معرفی
Paweł Kras is a Professor in the Department of Source Studies, Archival Studies and History Didactics at the Institute of History within the Faculty of Humanities, John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. His work centers on the institutional and social dimensions of religious dissent in late medieval East Central Europe, with emphasis on primary source analysis and editorial projects.
Professor Kras's research explores heresy trials, inquisition mechanisms, and religious tolerance development in Poland and Bohemia. Key interests include Hussite and Wycliffite movements, beguine communities (particularly Świdnica), and Jagiellonian dynasty religious policies. His methodology integrates source criticism with socio-political contextualization, reflecting his department's focus on historical documentation practices.
Recent publications reveal three dominant trends: (1) social networks enabling religious dissidence transmission, (2) vernacular text circulation as a heresy vector, and (3) identity construction of religious enemies through trial records. His work demonstrates increasing interdisciplinary engagement with sociology of religion and textual analysis while maintaining archival rigor.
Scientific recognition includes:
- Main Award in the Competition named after Professor Jerzy Michalski (2021)
- Award of the Minister of Science and Higher Education for significant achievements (2020)
- Second Award of 'Source Studies' named after Stefan Krzysztof Kuczyński (2018)
Professor Kras has served as thesis reviewer for scholars including Anna Zajchowska and Piotr Kołodziejczak. He leads major funded projects such as NCN's 'Correspondence of John Capistrano with Poles (1451-1456)' and MEiN's 'Beguines of Świdnica Interrogations', alongside international EU COST Action IS 1301 on religious transformation. His Erasmus+ scholarships support collaborative work with KU Leuven and Sarajevo University.
As Editor-in-Chief of Acta Mediaevalia. Series Nova, he directs scholarly communication in Polish medieval studies. He organized the 2012 Prague conference 'Inquisition, Heresy and Reformation' and the 2023 international symposium on Świdnica beguines. His museum advisory role for the Lublin Museum's Eastern Territories section and Czech-Polish Forum membership demonstrate institutional leadership.
