The Book of Experience - (Explorations in Philosophy and Theology) by Emmanuel Falque (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Emmanuel Falque, one of the foremost philosophers working in the continental philosophy of religion today, takes us by the hand into the very heart of 12th-century monastic spirituality.

Translated into English for the first time, The Book of Experience weaves together contemporary phenomenological questions with medieval theology, revealing undiscovered dialogues already underway between Hugh of St. Victor and Maurice Merleau-Ponty, between Richard of St. Victor and Emmanuel Levinas, between Aelred of Rievaulx and Michel Henry, and not least between Bernard of Clairvaux and the trio of Descartes, Heidegger, and Jean-Luc Marion, consummating in a masterful phenomenological reading of Bernard's sermons on the Song of Songs.

Whether it is a question of 'the idea that comes to God' (Anselm of Canterbury) or actively 'feeling oneself fully alive' (Aelred of Rievaulx or Bernard of Clairvaux), Falque uses these encounters to shed light on both parties, medieval and modern, theological and philosophical.

Leading us through works of art, landscapes, architectures, and liturgies, this major contemporary philosopher of religion clarifies mysteries and discovers experience lying at the heart of the medieval tradition.

Review Quotes

"With his characteristic erudition and clarity, Emmanuel Falque draws our attention to the nature of experience by plumbing the rich resources of Christian mysticism and monastic theology. He demonstrates that experience is never simply a matter of self-knowledge or empirical inquiry; it puts us to the test, changing and transforming us. The result is a text full of wisdom and rich insight, and one of remarkable and unexpected relevance for contemporary phenomenology." --Brian Treanor, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola Marymount University, USA

"How does God enter into finite human thinking and feeling? Like the wise householder sharing treasures old and new, Emmanuel Falque shows how Christian monasticism remains a surprisingly fresh interlocutor today. A master class in the precise, generous listening to the premodern past that is renewing theology and phenomenology alike." --David Albertson, Associate Professor of Religion, University of Southern California, USA

About the Author

Emmanuel Falque is Professor of Philosophy and Honorary Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy at the Catholic University of Paris, France. He has published widely in phenomenology, philosophy of religion and medieval philosophy. His most recent publications include Nothing to It (2020), The Guide to Gethsemane (2019), The Loving Struggle (2018), and Crossing the Rubicon (2016). Falque is also the founder of the rapidly growing International Network of Philosophy of Religion.