Fellow's new book marries ancient Christian practice with contemporary concerns
Dr Paul Dominiak's new book, , explores how the Christian art of contemplation can provide 'new hope' in a tumultuous age.
We spoke to Paul to find out more.
If you had to summarise your book in three sentences, what would they be?
By the medieval period, Christians developed a sacred art of contemplating the Four Last Things in the season of Advent: heaven, hell, death, and judgement. This ancient but now nearly lost sacred art of contemplation encouraged Christians to evaluate who they were, what they treasured and how they ought to live in view of the world to come. The Love That Moves The Sun revives this ancient practice and marries it with contemporary concerns.
What led you to write this book?
The sacred art of contemplating the Four Last Things always gained pertinence at times of crisis. We are now living in what some call a ‘poly crisis’ or ‘permacrisis’, meaning multiple interlocking crises with no obvious resolution in sight. These crises include the climate emergency, rise of populism, racial injustice, and widening class inequalities, all of which The Love that Moves The Sun take into view in different chapters.
The Love That Moves The Sun argues that the time is ripe for Christian communities to retrieve the ancient art of contemplating the Four Last Things. The Four Last Things give a way of seeing the present (where optimism is scarce) through a vision of hope that sharing in the life of God introduces a future reality of peace into the here-and-now.
What is the significance of the title?
The title is taken from the medieval poet Dante’s epic, The Divine Comedy. It is towards the end of the poem when the poet has traversed hell and purgatory before finally reaching heaven. There, the poet is gifted the vision of God, the divine Love who gathers all that seems to be scattered in the universe and who moves all things towards goodness. As a classic literary representation of the Four Last Things, Dante’s beautiful image of God represents the vision of hope that The Love That Moves The Sun tries to recapture for a contemporary age where hope is in short supply.
In the book, you talk about creating an ‘apocalyptic imagination’? What do you mean by that?
We often conceive of the word ‘apocalyptic’ in dark and violent terms of natural or human-made disaster that ends the world. That is a fairly modern understanding. The root of the word simply means ‘unveiling’. In the Jewish and Christian Scriptures, ‘apocalyptic’ refers to the divine revelation of a truth otherwise hidden and unknown. This revelation turns the world upside down, but it recreates peace and justice in a renewed world rather than ending it. Likewise, we often link the word ‘imagination’ to fanciful creation. At its root, however, it means something like the power to ‘picture to oneself’. An ‘apocalyptic imagination’ means the creative and intelligent capacity, then, to see, recognise, and act upon the divine unveiling of a vision of hope for the present. By retrieving the sacred art of contemplating the Four Last Things, we develop this capacity, even when immersed in calamity.
Who do you hope will read this book and what impact do you hope it will have?
While the book is designed for use in Christian communities, it addresses modern suspicions about the Four Last Things and common concerns occasioned by contemporary crises. As such, it speaks to all people in the world from a critical Christian perspective. Many modern people will no doubt have reasonable scepticism about the Four Last Things, perhaps seeing them as irrational relics of a superstitious past. The Love That Moves The Sun takes these concerns seriously, critically reimagining the Four Last Things so that they continue to speak into crises with hope and offer resources to overcome despair. I hope all readers will find surprise, challenge, new habits, and a new hope in a contemporary period of compound crises.
