Reading the Song of Songs with St. Thomas Aquinas
Matthew Levering author Serge-Thomas Bonino author Andrew Levering translator
Format:Paperback
Publisher:The Catholic University of America Press
Published:28th Feb '26
£26.99
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St. Thomas Aquinas never wrote a commentary on the Song of Songs. The purpose of this book is to demonstrate, however, that he meditated on it and absorbed it, so that the words of the Song are for him a familiar repertoire and a theological source. His work contains numerous citations of the Song, not counting his borrowings of vocabulary and images from it. In total, there are 312 citations of the Song in Aquinas’s corpus, along with citations of the Song that are found in citations that Aquinas makes of other authors (as for example in the Catena aurea). Understanding the purpose and placement of these citations significantly enriches our understanding of Aquinas as a theologian, biblical exegete, and spiritual master. The book contains an Appendix listing and contextualizing each citation.
The study of the citations of the Song especially illuminates Aquinas’s spiritual doctrine. By citing the Song, Aquinas emphasizes the spiritual life’s path of dynamic ascent, through an ever increasing participation in the mystery of the nuptial union of Christ and the Church through love. The Song also highlights the eschatological tension or yearning present in the spiritual life, which is ordered to the fullness of beatific vision. Although Aquinas’s theology is highly "intellectual," by citing the Song he brings out the affective character of the spiritual life and conveys the centrality of love in the soul’s journey toward Christ. He also draws together contemplation and preaching through his use of the Song.
"An extraordinary little book. The reflections on offer in this review do not come close to examining all the possibilities that Bonino brings to bear. On the surface, the book seems like a rather arcane contribution to a niche area of Catholic scholarship. But it quickly becomes clear that it represents so much more. Bonino makes real for us the staggering potential of a more holistically conceived Thomas Aquinas. He succeeds brilliantly in showing that we have a long way to go toward understanding this philosophical, theological, scriptural, and spiritual master. It is obvious that we stand to benefit much from his approach." - VoegelinView
"A good book can be easily identified by the fact that it not only juxtaposes and exhaustively discusses its subject matter, but also opens up new threads for discussion. This is what Bonino does when he asks why it is worth reading Thomas in this way. His own answer is to underline Thomas’s spirituality, which can be defined as a quality of life led by the Holy Spirit, but also as a spiritual doctrine. The latter is a reminder of eschatological tension, the affective dimension of spiritual life, and the connection between contemplation and preaching. Still, there are certainly many more answers that can be provided, which Bonino hopes will open up a new way forward for biblical Thomism." - Thomist
ISBN: 9780813241258
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
168 pages