How Ruusbroec Tastes, Sounds, and Smells: Henry of Coesfeld and the Gerson-Groenendaal Controversy

This essay examines an aspect of the Gerson-Groenendaal controversy in which Jean Gerson condemned parts of John of Ruusbroec's work in letters addressed to the Herne charterhouse, quoting from a capitular sermon of the Carthusian prior and visitor Henry of Coesfeld. To better understand the nu...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Gaens, Tom (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Peeters [2017]
In: Ons geestelijk erf
Year: 2017, Volume: 88, Issue: 2/4, Pages: 178-208
IxTheo Classification:CB Christian life; spirituality
KAF Church history 1300-1500; late Middle Ages
KDB Roman Catholic Church
NBC Doctrine of God
NBE Anthropology
NBF Christology
Online Access: Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:This essay examines an aspect of the Gerson-Groenendaal controversy in which Jean Gerson condemned parts of John of Ruusbroec's work in letters addressed to the Herne charterhouse, quoting from a capitular sermon of the Carthusian prior and visitor Henry of Coesfeld. To better understand the nuanced position of the Carthusian in the matter, Gerson's quotations are situated in Henry's broader discussion of true and false devotion. By indicating the convergences between the Trinitarian and Christological thinking of the Carthusian and the ideas of the Brabantine mystical teacher, the essay concludes that there is no reason to assume that Henry had any mistrust about the good intentions of the Groenendaal prior. On the contrary, Henry of Coesfeld's sermons and tracts (as well as those of other Carthusian authors of the Low Countries and the Rhineland) reflect a keen interest in Ruusbroecian and pseudo-Ruusbroecian texts. We hence conclude that the so-called effects of the Gerson controversy on the dissemination of Ruusbroec's works must be carefully re-evaluated.
ISSN:1783-1652
Contains:Enthalten in: Ons geestelijk erf
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.2143/OGE.88.2.3256930