The Search for Salvation: Lay Faith in Scotland 1480-1560

An innovative and interdisciplinary study of lay faith in Scotland during the late Middle Ages, this account examines the religious ideas and practices of the people and how they were shaped by images in literature, art, and church writings. Shedding new light on the coming of the Protestant Reformation and revealing the richness of the world of Scottish religious imagery, this remarkable record argues for the vitality and flourishing of lay piety and provides an understanding of the nature and functioning of medieval culture as a whole. While the first half of this volume discusses three central concepts of death and salvation—the day of judgment, heaven and hell, and purgatory—the second half investigates three central figures of Christianity: God, Mary, and Jesus. Thorough and informative, this reference is a fresh analysis of religion’s role in Scottish society.