Late medieval religion was generally depicted by historians of the first half of the twentieth century as decadent; its theology sterile and played out, its practice superficial and superstitious. For this ‘waning’ culture, it was sometimes argued, the sixteenth-century Reformation came as a just desert. In the last few decades, however, the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries have come under increasing scrutiny and it is now becoming apparent that the theology of the period, far from being ‘worn out’, was of a wide and rich variety, while its piety often displayed a genuine spirituality. Yet there is still considerable obscurity and this is likely to remain until the sermons, tracts and other works, many still in manuscript, of more theologians of the period are edited and examined.

The purpose of the present study is to add another piece to the variegated picture of late medieval religion that is emerging. Its chief focus is on that part of Jean Gerson's teaching intended for the laity, either directly as it appears in his vernacular sermons and tracts, or indirectly as in his Latin works for pastors. This approach will shed light not only on Gerson's own thought and theological positions, but also to some degree on popular mentality. If we cannot often hear ‘the voice of the people’ in the medieval period, we can at least hear the ideas, attitudes and assumptions they were exposed to from the pulpit and the confessional. We may also discover – though here the ground is rather treacherous, for preachers and moralists frequently work with traditional commonplaces – something about the particular vices, virtues and practices of the day.