Daniela Müller (born July 10, 1957) is a German theologian and church historian. She is a full professor in the History of Christianity and Canon Law at

Radboud University Radboud University (abbreviated as RU, nl, Radboud Universiteit , formerly ''Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen'') is a public research university located in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. The university bears the name of Saint Radboud, a 9th century D ...

, and has published extensively on the subjects of

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

and

dissidents A dissident is a person who actively challenges an established political or religious system, doctrine, belief, policy, or institution. In a religious context, the word has been used since the 18th century, and in the political sense since the 20th ...

Biography

Müller studied

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

History History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

and Catholic

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

in Würzburg. Subsequently, she pursued a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

on the

ecclesiology In Christian theology, ecclesiology is the study of the Church, the origins of Christianity, its relationship to Jesus, its role in salvation, its polity, its discipline, its eschatology, and its leadership. In its early history, one of the ...

of the

Albigensians Catharism (; from the grc, καθαροί, katharoi, "the pure ones") was a Christian dualist or Gnostic movement between the 12th and 14th centuries which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France. Foll ...

. In 1996 followed her

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...

on these subjects, with a ''venia legendi'' for history of

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

. From 1998 onward, she was a visiting professor

Canon Law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

at the

University of Münster The University of Münster (german: Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, WWU) is a public university, public research university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. With more than 43,000 students and over ...

. She then moved to a university in the Netherlands when in 2001 she took up the chair for Church History at the

Catholic University of Utrecht The Catholic University of Utrecht or Catholic Theological University was a Roman Catholic pontifical university in Utrecht, Netherlands. The university was a public institution and was primarily focused on educating future Catholic priests. In 2 ...

. In 2009, she became a professor in the history of christianity at the Faculty of Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies at

Research

Her research interests are

and the interweaving of

and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. The point of departure of her research is the connection between historical, theological and legal aspects. The focus is on the interaction of the competing models of interpretation within

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

, whereby

orthodoxy Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churc ...

and

heterodoxy In religion, heterodoxy (from Ancient Greek: , "other, another, different" + , "popular belief") means "any opinions or doctrines at variance with an official or orthodox position". Under this definition, heterodoxy is similar to unorthodoxy, wh ...

are not regarded as contrary, but as a continuing process of the development of learning within Christianity. The disputes concerning the different interpretations of the teachings are the driving force of the development of the spiritual culture of Europe, long before the Enlightenment.

Selected bibliography

* ''Frauen vor der Inquisition''. Lebensform, Glaubenszeugnis und Aburteilung der deutschen und französischen Katharerinnen. (Veröffentlichungen des Instituts für Europäische Geschichte Mainz, Abt. Abendländische Religionsgeschichte, ed. Von G. MAY, Bd. 166), Mainz 1996. * ''Ketzer und Ketzerverfolgung'', in: Lexikon zur Geschichte der Hexenverfolgung, eds. von G.Gersmann/K. Moeller/J.-M. Schmitt * ''Schuld und Sünde, Sühne und Strafe''. Strafvorstellungen der mittelalterlichen Kirche und ihre rechtlichen Konsequenzen (Schriftenreihe des Zentrums für rechtswissenschaftliche Grundlagenforschung Würzburg 1), Baden-Baden 2009. * ''Gott und seine zwei Frauen''. Der Teufel bei den Katharern, In: Interdisziplinäre Hexenforschung online 3, 2011: Teuflische Beziehungen - teuflische Gestalten. Der dämonische Kontrapunkt des Hexenglaubens * ''Ketzer und Kirche''. Beobachtungen aus zwei Jahrtausenden (Christentum und Dissidenz 1), Münster 2014. * ''Frauen und Häresie''. Europas christliches Erbe (Christentum und Dissidenz 2), Münster 2015. * ''The Making of a Cathar Counter-Church, the 'Ecclesia dei', through the Consolamentum Ritual (Baptism of the Holy Spirit)'', In: Bibliothèque de la Revue d'Histoire Ecclésiastique, 106, 2020, 119-161.

External links

Profile page at Radboud University Nijmegen

Center for Catholic Studies

CIRCAED

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muller, Daniela Living people Radboud University Nijmegen faculty German Christian theologians Heresy in Christianity 1957 births 20th-century German historians 21st-century German historians 20th-century German theologians 21st-century German theologians