Saint Anselm: Doctor of the Church and Father of Scholasticism
“For I do not seek to understand that I may believe, but I believe in order to understand. For this also I believe — that unless I believe, I should not understand.” (St. Anselm)
St. Anselm was an important scholar of the Middle Ages and is recognized as one of the Doctors of the Church. Later in his life he served as Archbishop of Canterbury. He passed away on April 21 in the year 1109, and his feast day is celebrated annually on that day.
The first time I heard of St. Anselm of Canterbury was in my first-year university course on Church history and tradition. I hadn’t decided which programs I would ultimately pursue and was taking a variety of courses to explore my options. I recall that as someone who had attended Catholic school throughout elementary and high school (which is publicly funded in the Canadian province where I grew up), I was not sure what to expect in the Church history class. I ended up learning so much about aspects of the faith that I had never had much exposure to before. In this particular course I learned about a lot of figures I had never heard of. Well over a decade has passed, but certain pieces of information and names that I learned in that course still pop out to me, such as Origen of Alexandria, Augustine of Hippo and of course the saint of the day, St. Anselm.
It was a humbling experience as an 18 year old fresh out of high school in my first year of postsecondary education. Neither of my parents had attended university. I was fortunate to have my postsecondary education fully funded through scholarships for academic achievement. It quickly dawned on me that there was so much out there I could formally learn more about over the next few years as I worked toward my degree. The problem was how to narrow my options down to pick my degree programs to pursue. Spoiler alert: I minored in Christianity and Education alongside my double science majors.
A Church Scholar and Bishop
St. Anselm is credited as the Father of Scholasticism, a method of analytical thinking that was subsequently well represented by many important Church scholars, including Thomas Aquinas. Like Saint Anselm, I am also an academic (albeit in the sciences). I personally have much to learn from the life of this saint.
He lived at a time when there was growth and renewal of monastic and religious life (including movements led by lay women and men). At the same time, there were important developments in intellectual pursuits of theology as well, and in this context St. Anselm set the stage for the development of what is now known as the “scholastic method.” The method involves careful reading, questioning, and discussion with other scholars. Now this may sound all very intellectual and not at all practical for a non-scholar. However, the final step in the scholastic method of preaching or teaching (praedicatio) what was learned highlights that this approach was not an activity of intellectual pursuit by a select group in isolation.
Living out the Faith
As a theologian, St. Anselm wrote several works, and he also contributed to decision making for the early Church, such as through his participation in a council to review the wording of the Nicene Creed. Anselm also served the community in everyday matters, through his positions as a monk and later as the Archbishop of Canterbury. Indeed, he lived out his faith and his study of theology through his actions and interactions with his community: “So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (James 2:17) This is such an important message in our own individual vocations, both professional and personal.
Let us reflect upon this prayer attributed to Saint Anselm:
O my God, teach my heart where and how to seek You,where and how to find You.You are my God and You are my all and I have never seen You.You have made me and remade me,You have bestowed on me all the good things I possess,Still I do not know You.I have not yet done that for which I was made.Teach me to seek You.I cannot seek You unless You teach meor find You unless You show Yourself to me.Let me seek You in my desire,let me desire You in my seeking.Let me find You by loving You,let me love You when I find You.
Amen
Sarah Gagliano Taliun is a genetics professor with many interests in addition to studying DNA. She and her husband now call Montreal home. When she is not reading a scientific article or meeting with students, Sarah can be found experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen, reading her Bible or taking a walk in nature.