Biblical Exegesis and Mystical Theology in the Venerable Bede

Biblical Exegesis and Mystical Theology in the Venerable Bede brings together
17 essays by Arthur Holder exploring the theology and spirituality found in
Bede’s biblical commentaries and homilies. The volume shows that Bede was
both a masterful student of received tradition and a creative thinker concerned to
address the needs and interests of his audience of Christian pastors and teachers
in the eighth-century Northumbrian church., Although Bede is best known as the author of The Ecclesiastical History of
the English People, the last half-century of scholarship has demonstrated the
sophistication and vast influence of his work in the fields of grammar, biblical
interpretation, hagiography, poetry, computus, natural science, and theology.
The chapters in this volume show how Bede’s exegesis was integrally connected
with his work in all those genres and with the monumental artistic productions
of his monastery such as the illuminated bible manuscript known as the Codex
Amiatinus. The five parts of the book deal with Bede as a teacher and biblical
scholar, his interpretations of the tabernacle and the temple, his commentary on
the Song of Songs, his attitudes toward philosophy and heresy, and his mystical
theology. This book will be of interest to students of Christian theology, mysticism, the
development of biblical interpretation, and the history of early medieval England.