IN PROGRESS
In addition to some articles in progress, I am currently working on a book "Blood Libel and the Boundaries of Papal Authority." The book tells a story of access to, and limits of, papal authority in premodern Europe, highlighting cultural and social connections between Italy and Poland. It addresses responses and actions from both Church authorities and Jewish leaders in the aftermath of anti-Jewish trials, from the first medieval condemnations of the charges to the sftermath of the 1759 report by Cardinal Ganganelli, future Pope Clement XIV, issued in response to a surge of such trials in Poland. ?Networks of Power? will take a familiar story of blood libels to raise broader questions about the limits of papal authority over local powers and explain local power dynamics behind such trial. The emerging story is thus much larger than the specific charges against Jews.