IMC 2019: Sessions

Session 117: Does Matter Matter to Medieval Mystics?, I: The Body and the Self

Monday 1 July 2019, 11.15-12.45

Sponsor:	Mystical Theology Network / Ruusbroecgenootschap, Universiteit Antwerpen
Organiser:	John Arblaster, Institute for the Study of Spirituality, KU Leuven / Ruusbroecgenootschap, Universiteit Antwerpen
Moderator/Chair:	Einat Klafter, Cohn Institute for the History & Philosophy of Science & Ideas, Tel Aviv University
Paper 117-a	Losing Possessions, Losing the Self: Poverty, Self-Loss, and Annihilation in Early Franciscan Spiritual and Mystical Theology (Language: English) Michael Hahn, School of Divinity, University of St Andrews Index terms: Hagiography, Religious Life, Theology
Paper 117-b	John Duns Scotus's Understanding of Materiality and Individuation (Language: English) Dominic Abbott, Faculteit Theologie en Religiewetenschappen, KU Leuven Index terms: Language and Literature - Latin, Religious Life, Theology
Paper 117-c	On Angels' Song: Materiality and Immateriality in Late English Medieval Mysticism (Language: English) Louise Nelstrop, St Benet's Hall, University of Oxford / Department of Theology & Religious Studies, York St John University Index terms: Language and Literature - Middle English, Religious Life, Theology
Abstract	These three sessions explore questions around the status of (im)materiality in mystical-theological discourse in a variety of medieval places, times, and languages. Is the purpose of mystical discourse ultimately to lead to the annihilation of the body and the self in union with God or is there abiding value to the material world? The papers in these sessions will address this central theological question from a variety of perspectives, including theoretical approaches that inquire into the nature of contemplation and union with God, the use of spatial and material metaphors in mystical texts, and questions surrounding the body and the self.