II the Middle Ages
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History of Theology II The Middle Ages History of Theology II The Middle Ages Giulio D’Onofrio Translated by Matthew J. O’Connell A Michael Glazier Book LITURGICAL PRESS Collegeville, Minnesota www.litpress.org A Michael Glazier Book published by Liturgical Press Cover design by David Manahan, OSB. This book was originally published in Italian under the title Storia della teologia II, eta’ medievale © Edizioni Piemme Spa (Via del Carmine 5, 15033 Casale Monferrato [AL], Italy). All rights reserved. © 2008 by Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, microfilm, micro fiche, mechani- cal recording, photocopying, translation, or by any other means, known or yet unknown, for any purpose except brief quotations in reviews, without the previous written permis- sion of Liturgical Press, Saint John’s Abbey, P.O. Box 7500, Collegeville, Minnesota 56321-7500. Printed in the United States of America. ISBN 978-0-8146-5915-1 (vol. I) ISBN 978-0-8146-5916-8 (vol. II) ISBN 978-0-8146-5917-5 (vol. III) 12345678 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Storia della teologia. English. History of theology / edited by Angelo Di Berardino and Basil Studer ; translated by Matthew J. O’Connell. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. Contents: I. The patristic period. ISBN 0-8146-5915-2 1. Theology, Doctrinal—History. 2. Catholic Church—Doctrines—History. I. Di Berardino, Angelo. II. Studer, Basil, 1925– III. Title. BT21.2.S7613 1996 230'.09—DC20 96-42160 CIP Contents Preface xiii Introduction: The Principles of Medieval Theology 1 1. The True Philosophy: A Synthesis of Faith and Reason 1 2. Sound Doctrine: The Gold of the Egyptians and the Coinage of the King 4 3. Sacred Utterances: The Word of God and Human Language 9 4. The Divine Ordering: The Order of Creation—Essences, Ideas, Numbers, Intelligences 12 5. Christian Instruction: The Two Libraries: Human Literature and Divine Literature 15 6. The Ages of the World: The Temporal Boundaries of the Theological Middle Ages: Problems of Periodization and Methodology 21 Chapter One: From the Roman World to the Christian World: The Collapse and Rebirth of the Christian Empire of the West 25 I. The Theology of the “Founders” 25 1. Boethius and Wisdom 29 2. Truth and the Reorganization of Knowledge: Cassiodorus and Isidore of Seville 35 3. Gregory the Great 38 4. A “Monastic” Civilization 42 a. Benedict of Nursia and Benedictine Monasticism 42 b. English Monasticism and Bede the Venerable 43 c. Virgilius Grammaticus and Ethicus Ister 44 d. Beatus of Liébana and Ambrose Autpert 47 5. The Greek East from Justinian to the Second Council of Nicaea 49 a. The Sixth Century and John Philoponus 49 b. The Seventh Century and Maximus the Confessor 50 c. The Eighth Century: The Question of Images and John Damascene 52 v vi Contents II. Carolingian Unanimity 54 1. Institutional Reform and Cultural and Religious Rebirth 55 2. The Theological Wisdom of Charlemagne’s Liegemen 58 a. Tradition and Method in Alcuin’s Theological Writings 58 b. Fridugisus of Tours and Alcuin’s “Circle” 61 c. Theological Method in the Libri carolini 64 3. Systematization and Speculative Advances in the Age of Louis the Pious 65 a. Agobard of Lyons and the Early Theological Debates within the Carolingian World 66 b. Rhabanus Maurus and the Organization of Knowledge 69 4. Theological Debate in Carolingian Europe after Verdun 72 5. John Scotus Eriugena 82 a. Nature and Its Divisions 84 b. The Knowableness of God and the Possibility of Making Predications about Him 88 c. The Knowableness of Creatures: The Substantial Triad 90 d. Creation and Procession: Eriugena’s Hexaemeron 92 e. Original Sin and the Interruption of the Creative Process 93 f. Redemption from Sin and the Return 95 g. Beyond Theology 96 6. Theological Learning and Thought in the Greek East of the Ninth Century and in the Late Carolingian West 98 a. Theological Thought in Byzantium from the New Controversy on Images to the Photian Schism 98 b. In the West: The Late Carolingian School 102 Chapter Two: The Contradictions of the Transitional Period: The Ancients versus the Moderns 106 I. Theological Platonism and Ecclesiastical Reform in the Tenth and Eleventh Centuries 106 1. The Renewal of Studies in the Ottonian Age 106 a. The Reform of Monastic Life and the Cluniac Movement 106 b. The Theological Competence and Practical Wisdom of the Bishops: Atto of Vercelli and Ratherius of Verona 108 c. The Pride of Gunzo and the Humility of Hrosvit 110 d. The Wise Abbot and the Learned Pope: Abbo of Fleury and Gerbert of Aurillac 112 2. Cosmic Optimism and the Criticism of Reason after the Year One Thousand 116 a. Order of Thought and Cosmic Order: Heriger of Lobbes, Adalbold of Utrecht, and Fulbert of Chartres 117 b. The Boundary between the Liberal Arts and Theology: Anselm of Besate and Adalbero of Laon 119 c. The Limits of Theological Reason according to Gerard of Czanád 121 Contents vii 3. Humanistic Classicism and Religious Spiritualism at Byzantium in the Century of the Schism 122 a. Erudite Scholarship and Mystic Spiritualism in the Tenth and Eleventh Centuries 122 b. Michael Cerularius and the Schism 124 c. Michael Psellus 125 d. John the Italian and the Exhaustion of Speculative Theology in Byzantium 127 4. The “Modern” Theologians 129 a. Manegold of Lautenbach 130 b. The Dispute over the Eucharist: Berengarius of Tours and Lanfranc of Pavia 132 c. Peter Damian 135 d. Otloh of St. Emmeran and the Anonymous of Regensburg 138 e. Moderns vs Ancients: Roscellinus of Compiègne 140 II. Anselm of Aosta 144 1. Theological Truth as the Rectitude or Right Ordering of the Intellect to Faith 145 2. The Monologion, Model of Meditation on the Truth of God 147 3. The Proslogion: From Faith to Understanding of the Truth of God 151 4. The Theological System of Christian Truth 157 5. The Cur Deus homo: From Faith to Understanding of the Mystery of Christ 160 6. Truth, Necessity, and Prayer: Faith as a Cognitive Experience 162 Chapter Three: The Century of the Schools 164 I. New Movements and New Study Centers in France 164 1. Anselm’s Heritage 164 2. Peter Abelard 170 a. The Universals and the Truth of Knowing 172 b. True Logicians and True Philosophers 175 c. The Logic of the Trinity 178 3. The Schools of Paris 181 a. Abelard’s Heritage and the Schools of Logic 181 b. The School of Saint Victor 182 c. Reading of the Bible and Reading of the Fathers 188 4. Gilbert of Poitiers 191 a. A Dialectical Commentary on the Theology of Boethius 191 b. A Theological Method: The Shifting of Meaning 194 c. Ontological Composition and the Reality of the Singular 196 d. The Trinitarian “Distinction” 198 e. The Gilbertan or Porretan Theologians 199 5. The School of Chartres 201 a. Bernard of Chartres and the “Innate Forms” 203 b. William of Conches and the Philosophy of the World 205 viii Contents c. Theodoric of Chartres and the Physics of Creation 208 d. Herman of Carinthia and Bernard Silvestris: Nature and the Theologico-Poetic Veil 212 e. Clarembald of Arras and the Limits of Theoretical Theology 214 II. The Monastic Schools 216 1. Reading of the Bible, Theology of History, and Visionaries in the German Area 216 2. Peter the Venerable and Cluniac Theology 223 3. Bernard of Clairvaux: Cistercian Theology and Spirituality 224 4. William of Saint-Thierry 227 5. Spiritual Friendship and the Psychology of the Mystical Ascent 229 III. The English Schools and John of Salisbury 231 Chapter Four: Between Two Worlds 240 I. The Maturation of Theological Method in the Age of Philip Augustus 240 1. Alan of Lille 241 2. Organization of Knowledge and Definition of Theological Knowledge 247 3. Joachim of Fiore 248 4. Amalric of Bène 252 II. The Encounter with Greco-Arabic and Jewish Philosophical and Theological Thought 255 1. Islamic Theology or kalam 257 2. Arabic Philosophy 262 a. The Formation of Falsafa from al-Kindi to al-Farabi 262 b. Metaphysics and Theology: Avicenna (Ibn Sina) 266 c. The Agreement of Philosophy with Religion: Averroes (Ibn Rushd) 269 3. Jewish Theological and Philosophical Thought 274 4. The Introduction of Greek and Arabic-Jewish Thought into the West: The Latin Translations 279 III. The Civilization of the University 281 1. The Birth of the Universities 281 2. Philosophers and Theologians 284 3. The New Psychology and the Shift in Cognitive Parameters 287 Chapter Five: The Golden Age of University Theology 291 I. Genesis and Formation of University Theological Thought: The Work of the First Masters of Theology 291 1. The Standard-Bearers of University Theology: Secular Masters and Masters from the Mendicant Orders 291 2. The First Secular Masters 293 a. William of Auxerre 295 b. The Theory of the Transcendentals 296 c. Philip the Chancellor 297 d. William of Auvergne 298 Contents ix 3. The Franciscan Masters of Paris: Alexander of Hales and John of La Rochelle 301 4. The Franciscan Masters of Oxford: Robert Grosseteste 306 5. The First Dominican Masters 309 II. Birth and Systematization of Theology as a Science: Odo Rigaldi and Albert the Great 312 1. Odo Rigaldi and the Theory of Theology as a Science 313 2. Albert the Great (or: of Cologne) 317 a. Aristotelean Philosophy and Christian Theology 317 b. The Philosophical System of Reality 319 c. Anthropology and the Cognitive Ascent 321 d. The System of Theological Truth 323 III. Bonaventure of Bagnoreggio 326 1. Theological Science as the Unification of All Truth, and Its Scriptural Basis 328 2.