The Quest for the Christ Child in the Later Middle Ages by Mary Dzon

Abstract

Reviewed by: The Quest for the Christ Child in the Later Middle Ages by Mary Dzon Eva von Contzen Mary Dzon. The Quest for the Christ Child in the Later Middle Ages. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2017. Pp. 424, $65.00. What happened between Christ's Nativity and his first documented public appearance in Jerusalem at age twelve, in which he went missing and was eventually found—to his parents' relief and astonishment—in the temple arguing with Jewish doctors? Of the gospel writers, only Luke recounts this episode; chronologically, the next canonical incident from Jesus's life appears to be his baptism by John, which occurred when both were already grown men. In this fascinating and thought-provoking study, Mary Dzon tackles the "hidden years," as she terms them, of Jesus' childhood—particularly the time between his birth and the episode with the temple doctors in Jerusalem. The book focuses on the later Middle Ages and places particular emphasis on textual and iconographic sources from England, though it by no means focuses narrowly on English materials. Dzon takes her [End Page 329] readers from the apocryphal Infancy Gospels to English vernacular lyrics to Thomas Aquinas; from Francis of Assisi to Brigitta of Sweden and back to England and Margery Kempe. To trace the complex routes and intersections of the material and its transmission across Europe is a challenging task, which Dzon has mastered with great skill, and with a verve that makes the book a joy to read. Dzon places medieval people's desire to know more about the young Jesus in the context of Christocentric affective piety and the emerging interest in the humanity of Christ, propagated by the Cistercians and Franciscans. Popular curiosity gave rise to the Infancy Gospels, widely influential apocryphal texts that closed the biographical void left open by the canonical Gospels. Drawing on topoi from romance and other popular genres, these apocryphal legends of Jesus' early life piqued the interest of medieval readers and aroused the suspicion of members of the clergy, as Thomas Aquinas's extensive engagement with the topic demonstrates. At the same time, the Franciscans played an important role in resuscitating the Christ Child, and their founder, in particular, seems to have actively promoted this devotional trend. A strong Franciscan influence, in turn, can be detected in Brigitta of Sweden's Revelations, a text that brings together the affective devotion to the Christ Child and to his humanity with a decidedly maternal perspective. Dzon's introduction not only provides a succinct overview of the chapters that follow, but also surveys previous scholarship on the topic. Though this overview comes rather abruptly (in the form of a standalone section), it ultimately proves highly useful because it contains a nuanced discussion of the different interests that have tended to underlie previous scholars' works (i.e., feminist approaches; Eucharistic devotion; the social history of childhood; the advent of affective piety, particularly as it relates to the Passion). Because many previous scholars studied legends of the Christ Child as a means to understanding some broader topic, their treatment of the material covered by Dzon has seemed sketch-like and at times one-sided. Given this context, it is obvious why a book devoted to the apocryphal Infancy Gospels and their medieval reception is an important contribution to existing knowledge. The first chapter ("The Christ Child in Two Treatises of Aelred of Rievaulx and in Early Franciscan Sources") analyzes the Cistercian and early Franciscan role in establishing the Christ Child as an object of affective devotion, focusing in particular on Aelred's treatises De Jesu puero duodenni (c. 1153–57) and De institutione inclusarum (1160s). In both [End Page 330] texts, Aelred champions an experiential approach and invites his readers—respectively, his friend Ivo, and his sister, a recluse—to achieve closer proximity to Jesus through meditation and by contemplating his humanity. The Christ Child proves central to both texts. Dzon argues that Francis of Assisi's treatment of the childhood of Christ is even more forceful, thanks to its emphasis on the poverty of the innocent baby. Francis aligned himself explicitly with the lowly conditions of the Christ Child, reflected alike in...