Thomas Franklin O’Meara, O.P., grew up in Des Moines, Iowa, and Madison, Wisconsin, and is a priest of the Dominican Order. He did his doctoral studies at the University of Munich with Heinrich Fries and Karl Rahner.
He taught at Aquinas Institute (Dubuque, Iowa; now St. Louis, Mo) from 1966 to 1979. He taught at the University of Notre Dame from 1981 to 2002 and was the William K. Warren Professor of Theology there.
A past president of the Catholic Theological Society of America, he continues to teach part-time at Notre Dame, Loyola University (Chicago), and the Catholic Theological Union (Chicago). He has been a visiting professor at Wartburg Lutheran Seminary , St. Joseph’s Theological Institute (Cedara, South Africa), the University of San Diego, and Boston College.
Among his fifteen books are: Theology of Ministry; Thomas Aquinas, Theologian; an introduction to Karl Rahner, God in the World. And just published in 2012, Vast Universe. Extraterrestrials and Christian Revelation.
[Dominican Priory, 2131 Rowley Ave, Madison, WI 53726-3996. Tel: 608 – 238-3472; email [email protected]] 2
Thomas Franklin O’Meara, O.P., grew up in Madison Wisconsin in Blessed Sacrament Parish. He is a priest of the Dominican Order. He did his doctoral studies at the University of Munich, Germany.
He taught at Aquinas Institute (Dubuque, Iowa; now St. Louis, Mo) from 1966 to 1979. He taught at the University of Notre Dame from 1981 to 2003.
In the past ten years, he has continued to teach part-time at Notre Dame, Loyola University (Chicago), and the Catholic Theological Union (Chicago), the University of San Diego, and Boston College.
Among his fifteen books are: Theology of Ministry and ; Thomas Aquinas, Theologian. And just published in 2012, Vast Universe. Extraterrestrials and Christian Revelation.
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Thomas F. O‟Meara,
Bibliography of Publications
[November 1, 2012]
2013
An Easter Story.
Discovering the Church in History: French Dominicans in the Twentieth Century.
Review of Jean-Pierre Torrell, Christ and Spirituality in St. Thomas Aquinas (Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 2011) .
“Martin Heidegger‟s Remarks at the First Mass of a Newly Ordained Priest.”
“Alois Dempf. Culture and Religion in the History of Thinking.”
“Healthy and Unhealthy Structures in the Catholic Church.”
“Max Müller, His Philosophy and His Journey,” Heythrop Journal (2013)
“Religious Clothes and the Present Moment” National Catholic Reporter (2013).
2012
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Vast Universe. Christian Revelation and Extraterrestrials (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2012)
“Extraterrestrials and Religious Questions,” Astro-Theology , Journal of Cosmology ( 02 Sept 2012) 8707-14 [on line].
“The Salvation of Extraterrestrials,” Huffington Post. Religion (July 16, 2012).
Review of Hans Küng, Ist die Kirche noch zu Retten, Theological Studies 73 (2012): 466-467.
“Thomism (theology),” Britannica Online Encyclopedia 1-4
Translation of Klaus Ganzer, “Cardinals as Princes of the Church? A History Full of Changes and Numerous Curiosities,” Stimmen der Zeit 139 (2011): 313-323 (unpublished).
2011
“Der amerikanische Rahner. Vom Einfluss eines deutschen Theologen auf den Katholizismus in den USA,“ Karl Rahner-Archiv (Munich) October, 2011; Texte [online] ( Freiburg Universität, October, 2011).
2010
“Being a Ministering Church: Insights from History” in Zeni Fox, ed., Lay Ecclesial Ministry. Pathways Toward the Future (New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2010) 53-66.
Translation of Johannes B. Lotz, “Johannes B. Lotz, S. J., and Martin Heidegger: A Conversation,” American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly (2010): 127-131.
“Paul Tillich and Karl Rahner: Similarities and Contrasts,” Gregorianum 91 (2010): 443-459. 5
2009
“The Reception of Heidegger‟s Philosophy by Theologians. A Bibliographical Essay,” [on line, Notre Dame]
“Albert the Great: Bibliographical Aspects,” [on line, Albertus Magnus Society]
Translations of Nine Articles on the Theology of Albert the Great [on line, Albertus Magnus Society]
“Karl Rahner‟s “Remarks on the Schema, „De Ecclesia in Mundo Hujus Temporis,‟ in the draft of May 28, 1965.” Philosophy & Theology 1-2 (2008): 331-39.
“ Paul Tillich and Karl Rahner: A Bibliography,” Bulletin of the North American Paul Tillich Society 35 (2009): 5-6.
“Theologie in den USA. Realitätsnah und kirchlich engagiert,” Wort und Wahrheit 50:2 (2009): 54-59.
“A Teaching Scarcely Imagined in Europe,” Religious Life Review 48 (2009): 236-44.
2008
“A Note on Ministry in the Theology of J.-M. R. Tillard,” Science et Esprit 61 (2009): 195-201.
“Events Dramatic and Violent…,” Light & Life. The Magazine of Weston Jesuit School of Theology (Spring, 2008), 5.
“The Theology and Times of William of Tripoli, O.P.,” A Different View of Islam,” Theological Studies 69 (2008): 80-98.
6
Translations of Four Articles on the Theology of Thomas Aquinas [private publication].
2007
God in the World: A Guide to Karl Rahner‟s Theology (Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 2007).
“Yves Congar, Théologien de la Grâce dans un Vaste Monde,“ Yves Congar, Théologien de l‟Église (Paris: Les Éditions du Cerf, 2007) 329-346.
“Power and Display in the Church: Yves Congar‟s Critique,” Dominican Studies 1 (2007): 26-36.
“Wilhelm von Tripoli,” Wort und Wahrheit 48 (2007): 131-135.
“Between Apologetics and Ecclesiology. Sertillanges on the Church,” in Thomas Prügl, Marianne Schlosser, eds., Dominikanische Beiträge zur Ekklesiologie und zum kirchlichen Leben im Mittelalter (Paderborn: Schöningh, 2007) 403-420.
2006
“The Priest Preaching in a World of Grace,” in Donald Dietrich, ed., Priests for the 21st Century (New York: Rowman and Littlefield, 2006) 66-76.
“A Pioneer in Pastoral Theology: Constantin Noppel, S.J.,“ in Jaroslav Skira and Michael Attridge, eds., In God‟s Hands. Essays on the Church and Ecumenism in Honour of Michael A. Fahey, S. J. (Leuven: Leuven University Press, 2006) 75-87
“The Church Is Active in Ministry,” in William Madges and Michael J. Daley, eds., The Many Marks of the Church (New London: Twenty- Third Publications, 2006) 65-68. 7
“French Baroque Thomism: The Theological System of Vincent de Contenson, O.P.,” Science et Esprit 58 (2006): 23-41.
“Schelling,” Encyclopedia of Religion [2nd edition] (New York: Thomson Gale [Macmillan], 2006) 8148-8149.
Translation of Eiko Hanaoka, “Paul Tillich in Japan, “Bulletin of The North American Paul Tillich Society 323 (2006): 6-9.
“Paul TIllich and Erich Przywara,” Gregorianum 87 (2006): 227-238.
“Preaching and Ministry in a Time of Expansion,” in Michael Monshau, ed., The Grace and Task of Preaching (Dublin: Dominican Publications, 2006) 255-269.
“Thomas Aquinas in Africa” America 194 (2006) 13-17 [reprinted in International Dominican Information 440 (March 2006), 71-73].
“Neo-Thomism,” Dictionary of Philosophy (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2005 / New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006) 424-425.
2005
“The Future of the Church. Insights from Three Dominicans” Dominnican Studies 1 (2007) (Columbus: Ohio Dominican University, 2007): 26-36.
“Yves Congar, Theologian of Grace in a Vast World,” in Gabriel Flynn, ed., Yves Congar. Theologian of the Church (Leuwen: Peeters, 2005) 371-400.
“Christmas,” Celebration 34 (December, 2005) 3-4.
“Theologies on the Boundary,” Veritas (September, 2005) 19-20.
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“Theology of Church,” in Joseph Wawrykow, ed., The Theology of Thomas Aquinas (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 2005, 2010) 303-325.
“Schelling, Drey, Möhler und die nachkonziliare Zeit. Kunst und Organismus im Kirchenverständnis,” in Michael Kessler and Ottmar Fuchs, eds., Theologie als Instanz der Moderne. Beiträge und Studien zu Johann Sebastian Drey und zur Katholischen Tübinger Schule (Tübingen: Francke, 2005) 207- 216.
“Lay Ecclesial Ministry – What It Is and What It Isn‟t,” in Richard W. Miller, ed., Lay Ministry in the Catholic Church (Liguori: Liguori Press, 2005) 67- 78.
2004
Translation of Heinrich Fries, “Theological Method according to John Henry Newman and Karl Rahner,” Philosophy & Theology 16 (2004): 163-193.
“Concerning the Mystery and Gift of Teaching,” in George Howard, ed., For the Love of Teaching (Notre Dame: Academic Publications, 2004) 210-219.
“Ambition in the Church,” Spirituality 10 (2004): 111-118.
“What Can We Learn from the Tridentine and Baroque Church?” in Michael Himes, ed., The Catholic Church in the 21st Century. Finding Hope for Its Future in the Wisdom of the Past (Liguouri: Liguouri Press, 2004) 56-64.
“Paul Tillich and Erich Przywara at Davos,” Bulletin of The North American Paul Tillich Society 30 (2004): 8-9.
“Christ Died for Our Sins,” The Catechist‟s Connection 22 (November, 2004): 6.
“Faith in Color,” ParishWorks 7:9 (November/December, 2004): 8. 2003 9
“Dominican Studies and the Theology of Thomas Aquinas,” Listening 38 (2003): 212-224.
“Foreword” to John J. Markey, Creating Communion. The Theology of the Constitutions of the Church (Hyde Park: New City Press, 2003) v-xviii.
Translation of Heinrich Fries, "Autobiography in Dialogue with Cardinal Newman. Recollections of a Theologian," Irish Theological Quarterly (2002): 251-264.
“Paul Tillich und Erich Przywara in Davos,” Davoser Revue 78 (2003): 18- 22.
“Religion in History. Schelling and Molitor,” Iris. Annales de philosophie (Études sur Schelling en homage à Xavier Tilliette) 24 (2003): 199-213.
“Pastor, Lay Ministers, and Community…amid the Changes of History,” What Is Good Ministry? Resources to Launch a Discussion (Durham: Pulpit & Pew Research Reports, 2003) 28-31.
"The End!” Celebration 32:10 (October, 2003): 468.
“Divine Grace and Human Nature as Sources for the Universal Magisterium of Bishops," Theological Studies 64 (2003): 683-706.
Four Sermons on Thomas Aquinas (Chenu, Congar, Rahner, Schillebeexk). Translations [private publication, 2003].
2002
A Theologian‟s Journey (Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist Press, 2002).
Erich Przywara: His Theology and His World (Notre Dame, In.: University of Notre Dame Press, 2002).
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Thomas Aquinas, Theologian, Korean translation (Seoul: Catholic Publishing House, 2002).
Translation of Heinrich Fries, “Recollections of a Theologian: Dialogue with Newman,” Irish Theological Quarterly 67 (2002): 251- 264.
“Interpreting Thomas Aquinas: Aspects of the Dominican School of Moral Theology in the Twentieth Century,” in Stephen Pope, ed., The Ethics of Aquinas ( Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2002), 355-374.
“Onkraj Granica,” Vjesnik. Hrvatske Dominikanske Provincije 39 (2002) 34-36. [Croation Translation of “Beyond Boundaries,” an address given at the Granting of the Degree STM in the Province of St. Albert the Great]
2001
“Jean-Pierre Torrell‟s Research on Thomas Aquinas,” Theological Studies 62 (2001): 787-801.
“Le ministère dans l‟église catholique d‟aujourd‟hui: Les données de quelques trajectoires historiques,“ in Joseph Doré, M. Maurice Vidal, eds., Des Ministres pour l‟église (Paris: Cerf, 2001) 152-170.
Translation of Yves Congar, “Loving Openness Toward Every Truth: A Letter from Thomas Aquinas to Karl Rahner,” Philosophy and Theology 12 (2001): 213-19.
Translation of Winfried Haunerland, “The Heirs of the Clergy?: The New Pastoral Ministries and the Reform of the Minor Orders,” Worship 75 (2001): 305-20.
“Reflections on the General Elective Chapter of 2001,” Provincial Newsletter, Dominican Province of St. Albert the Great 40 (October/December 2001): 8-9.
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“What is a Jacobin? A Pigeon? A Dominican? A Violent Leftist?” Provincial Newsletter, Dominican Province of St. Albert the Great 40 (January/March 2001): 15-17.
“A Center of Dominican Studies and the Theology of Thomas Aquinas,” in Conversation and Collaboration: A Vision for Dominican Mission in the New Century (Miami: Barry University, 2001) 7-21.
2000
“The Ministry of Presbyter and the Many Ministries in the Church,” in Donald J. Goergen and Ann Garrido, eds., The Theology of Priesthood (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2000) 67-86.
“Recollections of Thomas Donlon, O.P.,” Provincial Newsletter, Dominican Province of St. Albert the Great (November 2000): 9-10.
1999
Theology of Ministry. Revised Edition (Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist Press, 1999).
“Christian Theology and Extraterrestrial Intelligent Life,” Theological Studies 60 (1999): 3-30.
“Reflections on Yves Congar and Theology in the United States,” U. S. Catholic Historian 17 (1999): 91-105.
“Karl Rahner,” in Haim Gordon, ed., Dictionary of Existentialism (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1999) 189-93.
1998
“Ministry in the Catholic Church Today: The Gift of Some Historical Trajectories,” in Together in God‟s Service: Toward a Theology of Ecclesial Lay Ministry [NCCB Subcommittee on Lay Ministry] (Washington, D.C.: USCC, 1998) 70-86. 12
“Thomas Aquinas and Today‟s Theology,” Theology Today 55 (1998): 46-58.
“Tarzan, Las Casas, and Rahner: Aquinas‟s Theology of Wider Grace,” Theology Digest 45 (1998): 319-28.
“Teaching Karl Rahner,” Philosophy and Theology 11 (1998): 191- 205.
“The Witness of Engelbert Krebs,” in Anthony Cernera, ed., Continuity and Plurality in Catholic Theology. Essays in Honor of Gerald A. McCool, S.J. (Fairfield: Sacred Heart University Press, 1998) 127-154.
1997
Thomas Aquinas, Theologian (Notre Dame, In.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1997).
Seeing Theological Forms. Archives of Modern Christian Art: Monograph Number Six (Belmont, Calif.: The Archives of Modern Christian Art, 1997).
“Virtues in the Theology of Thomas Aquinas,” Theological Studies 58 (1997): 254-85.
“The Expansion of Ministry: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow,” in Eleanor Bernstein and Martin F. Connell, eds., The Renewal That Awaits Us, (Chicago: Liturgical Training Publications, 1997) 91-103.
“The Presence of Grace Outside of Evangelization, Baptism and Church in Thomas Aquinas‟ Theology,” in Michael F. Cusato and F. Edward Coughlin, eds., That Others May Know and Love: Essays in Honor of Zachary Hayes O.F.M., Franciscan, Educator, Scholar (St. Bonaventure, N.Y.: Franciscan Institute, 1997) 91-132.
“Beyond „Hierarchology‟: Johann Adam Möhler and Yves Congar,” in Donald J. Dietrich and Michael J. Himes, eds., The Legacy of the 13
Tübingen School: The Relevance of Nineteenth-Century Theology for the Twenty-First Century (New York: Crossroad, 1997) 173-91.
“A French Resistance Hero,” America 175 (1997): 12-17.
1996
“Leaving the Baroque: The Fallacy of Restoration in the Postconciliar Era,” America 174 (1996): 10-12, 14, 25-28.
“Fundamentalism and Catholicism: Some Cultural and Theological Reflections,” Chicago Studies 35 (1996): 68-81.
1995
“Romano Guardini‟s Akademische Feier in 1964,” in Robert A. Krieg, ed., Romano Guardini: Proclaiming the Sacred in a Modern World (Chicago: Liturgy Training Publications, 1995) 98-103.
“The History of Being and the History of Doctrines: An Influence of Heidegger on Theology,” American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly 69 (1995): 351-74.
1994
“The School of Thomism at Salamanca and the Presence of Grace in the Americas,” Angelicum 71 (1994): 321-70.
“What a Bishop Might Want to Know,” Worship 68 (1994): 55-63.
“Raid on the Dominicans: The Repression of 1954,” America 170 (1994): 8-16 [abbreviated as “The Dominican Repression of 1954.” Linkup 65 (1994): 12-14].
“Paul Tillich in Catholic Thought: The Past and The Future,” in Raymond F. Bulman and Frederick J. Parella, eds., Paul Tillich: A New Catholic (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1994) 9-32. 14
“Schelling‟s Religious Aesthetic,” in John C. Hawley, ed., Reform and Counterreform: Dialectics of the Word in Western Christianity since Luther (Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 1994) 119-38.
“The Department of Theology at a Catholic University,” in Theodore Hesburgh, ed., The Challenge and Promise of a Catholic University (Notre Dame, In.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994) 243-56.
1993
“Ecumenical Beginnings in the Midwest,” Lutheran Partners (January/February 1993): 11-13.
“Fundamentalism: A Catholic Perspective,” in Frank T. Birtel, ed., Reasoned Faith: Essays on the Interplay of Faith and Reason (New York: Crossroad, 1993) 196-217.
1992
“The Dominican School of Salamanca and the Spanish Conquest of America: Some Bibliographical Notes” The Thomist 56 (1992): 555- 82.
“Exploring the Depths: A Theological Tradition in Viewing the World Religions,” in Peter Neuner and Harald Wagner, eds., In Verantwortung für den Glauben: Beiträge zur Fundamentaltheologie und Ökumenik: für Heinrich Fries (Freiburg: Herder, 1992) 375-90.
“Theologians and Native Americans,” Providence (Winter 1992): 18- 24.
“Katolicky pohled na fundamentalismus,” Salve 2 (1992): 17-22.
1991
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Church and Culture: German Catholic Theology, 1860 to 1914 (Notre Dame, In.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1991).
The Basilica of the Sacred Heart at Notre Dame: A Theological Guide to the Paintings and Windows (Notre Dame, In.: 1991) [distributed by Hammes University of Notre Dame Bookstore].
“Karl Rahner: Some Audiences and Sources for His Theology,” Communio 18 (1991): 237-51.
“Field of Grace,” Notre Dame Magazine 20 (1991): 12-13.
“The Dominican School of Salamanca and the Spanish Conquest of America: Some Bibliographical Notes,” Provincial Newsletter, Dominican Province of St. Albert the Great (Fall 1991): 68-69.
1990
Fundamentalism: A Catholic Perspective (New York: Paulist Press, 1990).
Translations in A Winter Time of Faith: Interviews with Karl Rahner (New York: Crossroad, 1990).
“A Visit to the Novitiate.” Provincial Newsletter, Dominican Province of St. Albert the Great (April 1990): 14-15 [translated into French, Italian, German and Spanish for IDI, the international newsletter of the Dominican Order].
1989
“Thomas Aquinas and Modernity,” in Richard Woods, ed., Thomas Aquinas and Contemporary Thought (Chicago: Dominican Publications, 1989) 1-23.
“Expanding Horizons: A World of Religions and Jesus Christ,” in Leo J. O‟Donovan and T. Howland Sanks, eds., Faithful Witness: 16
Foundations of Theology for Today‟s Church (New York: Crossroad, 1989) 151-66.
“The Teaching Office in the Church in the Ecclesiology of Charles Journet,” The Jurist 49 (1989): 23-47.
“Doctoral Education in Theology in Catholic Universities,” America 160 (1989): 434-36.
“Between Berlin and Rome in 1900: Roman Catholic Reform Programs for the 20th Century” [Anaheim, Calif.: American Academy of Religion, 1989].
1988
“Grace as a Structure in the Summa Theologiae of Thomas Aquinas,” Recherches de Théologie Ancienne et Mediévale 55 (1988): 130-53.
“Fundamentalism and the Christian Believer,” The Priest 44 (1988): 39-46.
“Ecumenist of Our Times: Yves Congar,” Mid-Stream 27 (1988): 67- 73.
“Revelation in Schelling‟s Lectures on Academic Study,” in Ignacio Falgueras, ed., Los comienzos filosoficos de Schelling (Malaga: Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Malaga, 1988) 121- 31.
“Pope and Bible: The Search for Authority.” William K. Warren Lecture, University of Tulsa (October 1988).
1987
“Thomas Aquinas and German Intellectuals. Neoscholasticism and Modernity in the Late 19th Century,” Gregorianum 68 (1987): 719-36.
17
“Revelation and History: Schelling, Möhler and Congar,” Irish Theological Quarterly 53 (1987): 17-35.
“The Identity of the Priest and the Wider Ministry,” The Serran (August 1987): 10-13.
“The Presence of Schelling in the Third Volume of Paul Tillich‟s Systematic Theology,” in Michel Despland, Jean-Claude Petit, and Jean Richard, eds., Jean Richard, eds., Religion et culture : actes du colloque international du centenaire Paul Tillich (Paris: Cerf, 1987) 187-206.
“Eckhart, Johannes,” in Mircea Eliade, ed., The Encylopedia of Religion 4 (New York: Macmillan, 1987) 580-81.
“Grace,” in Mircea Eliade, ed., The Encylopedia of Religion 6 (New York: Macmillan, 1987) 84-88.
“Schelling, Friedrich.” in Mircea Eliade, ed., The Encylopedia of Religion 13 (New York: Macmillan, 1987) 97-98.
“Ministry” in Joseph A. Komonchak, Mary Collins, and Dermot A. Lane, eds. The New Dictionary of Theology (Wilmington, Del.: Michael Glazier, 1987) 657-61.
“Orders and Ordination,” in Joseph A. Komonchak, Mary Collins, and Dermot A. Lane, eds. The New Dictionary of Theology (Wilmington, Del.: Michael Glazier, 1987) 723-27.
1986
“Between Idealism and Neo-Scholasticism: The Fundamental and Apologetic Theology of Alois Schmid,” Église et Théologie 17 (1986): 335-54.
“Heidegger and His Origins: Theological Perspectives,” Theological Studies 47 (1986): 205-26.
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“Modern Art and the Sacred: The Prophetic Ministry of Alain Couturier, O.P.,” Spirituality Today 38 (1986): 31-40.
“Christ in Schelling‟s Philosophy of Revelation,” Heythrop Journal 27 (1986): 275-89.
“The Future of Catholicism.” Inaugural Lecture as the William K. Warren Professor of Catholic Theology at the University of Notre Dame (October 15, 1986).
Translations of sections of Karl Rahner, Dialogue: Conversations and Interviews, 1965-1982 (New York: Crossroad, 1986).
1985
“Martin Heidegger and Liturgical Time,” Worship 59 (1985): 126-33.
“The Origins of the Liturgical Movement and German Romanticism,” Worship 59 (1985): 326-42.
“Schelling Studies: A Bibliographical Report,” Owl of Minerva 2 (1985): 300-01.
“The Trouble with Seminaries,” Church 1 (1985): 18-22.
“The Ministry of the Priesthood and Its Relationship to the Wider Ministry in the Church,” Seminaries in Dialogue 11 (1985): 1-8.
“Paul Tillich and the Catholic Substance,” in James Luther Adams, Wilhelm Pauck, and Roger Lincoln Shinn, eds., The Thought of Paul Tillich (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1985) 290-306.
1984
“The Aesthetic Dimension in Theology,” in Diane Apostolos- Cappadona, ed.,” Art, Creativity, and the Sacred: An Anthology in Religion and Art (New York: Crossroad, 1984) 205-218.
“Lutheranism: A School of Spirituality,” Dialog 23 (1984): 126-34. 19
“The Providential Event: Sermon on the 450th Anniversary of the Birth of Martin Luther,” Dialog 23 (1984): 223-26.
1983
Theology of Ministry (Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist Press, 1983).
“Aquinas Institute in Dubuque: An Ecumenical Recollection,” Provincial Newsletter, Dominican Province of St. Albert the Great (September 1983): 11-13.
Translation of C. J. Pinto de Oliveira, “Thomas Aquinas, Vatican II, and Contemporary Theology.” Nova et Vetera 56 (1981): 161-80 [unpublished].
“Response to John Clayton,” Papers of the Nineteenth Century Theology Working Group 10 (1984): 13-17.
1982
Romantic Idealism and Roman Catholicism: Schelling and the Theologians. (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1982).
“Schelling‟s Philosophy of Revelation,” in Leroy S. Rouner, ed., Meaning, Truth, and God (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1982) 216-236.
“The Presence of Meister Eckhart,” Dominican Ashram 1 (1982): 115- 21.
1981
“Of Art and Theology: Hans Urs von Balthasar‟s Systems,” Theological Studies 42 (1981): 272-76.
“Catholic Science Fiction, 1900,” America 144 (1981): 525-27. 20
“Creative Imagination: The Aesthetic Horizon in Theology.” Presidential Address. Proceedings of the Catholic Theological Society of America 36 (1981) 83-95.
Translation of Georges Casalis and Jean-Louis Klein, “Lutheran Spirituality,” Spirituality Today 33 (1981): 218-39.
1980
Edited Albert the Great, Theologian: Essays in Honor of Albertus Magnus (1280-1980), The Thomist 44 (1980).
“Albert the Great and Martin Luther on Justification,” Albert the Great, Theologian: Essays in Honor of Albertus Magnus (1280-1980), The Thomist 44 (1980): 539-59.
“Albert the Great: A Bibliographical Guide,” Albert the Great, Theologian: Essays in Honor of Albertus Magnus (1280-1980), The Thomist 44 (1980): 597-98.
“A History of Grace,” in Leo J. O‟Donovan, ed., A World of Grace: An Introduction to the Themes and Foundations of Karl Rahner‟s Theology (New York: Seabury, 1980; Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 1995) 76-91.
“Did Anyone Call?: A Theology of Vocation,” in Jean Marie Hiesberger, ed., Young Adult Living (New York: Paulist Press, 1980) 17-25.
“How Secular Are We?” New Catholic World 223 (1980): 88-91.
1979
“Process and God in Schelling‟s Early Thought,” Listening 14 (1979): 223-36.
1978 21
“Philosophical Models in Ecclesiology,” Theological Studies 39 (1978): 3-21. [reprinted in Selectiones de teologia (1980): 80-91].
“Meister Eckhart‟s Destiny (I, II),” Spirituality Today 30 (1978): 250- 62, 348-59.
Edited Meister Eckhart of Hochheim (1228-1978), The Thomist 42 (1978).
“The Presence of Meister Eckhart,” Meister Eckhart of Hochheim (1228-1978, The Thomist 42 (1978): 171-81.
“An Eckhart Bibliography,” Meister Eckhart of Hochheim (1228- 1978),The Thomist 42 (1978): 313-36 [reprinted in Maître Eckhart Sermons, ed., Jean Ancelet-Hustache, 3 (Paris: Éditions du Seuil, 1979) 187-214].
“The Crisis in Ministry Is a Crisis of Spirituality,” Spirituality Today 30 (1978): 14-23.
“Health Care Amid Religion and Revelation,” Hospital Progress 59 (1978): 68-72 [reprinted in Camillian 18 (1979): 13-21].
1977
“F. W. J. Schelling: A Bibliographical Essay,” The Review of Metaphysics 31 (1977): 283-309.
1975
“Towards a Subjective Theology of Revelation,” Theological Studies 36 (1975): 401-27.
“Bright Continent,” Provincial Newsletter, Dominican Province of St. Albert the Great (Spring 1975): 15, 22.
22
“Did Anyone Call?: A Theology of Vocation,” New Catholic World 218 (1975): 57-59.
“Decision-Making for America: Political-Theological Influences,” Proceedings of the Catholic Theological Society of America 30 (1975): 49-62.
1974
Loose in the World (New York: Paulist Press, 1974).
“Paris as the Cultural Milieu for Thomas Aquinas,” The Thomist 38 (1974): 689-722.
“Adult Religious Education,” The Lamp 72 (1974): 6-9.
“Ministry Anyone? Ministry Everyone!” New Catholic World 217 (1974): 110-13.
“Ministry to Presence: The Hospital and the Spirit,” Hospital Progess 55 (1974): 62-65.
“A New Look at Orders: Ministry for the Many,” in Robert Heyer, ed., Women and Orders (New York: Paulist Press, 1974) 75-86.
1973
“Pastoral Councils in the Catholic Church,” New Catholic World 216 (1973): 212-16.
“Art and Music as Illustrators of Theology,” Anglican Theological Review 55 (1973): 267-79.
“Theologies and Liberations,” Link (1973): 1-6.
“Teilhard de Chardin in China,” Worldview 16 (1973): 31-34.
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“Clerical Culture and Feminine Ministry,” Commonweal 98 (1973): 523-26.
“Poverty and Time,” Sisters Today 45 (1973): 141-49.
“Religious Education for Maturity: The Presence of Grace,” Religious Education 68 (1973): 454-64.
1972
Rudolf Bultmann en el pensamiento catolico (Barcelona: Sal Terrae, 1972) [translation into Spanish of Rudolf Bultmann in Catholic Thought (New York: Herder & Herder, 1968)].
“Ministries,” Bulletin (Sister Formation Conference) 18 (1972): 12.
“The Trial of Jesus,” Theology Today 28 (1972): 451-65.
“Optional Ministerial Celibacy: Its Effect on Religious Life,” American Ecclesiastical Review 166 (1972): 587-96.
“The Ecumenical Evolution in the United States: From Confession to Politics,” in Max Seckler, et al., eds., Begegnung. Beiträge zu einer Hermeneutik des theologischen Gesprächs (Vienna: Styria, 1972) 559-66.
“Towards a Theology of Ministry for Sisters,” Sisters Today 44 (1972): 119-26.
“Religious Life and Social Crisis,” Sisters Today 43 (1972): 420-27. [reprinted in Kevin O‟Rouke, ed., Religious Life in the 1970‟s (Dubuque, Iowa: Aquinas Institute, 1971)].
“Christian Ministry and Health Service,” Hospital Progress 51 (1972): 48-55.
1971
24
“Life Beyond Polarization,” Review for Religious 30 (1971): 235-44.
Translation of Martin Heidegger, “Homeland,” Listening 6 (1971): 231-38.
“The National Pastoral Council of a Christian Church: Ecclesiastical Accessory or Communal Voice?” in A National Pastoral Council: Pro and Con (Washington, D.C.: USCC, 1971) 21-34.
“The Cultural Crisis of Christian Faith,” Faith and Religious Life. Donum Dei n. 17 (Ottawa: Canadian Religious Conference, 1971): 55-66.
“Was Jesus in an Underground?” Listening 6 (1971): 104-08.
“Introduction,” to Heiko Oberman, The Virgin Mary in Evangelical Perspective (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1971) v-xvi.
“Christian Belief and Today‟s Image of Man,” Cross and Crown 23 (1971): 24-38.
“The End of Liberal Theology,” The Lutheran Quarterly 23 (1971): 268-73.
“Emergence and Decline of Popular Voice in the Section of Bishops,” in William W. Bassett, ed., The Choosing of Bishops: Historical and Theological Studies (Hartford, Conn.: Canon Law Society of America, 1971) 21-32.
1970
Holiness and Radicalism in Religious Life (New York: Herder & Herder, 1970).
The Presence of the Spirit of God (Washington, D.C.: Corpus Books, 1970).
Paul Tillich‟s Theology of God (Dubuque, Iowa: Listening Press, 1970). 25
Edited with Donald M. Weisser, Projections: Shaping an American Theology for the Future (New York: Doubleday, 1970).
“Shaping an American Theology for the Future,” Projections: Shaping an American Theology for the Future (New York: Doubleday, 1970) 1- 17.
“Afterward: The End of Theology?” Projections: Shaping an American Theology for the Future (New York: Doubleday, 1970) 217-28.
“Roman Catholicism: The Authority Crisis,” McCormick Quarterly 23 (1970): 168-80.
“Towards a Roman Catholic Theology of the Presbytery,” The Heythrop Journal 10 (1970): 390-404.
“Radicalism and Renewal,” exChange 2 (1970): 11.
“Radicalism in the Religious Life,” Sign 49 (1970): 21-25
“Is There a Common Authority for Christians?” The Ecumenical Review 22 (1970): 16-28.
“Responsibility to Others,” Chicago Studies 9 (1970): 183-201 [reprinted in Charles E. Curran and George J. Dyer, eds., Shared Responsibility in the Local Church (Chicago: Catholic Theological Society of America, 1970) 71-89].
“Justification and Sanctification,” Cross & Crown 22 (1970): 160-70.
“Theological Reflection on Institutional Renewal in the Church,” Proceedings of the 32nd Annual Convention of the Canon Law Society of America 32 (1970): 1-14.
“The Encounter with God,” Spiritual Life 16 (1970): 72-80.
1969
26
"Foreword," to Karl Rahner and Karl Lehmann, Kerygma and Dogma [Mysterium Salutis] (New York: Herder and Herder, 1969) 7-10.
"Foreword," to Heinrich Fries, Revelation [Mysterium Salutis] (New York: Herder and Herder, 1969) 7-11.
“Community and Commitment,” Review for Religious 28 (1969): 541- 51.
“Apostolate and Community: Secularization and Revolution.” Sisters Today 40 (1969): 335-46.
“Where Is Theology Going?” Thought 44 (1969): 53-68.
“Paul Tillich and the Problem of God,” Communio 2 (1969): 123-42.
1968
Edited with Donald M. Weisser, Rudolf Bultmann in Catholic Thought (New York: Herder & Herder, 1968).
“Introduction,” Rudolf Bultmann in Catholic Thought, (New York: Herder & Herder, 1968)15-28.
“Bultmann and the Future of Theology,” Rudolf Bultmann in Catholic Thought (New York: Herder & Herder, 1968) 222-50.
Translation of Thomas Aquinas, Superstition and Irreverence, Summa Theologiae, II-II, qq. 92-100 as volume 40 of the Summa Theologiae (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1968; London: Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1968).
“Always Ecumenism, Sometimes Merger,” Great Plains Observer 2 (1968): 12-13.
“Heidegger on God,” Continuum 5 (1968): 686-98.
“Tillich and Heidegger: A Structural Relationship,” Harvard Theological Review 61 (1968): 249-61. 27
“Liturgy Hot and Cool,” Worship 42 (1968): 215-23 [reprinted in Encounter 16 (1968) 8 - 10].
“The Apostolate and Community” in Renewal through Community and Experimentation (Canon Law Society of America Workshop, 1968) 69-78.
Translation of Karl Rahner, “Thomas Aquinas: Friar, Theologian and Mystic,” Cross and Crown 20 (1968): 5-9.
1967
“Five Years of Ecumenism in Dubuque, Iowa,” Faith and Unity 11 (1967): 85-86.
“Rudolf Bultmann‟s Theology of God,” Irish Theological Quarterly 34 (1967): 38-60.
“Theology: Made in the USA,” The Catholic World 205 (1967): 231-37 [reprinted in Guide 221 (October 1967): 12-16].
“Karl Rahner, Theologian,” Doctrine and Life 17 (1967): 31-37.
Translation of Martin Heidegger, “The Pathway,” Listening 2 (1967): 88-91 [reprinted in Listening 8 (1973): 32-39. Reprinted in Listening 8 (1973): 32-39. Further reprinting: Thomas Sheehan, ed., Heidegger. The Man and the Thinker (Chicago: Precedent Publishing Company, 1981) 69-72; Thomas Frick, ed., The Sacred Theory of the Earth (Berkeley: North Atlantic Books, 1986) 45-48; Manfred Stassen, ed., Martin Heidegger, Philosophical and Political Writings (New York: Continuum 2003) 77-79.
“Theology and Philosophy as Presented in Paul Tillich‟s „Gotteslehre.‟” Doctoral Dissertation, Ludwig-Maximillian University [Munich, Federal Republic of German, 1967] private publication.
1966 28
Mary in Protestant and Catholic Theology (New York: Sheed & Ward, 1966).
“Karl Rahner on Priest, Parish, and Deacon,” Worship 40 (1966): 103-10.
“Liturgy of the Word: Ecumenical Perspectives,” Cross and Crown 18 (1966): 146-52.
“Liturgy of the Word: Theological Perspectives,” Cross and Crown 18 (1966): 321-30.
“The Speculative Church and the Practical Church,” Herder Correspondence 3 (1966): 214-16.
“Cinq Années d‟Oecuménisme aux États-Unis: Dubuque, Iowa.” Vers L‟Unité Chrétienne 19 (1966): 42-43.
Translation of “Interview with Hans Küng,” Listening 1 (1966): 172-82.
1965
Translation of Heinrich Fries, Aspects of the Church (Westminster, Md.: Newman Press, 1965; Dublin: Gill & Son, 1965).
“Towards a Pastoral Ecumenism,” Worship 39 (1965): 96-105.
Translation of Heinrich Fries, “Is Christian Unity a Utopia?” Cross and Crown 17 (1965): 152-61.
Edited with Celestin D. Weisser, Paul Tillich in Catholic Thought (London: Darton, Longman & Todd, 1965).
1964
29
Edited with Celestin D. Weisser, Paul Tillich in Catholic Thought (Chicago: Priory Press, 1964; Garden City, N.Y.: Image Books, 1969).
“Introduction,” Paul Tillich in Catholic Thought, (Chicago: Priory Press, 1964; Garden City, N.Y.: Image Books, 1969) xvii-xxiii.
“Paul Tillich and Ecumenism,” Paul Tillich in Catholic Thought, (Chicago: Priory Press, 1964; Garden City, N.Y.: Image Books, 1969) 273-300.
“Marian Theology and the Contemporary Problem of Myth,” Marian Studies 8 (1964): 127-56.
1963
“The Development of Marian Dogma.” Dissertation for the Degree of Lectorate in Sacred Theology (M.A.), Aquinas Institute of Theology, 1963 [unpublished].
“The Rule of Taizé,” Review for Religious 22 (1963): 318-26.
“Dominicans and the Ecumenical Movement,” Dominican Educational Bulletin 4 (1963): 34.
1962
“Paul Tillich and Ecumenism,” Reality 10 (1962): 151-80.
“The Liturgy of Taizé,” Worship 36 (1962): 638-44.
Translation of André Combes, “St. Thérese of Lisieux and St. Thomas Aquinas,” Cross and Crown 14 (1962): 295-310.
“Lacordaire, the Dominican.” The Dominican Tertiary 2 (1962): 121- 23.
“Mary and the Ecumenical Era,” The Marian Era 3 (1962): 26-31. 30
1961
“The Second Spring,” Worship 35 (1961): 270-75.
1960
“The Bee: Instinct or Intelligence,” Reality 8 (1960): 87-106.
1959
“The Metaphysics of Evolution.” Dissertation for the Degree of Licentiate in Philosophy (M.A.), Dominican House of Studies, River Forest, Illinois, 1959 (unpublished).
31
Some Resources for Studying
Albert the Great’s Theology
Thomas Franklin O‟Meara, O.P.
[November 15, 2012]
Publications in recent years have suggested composing this survey of resources, books and articles, on the theology of Albert of
Lauingen. Monographs, collections of essays, critical texts, and bibliographies have appeared and are continuing to appear. Jan
Aertsen speaks of a strong interest in Albert beginning around 1980.
“In this „Albert-Renaissance‟ two motifs are at work. The first wants to present Albert‟s own identity….One should not consider Albert only in relationship to Thomas or as someone standing in the shadow of his student….The second motif is to see him as Albertus teutonicus, the source of the German Dominican school.” 1 Basically the
1 Jan A. Aertsen “Albertus Magnus und die mittelalterliche
Philosophie,” Allgemeine Zeitschrift für Philosophie 21 (1996): 111-
32 following essay illustrates contemporary interest in Albert, even as it joins to this some past resources for his theology.
A. Albert of Lauingen
Albert was a Swabian scholar and a Dominican friar, a pioneer of the use of Aristotelian philosophy in Western Christian theology and a natural scientist. He was the teacher of Thomas Aquinas,
Ulrich of Strassburg, and perhaps of Meister Eckhart. Ulrich wrote of him: “My teacher…was an almost divine person in every science, so much so that he was seen as an astonishing wonder of our age.” 2
Centuries later, James Athanasius Weisheipl observed: “Not only was
Albert the only man of the High Middle Ages to be called „the Great,‟ but this title was used even before his death.” 3
113; see Loris Sturlese, “Albert der Grosse und die deutsche philosophische Kultur des Mittelalters,” Freiburger Zeitschrift für
Philosophie und Theologie 27 (1981): 133-47.
2 Cited Joachim R. Söder, “Albert der Grosse – ein staunen- erregendes Wunder,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 145.
3 Weisheipl, “Albertus Magnus,” in Joseph Strayer, ed., Dictionary of the Middle Ages 1 (New York: Scribner, 1982) 129.
33
Albert was born around 1200 in Lauingen near where the
Danube has its source. 4 In 1223, he entered the Dominicans at the
University of Padua. In his thirties he was the director of studies in several priories of friars in German lands. Around the age of forty he was sent to Paris to attain a doctorate. In 1245 he became the first
Master of German origin at one of the European universities (in 1258 he signed a document of the university at Paris as “frater Albertus
Theutonicus “ 5). In Paris where the texts of Aristotle and his Arab commentators were being studied enthusiastically, Albert became known for drawing students to their study. One of them was Thomas
Aquinas. In 1248 Albert went to Cologne to start a school for the friars. “With Thomas Aquinas as his assistant, Albert formed a house
4 M. Lohrum, “Ǘberlegungen zum Geburtsjahr Alberts des Grossen,”
W. Senner, ed., Omnia disce (Cologne: Wienand, 1996) 153-58;
Adolf Layer, Max Springer, eds., Albert von Lauingen. 700 Jahre +
Albertus Magnus: Festschrift 1980 (Lauingen: Leo-Druck, 1980) holds essays on Albert‟s family and personality along with views on him by his contemporaries.
5 H. Denifle, Chartularium Universitatis Parisiensis I (Paris: Delalain,
1889) 210.
34 of studies for his Order. It was the first school of higher studies in
Germany and the precursor of the Cologne University. Ludger
Honnefelder has edited a volume of essays on the dynamic of the emergence of universities in Europe and the role of Albert in their development. 6 Toward the end of 1249 Albert began his enterprise of paraphrasing and commenting on Aristotle‟s works, “to make all the areas of philosophy intelligible to the Latins.” 7 He was elected
6 Albertus Magnus und der Ursprung der Universitätsidee: die
Begegnung der Wissenschaftskulturen im 13. Jahrhundert und die
Entdeckung des Konzepts der Bildung durch Wissenschaft (Berlin:
Berlin University Press, 2011); Willehad Paul Eckert, “Albertus
Magnus und das Studium generale der Dominikaner in Köln,”
Geschichte in Köln. Studentische Zeitschrift am Historischen
Seminar 8 (1980): 16-45. The two Dominicans were present on
August fifteenth at the solemn dedication of the corner stone of the new cathedral” (Söder, “Albert der Grosse – ein staunenerregendes
Wunder” 146); H. C. Scheeben, “Albert der Große und Thomas von
Aquin in Köln,” Divus Thomas (Freiburg/Schweiz) 9 (1931): 28-34.
7 Physica I, tract. 1, c. 1 Opera Omnia IV, 1 (Münster: Aschendorff,
1987) 48-49. 35 superior of the German province in 1254: its thirty-six priories reached from Strassburg on the Rhine to Rostock on the Baltic Sea.
He subsequently attended general meetings of Dominicans in Milan,
Paris, and Florence. In 1257 he resigned the provincialate and returned to Cologne to teach.
During those years he was engaged as a mediator in important public disputes, for not infrequently, bishop, mercantile class, and nobility found themselves at odds. 8 His prominence in resolving disputes attracted the attention of Pope Alexander IV who appointed him in 1260 bishop in Regensburg. 9 The particularly intense social and political conflict involving Albert in 1271 has been described in
8 Hugo Stehkämper, “Albertus Magnus und die Kölner Sühne vom 17.
April 1271,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 170-73; Meinolf Lohrum‟s
Albert der Grosse: Forscher-Lehrer-Anwalt des Friedens (Mainz:
Matthias-Grünewald, 1991).
9 See Henryk Anzulewicz, “Albertus Magnus,” Sebastian Cüppers, ed. Kölner Theologen von Rupert von Deutz bis Wilhelm Nyssen
(Cologne: Marzellen, 2005) 30-68. 36 detail. 10 After he had reformed the clergy and reorganized the finances, in less than two years, he resigned that ministry and returned to teaching in Würzburg and Cologne where he died in
1280.
Yves Congar wrote fifty years ago: “Albert believed in the mind.
He perceived a profound harmony between the loftiness of divine life and the world of science and of finite human reasoning. This scholar, even as he argued for the autonomy of the sciences, had a special grasp of the reality of the unity of the universe. There exists one realm in which the facts of nature and the realities of grace are physically present.” 11 Albert‟s research into the natural sciences
10 Hugo Stehkämper, “Albertus Magnus und die Kölner Sühne vom
17. April 1271,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 170-73; see Manfred
Groten, Albertus Magnus und der Grosse Schied (Köln 1258) –
Aristotelische Politik im Praxistest Lectio Albertina #12 (Münster:
Aschendorff, 2011); J. A. Aertsen, ed., Albert der Grosse in Köln
(Cologne: Presse- und Informationsstelle der Universität Köln, 1999).
11 Congar, “St. Albert the Great. The Power and the Anguish of the
Intellectual Vocation,” Faith and Spiritual Life (London: Darton,
Longman & Todd, 1969) 65. 37 should not distract one from appreciating the theological project and goal of his thinking and of many of his writings. “Albert‟s plan can be grasped as a monumental synthesis considering all things in light of the varied revelation of God, a revelation appearing through Scripture and incarnation but also through creation.” 12 Over the last fifteen years Henryk Anzulewicz has written a number of articles on Albert, some highlighting the theological and unifying themes of Albert‟s thought. He emphasizes the need to go beyond the past limited view that Albert‟s originality lies in philosophy and science, and to see anew how theological principles and goals pervade his writings.
“Insight into the thought-form of Albert the Great leads to the conclusion that his way of thinking characteristically treats the reality of being in a perspective both encompassing and unified. That perspective moves from its beginnings through a process of self- realization under the conditions of contingency to its ultimate goal.
Basically it reflects his underlying idea of life.” 13 Human life,
12 Söder, “Albert der Grosse – ein staunenerregendes Wunder” 164.
13 Anzulewicz, “Die Denkstruktur des Albertus Magnus. Ihre
Dekodierung und ihre Relevanz für die Begrifflichkeit und 38 temporality, and all the causalities within creation contribute to this kind of structure, one seeking to explain the varied dimensions of life
Terminologie,” J. Hamesse and C. Steel, eds., L‟élaboration du vocabulaire philosophique au Moyen Âge (Turnhout: Brepols, 2000)
369-96; Anzulewicz, “Die Rekonstruktion der Denkstruktur des
Albertus Magnus. Skizze und Thesen eines Forschungsprojektes,”
Theologie und Glaube 90 (2000): 606-11; “Der Anthropologieentwurf des Albertus Magnus und die Frage nach dem Begriff und wissensschaftssystematischen Ort einer mittelalterlichen
Anthropologie,” Jan A. Aertsen and A. Speer, eds, Was ist
Philosophie im Mittelalter? (Berlin: de Gruyter, 1998) 756-66;
“Zwischen Faszination und Ablehnung: Theologie und Philosophie im
13 Jh. in ihrem Verhältnis zueinander,” M. Olszewski, ed., What is
“Theology” in the Middle Ages? Religious Cultures of Europe (11th –
15th Centuries) as Reflected in Their Self-Understanding (Münster:
Aschendorff, 2007) 129-165; see Georg Wieland, “Albert der Grosse.
Der Entwurf einer eigenständigen Philosophie,” Philosophen des
Mittelalters (Darmstadt: Primus, 2000) 124-39. 39 and time. Plato is present as well as Aristotle. 14 In Albert‟s writings
“encompassing principles fashion a theological structure” as “a unified and complete system offering a total explanation of all the reality of being.” 15 Breadth marks Albert‟s thought in various ways.
“Perhaps the medieval conception of a universal complex of various sciences, a university, existing in a unity inclusive of all, found its broadest expression in the structure of the teaching of that universal teacher.” 16
B. Albert‟s Writings
Mention should be made first of editions of Albert‟s works. A collection of Albert‟s writings was edited and published in thirty-eight
14 Anzulewicz, “Die platonische Tradition bei Albertus Magnus. Eine
Hinführung,” S. Gersh, M. J.F. M. Hoenen, eds., The Platonic
Tradition in the Middle Ages. A Doxographic Approach (Berlin: de
Gruyter, 2002) 207-227.
15 Anzulewicz, “Albertus Magnus – Der Denker des Ganzen,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 154.
16 Söder, “Albert der Grosse – ein staunenerregendes Wunder” 146. 40 volumes by Auguste Borgnet in the nineteenth century. 17 That Latin text was based somewhat on an earlier edition in twenty-one volumes by Pierre Jammy, B. Alberti Magnis, Ratisb. Ep., O.P., Opera. 18 The
Albertus-Magnus-Institut, founded in 1931 by the Archdiocese of
Cologne but with its present location in Bonn, is editing a critical text of Albert‟s writings: Alberti Magni, Opera Omnia (Editio Coloniensis).
For that critical text twenty-eight volumes out of a planned forty-one are listed as having already appeared, while six are in proximate preparation.19 The institute‟s website describes its library, lectures, publications, and projects
17 (Paris: Vivès, 1890-1897). See Anzulewicz, “Albertus-Magnus-
Editionen. Von den frühen Drücken bis zur Gesamtausgabe von A. und É. Borgnet,” Nomina Essentiant Res (Russia, 2011) 223-244.
18 (Lyons: Prost, 1651).
19 See Ludger Honnefelder, Mechthild Dreyer, Albertus Magnus und die Editio Coloniensis, Lectio Albertina #1 (Münster: Aschendorff,
1999) and Bernd Göring, “Zur Überlieferung der Werke Alberts des
Grossen – von der Handschrift bis zur modernen Überlieferung,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 186-89. One finds electronic resources under
“Albert the Great – Links” or “Albertus-Magnus-Institut Bonn” and in 41
C. Four Recent Publications
Four publications have stimulated this survey: Irven M. Resnick
& Kenneth F. Kitchell, Jr., Albert the Great: A Selectively Annotated
Bibliography (1900 – 2000); 20 Walter Senner, ed., Albertus Magnus.
Zu Gedenken nach 800 Jahre: Neue Zugänge, Aspekte und
Perspektiven;21 the series Lectio Albertina from the Albertus-Magnus-
Institut in Bonn; 22 a special issue of Wort und Antwort. 23
Albert the Great: A Selectively Annotated Bibliography (1900 –
2000) by Resnick and Kitchell is a volume of over four hundred pages. The editors point out that bibliographical resources on Albert are few and often inaccessible in North America. This bibliography
Irven M. Resnick & Kenneth F. Kitchell, Jr., “Introduction,” Albert the
Great: A Selectively Annotated Bibliography (1900 – 2000 (Tempe:
Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, 2004) xi.
20 (Tempe: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies,
2004).
21 (Akademie: Berlin, 2001).
22 (Münster: Aschendorff, 1999 - 2006).
23 Albertus Magnus (1200-2000), Wort und Antwort 41: 4 (Oktober/
Dezember, 2000). 42 includes 2576 entries, and there is an index of names and subjects occupying thirty pages. “The print version of this bibliography should appeal to scholars who enjoy the leisure necessary to examine carefully the extensive literature on Albert.” 24 Books and articles are gathered into nineteen sections, ranging from “Albert‟s Life and
Works” and “Iconography and Albert in Art” to “Theology – General” and “Albertism.” Some individual articles and books are summarized.
There is also an on-going electronic bibliography: Jörgen
Vijgen, “Albertus Magnus – A Selective Bibliography,” Nederlands
Thomas Genootschap (www.thomisme.org). The Albertus-Magnus-
Institute in Bonn now offers an “Online Edition of the Works of Saint
Albert the Great” to private individuals and to institutions. 25
There have been partial bibliographies like the one assembled in 1931 by Yves Congar for the issue of the Revue Thomiste celebrating the canonization of Albert 26 or those in volumes
24 Resnick, Kitchell, “Introduction,” xii.
25 Alberti Magni Opera Omnia. Editio Digitalis (Münster: Aschendorff,
2011).
26 Congar, “Essai de Bibliographie Albertinienne,” Revue Thomiste
31 (1931): 422-68. 43 celebrating in 1980 the seven hundredth anniversary of his death like
Gerbert Meyer and Albert Zimmerman, eds. Albertus Magnus, Doctor
Universalis, 1280/1980, 27 and an issue of The Thomist. 28 Those bibliographies were followed by G. Krieger‟s survey of literature from
1973 to 1988. 29
27 (Mainz: Matthias Grünewald, 1980). Albert‟s thought on philosophical topics in a historical context is the theme of essays in
Francis Kovach and Robert Shahan, eds., Albert the Great.
Commemorative Essays (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press,
1980) where Weisheipl writes on Augustinianism and William A.
Wallace on Albert and Galileo.
28 Thomas F. O‟Meara, “Albert the Great: A Bibliographical Guide,”
Albert the Great: Theologian. Essays in Honor of Albertus Magnus
(1280-1980). The Thomist 44 (1980): 597-98.
29 Krieger, “Albertus Magnus. Veröffentlichungen in den Jahren
1973-1988,” G. Fløistad, ed., Philosophy and Science in the
Middle Ages (Boston: Kluwer, 1990) 241-59.
44
At that time James A. Weisheipl edited Albertus Magnus and the Sciences. Commemorative Essays, 1980. 30 Topics from the natural sciences include herbs and falcons, alchemy and human embryology. Weisheipl also wrote “Albert the Great and Medieval
Culture,” 31 and Thomas d‟Aquino and Albert His Teacher. 32
30 (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1980). New studies on natural science and the Dominican include Michael Tkacz,
“Albert the Great and the Revival of Aristotle‟s Zoological Research
Program,” Vivarium 45 (2007): 30-68 and “Albert the Great and the
Aristotelian Reform of the Platonic Method of Division,” The Thomist
73 (2009): 399-425; Henryk Anzulewicz, “Albertus Magnus und die
Tiere,” Sabine Obermaieer, ed., Tiere und Fabelwesen im Mittelalter
(Berlin: de Gruyter, 2009) 29-54.
31 The Thomist 44 (1980): 481- 501.
32 (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1980) 3-53; also composed for 1980 are a special issue of Revue des sciences philosophiques et théologiques 65:1 (1981) and M. Albert Hughes,
Albert the Great (Oxford: Blackfriars, 1948) reprinted as a
Supplement to Spirituality Today 39 (1987). 45
To return to recent literature, Walter Senner‟s volume holds seven hundred pages of essays. Philosophical studies treat old and new topics like the world of nature or the relationship of Albert to Arab philosophy, while in the last two sections there are essays on the
Trinity, biblical hermeneutics, papal primacy, predestination, prayer and mysticism, and women‟s religious movements. This volume is a contemporary witness to Albert‟s breadth of interests and to the breadth of contemporary research. 33
The series Lectio Albertina from the Albertus-Magnus-Institut in
Bonn is a series of scholarly monographs, now numbering twelve.
One of them by Rudolf Schieffer on “Mendicancy and Theology in
Conflict with Episcopacy” explores the papal appointment of Albert to
33 Related to the Senner volume is Ludger Honnefelder, et al.,
Albertus Magnus und die Anfänge der Aristoteles-Rezeption im lateinischen Mittelalter (Münster: Aschendorff, 2005) where studies on Aristotle‟s philosophy and its entrance into the West in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries lead to essays on Albert himself. Ingrid
Craemer-Ruegenberg‟s Albertus Magnus has been issued in a revised edition by Henryk Anzulewicz (Leipzig: St. Benno, 2005); it has sections on Albert‟s influence and bibliographies. 46 the bishopric of Regensburg, his activities there, and his decision to resign after less than two years. 34 The choice by the pope of Albert as bishop was caused by financial and ecclesiastical problems in the diocese of Regensburg (his appointment is an early example of papal appointment of bishops in Germany). In less than two years Albert saw that the diocese would be capable of selecting a moral and competent successor, and he returned to his work as teacher and writer, remaining, of course, a bishop. Schiefer‟s documentary study of Albert‟s time as bishop critiques legends about Albert written down after the end of the fourteenth century.
A fourth resource is the special issue of Wort und Antwort with essays on Albert ranging from eschatology to art. Related to this is an issue of Listening on St. Albert the Great and Dominican
Teaching. There are essays by M. Mulchahey on the Studium at
Cologne and early Dominican education; W. Senner on Albert and
34 Albertus Magnus. Mendikantentum und Theologie im Widerstreit mit dem Bischofsamt. Lectio Albertina #3 (Münster: Aschendorff,
1999). 47
Meister Eckhart and T. J. White on Albert and modern views of
Wisdom. 35
The Bonn institute has begun a second series, Subsidia
Albertina, from which a volume of essays illustrating the progress in research on Albert in the past two decades has appeared: Ludger
Honnefelder, Hannes Möhle, Susana Bullido del Barrio, eds., Via
Alberti. Texte-Quellen-Interpretationen. 36
D. Earlier Writings on Albert
For the English-speaking world an early source from the 1930s was Hieronymous Wilms, Albert the Great. Saint and Doctor of the
Church, 37 and around the same time the journal Blackfriars published
M.-D. Chenu, “The Revolutionary Intellectualism of St. Albert the
35 Listening 43: 3 (2008).
36 (Münster: Aschendorff, 2000). An Australian journal has published three essays on Albert and education: Gabrielle Kelly, Kevin
Saunders, eds., Dominican Approaches in Education: Towards the
Intelligent Use of Liberty (Adelaide: Australian Theological Forum,
2007).
37 (London: Burns, Oates & Washbourne, 1933).
48
Great.” 38 Earlier volumes celebrated the canonization of Albert in
1931 (he had been beatified in 1622). For that event the Revue
Thomiste issued a special number with historical essays by Angelus
Walz and Pierre Mandonnet and theological essays like those on the gifts of the Holy Spirit by Benoit Lavaud and on predestination by
Réginald Garrigou-Lagrange. 39 Also Divus Thomas published a “St.
Albertus-Magnus-Festschrift” opening with a letter by Pius XI and a forward by Andreas Cardinal Frühwirth, O.P. That volume held studies on Albert and modern philosophy, political science, geology, the procession of the Holy Spirit, and the Eucharist.40 Earlier in 1928
Martin Grabmann had published a lengthy article on Albert and his age. 41
38 Blackfriars 19 (1938): 5-15.
39 Revue Thomiste 36 (1931); on the gifts of the Holy Spirit in Albert‟s theology see Bavo M. van Hulse, “De leer over de gaven van de
H. Geest bij den h. Albertus den Groote,” Bijdragen 5 (1942): 1-78.
40 Divus Thomas 9 (1931); 10 (1932).
41 “Der Einfluss Alberts des Grossen auf das mittelalterliche
Geistesleben,” Zeitschrift für katholische Theologie 52 (1928): 156-
49
E. Albert and Some Theological Topics.
The volumes by Senner and by Manfred Entrich 42 hold studies on the theological and exegetical methods of Albert where Karl
Cardinal Lehmann‟s essay treats the synthesis of faith and knowing in Albert, and Mikolaj Olszewski‟s looks at his theory of biblical interpretation.” 43 Lehmann also published in the Lectio Albertina a monograph treating Albert‟s idea of theology, and Walter Senner offers there a lengthy survey of Albert‟s major works in terms of the relationship of theology and philosophy and in terms of affective and
256; see Grabmann, Der hl. Albert der Grosse. Ein wissen- schaftliches Charakterbild mit Bild (Munich: Hueber, 1932).
42 Manfred Entrich, ed., Albertus Magnus. Sein Leben und seine Bedeutung (Graz: Styria, 1982) 111-130; the volume holds essays by Karl Meyer, Isnard Frank, and others.
43 In Senner, Albertus Magnus; see Giuseppe Ferraro, “L‟esegesi dei testi pneumatologici nelle „Enarrationes in Joannem‟ di Sant‟ Alberto
Magno,” Angelicum 60 (1983): 40-79; Andrew Hofer, “He taught us how to fly: Albert the Great on John the Evangelist,” Angelicum 87
(20l0) 569-89. 50 speculative directions in theology. 44 Albert distinguished science clearly from religion and sought a variety of methodologies for the sciences. Joachim Söder, Anzulewicz, and others have described with a new depth Albert‟s anthropology, while Ruth Meyer inquired
44 Lehmann, Zum Begriff der Theologie bei Albertus Magnus. Lectio
Albertina #8 (Münster: Aschendorff, 2006); Senner, Alberts des
Grossen Verständnis von Theologie und Philosophie, Lectio Albertina
#9 (Münster: Aschendorff, 2009): see Hannes Möhle, “Zum Verhältnis von Theologie und Philosophie bei Albert dem Grossen:
Wissenschaftstheoretische Reflexionen während der Gründung des
Studium generale in Köln,” Siegfried Schmidt, ed., Rhenisch-
Kölnisch-Katholisch: Beiträge zur Kirchen- und Landesgeschichte sowie zur Geschichte des Buch- und Bibliothekswesens der
Rhinelande (Cologne: Libelli Rhenani, 2008) 146-162; C. Trottmann,
“La théologie comme pieuse science visant la béatitude selon Albert le Grand,” Revue Thomiste 98 (1998): 387-410; Anzulewicz,
“Anthropologie des Albertus Magnus als Ort des Dialogs zwischen den „sancti‟ und „philosophi‟,” F. Prcela, ed., Dialog. Auf dem Weg zur Wahrheit und zum Glauben (Mainz: Matthias-Grünewald, 1996)
47-54. 51 into Albert‟s contribution to a post-modern age, for he spoke of sciences that would be discovered in the future and noted how questions on the boundaries of diverse disciplines were difficult. 45
To peruse the bibliography of writings on Albert by Resnick and
Kitchell is to notice that philosophical themes have been studied more frequently than religious ones, although recent years witness a marked increase in theological essays. Gilles Emery has written on
Albert‟s theology of the Trinity, while there is no lack of studies for a philosophy of God. 46 In the area of Christology there were studies
45 Joachim R. Söder, “Der Mensch als Ganzheit. Alberts anthropologischer Entwurf,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 159-64;
Meyer, “Versöhnte Verschiedenheit. Zur Wissenschaftskonzeption bei Albertus Magnus,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 165-169. see Georg Wieland, Zwischen Natur und Vernunft. Alberts des
Grossen Begriff vom Menschen (Münster: Aschendorff, 1999).
46 Emery, La Trinité Créatrice. Trinité et la création dans les commentaires aux Sentences de Thomas d‟Aquin et de ses précurseurs Albert le Grand et Bonaventure (Paris: Vrin, 1995); see
Alain de Libera, “Toute-puissance et théodicée. Albert le Grand,” O. 52 from the 1930s on the hypostatic union by Vincent-Marie Pollet and
Ferdinand Haberl, while decades later there are essays on
Christology by Stephen Hipp, Donald Goergen, and others. 47
Aspects of the theology of grace have attracted some writers:
Réginald Garrigou-Lagrange and Klaus Obenauer on predestination,
Yves Congar on sanctifying grace, Thomas O‟Meara on justification,
Boulnois, ed., La Puissance et son Ombre: de Pierre Lombard à
Luther (Paris: Aubier, 1994) 141-68.
47 Pollet, “L‟union hypostatique d‟après saint Albert le Grand,” Revue
Thomiste 38 (1933): 505-32, 689-724; Haberl, Die Inkarnationslehre des heiligen Albertus Magnus (Freiburg: Herder, 1939); Goergen,
“Albert the Great and Thomas Aquinas on the Motive of the
Incarnation,” The Thomist 44 (1980): 523-538; Hipp, “Person” in
Christian Tradition and in the Conception of Saint Albert the Great: A
Systematic Study of its Concept as Illuminated by the Mysteries of the Trinity and the Incarnation (Münster: Aschendorff, 2001); see
Corey Barnes, “Albert the Great and Thomas Aquinas on Person,
Hypostasis, and Hypostatic Union,” Thomist 72 (2008): 107-46. 53 and Patrizia Conforti on the grace of union. 48 Two early works on grace are Herbert Doms, Die Gnadenlehre des seligen Alberti Magni and Josef Goergen, Des hl. Albertus Magnus Lehre von der göttlichen Vorsehung und dem Fatum. 49
48 Garrigou-Lagrange, ”La volonté salvifique et la prédestination chez le Bienheureux Albert le Grand,” Revue Thomiste 36 (1931): 371-85;
Obenauer, “Zur Prädestinationslehre des hl. Albertus Magnus,”
Senner, Albertus Magnus; Congar, “Albert le Grand théologien de la grâce sanctifiante,” Vie Spirituelle 34 (1933): 109-40; Hugo Amico,
On the Justification of the Sinner according to St. Albert the Great and a Comparison with the Doctrine of St. Thomas and the Tridentine
Council (Rome: The Angelicum, 1954); O‟Meara, “Albert the Great and Martin Luther on Justification,” The Thomist 44 (1980): 539-59;
Conforti, “La doctrine de la grace d‟union et son evolution chez Albert le Grand et ses contemporains,” Senner, Albertus Magnus. On sin see Albert Stohr, “Zur Erbsündenlehre Alberts des Grossen,” Albert
Lang et al., eds., Aus der Geisteswelt des Mittelalters (Münster:
Aschendorff, 1935) 627-50.
49 (Breslau: Müller und Seiffert, 1929); (Vechta: Albertus-Magnus-
Verlag, 1932). 54
To continue surveying theological areas, sacrament is also a theme for studies on Albert. A monograph from the Bonn series treats transubstantiation in the Eucharist in light of Albert‟s views. 50
The essay concerns itself with the arrival of Aristotelian conceptuality and with metaphysical problems posed by the perdurance of the appearances in the sacrament. Thomas McGonigle wrote on the medieval context of Albert‟s sacramental theology where the
Dominican seeks to reconcile theologies of the sacrament from
Augustine, Peter Lombard, and Hugh of St. Victor, while David Wright presented Albert‟s interpretation of the rites of the Mass according to historical, moral, and mystical meanings of the words and actions in contrast to allegorical interpretations like that of Lothar of Segni. 51
50 Hans Jorissen, Der Beitrag Alberts des Grossen zur theologischen
Rezeption des Aristoteles am Beispiel der Transsubstantionslehre,
Lectio Albertina #5 (Münster: Aschendorff, 2002); Jorissen, “Materie und Form der Sakramente im Verständnis Alberts des Grossen,”
Zeitschrift für katholische Theologie 80 (1958): 267-315.
51 The articles by McGonigle and Wright are found in The Thomist 44
(1980): 560-83 and 584-96; see too Ludwig Hödl, “Der dogmatische 55
Franz-Josef Nocke‟s book, after treating the idea of sacrament in general, turns to the two sacraments of penance and marriage. They are of particular interest because in the view of some medieval writers laypersons can administer them, a position that interests
Albert. 52 At the beginning of the twentieth century Georg Gromer composed a survey of medieval theologies on laypersons hearing a sacramental confession, and he placed the thinking of Albert the
Great as the medieval climax of those affirming this activity. Albert sketched a number of ways in which sins can be absolved through faith and love among the baptized and concluded that laypeople hearing confessions is a true sacrament. “With Albert the theory of
Begriff der sakramentalen Konzelebration in der scholastischen
Theologie des 13. und 14. Jahrhunderts,” Zeitschrift für katholische
Theologie 127 (2005): 361-90.
52 Franz-Josef Nocke, Sakrament und personaler Vollzug bei Albertus
Magnus (Münster: Aschendorff, 1967); on baptism there is Alfons
Müller, Die Lehre von der Taufe bei Albert dem Grossen (Munich:
Schöningh, 1967).
56 lay confession stands at its highest level of expression. Essentially the effect is the same as confession to a priest.” 53
For Albert‟s ecclesiology one can find an orientation in Yves
Congar, L‟Église de Saint Augustin à l‟époque moderne. 54 Aspiring to unite Plato and Aristotle, hierarchy and people, Albert wrote of the
Body of Christ as both church and Eucharist. Each Christian is personally joined to Christ through the Body of the church. The Holy
Spirit is the ultimate principle of church unity as well as of activity and office. There is a distinction between the members of the church and the members of the Body of Christ which is a congregation of love.
Albert gives papal office and authority sparse consideration.
Already in 1872 Franz Xaver Leitner had touched on Albert‟s views of
53 Georg Gromer, Die Laienbeicht im Mittelalter. Ein Beitrag zu ihrer
Geschichte (Munich: Lentner, 1909) 43; see Franz Gillmann, “Zur
Frage der Laienbeicht,” Der Katholik 1 (1909): 435-51.
54 (Paris: Cerf, 1970) 230-32; see Congar, A History of Theology
(New York: Doubleday, 1968) 104-14. Treating Albert‟s ecclesiology is Wilhelm Scherer, Des seligen Albertus Magnus Lehre von der
Kirche (Freiburg: Herder, 1928).
57 the papacy in a study on Aquinas and infallibility. 55 Ulrich Horst‟s analysis of papal office stresses that Albert understood the office of the bishop of Rome mainly in terms of administration and jurisdiction; the pope held in a limited way aspects of universal jurisdiction and leadership but enjoyed only to a modest extent the role of teacher. 56
Anzulewicz has written on the role of the fathers of the church in
Albert‟s ecclesiology and on his understanding of the church as a
55 Der hl. Thomas von Aquin über das unfehlbare Lehramt des
Papstes (Freiburg: Herder, 1872) 177-81.
56 Ulrich Horst, “Albertus Magnus und Thomas von Aquin zu
Matthäus 16:18f. Ein Beitrag zur Lehre vom päpstlichen Primat”
Senner, Albertus Magnus 553-71; see Edward P. Mahoney, “Albert the Great on Christ and Hierarchy,” Kent Emery and Joseph
Wawrykow, eds., Christ among the Medieval Dominicans (Notre
Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1998) 364-92. Henryk
Anzulewicz describes in detail Albert‟s theology of minor orders, major orders including priesthood, and religious life in “Priestertum und Ordensstand nach Albertus Magnus,” Thomas Prügl and
Marianne Schlosser, eds., Kirchenbild und Spiritualität (Paderborn:
Schöningh, 2007) 63-86. 58 society. “From its origins and through its salvific work in unity with
Christ the head of the „corpus mysticum‟ the church transcends the limitations of time, space, and matter. Within the conditions of being a viator and living through faith (and not through immediate knowledge) the church participates in the glory of God. It is the house of God and of the Spirit; it is a created work like the human being. Consequently it has a double reality, transcendent and contingent dimensions: on the one hand, the mystical Body vitalized by the Holy Spirit…and on the other hand, a unified community of faith with a leader who is the successor of Peter and who leads all the members.” 57
57 “Zum Kirchenverständnis des Albertus Magnus,” in R. M. W.
Stammberger et al, eds., “Das Haus Gottes, das seid ihr selbst.”
Mittelalterliches und barockes Kirchenverständnis im Spiegel der
Kirchweihe (Berlin: Akademie, 2006) 356; see “Die Kirche als
Mystischer Leib Christi. Zur Bedeutung der Rezeption der
Kirchenväter für die Entwicklung des Kirchenverständnisses im
Frühwerk des Albertus Magnus,” J. Arnold et al., eds., Väter der
Kirche. Ekklesiales Denken von den Anfängen bis in die Neuzeit
(Paderborn:Schöningh, 2003) 687-715. 59
To turn to the realm of pastoral activity, essays on Albert as a bishop and mediator show him to be a person of both administrative and pastoral gifts. Congar studied the efforts of the Dominican community as a “team” where the Friars Preachers‟ intellectual apostolate was realized by men with varied expertise and ministries.
58 Manfred Entrich has written on Albert‟s medieval pastoral plan for religious education.59 There are essays on prayer and movements of
58 “‟In Dulcedine societatis quaerere veritatem.‟ Notes sur le travail en équipe chez S. Albert et chez les Prêcheurs au XIIIe siècle,”
Gerbert Meyer and Albert Zimmermann, eds., Albertus Magnus.
Doctor Universalis, 1280/1980, 47-57.
59 Die Bergpredigt als Ausbildungsordnung: der katechetische
Entwurf einer „ratio formationis‟ bei Albert dem Grossen (Würzburg:
Echter, 1992); see Stanley B. Cunningham, Reclaiming Moral
Agency. The Moral Philosophy of Albert the Great (Washington,
D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2008); Jörn Müller,
Natürliche Moral und philosophische Ethik bei Albertus Magnus
(Münster: Aschendorff, 2001); Anzulewicz, “Zur Theorie des menschlichen Lebens nach Albertus Magnus. Theologische 60 religious women in Albert‟s view as well as on forms of popular devotion to Albert. 60 Simon Tugwell has published an analysis of
Albert‟s spirituality along with texts illustrating it. 61
Albert‟s eschatology has attracted attention: resurrection, the death of Jesus, purgative fire, and German piety in the face of death.
Anzulewicz offers an essay on the finitude of creation, the omnipresence of time, and the role of fire in destruction and transformation. “In his philosophical writings Albert does not discuss the end of the world because he cannot assume with purely rational principles that this world has an end. Biblical revelation tells him that the world had a beginning (this is at the same time the beginning of time) and that it will have an end.…This world must have an end and must experience a renewal because in its origins it was more perfect
Grundlegungen und ihre bioethischen Implikationen,” Studia
Mediewistyczne 33 (1998): 35-49.
60 Entrich, Albertus Magnus. Gebete zu ihm, Gebete von ihm
(Cologne: St. Andreas, 1979); see the essays listed under
“Mysticism” in Resnick, Kitchell, 317-19.
61 Simon Tugwell, Albert and Thomas. Selected Writings (New York:
Paulist Press, 1988). 61 and because it strives towards renewal.” 62 The universe‟s term is not a consequence of the process of nature but results from the external and unique cause of the total reality of the universe. The process of renewal begins with periods of destruction by fire at lower levels and moves to higher levels where fire becomes illumination, holiness, and vision. 63
F. Representations of Albert in Art
Erhard Schlieter offers a survey of how Albert is presented in art over the centuries. 64 In 1980 an exhibition on Albert in art was
62 Anzulewicz, “Ende und Erneuerung der Welt,” Wort und Antwort 41
(2000): 183; see De Homine (Hamburg: Felix Meiner, 2004): Liber de natura et origine animae (Freiburg: Herder, 2006.
63 See Jeffrey P. Hergan, St. Albert the Great‟s Theory of the Beatific
Vision (New York: Lang, 2002). Caroline Walker Bynum treats Albert in The Resurrection of the Body in Western Christianity (New York:
Columbia University Press, 1995) 255-71.
64 “Albertus Magnus in der Kunst,” Wort und Antwort 41 (2000): 174-
79; see essays in Adolf Layer, Max Springer, eds., Albert von
Lauingen. Siebenhundert Jahre Albertus Magnus (Lauingen: Hist.
Ver. Dillingen a. d. Donau, 1980) and Genoveva Nitz, Albertus 62 assembled in Cologne for which Hugo Stehkämper wrote an introduction 65 Albertus Magnus, der grosse Neugierige is an illustrated guide to an exhibit held in Regensburg in 2002, a colorful, brief presentation of the many sides of Albert. 66 Further studies on this topic can be found in the section on “Iconography and Albert in
Art” in Resnick and Kitchell.
G. The Influence of Albert
Scholars speak of “Albertism,” the influence of Albert in subsequent decades and centuries. Does this imply a school at
Magnus in der Volkskunst. Die Alberti-Tafeln (Munich: Schnell &
Steiner, 1980).
65 Hugo Stehkämper and Matthias Zender, Albertus Magnus.
Auststellung zum 700 Todestag (Cologne: Historisches Archiv der
Stadt Köln, 1980); W. Senner, Blühende Gelehrsamkeit. Eine
Ausstellung zur Gründung des Studium Generale der Dominikaner in
Köln vor 750 Jahren (Cologne: Kölner Stadtmuseum, 1998); see
Anzulewicz, “Albertus Magnus und die moderne Kunst, Archiv für mittelalterliche Philosophie und Kultur 14 (2008): 28-45.
66 Albertus Magnus, Begegnungen in Regensburg (Regensburg:
Stadt Regensburg, 2002).
63
Cologne or a movement beginning there? Does it refer to a Rhenish school of mysticism and theology?
Resnick and Kitchell arrange articles around three special figures who may have been influenced by Albert in some way: Dante,
Meister Eckhart, 67 and Galileo. Then their bibliography offers ten pages listing articles on wider movements and important disciples.
Aertsen writes of a dynamic conjunction of Arab thought, Dionysian theology, and Albert‟s own perspectives resulting in a transcendental science. 68 Alain de Libera has published a number of studies on
Albert and his disciples. Albert le Grand et la philosophie surveys current research before turning to Albert‟s treatment of philosophy,
God and being, a dynamic metaphysics, and a theological psychology of mind. 69 This book presents the influence of Albert on
67 Ideas on Albert and Eckhart are presented by Kurt Flasch,
Meister Eckhart. Die Geburt der “Deutschen Mystik” aus dem Geist der arabischen Philosophie (Munich: Beck, 2006).
68 Aertsen, “Albertus Magnus und die mittelalterliche Philosophie”
111-28.
69 (Paris: Vrin, 1990); see also Métaphysique et noétique: Albert le
Grand (Paris: Vrin, 2005); “Albert le Grand, 1200 – 1280,” Claude 64 major thinkers of the next generation like Ulrich of Strassburg and
Dietrich of Freiburg. “Both as bishop of Regensburg and as professor at the University of Paris, Albert the Great was not the only mentor of his German confreres in philosophy, science, and theology. He did, however, exercise a determining influence on the theology and spirituality of his Dominican province to which he gave impressive
Neo-Platonic, Dionysian, 70 and Avicennan forms (more and more
Gauvard, et al, eds., Dictionnaire du Moyen Âge (Paris: Presses universitaires de France, 2002) 26-29. There is a collection of essays on this area by Maarten Hoenen and Alain de Libera, Albertus
Magnus und der Albertismus. Deutsche philosophische Kultur des
Mittelalters (Leiden: Brill, 1995). See Ruedi Imbach and Christoph
Flüeler, Albert der Grosse und die deutsche Dominikanerschule
(Fribourg: Universitätsverlag, 1985); Hans Gerhard Senger, “Der
Kölner Albertismus,“ Albertus Magnus in Köln (Köln: Universitäts
Verlag, 1999) 43-55. Anzulewicz has assembled a bibliography of writings on Albert‟s influence in the fifteenth century, Albertus Magnus
211-12.
70 See Thierry-Dominique Humbrecht, “Albert le Grand,
Commentateur de la Théologie Mystique de Denys,” Revue des 65
sciences philosophiques et théologiques 90 (2006): 225-71.
Édouard-Henri Wéber has edited Albert‟s commentary on the
Mystical Theology of Dionysius: Saint Albert le Grand, Commentaire de la „Théologie Mystique‟ de Denys le Pseudo-Aréopagite (Paris:
Cerf, 1993); see too Maria Burger, “Das Verhältnis von Philosophie und Theologie in den Dionysius-Kommentaren Alberts des Grossen,”
Jan A. Aertsen, Andreas Speer, eds., Was ist Philosophie im
Mittelalter? 579-586; Anzulewicz, “Pseudo-Dionysius Areopagita und das Strukturprinzip des Denkens von Albert dem Grossen,” A. Speer et al, eds., Die Dionysius- Rezeption im Mittelatler (Turnhout:
Brepols, 2000) 251-95; “Rezeption und Reinterpretation: Pseudo-
Dionysius Areopagita, die Peripatetiker und die Umdeutung der augustinishcen Illuminationslehre bei Albertus Magnus,” Ulrich Köpf,
Dieter Bauer, eds., Kulturkontakte und Rezeptionsvorgänge in der
Theologie des 12.und 13. Jahrhunderts (Münster, Aschendorff, 2011)
103-126. 66 articles are devoted to Albert‟s relationships to Arabic commentators on Aristotle 71). The expression „a Dominican school of Cologne‟ stands for a number of influences and a number of persons active in writing and teaching. There was a mutual interaction in terms of books and people that formed a network or terrain for Rhenish mysticism.” 72 De Libera has focused on the mystical dimension in the thought of the Cologne school. Experts describe this intellectual milieu as a speculative mysticism, a metaphysical mysticism, or a mysticism of essence of which all are a metaphysics of the Word.
71 Kurt Flasch, “Albert der Grosse, Őffnung zur arabischen Welt,”
Meister Eckhart. Die Geburt der ”Deutschen Mystik” aus dem Geist der arabischen Philosophie (Munich: Beck, 2006 ) 67-85.
72 Alain de Libera, L‟Introduction à la mystique Rhénane d‟Albert le
Grand à Maître Eckhart (Paris: O.E. I. L., 1984) 10; see Loris
Sturlese, Die deutsche Philosophie im Mittelalter. Von Bonifatius bis zu Albert dem Grossen 748-1280 (Munich: Beck, 1993) and Vernunft und Glück: Die Lehre vom „intellectus adeptus‟ und die mentale
Glückseligkeit bei Albert dem Grossen (Münster: Aschendorff, 2005);
Craemer-Ruegenberg and Anzulewicz, “Zur Wirkungsgeschcihtge der
Philosophie Alberts des Grossen,” Albertus Magnus 166-78. 67
“Rhenish theology is the theology of Rhenish mysticism: there is its place of discussion, its school of discussion, and its product. This is the theology that comes from Albert, and it is not totally a German theology.” 73
A comment from Alain de Libera on Albert‟s influence in theology and mysticism offers a conclusion for this survey. Albert is not simply a stage prior to Thomas Aquinas or a version of Avicenna.
Albert has his own originality, and his works are not paraphrases or syntheses of the texts of others. “The „paradigm of Albert‟ has its coherence, its proper horizon, its particular objects….Albert‟s theology is not an alternative to Thomism. We need to forget
Thomas and face directly -- without intermediaries or codes habitually used to describe Albert -- the real philosophical project of Albert. This project, born at Paris and reaching maturity at Cologne, had an epochal importance.” 74
***
73 Alain de Libera, L‟Introduction à la mystique Rhénane… 11.
74 Alain de Libera, Raison et Foi. Archéologie d‟une crise d‟Albert le
Grand à Jean-Paul II (Paris; Seuil, 2003) 82.
68
Books and articles are researching and thereby spotlighting the theology of Albert of Lauingen. There is much to discover in his thought and not a little to be learned from it. He was an independent scholar and believer -- independent in the birth of a new age, independent in science and in faith, independent in political turmoil and in church life.