Project MUSE®: American Benedictine Review - Latest Articles
https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875
Project MUSE®: Latest articles in American Benedictine Review.daily12026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00text/htmlen-USVol. 75 (2024) through current issueLatest Articles: American Benedictine ReviewTWOProject MUSE®American Benedictine Review2996-84960002-7650Latest articles in American Benedictine Review. Feed provided by Project MUSE®Bede's Cycle of Praise
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984792
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Attention to the Venerable Bede's theology is growing apace in scholarship,1 but among the themes in his theology that have been studied, that of praise has not yet made an appearance. This is perhaps understandable: Bede speaks about praise less frequently than prayer,2 preaching,3 or unity,4 to name but a few central topics in his thought. Yet Bede mentions praise in nearly every work in his corpus, making this a theme that runs through the different genres of his work, from history to commentary to liturgical hymnography. Focusing on praise in Bede's writings adds to our understanding of Bede's broader theological and scholarly vision and of how he understands the Christian life on earth to relate to the blessed
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallBede's Cycle of Praise2026-03-11text/htmlen-USBede's Cycle of Praise2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®819862026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Obedience Throughout Saint Benedict's Ladder of Humility: Reflections of Bishop Joseph John Gerry, O.S.B.
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984793
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In his Rule for monasteries, Saint Benedict gives primacy to the virtue of humility as a vital tool of the monk's spiritual craft. In chapter 7 of the Rule, a ladder of twelve steps is constructed for the monk to achieve perfect humility and "arrive at that perfect love of God which casts out fear (1 Jn 4:8)."1 Saint Benedict provides the monk with many necessary tools to climb this ladder, especially the Benedictine vows of obedience, stability, and conversatio morum suorum.2As a monk, priest, and bishop, Bishop Joseph John Gerry, O.S.B., frequently returned to the theme of humility in his homilies, speeches, retreat conferences, and pastoral letters on theological and spiritual topics. His reflections are not
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallObedience Throughout Saint Benedict's Ladder of Humility: Reflections of Bishop Joseph John Gerry, O.S.B.2026-03-11text/htmlen-USObedience Throughout Saint Benedict's Ladder of Humility: Reflections of Bishop Joseph John Gerry, O.S.B.2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®844772026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Smaragdus, the Spiritual Senses, and RB Prologue 3
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984794
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Smaragdus of Saint-Mihiel (d. ca. 826) offers an interpretation of the Rule of Benedict that draws on his extensive knowledge of patristic theological works.1 My thesis here is that Smaragdus uses the patristic tradition of the spiritual senses to interpret Benedict's "military vocabulary" in Prologue 3.2 Smaragdus discusses Benedict's treatment of monastic discipline in a distinctly mystical register, though one that remains "practical" rather than "speculative."3 This paper has two principal parts. In the remainder of this Introduction, I will provide a brief overview of Smaragdus' life, a summary of the most important aspects of the patristic tradition of the spiritual senses, and a brief overview of Benedict's
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallSmaragdus, the Spiritual Senses, and RB Prologue 32026-03-11text/htmlen-USSmaragdus, the Spiritual Senses, and RB Prologue 32026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®895122026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11How to Deactivate the "Maccabean Complex": Rabanus Maurus's Exegesis of Maccabees
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984795
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The Books of Maccabees are Old Testament texts belonging to the Septuagint but they are not present in the Tanakh. The Septuagint originally contained four Books of Maccabees, but when Latin Christianity established its canon sometime in the fourth century, just the two first were retained, i.e. 1 and 2 Maccabees. Jerome and his followers produced the Vulgate and preserved this canon. In contrast, the Eastern Christian tradition retained all four Books of Maccabees. These texts narrate the struggles of the priest Mattathias and his five sons (the Maccabean brothers) against the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes. The events took place between 167 and 160 BC and they led to the birth of the last free Jewish state
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallHow to Deactivate the "Maccabean Complex": Rabanus Maurus's Exegesis of Maccabees2026-03-11text/htmlen-USHow to Deactivate the "Maccabean Complex": Rabanus Maurus's Exegesis of Maccabees2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®775812026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11The Burdens of Hospitality: Vézelay 1106–1167
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984796
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"All guests who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ … with all the courtesy of love."The twelfth-century basilica of Vézelay stands above the small town of Vézelay in the former region of Burgundy about 135 miles southeast of Paris. A beautifully proportioned and decorated church, it and the small town which surround it are UNESCO World Historical Sites. The basilica was the church of a Benedictine Abbey, which was visited by large numbers of pilgrims, many of them traveling to Santiago de Compostela, who wanted to pay homage to Mary Magdalene to whom the abbey church was dedicated.Paradoxically, this beautiful and holy place of worship and the pilgrims who visited it were implicated in decades-long
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallThe Burdens of Hospitality: Vézelay 1106–11672026-03-11text/htmlen-USThe Burdens of Hospitality: Vézelay 1106–11672026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®565212026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Listening: Monastic Wisdom's Remedy for Hard-Heartedness
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984797
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As I write this article, the back of my mind also reminds me that the impending new fiscal year steadily marches nearer. Despite the fast-paced days this time brings to my work in the business office, I can't help but stop and marvel that Saint Benedict's Rule and the new fiscal year share a common beginning: listening. I find our annual audit is a spiritually rich time for me. True to its name, it is a listening, a sounding taken to gain understanding about the activities of the previous year. It is a chance for me to view that entire year in a single ray of golden light and to correct those erroneous pieces which emerge after carefully considering the whole (cf. Dial. 2.15.3). Each day, of course, we can likewise
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallListening: Monastic Wisdom's Remedy for Hard-Heartedness2026-03-11text/htmlen-USListening: Monastic Wisdom's Remedy for Hard-Heartedness2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®181022026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Unity in Diversity
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984798
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In my own country of the United States of America, there is a motto which appears in the Great Seal which is seen on US coins: "e pluribus unum" ("Out of the many one"). It refers to the beginning of the independence of our country from England: from thirteen colonies was formed one nation. It also expresses a hope that a unity may be experienced in this "melting pot" of many peoples and cultures that have landed in the USA. In the early days of our union, there was a recognition that there were many perspectives to consider and that there needed to be a respect and even a reverence for such a diversity. In the First Amendment to the US Constitution a clause was inserted guaranteeing free exercise of religion and a
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallUnity in Diversity2026-03-11text/htmlen-USUnity in Diversity2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®147092026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Saints' Lives for Medieval English Nuns, I: A Study of the 'Lyves and Dethes' in Cambridge University Library, MS Additional 2604 by Veronica O'Mara and Virginia Blanton, and: Saints' Lives for Medieval English Nuns, II: An Edition of the 'Lyves and Dethes' in Cambridge University Library, MS Additional 2604 ed. by Veronica O'Mara and Virginia Blanton (review)
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984799
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The first volume of Veronica O'Mara and Virginia Blanton's two-volume study and edition of Cambridge University Library's MS Additional 2604 thoroughly prepares the reader to embark on its companion volume—that is, to actually read for oneself the twenty-two saints lives contained in their edition of this almost completely unstudied but significant manuscript of Middle English saints' lives. But Volume I: A Study also conveys a compelling story of its own. As we learn about the codicological details that any thorough study imparts, we are also encountering a narrative of deep scholarly devotion both to the field of manuscript studies and to this one particular manuscript. This volume represents manuscript
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallSaints' Lives for Medieval English Nuns, I: A Study of the 'Lyves and Dethes' in Cambridge University Library, MS Additional 2604 by Veronica O'Mara and Virginia Blanton, and: Saints' Lives for Medieval English Nuns, II: An Edition of the 'Lyves and Dethes' in Cambridge University Library, MS Additional 2604 ed. by Veronica O'Mara and Virginia Blanton (review)2026-03-11text/htmlen-USSaints' Lives for Medieval English Nuns, I: A Study of the 'Lyves and Dethes' in Cambridge University Library, MS Additional 2604 by Veronica O'Mara and Virginia Blanton, and: Saints' Lives for Medieval English Nuns, II: An Edition of the 'Lyves and Dethes' in Cambridge University Library, MS Additional 2604 ed. by Veronica O'Mara and Virginia Blanton (review)2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®123192026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11The Fullest Possible Love: Living in Harmony with God and Neighbor by Paul W. Chilcote (review)
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984800
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Based on the sixth-century Rule of Benedict of Nursia and sixteenth-century writings of Anglican theologians John and Charles Wesley, this book discusses the commonalities of the Benedictine and Wesleyan traditions. The author lays out a thoughtful array of similarities in concepts and methods even as he contrasts the diverse backgrounds of St. Benedict and the Wesleys. Chilcote enables the reader to realize an overlap in fundamental theology and spiritual practices that can foster a synergy of new thinking and lifestyle habits, peppering his book with incidents from his own spiritual life to connect old faith practices with new. The author's ultimate goal is to better lead Christians of today toward a more
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallThe Fullest Possible Love: Living in Harmony with God and Neighbor by Paul W. Chilcote (review)2026-03-11text/htmlen-USThe Fullest Possible Love: Living in Harmony with God and Neighbor by Paul W. Chilcote (review)2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®115622026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Orthodox Sisters: Religion, Community, and the Challenge of Modernity in Imperial and Early Soviet Russia by William G. Wagner (review)
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984801
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At first sight, a potential reader might question the relevance to modern Benedictine life of this impressively researched exploration of one monastery of Orthodox Sisters as they navigate the advent of modernity and social upheaval culminating in the birth of Soviet Russia. For the scholar willing to integrate the vast range of sources, this work offers an excellent methodological model to understand developments within a monastery in response to the confluence of multitudes of external influences. The more general reader will encounter monastics who, despite being grounded in a different culture and denomination, faced challenges like those in our western histories: changing demographics, the tension between the
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallOrthodox Sisters: Religion, Community, and the Challenge of Modernity in Imperial and Early Soviet Russia by William G. Wagner (review)2026-03-11text/htmlen-USOrthodox Sisters: Religion, Community, and the Challenge of Modernity in Imperial and Early Soviet Russia by William G. Wagner (review)2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®121522026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Work and its Representations in Early Medieval Saints' Lives by Christina M. Heckman (review)
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984802
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This book studies what pre-1100 AD saints' lives from England, Ireland and Francia tell us about the work of early medieval people and what they thought about it. After an introduction that clearly lays out her aims and methods, the author, a professor of English at Augusta University, divides her study into two parts: a theoretical introduction on labor, work and materiality, and a survey of seven kinds of work or crafts that are portrayed in the saints' vitae.The first section begins with an analysis of opus and labor in the mechanical arts. These arts represent crafts that deal with material things. The term "mechanical arts" enters medieval discourse with Hugh of Saint Victor (d. 1141) as a complement to the
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallWork and its Representations in Early Medieval Saints' Lives by Christina M. Heckman (review)2026-03-11text/htmlen-USWork and its Representations in Early Medieval Saints' Lives by Christina M. Heckman (review)2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®116152026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11Christianity and Monasticism in Upper Egypt: Volume 1, Akhmin and Sohag ed. by Gawdat Gabra and Hany N. Takla (review)
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984803
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This book, edited by two eminent Coptologists, gathers twenty-five essays by well-known Coptic scholars. The volume is a paperback version of the hardbound book published in 2008, with apparently no changes; several essays mention "not-yet-published works." Since much has been published in seventeen years on the topics herein, a revised and expanded volume would have made a much greater contribution (there is also, most unfortunately, no index). After a foreword and introduction, three sections follow: "Language and Literature" with eighteen pieces, "Art, Archaeology, and Material Culture" with six, and "Preservation" with a single essay.My field in early Egyptian monasticism is in Middle and Lower (central and
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallChristianity and Monasticism in Upper Egypt: Volume 1, Akhmin and Sohag ed. by Gawdat Gabra and Hany N. Takla (review)2026-03-11text/htmlen-USChristianity and Monasticism in Upper Egypt: Volume 1, Akhmin and Sohag ed. by Gawdat Gabra and Hany N. Takla (review)2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®116692026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11The Passion and Miracles of St. Thomas Becket by Benedict of Peterborough (review)
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/984804
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This book presents the first full-length English translation of Benedict of Peterborough's Passio Sancti Thomae Cantuariensis. In so doing, Rachel Koopmans has brought together two distinct texts by Benedict of Peterborough, one about the martyrdom of Thomas Becket, the other about miracles attributed to him after his assassination. Her translation follows a lengthy (fifty-nine pages) Introduction, and the book includes a general index and an index of biblical allusions. Biographical Notes at the end help identify personages mentioned in the texts. A list of abbreviations aids in following the copious footnotes, and an appendix offers a translation of William of Canterbury's account of miracles attributed to Saint
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Project MUSE®https://muse.jhu.edu/2026-05-13T00:00:00-05:00https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/875/image/coversmallThe Passion and Miracles of St. Thomas Becket by Benedict of Peterborough (review)2026-03-11text/htmlen-USThe Passion and Miracles of St. Thomas Becket by Benedict of Peterborough (review)2026-03-112026TWOProject MUSE®79622026-05-13T00:00:00-05:002026-03-11