A Benedictine Reader is an exciting volume of sources that includes key texts from the Order's inception in 530 through the sixteenth century. These `Benedictine Centuries' demonstrate the rich and varied contributions that knit together the religious, political, social, and cultural fabric of European society throughout the Middle Ages and into the Early Modern period. Translated into fresh and readable English, each text contains a concise introduction that has an almost intuitive quality. This is a welcome addition to the field and is an excellent resource for both scholars and students alike.Alice Chapman, Associate Professor of History, Grand Valley State University
Perfectae Caritatis invited religious to enter into their original sources and primitive inspirations. A Benedictine Reader achieves this by creating a fascinating world of medieval monastic doctrine. This anthology opens up for any interested person ancient sources that fashioned monastic aggiornamento through the centuries. With quite remarkable scholarship, the wealth of footnotes in this volume introduces contemporary authorities promoting this renewal. Together these ancient monastics and contemporary scholars form a valuable treasure for a rebirth in monastic wisdom and insight. Thomas X. Davis, OCSO, Abbot Emeritus, New Clairvaux Abbey
A Benedictine Reader brings together in a single volume the Venerable Bede, John of Fecamp, Abelard, Hildegard of Bingen, and other well-known figures of Western medieval monasticism. Also included are lesser-known authors and works by anonymous voices. This virtual library of medieval Benedictine texts fills a gaping hole in monastic libraries and will be an excellent resource in monastic formation programs. Mark A. Scott, OCSO, Abbot of New Melleray, Peosta, Iowa
A monument to the first millennium of Benedictine tradition. It is particularly welcome to see so many female voices from the Benedictine tradition represented in this volume. The diversity in genre of documents is breathtaking, with poetry, art, music, liturgy, horticulture, hagiography and law among the areas covered, all usually in a Benedictine and theological key.The Furrow
The editors provided what Benedictine studies have long lacked: a single volume resource that displays the riches of the Benedictine tradition in an array of genres. Monastics, oblates, and others devoted to the Benedictine way of life will find spirituality nourishing selections. Instructors and students of monastic culture in colleges, monasteries, and seminaries will find a welcome resource that may initially feel overwhelming, but ultimately leaves one wanting more.Jacob Riyeff, Spirit & Life
Novice masters will find it to be a useful reference in their novitiate classes. The professed monks, oblates, indeed anyone who is interested in learning more about the monastic way as it has been handed down through the ages will find this Reader valuable and will be grateful for the scholarship and long labor that has gone into its production.
Cistercian Studies Quarterly
Anyone interested in medieval monastic intellectual culture will find this book to be a springboard for jumping into further study or pursuance of the topics found in it. It may find a home in medieval monastic history courses, perhaps not as the basic reader but as one whose diverse authors and genres will be enriching.
American Benedictine Review
This work has much to appeal to those interested in the Benedictine tradition. It has a wide array of material from a diverse range of activities all enriched by the contributions of the Benedictines during their first thousand years of existence. For the gardening enthusiast to the pedagogue, this collection has something to share from the treasuries of the Benedictine tradition.
Tjurunga
A richly rewarding selection that will surely broaden and deepen any reader's knowledge and appreciation of the Benedictine tradition as it developed from the end of antiquity through the dawn of the modern era.
Catholic Books Review
A treasure trove of monastic material spanning a thousand years: letters, chronicles, biographies, prayers, legislation, satires, scriptural commentaries, sermons, and a papal decree. Three bibliographies-of Christian authors, classical authors, and secondary sources-plus five indexes round out a hefty, reasonably priced volume that will be of much value and interest for anyone seeking a broader familiarity with one of the most important movements in the history of the church.
Theological Studies
Twenty years in the making, A Benedictine Reader is a good guide for anyone interested in further research in the area. If this volume can introduce students and seminaries to a tradition so foundational, it will be all to the good.
The Living Church
