About That Jupiter-Saturn Conjunction

The last two nights have provided a spectacular sight.  Jupiter and Saturn were close in the clear western sky near a bright crescent moon.  Yet, as most of you know, weather permitting, it is going to get even better.  On this coming Monday evening December 21^st, Jupiter and Saturn will be so close together in our line of sight, they may appear to be one very bright star.  You have to go back to 1226 and 1623 for a Jupiter-Saturn conjunction this close.

It so happens that December 21^st is St. Thomas Day.  I was thinking of calling the conjunction after him.  But he would defer to Christ.  So the Christmas Star of 2020 may be more appropriate.

Imagine if we were in medieval times.  A remarkable conjunction on St. Thomas Day, right before Christmas.  And December 21^st is also the Winter Solstice this year.  People would consider this a portent of something, maybe something wonderful . . . or awful.  If it were near the year 1000 or 1215 or 1349 (at the height of the Black Death), people might think it would mean the End.

But such medieval thinking was superstitious, of course.  Surely, God is not using the skies to get our attention at the end of this awful 2020, right?

Right?

Apocalypse Illuminated by Richard K. Emmerson

A focus of my studies in Oxford this past Michaelmas Term was medieval eschatology, particularly the exegesis of the Book of Revelation in illuminated Apocalypses.  I soon discovered this area is more complex than I expected perhaps because the medieval church did not insist on much dogma in eschatology beyond the teaching of the Nicene Creed that Jesus “shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.” Thus there was space for a lot of interesting diversity in the details of eschatology.  And events such as the year 1000 and invasions from Muslims and Tartars certainly goaded speculation on the details of end times.

At the same time, the many failed predictions, especially those that involved dates, assisted more conservative eschatologies to reassert themselves from time to time.  And most of the commentary texts of medieval illuminated Apocalypses reflect more conservative interpretations even as those, too, differ.

In short, medieval eschatology and its artistic expression is a fascinating but not at all easy area of study.  This is reflected in disagreements and occasional errors in modern scholarship.  Speaking of which, I am having to unlearn a thing or two I learned in Oxford!

So I appreciate a recent (and reasonably priced) acquisition to my library, Apocalypse Illuminated, The Visual Exegesis of Revelation in Medieval Illustrated Manuscriptsby Richard K. Emmerson, published just last year.  I’ve come across a number of excellent books in my studies on the subject, but Emmerson’s stands out as the best overview. It certainly well aids and clarifies the study of a complex subject.

Emmerson goes over the similarities and differences between various illuminated Apocalypses very well and uses a multitude of illustrations well in so doing.  His speculations as to what may have motivated bursts of creation of these lavish books, which clustered around certain times such as the third quarter of the 13^thcentury, is also helpful.

And Emmerson is not at all merely derivative but advances scholarship.  One example stood out to me.  He boldly states that a number of very reputable scholars are mistaken in attributing a prediction that the end would come in 1260 to Joachim of Fiore.  He attributes that failed prediction to Joachimite followers instead and noted Joachim himself was adverse to setting dates though he was certainly bold in other respects.

Do be aware that, as Emmerson makes clear, Apocalypse Illuminated focuses on how these manuscripts interpreted the Book of Revelation and on the influences behind those interpretations. Thus, though well illustrated, this is not an art book.

I could praise Apocalypse Illuminated further.  But I will just say this: if I were to lead a seminar on medieval illuminated Apocalypses and accompanying eschatology, I would choose this book as theintroductory text.  If there is a more scholarly, more readable, and more up-to-date overview in this area, I for one am not aware of it.