New Books in Christian Studies David Albertson, "The Geometry of Christian Contemplation: Measure Without Measure" (Oxford UP, 2025)
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Jan 27, 2026 David Albertson, scholar of medieval theology exploring intersections of mathematics, geometry, and mysticism. He traces a counter‑tradition that reads God in the measurable world, not only interiority. Short scenes cover debates with Plotinus, geometric icons and diagrams, theological implications of the Incarnation, and how premodern sacramental cosmology reframes mysticism.
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Sabbatical Moment That Changed The Project
- David Albertson describes his shift from arithmetic theology to geometry during a 2015 sabbatical.
- Reading Plotinus up close surprised him and redirected the project toward Greek sources and a revisionist history.
Measure Makes The Cosmos Theological
- Pre-17th-century Christian contemplatives treated the measurable world as religiously relevant, not irrelevant.
- Recovering their language of measure helps correct our modern bias that confines religion to interiority and the ineffable.
Adjust Your Modern Reading Habits
- When reading premodern mystics, correct for our post-17th-century bias by asking how they speak about world-measure.
- Let measure, line, and figure guide interpretation instead of assuming interior-only religion.
