Bede the Scholar

Distilling a decade of research by leading experts on the Venerable Bede, Bede the scholar investigates the Northumbrian monks place within the wider intellectual developments of the early medieval world. Demonstrating the centrality of the Bible to his scholarship, chapters focus on Bedes engagement with scriptural languages, his knowledge and use of earlier works of Latin literature, and a pastoral commitment to teaching and preaching. The book breaks new ground for our understanding of Bedes self image by investigating his famous Ecclesiastical history of the English people alongside lesser-known works such as the Martyrology, the commentary On Genesis, and the chapter headings he developed for different parts of the Vulgate Bible. Contributors highlight the importance of appreciating Bedes work within its local setting: the kingdom of Northumbria and the monastery of Wearmouth, whose founders, Benedict Biscop and Ceolfrith, inspired Bede in various ways. The monastery provided an environment in which Bede could flourish, and where he contributed to an intellectual enterprise which also generated the Codex Amiatinus, the earliest one-volume Vulgate to survive fully intact. Combining rigorous scholarly research with a celebration of the depth and complexity of Bedes work, Bede the scholar deepens our understanding of the scholarly programme undertaken by one of the most important intellectual figures of the early middle ages. -- .