Overview

While most works on Nicholas of Cusa concentrate either on his early career as author of the monumental 'Catholic Concordance' or on his later career as writer of remarkable philosophical/theological works such as 'On Learned Ignorance' and 'The Vision of God', the essays included here attempt to address the whole Cusanus, sharing common contexts, issues and themes. Following chapters on the legacy of conciliarism and ecumenicity, the story begins with the Council of Basel for which Cusanus wrote 'The Catholic Concordance', but from which he broke away, raising issues of private conscience as well as the balance between papal authority and representative councils in the pursuit of reform. The story then turns to the 'matrix' between Constantinople and a new council in Ferrara when Cusanus received a ship-board gift from the 'Father of Lights' and began to write his great philosophical/theological treatises. When taken together the essays in this book not only form a cohesive whole, they also enlighten aspects often left in the shade, such as the enigmatic aspects of Cusanus' participation in the council, and his mystical theology that reveals a man of faith in search of certainty beyond the well-trod paths of philosophical reflection.

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9781138375871

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'This solid collection of essays is divided between Gerald Christianson's more historical pieces and the late Larry Bond's more theological papers... Every essay in the book offers food for careful consideration, helping us understand the man from Cusa who was neither just a university theoretician nor simply a church administrator, but combined action and thoughtful reflection in a busy life and wrote a series of works that continue to provoke our wonder and admiration... Reading these two authors is, in sum, an intellectual pleasure that should evoke our gratitude for the light their essays shed on Nicholas of Cusa's milieu and ideas.' Renaissance Quarterly

Author Information

H. Lawrence Bond (1936 - 2009) was Professor of History Emeritus at Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, U.S.A.; Gerald Christianson is Central Pennsylvania Synod Professor of Church History, Emeritus, at Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg, U.S.A.

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