The remarkable essays collected in From Knowledge to Beatitude: St. Victor, Twelfth-Century Scholars, and Beyond reflect the equally remarkable contributions of Grover A. Zinn Jr. to the field of Medieval Studies. For more than forty years, Zinn has broadened understanding of the study of the Bible in the Middle Ages in general, and illuminated the thought of the Augustinian canons at the Abbey of St. Victor in particular. This festschrift published in Zinn's honor builds upon that scholarship.

The volume follows the outline suggested in the subtitle, beginning with a focus on St. Victor and the Victorines. It starts with four interesting studies on material culture. Catherine Delano-Smith graphically illustrates the way in which Richard of St. Victor (d. 1173) used diagrams to duplicate his exegesis of the biblical book of Ezekiel. She convincingly argues that Richard's model for his map of Canaan came from contemporary Jewish exegetes. William A. Clark's reconstruction of the church at St. Victor suggests that it was “second only to the cathedral of Notre Dame as the longest and widest church of twelfth-century Paris” (69).

The next four essays discuss the influential pedagogy of the canons, which included the discipline of reading, the necessity of scriptural studies, and the importance of preaching. Hugh Feiss, OSB's detailed examination of sermons given by the canons demonstrates that “the Victorines were reformers with a mission to promote clerical reform by word and example” (157). Richard, for instance, integrates a variety of sources in his sermons addressed to priests in order to persuade them to preach by both word and example. Feiss also reviews the sermons of lesser-known Victorines—Achard (d. 1170), Walter (d. 1131), Godfrey (d. after 1194) and Maurice of Sully (d. 1196)—and convincingly contends that they were deeply committed to pastoral development and other ecclesiological concerns.

The essays which follow look at subsequent developments in theology (the “Twelfth-Century Scholars” of the subtitle, although thirteenth-century thinkers also make appearances). Dale Coulter indicates how Hugh (d. 1141) and Richard used Boethius's concept of speculatio in order to conform the human mind to the divine mind. By reflecting the created world, “which itself mirrors the divine Artist . . . the world is sacramental through and through” (206). The inclusion of female theologians in this section is welcome. Barbara Newman's study of women's mystical literature—especially that of Mechthild of Hackeborn (1241–1298) and her protégée Gertrude of Helfta (1256–1301/2)—delves into the medieval trope of exchanging hearts as a metaphor for mystical union, communal solidarity, and deep friendship. Rachel Fulton Brown makes the case that Hildegard of Bingen's (1098–1179) Scivias is a well-developed and coherent summa of theology that takes the Trinity, rather than the Incarnation, as its point of departure. Brown reads Hildegard through the lenses of contemporary English Dominican Aidan Nichols and relies on his definition of theology, namely, “the disciplined exploration of what is contained in revelation” (305). The Scivias thus weigh the content of Hildegard's visions, probing the ways that the Trinity is seen in history and in the human soul itself.

The collection concludes with several disparate essays that comprise the “Beyond” of the title. Jeremy Adams investigates ecclesial attitudes toward returning crusaders and finds that prelates castigate these so-called heroes as “the most destructive of men,” in the words of Abbot Suger (d. 1155) (337). Franz van Liere's appraisal of twelfth-century Christian eschatology locates Andrew of St Victor (d. 1175) in a “middle way” between Christology and messianism. While Andrew rejected the prevailing Christian view that the messiah expected by the Jews was actually the antichrist, he also probably felt that the Jews were “ultimately deluded in their messianic interpretations” (353). Richard Clemens presents the reasons that sixteenth-century reformers re-published the texts of medieval women mystics. He dissects Jacques Lefèvre d'Étaples's particular interest in Hildegard's works and notes his desire to introduce her spiritual values to a new generation. The book ends with a comparison of Bach's Wachtet auf! and Richard's The Mystical Ark by E. Ann Matter that responds to a question Grover Zinn asked her four decades earlier when she was an undergraduate in his Medieval Christianity course at Oberlin College. It is a fitting tribute to her mentor.

A number of essays assess the most famous of the Victorines, Hugh of St. Victor. Franklin T. Harkins shows how Hugh's Didascalicon on the Study of Reading and his De institutione novitiorum provide novices the means by which to live out what they read in scripture. Boyd Taylor Coolman considers Hugh's definition of beauty as found in De Sacramentis and The Celestial Hierarchy. Dominique Poirel's exploration of Hugh's theology and spirituality of beauty captures the spirit of the canon, perhaps because it depends so heavily upon his own words. He accurately identifies “the general ‘climate’ of simplicity, confidence, and smiling serenity that emanates from his writings” (248).

While all of the studies exhibit great attention to detail, several go into singular depth as they highlight little-known documents and people. Walter Cahn's reading of an illuminated manuscript helps to show how Hugh's writings contributed to the art of his day. Thomas Waldman's discussion of Pope Innocent II's privilege for the Abbey of St. Denis—which confirmed its dispensations and possessions—provides insight into both the art and aspirations of Abbot Suger. Lesley Smith's analysis of twenty books owned and annotated by Robert Amiclas, a Parisian school master, reveals how the glossed Bible changed over time.

Like the Victorines themselves, the scholars who contributed to From Knowledge to Beatitude display a warmth, empathy, and kindness in their writing that accurately depicts the life and thought of the canons who lived at the Abbey of St. Victor. The editors have successfully expressed the spirit of the abbey as well as the spirit of Grover Zinn.