Manuel Montoza

PhD Project: “Sermones de Don Martín García, obispo de Barcelona. Edición y estudio”.

The aim of this thesis is to carry out an edition from the philological point of view of the text, "Sermones eminentissimi totiusque Barchinonensis gregis tutatoris acerrimi, necnon imarcessibilis sacre theologie paludamento insigniti Martini Garsie" containing 155 sermons against heretics, apostates and infidels made by the Bishop of Barcelona, Ferdinand of Aragon’s royal preacher and inquisitor general of the Kingdom of Aragon, Martín García (ca.1441-1521). The objective of this project is to make a modern critical edition, with the intention to establish the text in Latin, and also to identify and locate citations of Biblical, Quranic, Talmudic, Classical and Medieval tradition that the author uses to argue and articulate his speech.

Moreover, through the use of the critical edition of this work, we intend to produce a precise analysis of its political, social and religious importance. It is necessary to focus the study in accordance to its historical context, as it certainly was a turbulent time, both politically and socially. This is therefore the culmination of the literature of controversy, i.e. literature that aims to indoctrinate and rebut arguments through theoretically objective arguments.

He has participated as a speaker in the following events:

• Symposium “Sicut in caelo et in terra: Comunidades religiosas y predicación”, held in Barcelona, at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, May 31st 2013, delivering a lecture entitled: “Predicación a principios del siglo XVI: los Sermones de Don Martín García”.

• XVII Symposium of Classical studies “Omnia Mutantur”, Catalan section of the “Sociedad Española de Estudios Clásicos”, held in Barcelona, at the Universitat de Barcelona, July 4th 2013, delivering a lecture entitled: “De la retórica romana al Ars Praedicandi medieval: el ejemplo de los Sermones de Don Martín García”.

• VI International Congress of Hispanic Medieval Latin, held in La Nucía, Seu Universitària d’Alacant, November 22nd 2013, delivering a lecture entitled: “El uso de Bernardo de Claravall como autoridad en los Sermones de Martín García”.

• II Ganímedes National Congress, held in Sevilla, at the Centro de Iniciativas Culturales de la Universidad de Sevilla (CICUS), March 14th 2014, delivering a lecture entitled: “Sermo de morte regine Helisabete: edición del elogio fúnebre de Martín García a Isabel de Castilla”.

• International Medieval Meeting, held in Lleida, at Grup de Recerca Medieval de la Universitat de Lleida, June 26th 2014, delivering a lecture entitled: “La legitimación del poder de Fernando II de Aragón para la conquista del reino de Jerusalén secundum el sermón XL del predicador real Don Martín García”.

• XIV Congreso de Estudios Clásicos, organized by Sociedad Española de Estudios Clásicos, with the paper: “Los mártires de Hispania vistos por el predicador aragonés Don Martín García”. Universidad de Barcelona, July 13-17, 2015.

• VI Congreso Internacional de humanismo y pervivencia del mundo clásico, homenaje al profesor Eustaquio Sánchez Salor, with the communication on: “El valor de la tradición pagana en los Sermones del predicador Don Martín García”. Instituto de Estudios Humanísticos, Alcañiz, October 19-24, 2015.

Also, he is a member of the Società Internazionale per lo Studio del Medioevo Latino (SISMEL), Fondazione Ezio Franceschini, located in Florence, since April of 2014; and member of the organizing comittee of the II Jornadas Predoctorales en Estudios de la Antigüedad y la Edad Media, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, November 19-21, 2014.

Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Cándida Ferrero, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; Prof. Dr. Mercedes García-Arenal, ILC-CSIC, Madrid.