Anderson University Professor Dr. Lynneth Miller Renberg’s book, Women, Dance, and Parish Religion in England, 1300-1600 was awarded the 2023 Guittard Book Award.
The Guittard Book Award, given by Baylor University, recognizes the best book published during the previous year by a current or former Baylor faculty member or alumni. The book was published by Boydell and Brewer.
Dr. Renberg’s book takes a look at a time when dancing was once an accepted, regular part of Christian worship and how in later times church officials would view dancing as sinful, severely punishing offending parishioners in an effort to stop such activity.
“When I received notification that I’d won the Guittard Award, I was told that an independent panel of judges assessed the deep pool of entries this year, and my book was judged the winning book,” Dr. Renberg said. “One judge praised its combination of ‘high’ and ‘low’ history as the ‘standout book in this collection.’”
Women, Dance, and Parish Religion in England, 1300-1600 also won the Founder’s Prize from the Sixteenth Century Society and has been featured in the Church Times and on medievalists.net.
More details about Dr. Renberg’s book can be found on the publisher’s website.