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b'It is time to talk about Monasteries!\\xa0\\nAs the podcast explores the 9th and 10th centuries, we have seen an increase in focus on one area of the church: Monasteries.\\xa0\\nThis period in history owes a great deal to monasteries. Monastic houses, from their earliest foundations to their proliferation across Europe performed important religious, social, cultural, and economic functions that shaped and were shaped by both the religious and secular tides of the era. They were the record keepers and power brokers. They were staples of community and education.\\nAnd yet, they were also a world of their own. When discussing the medieval papacy and the church, it is impossible to ignore the importance of monasteries. But can the same be said in reverse? How important were the actual popes to monastic life? These are big and complex questions.\\nAnd who better to answer these big and complex questions than our best Carolingian friend, Dr Rutger Kramer?!'