Veröffentlichungen des Grabmann-Institutes zur Erforschung der mittelalterlichen Theologie und Philosophie – serie

In this series, the Grabmann Institute publishes new editions and studies that make a valuable contribution to the Institute’s research focus. In these publications – many of which originate from within the Institute – a primary focus is placed on medieval theology and philosophy, but the chronological arc spans from the end of antiquity to the modern era. The series’ historical perspectives are undergirded by a systematic approach. The published volumes address topics in all areas of medieval theology and philosophy and present outstanding and lesser known theologians and philosophers, their works and impact. Due consideration is also given to aspects of mysticism and spirituality as they essentially pertain to medieval theology and philosophy. Link to the Martin-Grabmann-Forschungsinstitut für Mittelalterliche Theologie und Philosophie.

Using careful textual analysis, this study reveals how Hildegard von Bingen presents the conceptual structure of a theology of life through language and metaphor. Close textual interpretation of selected visions leads to a dense, resonant theological conception of life in Hildegard. Despite all its perils and pitfalls, life should culminate in joy and fulfillment!

What sort of human behavior might be deemed not only proper but justified within the framework of Aristotelian virtue ethics? The present study takes up this question on the basis of medieval Aristotle reception, in the work of Thomas Aquinas in particular. It reveals there is great philosophical promise – from a methodic and systematic perspective – in combining virtue ethics with ethical universalism.

In this series, the Grabmann Institute publishes new editions and studies that make a valuable contribution to the Institute’s research focus. In these publications – many of which originate from within the Institute – a primary focus is placed on medieval theology and philosophy, but the chronological arc spans from the end of antiquity to the modern era. The series’ historical perspectives are undergirded by a systematic approach. The published volumes address topics in all areas of medieval theology and philosophy and present outstanding and lesser known theologians and philosophers, their works and impact. Due consideration is also given to aspects of mysticism and spirituality as they essentially pertain to medieval theology and philosophy. Link to the Martin-Grabmann-Forschungsinstitut für Mittelalterliche Theologie und Philosophie.

The volume focuses on the relation between Cusanus and Aristotle or the Aristotelian tradition. In recent years the attention on this topic has partially increased, but overall the scholarship results are still partial or provisional. The book thus aims at verifying more systematically how Aristotle and Aristotelianism have been received by Cusanus, in both their philosophical and theological implications, and how he approached the Aristotelian thought. In order to answer these questions, the papers are structured according to the traditional Aristotelian sciences and their reflection on Cusanus' thought. This allows to achieve some aspects of interest and originality: 1) the book provides a general, but systematic analysis of Aristotle's reception in Cusanus' thought, with some coherent results. 2) Also, it explores how a philosopher and theologian traditionally regarded as Neoplatonist approached Aristotle and his tradition (including Thomas Aquinas), what he accepted of it, what he rejected, and what he tried to overcome. 3) Finally, the volume verifies the attitude of a relevant Christian philosopher and theologian of the Humanistic age towards Aristotle.

The thirteenth century was a dynamic period in intellectual history which witnessed the establishment of the first universities, most famously at Paris and Oxford. At these and other major European centres of learning, English-born Franciscans came to hold prominent roles both in the university faculties of the arts and theology and in the local studia across Europe that were primarily responsible for training Franciscans. This volume explores the contributions to scholarship of some of the leading English Franciscans or Franciscan associates from this period, including Roger Bacon, Adam Marsh, John Pecham, Thomas of Yorke, Roger Marston, Robert Grosseteste, Adam of Exeter, Richard Rufus of Cornwall, and Bartholomew of England. Through focussed studies of these figures’ signature ideas, contributions will provide a basis for drawing comparisons between the English Franciscan school and others that existed at the time, most famously at Paris.

The legacy of late medieval Franciscan thought is uncontested: for generations, the influence of late-13th and 14th century Franciscans on the development of modern thought has been celebrated by some and loathed by others. However, the legacy of early Franciscan thought, as it developed in the first generation of Franciscan thinkers who worked at the recently-founded University of Paris in the first half of the 13th century, is a virtually foreign concept in the relevant scholarship. The reason for this is that early Franciscans are widely regarded as mere codifiers and perpetrators of the earlier medieval, largely Augustinian, tradition, from which later Franciscans supposedly departed. In this study, leading scholars of both periods in the Franciscan intellectual tradition join forces to highlight the continuity between early and late Franciscan thinkers which is often overlooked by those who emphasize their discrepancies in terms of methodology and sources. At the same time, the contributors seek to paint a more nuanced picture of the tradition’s legacy to Western thought, highlighting aspects of it that were passed down for generations to follow as well as the extremely different contexts and ends for which originally Franciscan ideas came to be employed in later medieval and modern thought.

For generations, early Franciscan thought has been widely regarded as unoriginal: a mere attempt to systematize the longstanding intellectual tradition of Augustine in the face of the rising popularity of Aristotle. This volume brings together leading scholars in the field to undertake a major study of the sources and context of the so-called Summa Halensis (1236-45), which was collaboratively authored by the founding members of the Franciscan school at Paris, above all, Alexander of Hales, and John of La Rochelle, in an effort to lay down the Franciscan intellectual tradition or the first time. The contributions will highlight that this tradition, far from unoriginal, laid the groundwork for later Franciscan thought, which is often regarded as formative for modern thought. Furthermore, the volume shows the role this Summa played in the development of the burgeoning field of systematic theology, which has its origins in the young university of Paris. This is a crucial and groundbreaking study for those with interests in the history of western thought and theology specifically.

For generations, early Franciscan thought has been widely regarded as unoriginal: a mere attempt to systematize the longstanding intellectual tradition of Augustine in the face of the rising popularity of Aristotle. This volume brings together leading scholars in the field to undertake a major study of the major doctrines and debates of the so-called Summa Halensis (1236-45), which was collaboratively authored by the founding members of the Franciscan school at Paris, above all, Alexander of Hales, and John of La Rochelle, in an effort to lay down the Franciscan intellectual tradition or the first time. The contributions will highlight that this tradition, far from unoriginal, laid the groundwork for later Franciscan thought, which is often regarded as formative for modern thought. Furthermore, the volume shows the role this Summa played in the development of the burgeoning field of systematic theology, which has its origins in the young university of Paris. This is a crucial and groundbreaking study for those with interests in the history of western thought and theology specifically.

In this series, the Grabmann Institute publishes new editions and studies that make a valuable contribution to the Institute’s research focus. In these publications – many of which originate from within the Institute – a primary focus is placed on medieval theology and philosophy, but the chronological arc spans from the end of antiquity to the modern era. The series’ historical perspectives are undergirded by a systematic approach. The published volumes address topics in all areas of medieval theology and philosophy and present outstanding and lesser known theologians and philosophers, their works and impact. Due consideration is also given to aspects of mysticism and spirituality as they essentially pertain to medieval theology and philosophy. Link to the Martin-Grabmann-Forschungsinstitut für Mittelalterliche Theologie und Philosophie.

In this series, the Grabmann Institute publishes new editions and studies that make a valuable contribution to the Institute’s research focus. In these publications – many of which originate from within the Institute – a primary focus is placed on medieval theology and philosophy, but the chronological arc spans from the end of antiquity to the modern era. The series’ historical perspectives are undergirded by a systematic approach. The published volumes address topics in all areas of medieval theology and philosophy and present outstanding and lesser known theologians and philosophers, their works and impact. Due consideration is also given to aspects of mysticism and spirituality as they essentially pertain to medieval theology and philosophy. Link to the Martin-Grabmann-Forschungsinstitut für Mittelalterliche Theologie und Philosophie.