"...Ditchfield's attempt at revisionism can be seen as confirming the general lines of the current ortodoxy, while introducing nuance and shade into some areas once depicted in harsh tones of white and (mostly) black." Nicholas Terpstra, Canadian Journal of History

• List of illustrations; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; Maps; 1. Introduction; Part I. Liturgy: 2. Reform of liturgy and the reinvention of historia sacra; 3. Hagiography as liturgy in a local context: the ecclesia placentina riformanda; Part II. Sanctity: 4. Early Christian martyr; 5. Aristocratic hermit; 6. Well-born nun; 7. Lay helper of the urban poor; 8. Visionary shepherdess; 9. Saintly pontiff; Part III. History: 10. Historia sacra as redemptor ecclesiarum italicarum; 11. The ecclesiastical roots of national historiography: Ferdinando Ughelli's Italia sacra; Bibliography; Index.

"...Ditchfield's attempt at revisionism can be seen as confirming the general lines of the current ortodoxy, while introducing nuance and shade into some areas once depicted in harsh tones of white and (mostly) black." Nicholas Terpstra, Canadian Journal of History

• List of illustrations; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; Maps; 1. Introduction; Part I. Liturgy: 2. Reform of liturgy and the reinvention of historia sacra; 3. Hagiography as liturgy in a local context: the ecclesia placentina riformanda; Part II. Sanctity: 4. Early Christian martyr; 5. Aristocratic hermit; 6. Well-born nun; 7. Lay helper of the urban poor; 8. Visionary shepherdess; 9. Saintly pontiff; Part III. History: 10. Historia sacra as redemptor ecclesiarum italicarum; 11. The ecclesiastical roots of national historiography: Ferdinando Ughelli's Italia sacra; Bibliography; Index.