On Contemplating God
De contemplando Deo stands as William of St. Thierry's earliest and most foundational work on mystical theology, written during his tenure as abbot of the Benedictine monastery of St. Thierry near Reims. Composed between 1120 and 1135, this treatise emerged from William's deep engagement with the theological controversies of his time, particularly questions about the nature of divine knowledge and the soul's capacity for union with God. The work represents his attempt to articulate a distinctly monastic approach to contemplation that would complement the emerging scholastic methods of his contemporaries.
The treatise unfolds William's understanding of contemplation as a progressive movement through three stages of knowing God: through creatures, through Scripture, and through direct spiritual experience. He argues that while reason can lead the soul to knowledge of God's existence through creation, and faith can illuminate divine truth through revelation, contemplation alone enables the soul to experience God's essence directly. William grounds this progression in his distinctive anthropology, which sees the human person as created in God's image with an innate capacity for divine union. The work carefully balances intellectual rigor with mystical insight, insisting that true contemplation transcends rational understanding while never abandoning the foundation that reason and faith provide.
De contemplando Deo has endured as a masterwork of medieval mystical theology, influencing later Cistercian writers and contributing to the broader tradition of contemplative spirituality. Its synthesis of Augustinian psychology with monastic wisdom established William as a major voice in twelfth-century spiritual theology. The treatise's careful attention to both the theological foundations and practical dimensions of contemplative prayer continues to make it valuable for contemporary readers.
Who should read this: Serious students of medieval mysticism and contemplative theology will find this work essential, as will those seeking to understand the intellectual foundations of Cistercian spirituality. This is not recommended for beginners to Christian mysticism, as it assumes substantial familiarity with theological concepts and monastic spiritual practices.