The Book of Experience

From Anselm of Canterbury to Bernard of Clairvaux

Emmanuel Falque (Catholic University of Paris, France), George Hughes, George Hughes , Jeffrey Bloechl (Boston College USA)

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English

Bloomsbury Academic
24 July 2025

Philosophy of religion; Theology

Series: Explorations in Philosophy and Theology

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.

By: Emmanuel Falque (Catholic University of Paris France)
Edited by: Jeffrey Bloechl (Boston College USA)
Translated by: George Hughes, George Hughes
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm, Spine: 25mm
Weight: 454g
ISBN: 9781350386532
ISBN 10: 1350386537
Series: Explorations in Philosophy and Theology
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 24 July 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Opening Introduction: Talking About Experience Part I: The Theophanic Argument, or Experience in Thought: Anselm of Canterbury 1. Of God Who Comes to Mind 2. The Theophanic Argument 3. The Debt for the Gift Part II: Hermeneutics and Phenomenology or the Experience of the World: Hugh and Richard of Saint-Victor 4. God an “Open Book” 5. To Live One’s Body 6. The Third Party of Love Part III: Affectivity and Spirituality or Experience in Affects: Aelred of Rievaulx and Bernard of Clairvaux 7. To Feel Oneself Fully Alive 8. Experience and Empathy 9. Openness [apérité] and Freedom Epilogue: Hold Fast to Humankind Index

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.

Reviews for The Book of Experience: From Anselm of Canterbury to Bernard of Clairvaux

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 *