Political Theory

Conciliarism

Conciliarism refers to a body of literature that argued that a general council of the Church was superior in authority to the Pope. The literature arose mainly in response to the Great Schism and the difficulties inherent in deciding between rival popes. There was nothing like an official position in all this, and there was considerable disagreement over how far and in what matters a Council was superior to a Pope, but taken as a whole, this literature provided a theoretical foundation for justifying the rights of parliaments and other assemblies over against the rights of a prince. For that reason, Conciliarist thought touches directly on the history of Western political thought in general.

Jensen and Hay both discuss Conciliarism. What I write here goes into a bit more detail and emphasizes somewhat different aspects from these authors. Several individuals figure in the development of conciliar thought. Foremost among them are Jean Gerson, Pierre d'Ailly and Nicholas of Cusa, but it's really the sum of all the writings that is of relevance here. So, while recognizing that there were many voices in the conciliar movement, I'll speak here as if there was but one.

Course: Electric Renaissance
Teacher: Dr. E. L. Skip Knox

Leave a