The Mystery of Union with God, The: Dionysian Mysticism in Albert the Great and Thomas Aquinas

"A highly detailed study. Ample in scope, richly documented, and equipped with an excellent bibliography and indexes, Blankenhorn's erudite study will be a worthwhile addition to any academic library that supports an advanced program in theology." ―Catholic Library World

"Blankenhorn brilliantly renders the great service of addressing the much-neglected role of St. Albert the Great, whose influence on his better-known student, St. Thomas Aquinas, is often acknowledged but seldom explored. . . . This book provides much-needed insight into the intellectualist strand of medieval Dionysian reception, running parallel to the affectivist strand in such authors as Thomas Gallus and St. Bonaventure. . . . Blankenhorn's interpretation also attends to the theological assumptions, implications, and perduring significance of this thirteenth-century Dominican tradition of mystical theology, thus rendering it available for fruitful contemporary engagement." ―Boyd Taylor Coolman, Boston College

"Bernhard Blankenhorn's book is a welcome addition to the study of high scholasticism. He gives us a well-researched account of links between the work of Dionysius, Albert the Great, and Thomas Aquinas on the question of union with God. Blankenhorn offers a fresh point of entry for the study of Thomas's theology, as well as expanding significantly our understanding of his sources, showing how the context within which Thomas's thought developed is richer and more complex than is often allowed." ―Vivian Boland, OP

"An erudite work that renews our understanding of Albert's and Thomas's mystical theologies. The analysis of 'union above mind' is truly masterly.. . . Blankenhorn beautifully shows the integration of metaphysics, epistemology, Trinitarian theology, Christology, and eschatology within Thomas's doctrine of mystical union." ―Gilles Emery, OP, University of Fribourg