The focus of this article is the manner in which Thomas Ebendorfer of Hasselbach, a Viennese theologian lecturing on Book I of the Sentences in 1421, deals with the topic of virtus sermonis and the relation between theology, philosophy, and logic in his Prologue from the autograph MS Wien, Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, 4369 (ff. 7r–8v). By combining a double classification of each science (into acquisita vs. infusa) with a double perspective of their relation (temporal vs. natural), and by making a strong (...) claim for theology’s role in advancing new logical theories, Ebendorfer’s view reflects a progressive awareness of the distinction between theology and philosophy which, in turn, entails very different applications of virtus sermonis in the two sciences. An edition of the Prologue is provided in the Appendix. (shrink)

"Épicure aux enfers. Hérésie, athéisme et hédonisme au moyen âge, by Aurélien Robert & Epikur im lateinischen Mittelalter. Mit einer kritischen Edition des X. Buches der Vitae philosophorum des Diogenes Laertios in der lateinischen Übersetzung von Ambrogio Traversari (1433), by Christian Kaiser" published on 30 Mar 2023 by Brill.

According to the doctrine of the Great Year, after a long period of time the same astral configurations reappear and the planets return to their original positions. The end of a world cycle is marked by a natural cataclysm, after which the world is restored to its original state and history repeats itself. This article deals with Albert the Great’s views on the Great Year, focussing on two of his early theological works (the De iv coaequaevis and the Sentences commentary). (...) The evidence here provided offers a comprehensive overview of the variety of contexts and themes which Albert considers to be related to the Great Year. He is fully aware of the many doctrinal implications of the concept of the Great Year. His analysis is deeply embedded in the astronomical discussions on the phenomenon of the precession of the equinoxes. A predominantly scientific approach is evident in the care with which he distinguishes the different types of Great Year. The major contribution of these works to the debate lies in the analysis of the impact of the Great Year on Christian eschatology and, more generally, in the investigation of the relationship between astrology and physics, on the one hand, and eschatology, on the other. (shrink)

Medieval theologians commonly held that angels are subordinated one to the other. However, they did not agree on the foundations and nature of this order of subjection. This article traces the trajectory of the theological discussion on the nature of the angelic prelacy. While there is extensive scholarly literature on medieval theologians’ conceptions of the angelic hierarchy, there is next to nothing on their views of angelic prelacy. This article suggests that one of the questions that drives the route taken (...) by the discussions on angelic prelacy is a tension internal to the very idea of angelic prelacy. To be a subject involves some degree of unfreedom. Yet it seemed unsuitable to medieval theologians to attribute unfreedom to angels. A satisfactory picture of angelic prelacy had to posit a form of subjection that did not imply any loss of liberty for the subject angels. (shrink)

This is a review of Monika Michalowska's critical edition of question 3 from Richard Kilvington's questions commentary on the Sentences by Peter Lombard.