Orthodox Reform in England and onthe Continent in the Early fifteenth Century

Resumen

Conventional wisdom claims that it is only with the election of Jean Soreth as prior general in 1451 that the Order begins to recover a  sense of identity and that the observance of its members began to improve. This is a view which perhaps does less than full justice to  Thomas Netter (d. 1430) as a superior who was actively committed to improving religious life and practices, as well as writing about it.  From this point of view, part of Netter’s importance may well lie in his preservation and promotion of Carmelite values in a subtle, but  nonetheless real, way at a crucial point in the Order’s history. I would like, therefore, to divide my treatment of Netter between on the  one hand his work and attitudes as a provincial superior, which can be seen in that part of his correspondence which survives, and on  the other his theological contribution to ‘orthodox’ reform as evidenced in the Doctrinale and the use made of it by his  contemporaries and successors which testifies to a clear appreciation of its importance.