In Praise of the Virgin Mary, the God-Bearer

Ann W. Astell is the John Cardinal O’Hara Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame. The author of seven books and the editor or co-editor of seven volumes, she has recently published essays on Honorius Augustodunensis, Bernard of Clairvaux, Eadmer of Canterbury, and Aelred of Rievaulx.

“Ann Astell's elegant translation of Alan's commentary on Solomon's love song catapults the reader into a world of vivid metaphor in which the creatures of God become material symbols of spiritual beauty. Inspiring poets from Dante to Spenser, Alan's reading of the Song became a staple for Christian apologetics in praise of God's Artifact, underpinning both contemplative treatises on the ascent of the soul and catalogues of the creatures encountered in Scripture. Astell's introduction and notes make this richness clear to the modern reader, while at the same time inviting us to encounter the truth of the Incarnation on which Alan's allegory drew. A gem of a medieval text, exquisitely rendered into modern prose.”Rachel Fulton Brown, author of From Judgment to Passion: Devotion to Christ and the Virgin Mary, 800-1200 and Mary and the Art of Prayer: The Hours of the Virgin in Medieval Christian Life and Thought