Re: 'diet' as in congress
Posted by TheFallen on May 19, 2003 In Reply to: Re: 'diet' as in to convene a congress
posted by James Briggs on May 19, 2003
: : : I was reading Baudolino by Umberto Eco and he used the word
'diet' in a way with which I was completely unfamiliar.
: : : eg. In one section he said... "Frederick first had to settle
things with the Poles... In March he convened a new diet at Worms
to prepare for another descent into Italy, where Milan, as usual,
with her allies, was becoming more and more unruly, then a diet
at Herbipolis in September, and one in Besancon in October; in short,
he seemed possessed."
: : : The use of the word - diet - here, appears to mean something
like a congress or conference.
: : : Is anyone else familiar with this term, can tell me how and
where it comes from, and how it should be pronounced. Is it pronounced
the same way as the word to describe an eating regimen?
: : A Diet of Worms doesn't sound very appealing, does it? For
more information look at http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary/diet
: It's the name of Parliament in a number of countries, eg Japan
The first Diet of Worms was a critical event in the socio-political
evolution of Europe. It happened in 1521 at the town of Worms in
Germany(or Wurms as it's known in German). The Diet (or formal general
assembly of the princes and powers of the Holy Roman Empire) was
called by the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, who wanted to expose
the factionalism within the Catholic Church at the time, and force
its chief rebellious proponent, Martin Luther, to recant.
Luther, who clearly knew a thing or two about PR and proto-media
attention, had attracted the adverse attention of the Catholic Church
4 years earlier in 1517 when he first wrote, then nailed his 95
theses to the door of the castle in Wittenburg. These primarily
slammed the Catholic Church for its adherence to and promotion of
"indulgences", a system where the Church sold sinners (or their
relatives) pieces of paper which "guaranteed" them redemption and
absolution for their sins. Again, a slick piece of marketing, if
the target audience is dumb enough to be fooled by it. Luther held
that sinners could only be redeemed through Christ, and his 95 theses
argued strongly for his case with concentrated reference to the
Scriptures.
At the Diet of Worms, Luther famously refused to do so, thus defying
both secular and religious authorities in the persons of the Emperor
and also the Pope. So ironically, Charles V's plan had entirely
the reverse effect from that desired since, although Luther was
subsequently exiled, spending years confined to the Wartburg Castle
under the protection of his patron, Frederick the Wise of Saxony,
his rebellion at the Diet of Worms thrust his beliefs into centre-stage,
thus becoming the root cause of the Reformation and the schism between
Catholic and Protestant beliefs at the heart of Christianity.
Both words, "diet" meaning a food regimen and "diet" meaning an
official congress stem from the same root, the L*tin "diaetia" meaning
both daily routine or way of living.
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