<b>Bishops and power relations in Isidore of <i>Seville’s De Ecclesiasticis Officiis</i> and <i>Sententiarum Libri Tres</i>

Abstract

In the Roman-Germanic kingdoms from the sixth century onwards, Bishops’s activities were mainly concentrated on the preservation and expansion of the Christian faith and the reorganization of ecclesiastical institutions. Among several initiatives, a huge material investment, comprising monastic rules, sermons, Mirrors for princes and hagiographies, was undertaken. In the Visigoth kingdom, Isidore of Seville is acknowledged as the man who enhanced his participation within the process of ecclesiastical restructuring, with great attention towards the moral and intellectual qualifications of the clergy. Thus, current essay deals with the main allusions to ecclesiastical authorities in De Ecclesiasticis Officiis and Sententiarum libri tres within the vast work produced by the Spaniard, coupled to their relationship with the idealized model of a bishop.

Keywords

• Isidoro de Sevilha
• Episcopado
• normatização eclesiástica