Since the naming of Catherine of Siena and Teresa of Avila as the first female Doctors of the Church in Roman Catholicism, one might have expected an increased theological interest in female mystics as theologians. However, the history of theology has neglected the female mystics of the Middle Ages as theologians in their own right, a trend that persists even today. They are often reduced to being viewed solely as mystics and are placed within the sphere of private religion. Despite the rise of feminist theory and theology, mediaeval women mystics have not been fully recognised as theologians capable of engaging in dialogue on contemporary questions. The Anglican theologian Sarah Coakley has been using neglected theological traditions in her work, and her theological method may provide the resources needed to engage in dialogue with mediaeval female mystics, much like how Augustine and Thomas Aquinas are still referenced today. The purpose of this master's thesis is to demonstrate how Sarah Coakley's theological method can be used to engage in dialogue with mediaeval women mystics. This purpose has been narrowed down to focus on the most recent female Doctor of the Church in Roman Catholicism, Hildegard von Bingen, and her eucharistic theology. Using an inductive method, the main question of this thesis was formulated as follows: How can Sarah Coakley's theological method be utilised to engage in dialogue with the eucharistic theology of Hildegard von Bingen? Employing a combination of hermeneutic methodology and the concept of tradition from Alaisdar MacIntyre, I have reconstructed Coakley's theological method using her three books: Powers and Submissions, God, Sexuality, and the Self: An Essay on the Trinity, and The New Asceticism. The main aspects I have reconstructed and reformulated include her Christian Neoplatonic ontology and epistemology, her perspective on contemplation, and her concept of radical attention to the 'other.' The concept of radical attention has been redefined as radical love for one's neighbour, serving as both the foundation and goal of theology. By juxtaposing these aspects of Coakley's theological method with Hildegard's eucharistic theology in her work Scivias, I am allowing Hildegard and Coakley to engage in a constructive dialogue with each other. From this dialogue, two main concepts emerge that contribute to both Coakley and Hildegard. Firstly, there is a refinement of the reconstructed concept of radical love for one's neighbour, supplemented by a constructed concept of bona opera from Hildegard. Secondly, there is an understanding of the Eucharist as a contemplative practice that introduces a concept of simultaneity to both eucharistic theology and the theology of contemplation.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-529566 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Gabrielsäther, Samuel |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Teologiska institutionen |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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