MASTERS THESIS LITERATURE REVIEW

David G Terrell
1 May 2011

Title

Signs of Change: Conceptualizations of Justice and Mercy in 13th Century Christianity in the
Letters of Robert Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln

Thesis

Robert Grosseteste’s conceptualization of justice and mercy, expressed in his extant

letters, differed from the normative theological stance held by his 13th century contemporaries

and prefigured those of 16th century Protestant Reformation theologians.

Bibliographic Essay

The sources necessary to prove the thesis fall into three general categories. First are the

primary and secondary sources necessary to determine Grosseteste’s attitudes and views

concerning the concepts of divine justice and mercy. These will principally be Grosseteste’s

own letters, amplified where necessary with more explicit declarations he may have made in his

Sermons and other pastoral writings and supported by the biographies and theological

monographs written about him. Second, the researcher will consider sources which expound the

theological views common in 12th and 13th century European Christianity with regard to the same

concepts. These sources take the form of primary sources originating with Grosseteste’s

contemporaries and of secondary sources generalizing and synthesizing their views. Third, this

researcher will appeal to primary and secondary sources that describe conceptualizations of

justice and mercy that emerged before and in the Protestant Reformation, several hundred years

later. The theology of John Wycliffe and Martin Luther will be particularly investigated as

Grosseteste’s potential ideological descendants.

Grosseteste-centric Sources
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Terrell DG – Masters Thesis Literature Review

Letters and Autographic Documents. The first category of sources, those by and about

Grosseteste with insight into his theological views, must center about the letters written by

Grosseteste himself. They are most readily accessible in a recent book, in which the 132 extant

letters, and the documents that circulated with them, are translated into English by Mantello and

Goering. The letters illustrate Grosseteste’s character, convictions, assumptions and concerns.

In many respects, no other contemporary is as well documented. Mantello and Goering

distinguished between those letters and documents Grosseteste included in his official collection,

probably meant for official dissemination, and a second group of letters that survived outside of

the collection. The letters represent official correspondence in which Grosseteste provided

instruction, requested favors, or offered advice and personal communications. The language of

the letters seems very expansive and overwrought to the modern reader, but Grosseteste, familiar

with accepted forms of letter writing, produced them in conformance with the vocabulary in

rules of his milieu.1

Biographies. Other sources of value are the five principle Grosseteste biographies. 2 The

earliest biography, written by Pegge in 1793, is written in two parts. The first is a straight

narrative that chronicles Grosseteste’s interactions with papal and secular authority; and, his

actions as bishop relative to his immediate superiors and subordinates. The second part of

Pegge’s work consists of an examination of Grosseteste’s character as expressed through the

testimony of his contemporaries; and, a catalog of his works.

Perry’s biography, written in 1871, is another narrative which positions Grosseteste as the

proto-protestant of the 13th century. Perry’s entire narrative focus is upon the vice and

corruption Grosseteste found in the church once he became bishop. Any analysis of
1
Mantello, 3-6.
2
There are five Grosseteste biographies: Pegge (1793), Perry (1871), Stevenson (1899), Southern (1986), and
McEvoy (2000).
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Terrell DG – Masters Thesis Literature Review

Grosseteste’s theological stance must be inferred from Perry’s assessments of his opinions and

intentions. That said, as Perry wraps up the story of Grosseteste’s life, he dwells upon his

character that makes this researcher believe that, between Perry’s obvious anti-Catholicism and

English nationalism, one will be able to glean some sense of Grosseteste’s theological attitudes.

In contrast, Stevenson’s 1899 work seems to eschew unveiled anti-Catholicism.

Stevenson acknowledges the existence of ambiguity in illuminating Grosseteste’s life and career,

stemming from a lack of information; and, that previous interpretations may have been biased.

Stevenson seems to avail himself of papal registers that previous biographers did not and his use

of these materials could serve to provide a better conception of Grosseteste’s opinions and

attitudes, although these may have to be inferred from others’ observations.

The next biography, Southern’s, was not published until 1986. During those 90 years,

Grosseteste scholarship continued to translate, analyze and disseminate his writings but, no

further biographies were written. Southern revisited Grosseteste’s life because he came to

believe that previous biographies were incorrect when they asserted that Grosseteste was

educated in Paris. In the 13th century, religious education in Paris was considered critical to

advancement in the church. While there were no explicit records to indicate Grosseteste had

schooled in Paris, his chancellorship at Oxford and his call to the Bishopric in Lincoln assured

later scholars that he had. Southern points to Grosseteste’s early career as a natural philosopher,

his style of speech, and his modes of argument as evidence he studied in English provincial

schools, perhaps at Oxford itself, contradicting those who insisted he studied in France.

Southern’s biography is not a pure narrative. Instead, it traces the history of Grosseteste’s

scientific and theological modes of thinking—his ―vision.‖ Later in the book, Southern examines
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Terrell DG – Masters Thesis Literature Review

Grosseteste’s thought pertaining to God as it evolved over time. Here, one is likely to find hints

of Grosseteste’s theological insights.

Finally, McEvoy wrote his work in 2000 as part of the Great Mediaeval Thinkers series

published by Oxford University Press. This book, intending to provide an overall view of

Grosseteste’s life, and his philosophical and theological contributions, takes the time to examine

the historiography surrounding Grosseteste providing readers insight into the historical origins of

the ideas about which Grosseteste thought. One of the book’s primary aims, ―to expound

Grosseteste’s thought on the basis of his authentic writings, and insofar as possible to understand

his own ideas and initiatives in the light of developments taking place around him…,‖3 explicitly

positions the book’s potential application to the thesis.

Studies and Essays. When examining scholarly publications about Grosseteste, one finds

that the overwhelming majority of work has examined him as a philosopher or in an Episcopal

context. In a sense, scholarship overlooked his many writings on pastoral theology, the time he

spent as a professor of theology at Oxford, and his continued interest in theological issues while

bishop of Lincoln. In 2004, Ginther published his study of Grosseteste as theologian, in which

he examines the focus of his theology, ―the person and work of Christ‖ and surveys the state of

Christian doctrine in the 13th century, all relevant to this thesis.

An earlier book of essays, edited by Callus and published in 1953, commemorated the

seventh centenary of Grosseteste’s death. Of particular interest are two essays in this volume.

One, by Pantin, describes and evaluates Grosseteste’s relations with both pope and king,

detailing many theological and pastoral attitudes Grosseteste exhibited while bishop. The

second, by Smalley, speaks of Grosseteste as a Biblical scholar, and discusses his style, outlook,

3
McEvoy, xiv.
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Terrell DG – Masters Thesis Literature Review

technique, and preferences with regard to analyzing scriptural and pseudo-Biblical works.

Although particular attitudes regarding the thesis are not specifically addressed, one can infer

attitudes from his opinions upon Biblical issues.

In 2003, Mackie and Goering edited a collection of essays that discussed several of

Grosseteste’s works. This included an essay by Mackie about the ―Castle of Love‖, a poem

written by Grosseteste said to contain the heart of his theology. The overall volume addresses

aspects of editing Grosseteste’s works and its examination of ―authenticity, chronology, textual

transmission, editorial practice, and contemporary sources and influences‖4 provides essential

information that assists this researcher to arrive at reasonable interpretations and to make

supportable assertions.

Mainstream Thirteenth-century Theology

To provide a baseline of knowledge about justice and mercy, as 13th century theological

concepts, this researcher intends to utilize several reputable general, intellectual and theological

histories, monographs, and papers, including: Powicke’s The Thirteenth Century; Haskins’ The

Renaissance of the Twelfth Century; Evans’ Philosophy and Theology in the Middle Ages;

Pelikan’s The Growth of Medieval Theology (600-1300); Allison’s Historical Theology; Sadler’s

Mercy and Justice in St. Anselm’s Proslogion; Bretano’s Two churches: England and Italy in the

thirteenth century; and, Mansfield’s The humiliation of sinners: public penance in thirteenth-

century France. Additionally, the works of Thomas Aquinas, particularly the Summa Theologica

and his Commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard, will be consulted with an eye to

providing contemporary contrasts to Grosseteste’s attitudes on justice and mercy.

Reformation Theology

4
Mackie and Goering, dust jacket.
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Terrell DG – Masters Thesis Literature Review

To address the aspect of the thesis pertaining to Grosseteste’s ideas surviving into the

Protestant Reformation, this researcher intends to consult recent histories upon the subject. The

general history, The Reformation, written by Diarmaid MacCulloch in 2003, provides

information about general aspects of the period including, changes in the manner clergy and laity

conceived of God as both judge and redeemer. Lahey’s John Wyclif, another biography in

Oxford’s Great Mediaeval Thinkers series provides information about that 14th century proto-

reformer’s attitudes and beliefs. If Wycliffe—who, like Grosseteste, was a critic of the church

who studied at Oxford and was exposed to Grosseteste’s papers—espoused ideas traceable to

Grosseteste, then it may be possible to assert a transmission of ideas from Grosseteste through

Wycliffe into the Protestant Reformation. Ozment’s 1980 work, The Age of Reform (1250-1550),

posits that the reformation was a continuation of some domains of mediaeval thought while it

revolted from others. This researcher intends to appeal to Ozment for discussion and

interpretation of religious thinking and practices between the 13th and the 16th centuries. To

explore the idea that Grosseteste’s ideas survived to be incorporated into the roots of the

Protestant Reformation, this researcher will appeal to Bainton’s 1950 landmark biography and

intellectual history of Martin Luther, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther.

Thus does this researcher intend to address the thesis requiring the analysis of

Grosseteste’s opinions and attitudes about the Christian concepts of justice and mercy; to

investigate the possible transference of those ideas to later English proto-reformers; and, then

forward in time to the Protestant Reformation.

David G Terrell
Herndon, Virginia USA
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Terrell DG – Masters Thesis Literature Review

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