<b>The <em>ratio studiorum</em> of the Order of Preachers in the XIIIth century: considerations on the relation between identity and education</b> - doi: 10.4025/actascieduc.v33i1.13486

Abstract

In 1259, the General Chapter of the Order of Preachers records in its minutes, what is conventionally called ratio studiorum, a series of determinations that were intended to organize and regulate the practice of the study among  the Dominican friars. Inserted in major universities since its founding in 1216, followers of Dominic associated regularly with the corporations of students and teachers as a way to guarantee that they considered their mission: the cura animarum. The salvation of christians was possible especially through the preaching based on proper knowledge of the Scriptures. The action of the Preachers provoked criticism and resistance from other ecclesiastical, especially among the clergy who attended the universities, which saw the friars as competitors in their pastoral duties. The Order itself was also facing internal disagreements in what was referred to the role of study among the religious. This article will argue that the ratio studiorum presented itself as an instrument for strengthening the Dominican identity, tying it closely to the practice of study, which would at the same time legitimize their position with the papal Curia and the faithful, and give it internal cohesion