St Anselm (d. 1109) is the most interesting theologian and philosopher of his time. In many respects, his career encapsulates the principal intellectual, religious, and political developments of high medieval Europe. In 1060, Anselm took monastic vows at the abbey of Bec, a reformist community in Normandy, where he was soon promoted to the office of prior and subsequently elected abbot. In 1093 he was elected archbishop of Canterbury, and became a dynamic representative of the new papal claims for the freedom of the Church from the control of lay rulers. Throughout, he wrote theological and spiritual treatises which still resonate today. Anselm was also an avid letter-writer, and his correspondence is one of our best testimonies to an active, cosmopolitan, and cultured life in the Middle Ages. His almost 500 surviving letters represent the man. They are an acute witness to his mind and action, illuminating his monastic teaching, intellectual journey, leadership, and positions respective to rivalries within the church and between ecclesiastical and lay rulers. The first volume of this new critical edition of Anselm's letters comprises his correspondence, 148 letters, from his Norman years. The letters demonstrate at first-hand how he emerged as a respected monastic leader, a distinguished author, and a powerful influence in Normandy with networks in France and England. The present volume includes a new critical edition, established from almost thirty manuscripts, and an English translation of the letters from Anselm's Norman years. A detailed commentary accompanies the text. The critical apparatus provides a means of studying the letters' reception up to c. 1140. The introduction comprises a systematic analysis of the text's transmission from Anselm and his followers to the present day, and a fresh account of his life before Canterbury.

The letters of Anselm of Canterbury (a 1109) provide the clearest insight into his mind and action, and they also constitute one of our finest vantage points to observe the formation of those profound forces moulding Europe in the late eleventh- and early twelfth centuries. The focus of the present study is the transmission of Anselm's correspondence. It argues that many of the conclusions of earlier scholarship have been constructed on flawed foundations. Using evidence from all known manuscripts and printed editions, the study seeks to demonstrate precisely how Anselm's letters have survived and how the surviving witnesses relate to one another. The study also aims to define the historical contexts within which our key manuscripts were copied and edited. Only when equipped with this store of information can we begin to understand the editorial processes that shaped the textual tradition of Anselm's letter collections before and after his death.

Mostly written between 1070 and 1080, before he became Archbishop of Canterbury, the prayers and meditations of Anselm of Aosta created a tradition of intimate, intensely personal devotional works written in subtle and theologically daring prose. While the Prayer to God is based on the Lord's Prayer, the Prayer to Christ is inspired by ardent private emotion and other prayers invest saints with individual attributes, with John the Baptist as the friend, Peter as the shepherd and Mary Magdalene as the forgiving lover, among many others. The meditations include a searching exploration of the state of the soul and a lament on the loss of purity, and the Proslogion discusses the mysteries of faith. With their bright imagery, beautiful language and highly original thought, the works of Anselm have secured a lasting place in both religious and secular literature.

In this magisterial account of the life and work of St Anselm, now in paperback, Sir Richard Southern provides a study in depth of one of the most fascinating minds in Christian history.

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 wheedling 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.

`For I do not seek to understand so that I may believe; but I believe so that I may understand. For I believe this also, that unless I believe, I shall not understand.' Does God exist? Can we know anything about God's nature? Have we any reason to think that the Christian religion is true? What is truth, anyway? Do human beings have freedom of choice? Can they have such freedom in a world created by God? These questions, and others, were ones which Anselm of Canterbury (c.1033-1109) took very seriously. He was utterly convinced of the truth of the Christian religion, but he was also determined to try to make sense of his Christian faith. Recognizing that the Christian God is incomprehensible, he also believed that Christianity is not simply something to be swallowed with mouth open and eyes shut. For Anselm, the doctrines of Christianity are an invitation to question, to think, and to learn. Anselm is studied today because his rigour of thought and clarity of writing place him among the greatest of theologians and philosophers. This translation provides readers with their first opportunity to read all of his most important works within the covers of a single volume. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

This volume explores the work of Anselm of Canterbury, theologian and archbishop, in light of the communities in which he participated.