Embracing God

Marsha L. Dutton is the executive editor of Cistercian Publications. A former professor of medieval English literature at Ohio University, she is the editor of A Companion to Aelred of Rievaulx (1110–1167) (Brill, 2017), of four volumes of Aelred’s works in translation, and of “Aelred of Rievaulx” and (with Tyler Sergent) “The Cistercians” in the Oxford Bibliographies in Medieval Studies. Her sixteen presentations on Aelred for Schola Cisterciensis appear on YouTube.

"Marsha Dutton's close readings of Aelred's works bring a deeper understanding of a major unifying thread in Aelred's thought—the relationship between human beings and God. This collection of essays underscores the manner in which that relationship informs in unanticipated ways a diverse array of Aelred's texts. From iconographic imagery to theological philosophy, to ideological origins and contexts, the reader will find no shortage of illuminating insights in Dutton's work. Aelred scholars will not be disappointed."Christopher Coski, professor of French, Ohio University

• ContentsForeword   ixDaniel J. Heisey, OSBPreface   xiAbbreviations   xviiIntroduction   xxiJ. Stephen RussellChapter 1    Clinging to God: The Pedagogy of Memory in Aelred’s Spiritual Treatises   5Chapter 2    Christ Our Mother: Aelred’s Iconography for Contemplative Union   45Chapter 3    Friendship and the Love of God: Augustine’s Teaching in the Confessions and Aelred of Rievaulx’s Response in Spiritual Friendship   75Chapter 4    A Model for Friendship: Ambrose’s Contribution to Aelred of Rievaulx’s Spiritual Friendship   121 Chapter 5    Eat, Drink, and Be Merry: The Eucharistic Spirituality of the Cistercian Fathers   157Chapter 6    Intimacy and Imitation: The Humanity of Christ in Cistercian Spirituality   193Chapter 7    The Cistercian Source: Aelred, Bonaventure, and Ignatius   237Appendix   Aelred’s Works   269Works Cited   279Index of Names   297General Index   303