Bird of Many Plumes: Conceptions and Applications of Authority in the Thought of William of Saint–Thierry

Delphine Conzelmann, Dr. theol (2022), University of Basel, is an independent theologian and church historian, as well as a journalist in Switzerland.

• ContentsAcknowledgementsIntroduction1 William’s Life and Work2 State of Research 3 Main Question, Structure, and Methodology Part 1William’s Engagement with School TheologyIntroduction to Part 11 The Use of Authority in William’s Lectio Divina of Romans 1 Exegesis of Romans in the Context of 12th-Century Education 2 Scripture in the 12th Century3 The Monastic Practice of Lectio4 William’s Self-Representation in the Praefatio5 Reading (alongside) the Fathers6 Reading as a Communal Endeavor7 Humilitas and the Ideal Reader8 Interim Conclusion2 Authority as a Tool and Topic in William’s Conflicts 1 Reading Romans from Two Perspectives 2 Abelard’s Early Critics 3 Orthodoxy and Authority in William’s Disputatio 4 Bernard’s Involvement and the Council of Sens Conclusion to Part 1 Part 2 Mapping William’s Exegetical Process: Receptivity and Originality in His Reading of the Song of SongsIntroduction to Part 23 Bernard, William’s Guide through the Song1 Emerging from His Shadow: The Problem with Bernard2 Living the Song. Spiritual Friendship as a Foundation of Cistercian Exegesis3 The Brevis Commentatio4 William’s Florilegia of Ambrose and Gregory1 The Early Medieval Tradition of Anthologies2 William’s Florilegia and Their Role in His Literary Corpus2.1 Reading between the Lines: Ambrose as a Moral Authority2.2 Restoring Gregory’s Voice5 William’s Own Expositio and Its Original Contribution1 Origen as an (Il)legitimate Source2 The Different Senses of Scripture3 ‘Know Thyself’. William’s Spiritual Anthropology and His Understanding of Image-Likeness4 Love. An Intellectual Principle5 The Breasts of God: William’s Sensual SpiritualityConclusion to Part 2Part 3William’s Vision for Life in the Monastic CommunityIntroduction to Part 36 The Golden Epistle in the Context of Reform1 A History of Misattribution2 Two Perspectives on Reform3 William as an Author for the Carthusian Movement7 William’s Monastic Ideal1 Innovation, Restoration, or Renewal?2 The Monastic Life as Christian Ideal3 Horizontal Authority and Loving Obedience4 Concepts Applied: The Monk’s Image-LikenessConclusion to Part 3Through the Lens of Prayer. Concluding ThoughtsMeditatio ii. The Possibility of Acquiring Knowledge of GodMeditatio iii. The Sensus AmorisMeditatio vii. The Communal Authority of the SaintsIntertwining the ThreadsBibliographyIndex