Reading Augustine in the Reformation: The Flexibility of Intellectual Authority in Europe, 1500-1620(Oxford Studies in Historical Theology)

Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) was regarded by sixteenth century Europe as one of the most contested religious and philosophical authorities. He was cast as a characteristically Lutheran, Catholic, or Calvinist thinker, and even as the ideal Erasmian pastor. These wildly contrasting receptions raise crucial questions about the significance of Augustine's thought in the Reformation period. They also show the complex relationship between religious change and the new intellectual culture of Renaissance humanism. Drawing on a variety of printed and manuscript sources, Arnoud Visser breaks new ground in three ways. He systematically grounds Augustine's theological reception in the history of reading and the material culture of books and manuscripts. He does not confine his examination to particular confessional parties or specific geographic boundaries, but offers a cross-confessional account of Augustine's appropriation in early modern Europe. Finally, he provides crucial insight into the nature of intellectual authority in the early modern period. Central in this study are the production, circulation and consumption of Augustine's works. Visser examines the impact of the new art of print, the rise of humanist scholarship, and the emerging confessional divisions on Augustine's reception. He shows how editors navigated a wealth of patristic information by using search tools and anthologies. He also explains how individual readers used their copies and how they applied their knowledge in public debates alongside other media of communication. Reading Augustine in the Reformation argues that the emerging confessional pressures did not restrict intellectual life, as has often been claimed, but promoted new scholarship.

Table of Contents:
List of Abbreviations ; List of Figures ; Introduction ; Part 1: Production ; Chapter 1. The Arrival of the Printing Press ; Chapter 2. Humanist Scholarship and Editorial Guidance ; Chapter 3. Augustine after Trent ; Part 2: Dissemination ; Chapter 4. How to Find the Right Argument: Bibliographies and Indexes ; Chapter 5. Customizing Authority: Anthologies and Epitomes ; Part 3: Consumption ; Chapter 6. How Readers Read Their Augustines ; Chapter 7. Patristics and Public Debate ; Epilogue ; Appendix: Opera omnia editions of Augustine 1500-1620 ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

About the Author :
Arnoud Visser received his doctorate at Leiden University and was a Research Fellow at the University of St. Andrews. He is presently a lecturer in Classics at the University of Leiden and in Early Modern History at the University of Amsterdam.

Review :
Visser has produced a careful and thought-provoking study of the range of ways in which Augustines works were made available to and appropriated by theologians during the sixteenth century. Visser writes with admirable clarity and precision, skillfully alternating syntheses, analyses and many fascinating examples. In 136 pages, he covers an impressive amount of printed material which he has ordered usefully and imaginatively, each section providing an argument of its own towards his conclusions. This case study offers a model for further research in the field. Visser raises a host of generally fascinating ideas and comments on them in ways that are at once intriguing and important. ... Visser's work will undoubtedly leave its mark on all who study Reformation thought. For this it is deserving of enormous praise. ... In conclusion, Visser's study is very good.