Friday, April 21, 2006
St Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury, died today in 1109. Spearheading the rebirth of Western theology, he was the first to try and prove the existence of God by logic alone. He also came up with a new understanding of the atonement. While everyone else thought that Jesus's death paid off the Devil to release our souls from hostage, Anselm insisted that the Devil had no right over us and it was God that he died to appease, enduring the punishment God demanded for human sin.
The controversial theologian Peter Abelard also died today in 1142. Rubbishing Anselm's idea that God demands innocent blood before he will forgive anyone, he explained the crucifixion as Christ's act of love to kindle love in our hearts. Bored of being the greatest thinker in the known world, he then gave up lecturing to write love songs for his landlord's niece Heloise. Caught in his own act of love by the landlord, he was castrated and put Heloise in a nunnery. After a spell as a reforming abbot, in which his monks tried to kill him, Abelard returned to teaching, founding a school in Paris which became the first-ever university.
The controversial theologian Peter Abelard also died today in 1142. Rubbishing Anselm's idea that God demands innocent blood before he will forgive anyone, he explained the crucifixion as Christ's act of love to kindle love in our hearts. Bored of being the greatest thinker in the known world, he then gave up lecturing to write love songs for his landlord's niece Heloise. Caught in his own act of love by the landlord, he was castrated and put Heloise in a nunnery. After a spell as a reforming abbot, in which his monks tried to kill him, Abelard returned to teaching, founding a school in Paris which became the first-ever university.
# posted by Scott @ 9:11 AM 
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