Tag Archives: dante

The First Mover, and Time

From the moment we leave the Fixed Stars and enter into the First Mover, the poetry changes from deep theology to pure philosophy about motion, the universe, and Time. And the whole sphere is pure motion: “The parts of this, … Continue reading

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Reflections on Paradiso

Reading the Paradiso for the third, and now fourth time, has been a fully different experience from the first journey through the spheres up to the Empyrean. The narrative seems even less structured than in the other two books, which … Continue reading

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Dante’s thoughts of the New Papacy around 1300

Towards the boundary of the material cosmos, and right before entering the Eternal Mind of the Divine, Dante sums up his thoughts about Pope Boniface VIII through the voice of St. Peter – the first Pope: He who on earth … Continue reading

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Beauty in Arts, Nature, and the Mystery

Here is the passage where Dante compares beauty in arts or in nature, with the spiritual beauty within oneself, of the Divine Mysteries: And all that art and nature can contrive to lure the eye and thus possess the mind, … Continue reading

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Adam in Paradiso

Here are the words from Adam to the Pilgrim in Paradiso – as to why they were metaphorically expelled from the Garden of Eden: Know now, my son, the tasting of the tree was not itself the cause of such … Continue reading

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Aiming one’s Love

In the third and final examination, conducted by St. John, the Pilgrim is asked “what is it that your Soul is set upon.” The answer is firstly; the Good. “The Good, that full contentment of this Court, is Alpha and … Continue reading

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The Definition of Faith

In the first of the three examinations for the Pilgrim in Paradiso he has to define “Faith.” His answer is: “Faith is the substance of those hoped-for things, and argument for things we have not seen.” And the reason that … Continue reading

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Morning Coffee

Relaxing morning, and a great cup of coffee ☕️😊 And we have some quotes from Richard of St. Victor here: https://dantescomedy.com/richard-of-st-victor It feels like we are moving into the center of Catholic mystic theology, and finding great things!

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St. Bonaventure

It’s interesting reading up on the theologians in the sphere of the Sun in Paradiso, and discover how much of the spiritual philosophy and theology of Dante is drawn directly from the mystics and contemplatives in the 11 and 12 … Continue reading

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The Inner Circle of the Sun

Here are the 12 people that Dante puts in the inner circle of the Sun, the 4th Sphere: St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Albertus Magnus, Aquinas’ Teacher. (1193/1206 – 1208) Graziano  (c.1075/80 – 1146/47) Peter Lombard (c.1100 – 1160) Solomon (c.970BC … Continue reading

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