ClaireWeeda: Ethnicity in Medieval Europe, 950–1250: Medicine, Power and Religion. York: York Medieval Press, 2021; pp. 346.

Abstract

religious pluralism (which have eroded somewhat the need to protect religious groups from one another).One minor shortcoming of the book, which perhaps stems from unavoidable space limitations, is that it does not engage with the historiography as well as it could have. To be sure, its legal discussions are superb, referencing when appropriate the scholarship of acknowledged experts such as Philip Hamburger. However, I think that its discussion of the religious diversity of the Thirteen Colonies would have benefitted from a little more depth and incisiveness. In my view, Green does not devote sufficient space to states' rights and their contribution to separationism (though, as noted, I commend him for highlighting Jefferson's and Madison's opposition to state religious establishments). David Hackett Fischer's Albion's Seed (1989) persuasively illustrates how the cultural differences between the statesreligion includedmade them determined to maintain their independence by emphasising states' rights. Separationism at the federal level was, I think, a consequence of this desire for liberty. I was surprised that Fischer's famous study does not feature prominently in Green's work and consider this neglect symptomatic of Green's somewhat minimalist discussion of states' rights.Nevertheless, as noted, I consider this shortcoming a minor one. Overall, the book is a worthy and timely contribution to the study of church-state relations in the United States. I expect that it will serve as a valuable reference work for years to come, and I look forward to reading any future publications of the author about this subject.