Bonaventure: Life and Works
Module Code: 424FBLW Credits: 10 Contact Hours: 20 Level: 4 Lecturer: Seamus Mulholland OFM
Syllabus
This module divides itself into three parts which correspond to the three main phases of Bonaventure’s life and serves as an introduction to his life and thought: The Paris Period, the Franciscan Period, the End Period.
The module begins by examining the theological and philosophical education Bonaventure received at Paris and the works that he wrote while there, especially the Commentary on the Sentences and the Breviloquium. It then moves to consider the importance and significance of Bonaventure as Minister General of the Franciscan Order and the importance and nature of the writings produced during this period, most especially the Itinerarius Mentis in Deum and the Legenda Maior of St. Francis.
The final part of the module examines the last phase of Bonaventure’s life as Cardinal-Bishop and the literary work of this period most especially the Collationes in Hexaemeron. Special attention will be paid to essential elements of Bonaventure’s theological/spiritual vision particularly his use of the Neoplatonic tradition as diffused through Augustine, Pseudo-Dionysius and the Victorines and attention is also paid to how Bonaventure viewed the purpose theology and the life of holiness.
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