“Through a Glass, Darkly”: Evidence for Knowledge of Pseudo-Dionysius in Anglo-Saxon England

Despite his importance to later English medieval spirituality, the possibility of Pseudo-Dionysius's influence in Anglo-Saxon England remains unresolved, having been merely subjected to brief speculation. This article quantifies Pseudo-Dionysius's potential influence by tracing all evidenc...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Flight, Tim (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Penn State Univ. Press [2017]
In: Journal of medieval religious cultures
Year: 2017, Volume: 43, Issue: 1, Pages: 1-23
IxTheo Classification:KAD Church history 500-900; early Middle Ages
KBF British Isles
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:Despite his importance to later English medieval spirituality, the possibility of Pseudo-Dionysius's influence in Anglo-Saxon England remains unresolved, having been merely subjected to brief speculation. This article quantifies Pseudo-Dionysius's potential influence by tracing all evidence for Anglo-Saxon contact with the Corpus Areopagitum. Using Stock's model of “textual communities,” it reviews the study of Pseudo-Dionysius at Rome and the Carolingian court and discusses the level of intellectual exchange between Anglo-Saxon England and these Continental centers, with particular focus on Israel the Grammarian. It then discusses the unacknowledged presence of Pseudo-Dionysius's thought in Anglo-Saxon manuscripts and analyzes Hilduin's exposition of his theology in Passio Sancti Dionysii. It concludes that Pseudo-Dionysius was an influence on Anglo-Saxon thought. Beyond signaling the need for his influence on Anglo-Saxon spirituality and texts to be reconsidered, this article's suggestion of Pseudo-Dionysius's preconquest influence has implications for the accepted history of English medieval spirituality.
ISSN:2153-9650
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of medieval religious cultures
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.5325/jmedirelicult.43.1.0001