certain that the King Loves Italians”: Louis XIV and Italy, 1659-1707 |
| Speaker: | Dr. John CONDREN Faculty of History, University of Oxford |
| Language: | English |
| Date: | 6 October 2022 (Thursday) |
| Time: | 5:00pm-6:30pm |
| Venue: | Conducted online via ZOOM (Meeting ID: 990 8868 4183) |
| Topic: | Native Spies and Imperial Designs across Portuguese Asia: Macau, 1626; Goa, 1634 |
| Speaker: | Prof. Jorge FLORES Department of History and Philosophy of Sciences, University of Lisbon |
| Language: | English |
Organisers: Centre for Comparative and Public History, Department of History, CUHK
Enquiry: 3943 8541
For teachers and students who have information to share with the Department, please email your articles in both Chinese and English to chanfiona@cuhk.edu.hk by 4:00pm every Monday.
