Aspiring Saints by Anne Jacobson Schutte, a professor of history at the University of Virginia, presents an interesting look at the peculiar phenomenon of pretense of holiness. Anne Schutte is an established historian, her other works include The Autobiography of an Aspiring Saint; Time, Space and Women's Lives in Early Modern Europe; and Heavenly Supper: The Story of Maria Janis. Aspiring Saints is an expansion of her previous work about Maria Janis, one of the women accused of pretense of holiness. In this work, Schutte focuses on twelve cases, which she discovered while working in the Inquisitorial archives of Venice. A total of nine women and seven men, sometimes working in collusion, were accused of either being "false saint" or aiding them in their cause. The cases that Schutte examines are from the period of 1618-1750 and take place in the Republic of Venice. A majority of the cases she cites are those of beatas, women that are virgins or widows who have dedicated their lives to being holy. Surprisingly, nearly all of these women also had an accomplice, usually a priest that was their confessor, who would also propagate the belief that this person was holy. Piecing together the facts of each case from denunciations and trial dossiers, Schutte attempts to understand the similarities and differences that exist with each of these "living saints".

Schutte starts by explaining, in brief narrative, each of the cases that she will examine. She then goes on to describe the role and function of The Roman Inquisition, the institution given the responsibility to judge the crime of pretense of holiness and then administer an appropriate sentence. With a firm background established, Schutte begins her comparative analysis.

Features common to must of these false saints were vows of celibacy, holy wounds such as the stigmata, the ability to live solely on communion for extended periods of time, the ability to go into ecstasy and receive visions, the creation and use of relics, and the power to perform miracles. These people were not saints by Catholic definition because, at the time of investigation, they were still living and had not been canonized by the church. Schutte identifies the possible causes of the pretense of holiness: possession, illness, or willful fraud. She shows many similarities between people charged as false saints and those charged with witchcraft or sorcery. She also explores the roles of exorcists and physicians as used by the Roman Inquisition to investigate this phenomenon. Schutte then examines how gender played a significant role in the occurrence of pretense of holiness.

Displaying great command over her sources, Schutte effortlessly switches between the different aspects of each case. Her methods are excellent for comparing the minute details of the cases, but sometimes this approach overly fragments the flow of information. Although Schutte supplies short narratives of each case, expansion on each narrative would have reduced the confusion caused by an overwhelming cast of characters. Trying to keep the facts straight between twelve cases proved very challenging. To add to confusion, the paths of multiple stories cross on occasion as a person takes on a role that affects one of the other cases.

Schutte accurately portrays the situations in the context of their times. Not once does she project onto any circumstance a viewpoint or conclusion that would be an anachronism. She judges each of the cases using the cultural views and methodology appropriate for the time. Schutte also brilliantly uses spiritual manuals and medical texts of the period. While in today's secular world filled with medical science it would be easy to say that no one could live for years on communion alone, but Schutte cites experiments of the 17th and 18th century that demonstrate that this type of fasting could be possible. This perspective allows the reader to see the situations as people of that time would have viewed it.

The book is well organized and contains many extra features. A map of the Republic of Venice at the front of the text identifies many of the locations discussed within. Illustrations placed throughout the text break up the monotony and add an extra visual component to the work. The book also contains an extensive index, which proved to be extraordinarily helpful when having to identify specific people and event mentioned previously in the text. Her citations are accurate and well organized, and there is even a section of the book with the explanations for the abbreviations used in her footnotes. The footnotes themselves were helpful and often went into further detail on events mentioned in the text.

In all, Aspiring Saints is a wonderful analysis of pretense of holiness. Schutte presents her research in a scholarly, yet interesting manner. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in religious phenomena or the Roman Inquisition in Venice.

I enjoy reading all of Matt Christopher's books because they are fun to read while at the same time discuss interesting topics. This book was especially interesting. It is a sports biography about the famous baseball player Sammy Sosa. At the Plate With Sammy Sosa is a great book because it goes from all the hardships Sammy faced from his childhood in the Dominican Republic through his early years as a pro when he wasn't very popular to now when he is an international icon. This really is a great book especially for a younger audience.

This "Account on the Collapse of the Soviet Union" may be the best book I have read about the demise of the Soviet Union - I personally prefer it over David Remnick's "Lenin's Tomb," which won the Pulitzer Price. For one thing I think Mr. Matlock is among the men best suited to write about the Soviet Union, since he has experienced it first-hand for over 30 years. Moreover, although he never denies that the book constitutes his personal account, he still manages to seperate the issues discussed from his own person, something that I found Remnick to have trouble with at times. His theories, although not necessarily earth-shattering, are backed up by oodles of evidence, be it data or just anecdotes. The summary and the description of the CIS states and the future of the Commonwealth also provide a glimpse into the future. All you ever wanted to know about the epochal events and influences shaping the former Soviet block today.

I'll just make two quotations to stress the link on will and politics, one from Averroes and one from L.Wittgenstein:

"We say: This science, known as practical science, differs
essencially from the theoretical sciences. Now this is clear
inasmuch as its subject differs from the subject of each and every one of the theoretical sciences and its priciples differ from their principles. This is because the subject of this science is volitional things, the doings of which is within our power, and the principle of these things is WILL and choice;"
Averroes on Plato's Republic
trans. Ralph Lerner, Cornel University Press 1975.,p.3.
(Capital letters in WILL are mine.)

To understand the political aims and thoughts of Muslims which I observe that getting quite important for the US and her Allies nowadays, one has to master the use of the "UMMAT,MELLAT,DEEN,QAWM" as they are established in the Quran.

L.Wittgenstein said: "If you understand the workings of WILL in a

language, then you understand the language."

This is a neat book! It starts out with a chapter about Barbara Kingsolver, quite chatty and very interesting. And then there is a much longer chapter about the Poisonwood Bible, which is one of my favourites. This chapter is quite deep and occasionally too 'academic', but most of it is clear and it has made me think about the book. I'm now reading the novel again, and I'm enjoying it even more. The book finishes with three short chapters about how people liked the novel when it came out, and about how it did so well. All of which is interesting in its own way, too. I'm going to read more of Kingsolver's novels now.

If you enjoy thinking about books, and seeing things that you didn't really know were there, and if you loved the Poisonwood Bible, I can recommend this book. The author did a good job!

Having spent 10 days in Moscow and Novosibirsk I found this book INDISPENSABLE!

As a travel guide it never falls short on ANY given topic -- food, shopping, medical needs, travel, accomodations, social conversation, entertainment, sight-seeing and so much more!

It's English-Russian dictionary in the back of the book is worth the ENTIRE price of the book all by itself.

O.k. I know the title of this review looks like I'm shilling for the author/Publishing house...But this is one of the best books on the subject of Slavic Paganism and Magick I have seen yet. If this is a branch of study you are interested in, this book is a MUST have! Any Pagan, whether they are interested in Slavic studies or not can learn something of interest from this book.

Gordon Craig gives a clear and highly readable account of the most infuential battle of the 19th century. This should be required reading for anybody trying to understand modern German history. The author uses excellent source material to bring a contemporary narretive and evaluation to this historical milestone.

A beautifully done & informative book. I've enjoyed all of Jargstorf's books & feel they are an important contribution in an area where so few substantive works are available. This holds even more true with regards to beads of Bohemian origin...If you are interested in beads in general, it's recommended; beads of bohemian & czech origin, it's essential reading.

Ms. Dallemagne-Cookson paints a fascinating picture of life immediately before and during Belgian Congo's independence movement of 1960. This story was tragically repeated in many newly created African countries as the move to end colonialism once and for all gained momentum, but left in its wake people virtually leaderless after years of institutionalized governing. Europeans, whether they wanted to or not, exited their former colonies and left behind people unprepared to adequately conduct their own affairs. Many of these, including Elise's father-in-law from whom the book's title originates, deeply loved their life in Africa and were caught up by something over which they had no control. In spite of years of harmony with the local population, they were transformed overnight into hated imperialists and forced to leave. Meanwhile, in the new countries, those with the ability to lead rapidly learned "power corrupts" and without anyone to hold them in check embarked on shameless venality, leaving general populaces no better off than before, in almost every instance worse. The detrimental effects of that linger still to this day. Ms. Dallemagne-Cookson has a wonderfully masterful use of language and - along with the advantage of being on-scene for the entire event - has produced a work of art that no self-respecting history buff can ignore. Other than a map, the book has no pictures and needs none; the story line will generate all the mental illustrations you'll ever need. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, both in 1995 when it was given to me by Elise's brother Peter Cookson and his wife Karen - my mother - and when I read it again a year ago.