Time line and historic overview of Medieval Age: http://www.thefinertimes.com/Middle-Ages/timeline-of-the-middle-ages.html

In Module Three, we examine important transitions during the period known as Medieval, loosely designated here as from 400 CE to 1400 CE. Although the Jewish Bible is an ancient collection of texts, and therefore, belonged in the section on Ancient Civilizations, we are attending to it here because of its seminal place in Medieval Europe.

The first book of the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible, Genesis, tells the story of Adam and Eve and how they were expelled from paradise for yielding to temptation and disobeying God. This story of “the fall” provided the defining narrative in Western Culture regarding human nature until relatively recent times. Augustine’s Confessions (made a saint by the Catholic Church in 1298 CE) provides a vivid and compelling account of the power of this vision in one man’s experience. Saint Augustine was a central figure in the rise of “Christendom” in the West, and his autobiographical story of his conversion from sinner to “saved” became a classic work not only in the literature of the Church but also in Western thought (Augustinus & Chadwick, 1992).

M3 – Discussion 1: Augustine’s View of Human Nature

In Book I in which Augustine discusses his childhood, he refers to himself as “so tiny a child, so great a sinner” (Augustinus & Chadwick, 1992). Based on what you have learned from the recorded lectures on The Confessions, why did Augustine see himself that way? Describe at least two of the examples that Augustine gives of his sinful behavior. Why does he see such behavior as sinful and against God’s will? What is your opinion of his view of human nature? Is it outmoded or still relevant?

M3 – Discussion 2: Magna Carta (1215, England) and the Declaration of Independence (1776, American colonies)

Here you are given the opportunity to compare the Magna Carta from 1215 in England with the Declaration of Independence of the American colonies from Britain. (To put this in a broader context, remember that Augustine was made a saint by the Catholic Church in 1298).

M3 – Written Assignment: A Plague on your House! The Impact of the Black Plague

Death and destruction were a part of the daily experience of all societies in medieval times. Children frequently did not live beyond age 2 because there were so many ways they might die. Childbirth was a dangerous hazard for women. Men died in war. In the midst of these frequent occurrences of death was the recurrence of the Bubonic Plague, also known as the Black Plague. Here are two websites that give some details about the Black Plague and its impact on Europe in medieval times:

• https://www.history.com/topics/middle-ages/black-death
• https://www.historytoday.com/archive/black-death-greatest-catastrophe-ever