The Letters of Saint Anselm of Canterbury, Vol 2
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A monk and a scholar generally recognized as the keenest philosophical and theological mind of his time, of Bec, found himself forcibly and unwillingly invested as Archbishop of Canterbury on 6 March 1093. It was the first of many sharp differences between the Norman King and an archbishop who considered the reform of the church and the improvement of the moral conduct of the kingdom his prime tasks. Among his chief weapons in fighting to establish the Gregorian Reform in his new land was the letter. Whether reporting events or asking for news, proffering advice or wheeding favors, currying friends or placating adversaries, Anselm kept up a steady correspondence throughout his sixteen-year archiepiscopate. Collections of these letters circulated during his lifetime, establishing his position on any number of topics. Now translated into English for the first time, The Letters of Saint Anselm give new insights into the life and mind of this pivotal figure in European history.
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The Letters of Saint Anselm of Canterbury: Volume 2 by Anselm
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It is incredible to think that after the span of nearly a thousand years we have this comprehensive collection of letters to and from anyone, much less the first genius to come out of the so-called Dark Ages. Who thought of preserving these writings? How were they preserved from rot, fires, chance, and neglect over the last millennia?
I went into these letters thinking that I would get gems of theological insights. That expectation was not borne out by experience. There were perhaps two or three letters that I could classify as treating theological topics. Generally, though, these were occasional letters written for a variety of reasons. Anselm's correspondents included his family, fellow monks, and bishops, popes, and the kings of England.
The totality of this book is greater than any of its parts. The letters are often mundane and quotidian. Anselm writes letters to monks and nuns who have broken their vows by leaving their convents and monasteries. He urges them to return to their vows for the sake of their immortal souls.
Read the entire book and Anselm grows on you. The first letters involve Anselm's promotion to the office of Archbishop of Canterbury. He protests that he will not take the office unless he is released from his position as Abbot of Bec by his religious brothers. He also argues that he cannot refuse the offer because God has given it to him, although he wishes that he could. I thought that Anselm was putting this out as stock humility, but the rest of the book makes it clear that he meant it.
Somehow we miss this point, but Anselm, the postulator of the ontological proof and author of Cur Deus Homo, lived in the middle of a political pressure cooker. Anselm lived at the time of the Investiture Controversy. The controversy did not involve just the Holy Roman Empire, but the monarchy of England also insisted on its prerogative to name and invest the bishops of their kingdom. As a loyal Catholic, Anselm sided with the church and constantly exhorted the king to keep his hands off the office of the church. As a result of his loyalty to his the church, Anselm was banished three times from his office in England.
So, what we get is a window into the lived experience of the period, as well as something of the private life of the people involved.
If you are interested in history, there is nothing better.