In this episode, Benjamin sits down with John Ott and Anna Trumbore Jones to talk about the history of the medieval clergy.

Who were the clergy? What did they do? How did they influence the lives of ordinary people in the Middle Ages? Drs. Ott and Jones help to unravel these questions as experts in the field who have recently completed a book on the subject, The Medieval Clergy 800-1250: A Sourcebook. The book is an outstanding resource for students and scholars alike who wish to know more about the role that the clergy played in the medieval world, and this conversation brings out their experience and expertise for the listener.

We also get another appearance of recurring character Bodo the Peasant, who'll be with us for the whole series.

This podcast is funded by Fordham's Center for Religion and Culture with the assistance of the Medievalist Toolkit. The music for this show is excerpted from "⁠Awaken the Soul⁠" by John Schuemaker available, licensed under ⁠CC BY 4.0⁠.  You can find more of his music on his ⁠homepage⁠ at freemusicarchive.org.

In the first episode of That's So Medieval, Benjamin Bertrand introduces listeners to himself and the show. Focusing on the history of the medieval church and its connections to the modern world, That's So Medieval is a twelve-part series that will dive deep into topics in medieval religious history. The goal of the series is to highlight the ways in which the medieval church, and the medieval world, continues to influence modern society in ways that most people never recognize. This first episode sets the tone for the rest of the series and gives a sneak peak of some of the topics that we'll be exploring over the next few months.

This podcast is funded by Fordham's Center for Religion and Culture with the assistance of the Medievalist Toolkit. The music for this show is excerpted from "Awaken the Soul" by John Schuemaker available, licensed under CC BY 4.0.  You can find more of his music on his homepage at freemusicarchive.org.