Scott Hendrix

Carroll University, History, Faculty Member

Followers

308

Following

Co-authors

Public Views

My dissertation traces the impact of Albert the Great's Speculum astronomiae, written around 1260, until the end of the fifteenth century when it lapsed out of mainstream learned discourse.

I am currently working on a project revolving around anorexia, monastacism, mysticism, scholastacism, and mysteries of the faith.

I teach courses on medieval and early modern Europe, world history, and the discipline of teaching.
Supervisors: Thomas Burman
Phone: 262.524.7272
Address: 100 N. East Ave
Waukesha, WI 53186

less

InterestsView All (12)

Uploads

Books by Scott Hendrix

The Power of a Name: Albert the Great, the Speculum astronomiae, and Legitimization of Astrology and Astrological Magic in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries

Astrology and Western Society from the First World War to Covid-19, 2023

Albertus Magnus was one of the most significant medieval scholastic theologians. He was also very... more Albertus Magnus was one of the most significant medieval scholastic theologians. He was also very interested in astrology and its place within his Christian worldview. In the centuries after his death, a fascination with the esoteric elements of his thought grew to the point where he is often remembered not only for his interest in astrology, but also rather falsely as a wizard. Thus, Albert’s reputation has proven to be of keen interest and use to modern people with an interest in, or a business built upon, esoteric beliefs. Thus, we find modern astrologers such as Christopher Warnock directly quoting from Albert’s works. Perhaps more surprisingly, Albert, as both a saint and a supporter of astrology, has proven useful for modern conservative Catholics who support the use of predictive astrology.

Download

Introduction

Rebirth and Reform: How the Renaissance Gave Birth to the Reformation., 2023

Scholars often treat the Renaissance and Reformation as two distinct periods, in spite of the fac... more Scholars often treat the Renaissance and Reformation as two distinct periods, in spite of the fact that the two periods have considerable overlap in time. Furthermore, developments occurring at the end of the Middle Ages and during the Renaissance made the Reformation possible. This volume demonstrates the connections between these periods, while presenting the contributions of both men and women within their social, cultural, and economic contexts in ways understandable to students.

Download

"Superstition and Modernity: the conflict thesis, secularization thesis, and anti-Catholicism. "

Religion in the Era of Postsecularism , 2020

This study analyzes the conflict thesis within the context of anti-Catholic rhetoric driven by Ir... more

Download

The World's Greatest Religious Leaders

Religious leaders have shaped the course of history and deeply affected the lives of many individ... more Religious leaders have shaped the course of history and deeply affected the lives of many individuals. This book offers alphabetically arranged profiles of roughly 160 religious leaders from around the world and across time, carefully chosen for their impact and importance and to maximize inclusiveness of faiths from around the world.

Scholars from around the world, each one an expert in his or her field and all holding advanced degrees, came together to create an essential resource for students and for those with an interest in religion and its history. Every entry has been carefully edited in a two-stage review process, guaranteeing accuracy and readability throughout the work. Not strictly a biographical reference that recounts the facts of religious figures' lives, the book helps users understand how the selected figures changed history. The entries are accompanied by excerpts of primary source documents and suggestions for further reading, while the book closes with a bibliography of essential print and electronic resources for further research.

Examines roughly 160 alphabetically arranged reference entries that detail how religious leaders from different faiths changed the history of the world

Provides sidebars that discuss key events, offering background information and excerpts from consequential religious writings

Offers suggestions for further reading after each entry, and closes with a bibliography of important print and electronic resources suitable for student research

Magic and the Supernatural

by Scott Hendrix, Timothy J. Shannon, and Eugene Subbotsky

This volume brings together scholars from a variety of disciplines, ranging from psychology to ph... more This volume brings together scholars from a variety of disciplines, ranging from psychology to philosophy, history to religious studies, from around the globe in order to consider questions relating to magic and the supernatural. Literary theorists consider what True Blood has to say about American society and how we are to understand elements of the fantastic in Guillermo del Torro's Pan's Labrynth. Historians tackle the astrology of Galileo and Marsilio Ficino's view of magic. The theme that ties all of this together is a deep commitment to interdisciplinary work and a desire to understand why magic and the supernatural have had such an enduring allure across time and across cultures.

Download

Integrative Mysticism

People across time and cultures have speculated about the ability to make contact with God, gods,... more People across time and cultures have speculated about the ability to make contact with God, gods, or the divine. The term “mystic” is often used to refer to those who come to be accepted as able to establish that contact. Though rare, those recognized as mystics often attain outsized importance within their society. This volume brings together scholars from a wide range of disciplines in order to explore societal, cultural, and neurobiological elements of mystical traditions. These scholars examine South American shamanism, Islamic and Christian mystics, as well as contemporary efforts at transcendence ranging from Aleister Crowley’s magick to Jeffrey Kripal’s erotic teachings. The result is an interdisciplinary and cross cultural examination of an important, if often misunderstood, element of the human condition.

The Impact of the English Colonization of Ireland in the Sixteenth Century: A "Very Troublesome People"

This book represents an introduction to the history of the English colonization of Ireland from a... more This book represents an introduction to the history of the English colonization of Ireland from a post-colonial perspective with emphasis given to why writers wrote what they did about the Irish. The language of inferiority used by the English about the Irish was an important element in their colonial mission, used to justify their oppression of their Celtic neighbor and set the stage for a racialized view of the Irish.

Riot and Resistance in County Norfolk, 1646-1650: The Road to Rebellion in Seventeenth-century Britain

This study analyzes the growing tensions in County Norfolk (England) from 1646 to 1650 against th... more This study analyzes the growing tensions in County Norfolk (England) from 1646 to 1650 against the backdrop of economic depression, rising food prices, and continuing intrusions of the central government into regional affairs. The results are two periods of rioting, in 1646 and 1648--the second of which was much larger than the first and has become known as the "Great Blow" due to the spectacular explosion of a Norwich church used as an armory--and a failed uprising in 1650. Central to my argument is that the rioters and would-be revolutionaries were in fact conservatives driven to radical action by the innovatory actions of the central government.

Rational Magic: Cultural and Historical Studies in Magic

This volume brings together the talents of the philosophers Brian Feltham and Uchenna Okeja, the ... more This volume brings together the talents of the philosophers Brian Feltham and Uchenna Okeja, the historian Scott E. Hendrix, and the anthropologist Danijel Sinani. Chapters include a philosophical analysis of magical beliefs as a form of rationalism, a study of the astrological practices of Giovanni Pico della Mirandola and Galileo, witchcraft in a modern African context, and the rusalje ritual of spiritual possession in 20th century Serbia. Each chapter includes questions from other contributing authors followed by a discussion of the issues raised by the author. The result is a truly interdisciplinary work dealing with magical beliefs across time and space as rational constructs .

How Albert the Great's Speculum Astronomiae Was Interpreted and Used by Four Centuries of Readers: A Study in Late Medieval Medicine, Astronomy and Astrology

A study that analyzes the readership of a work commonly known as a "Speculum astronomiae" from th... more

Papers by Scott Hendrix

Filosofie přírody, nebo věda v předmoderních epistemických režimech? Případ astrologie Alberta Velikého a Galilea Galilei

Teorie vědy / Theory of Science

Scholarly attempts to analyze the history of science sometime suffer from an imprecise use of ter... more Scholarly attempts to analyze the history of science sometime suffer from an imprecise use of terms. In order to understand accurately how science has developed and from where it draws its roots, researchers should be careful to recognize that epistemic regimes change over time and acceptable forms of knowledge production are contingent upon the hegemonic discourse informing the epistemic regime of any given period. In order to understand the importance of this point, I apply the techniques of historical epistemology to an analysis of the place of the study of astrology in the medieval and early modern periods alongside a discussion of the “language games” of these period as well as the role of the “archeology of knowledge” in uncovering meaning in our study of the past. In sum, I argue that the term “science” should never be used when studying approaches to knowledge formation prior to the seventeenth century.

Download

Rational Astrology and Empiricism, From Pico to Galileo

Magic and the Supernatural, 2012

... 10 For this story, see Scott E. Hendrix, Albert the Great's Speculum Astronomiae and Fou... more

Astrology and Western Society from the First World War to Covid-19

Astrological Forecasting and the Turkish Menace in the Renaissance Balkans

Astrology played a prominent role at the court of the late-fifteenth-century Hungarian king, Math... more Astrology played a prominent role at the court of the late-fifteenth-century Hungarian king, Mathias Corvinus (1458-1490). In fact, his chief adviser was the astrologer Martin Bylica. This interest in predictive astrology has sometimes been seen as a singular blemish on the rule of an otherwise exemplary Renaissance monarch. However, understood within the context of his times, King Mathias' astrological interests reinforce his image as a man of learning. An acceptance of predictive astrology was a core belief within the intellectual worldview of the day, allowing the presence of a court astrologer to function as an anxiety-reduction mechanism in the face of the massive threat represented by the Ottoman Turks.

Download

Albert the Great, the Speculum astronomiae, and Astrology

SOME MODERN SCHOLARS, such as Jeremiah Hackett and Agostino Paravicini Bagliani, assert that the ... more SOME MODERN SCHOLARS, such as Jeremiah Hackett and Agostino Paravicini Bagliani, assert that the thirteenth-century work most commonly known as the Speculum astronomiae should not be attributed to Albertus Magnus. However, this article, based on a close analysis of forty-one of the surviving fifty-nine manuscripts containing the Speculum in conjunction with a wide array of other primary sources, demonstrates that the preponderance of the evidence is strongly suggestive that this is a genuinely Albertine work. Furthermore, this article considers some of the ways in which astrology fit into Albert’s larger theological and philosophical thought. Since Albert was a bishop and a theologian, it is necessary to see his astrological views as central to his theology, which is why he wrote about the subject almost every time he put pen to paper. Thus, this article not only argues for Albert’s authorship of the Speculum but also demonstrates how it fits within his larger body of writings on astrology and theology, while showing how these two subjects were linked for him.

The Pursuit of Witches and the Sexual Discourse of the Sabbat

During the European Witch Craze (c.1450-1650) tales of the "witches' sab-bat" circu... more During the European Witch Craze (c.1450-1650) tales of the "witches' sab-bat" circulated across the continent. These tales included lurid details of sex and debauchery conducted between women and demons, supported by numerous confessions given by accused women. However, historians have long noted that there is no evidence that any such "sabbat" ever occurred. This paper argues that the idea of the "witch" was a category of person created by a European clerical elite convinced that Satan was active in the world, and tales of the sabbat were generated by these same elites in order to spread awareness of what many viewed as a real and present danger. This concept was one part of a hegemonic discourse that many found useful for its explanatory power and its anxiety reduction benefits.

Download

Superstition and modernity

Religion in the Era of Postsecularism, 2019

Neuroscience and the Quest for God

Natural Philosophy or Science in Premodern Epistemic Regimes? The Case of the Astrology of Albert the Great and Galileo Galilei

Scholarly attempts to analyze the history of science sometime suff er from an imprecise use of te... more Scholarly attempts to analyze the history of science sometime suff er from an imprecise use of terms. In order to understand accurately how science has developed and from where it draws its roots, researchers should be careful to recognize that epistemic regimes change over time and acceptable forms of knowledge production are contingent upon the hegemonic discourse informing the epistemic regime of any given period. In order to understand the importance of this point, I apply the techniques of historical epistemology to an analysis of the place of the study of astrology in the medieval and early modern periods alongside a discussion of the "language games" of these period as well as the role of the "archeology of knowledge" in uncovering meaning in our study of the past. In sum, I argue that the term "science" should be used only with the greatest care and the utmost hesitancy when studying approaches to knowledge formation prior to the seventeenth century.

Download

Reading the Patient and Reading the Self: an Analysis of the Place of Cultural Theory in Occupational Therapy

The Patient-Doctor Dynamics, 2018

Scott Hendrix

Uploads

Books by Scott Hendrix

Papers by Scott Hendrix

Log In