Medieval Exegesis: The Four Senses of Scripture, Vol. 2

Medieval Exegesis #2

by Henri de Lubac

Translated by E. M. Macierowski
Originally published in French, de Lubac's four-volume study of the history of exegesis and theology is one of the most significant works of biblical studies to appear in modern times.


Still as relevant and luminous as when it first appeared, the series offers a key resource for the renewal of biblical interpretation along the lines suggested by the Second Vatican Council in Dei Verbum. This second volume, now available for the first time in English, will fuel the currently growing interest in the history and Christian meaning of exegesis.

Genres: Theology, Biblical Studies, Philosophy, History, Religion, Catholic

454 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Henri-Marie de Lubac, SJ (1896-1991) was a French Jesuit priest who became a Cardinal of the Catholic Church, and is considered to be one of the most influential theologians of the 20th century. His writings and doctrinal research played a key role in the shaping of the Second Vatican Council.

De Lubac became a faculty member at Catholic Faculties of Theology of Lyons, where he taught history of religions until 1961. His pupils included Jean Daniélou and Hans Urs von Balthasar. De Lubac was created cardinal deacon by Pope John Paul II on February 2, 1983 and received the red biretta and the deaconry of S. Maria in Domnica, February 2, 1983. He died on September 4, 1991, Paris and is buried in a tomb of the Society of Jesus at the Vaugirard cemetery in Paris.

Reviews

[Jacob Aitken · Rating 3 out of 5]

De Lubac killed the forest for the sake of the trees. The book did explain medieval exegesis, so I give him credit on that. And many of his quotations were quite interesting, even stirring--so that's good. But he drowned his argument for the sake of piling on citations. Within 226 pages of text, I counted a total of 2,563 citations, leaving 208 pages of endnotes.

So what's his argument? I'm not sure. (I'm kidding). On de Lubac's reading, allegory isn't the wax nose that it would later become. Rather, Allegory is when one thing is being accomplished and another pre-figured (de Lubac 7). Sounds a lot like modern typology. The “mystic sense”of Scripture refers to a reality ‘hidden in God’ and then revealed to mankind in Christ (20). And the movement from history to eschatology (anagogy) isn't completely arbitrary. It unfolds within the prior historical moment of the Incarnate Word. The object of allegory is a reality of things to come (94). It is an opposition of sign and thing signified within a single duration (95). History, in short, can never fully contain that which it foretells. Allegory, then, is an irruption from the historia into the allegoria, what de Lubac calls “another dimension” (95). Interiority: not necessarily the inner life, but the interiority of the mystery (97). These “hidden facts have an inside,” which is salvific (98).

Conclusion:

I'm not sure if I recommend this book. It is very expensive and crowded with citations that don't always add to his argument, leaving the actual argument in fog. And I say this as someone who loves de Lubac's work. Read Boersma instead.

[Marc Minter · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is defines, historically exemplifies, and promotes the interpretive methodology known as the four-fold sense or quadriga of Scripture (historical, allegorical, topological, and anagogical). As an academic study of the subject, this book will serve the reader well by providing a quality Roman Catholic perspective of this subject.

However, the substance and conclusions of this book ought only be studied in order to know what this bad hermeneutic actually is. There are fatal flaws here, and one ought avoid embracing or employing the four-fold methodology.

See my full review here: https://open.substack.com/pub/marcmin...

[Jack Hayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as strong as the first volume. The chapters on ‘History’ within Spiritual Exegesis are particularly compelling. However, once Anagogy proliferates in Medieval Interpretation, I think we see the decline of interpretation. This might be the point which Protestants become more uncomfortable with spiritual interpretation. Although Lubec certainly would disagree with any bifurcation within spiritual understanding because all four modes of interpretation are unified in the Church’s interpretation.

The book has a part on “honey” that is rather excessive, mirroring Origen’s ‘captive women’ section in the first volume. But this time through it is too much. A quotation train.

[Winnie Thornton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Speed read! Good hermeneutical stuff.

[Si Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some great insights, but not as good as volume 1 in my view.

[Douglas Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great.