HamiltonBest of luck with your studies. But out of interest, why quote only the second half of that Aquinas sentence in your signature? You've never been reticent with your views before, so I don't see why you didn't quote the whole thing ...

QuoteYou've never been reticent with your views before, so I don't see why you didn't quote the whole thing ... Most people have heard Augustine's quotation, but are unaware that it was in Confessions. I could quote all kindsof sentences around it, which in and of themselves, would be of interest to very few people. I'd be more interestedin seeing someone actually read the book itself rather than rely on mere quotations.As well, it appears in Book 8, which is quite a ways into the book.

I was just curious; I don't want to make a big thing out of it. I was wondering why you didn't quote the whole sentence, which is:"Adore te devote, latens Deitas, quae sub his figuris vere latitas"which (in my dodgy translation) means "I adore you with devotion, hidden Deity, who under these errrrr figures/masks/appearances are truly hidden".But the bit you've quoted is just the second half:"who under these appearances are truly hidden".I was taught that this quotation is one of the great rapturous expressions of the mystery of the divine within the Christian Church. In that case, it seems a little odd to leave the Divinity out by missing out the first half of the sentence. But it's just an observation.

QuoteAdore te devote, latens Deitas, quae sub his figuris vere latitas"Oh wait a minute! I thought you were referring to my quote in the body of my message. But,you were looking at my sig.The latin verse was translated by Gerard Manley Hopkins from St Thomas Aquinas -- I intentionally left out thefirst half as a subtle jibe. I thought it would take a couple of years for someone to figure that out.Very well done.

AddendumIf you buy a Gregorian Chant CD by Richard Proulx, this is track 13.

For some reason the road sign "slippery when wet" springs to mind. Anyway, best of luck with your classical studies.

QuoteAnyway, best of luck with your classical studies.Thank you. I can keep you apprised off line of my progress if you are interested.Phoenix Press is invading my bookstore in Canada with its British publishing list.The historian H. Daniel-Rops [a non de plume for a 23 year old French prodigy]has produced several works worth looking at, should you chance upon them on the shelves.They have been translated in very inervating prose into Anglais.

Quote"Adore te devote, latens Deitas, quae sub his figuris vere latitas"Eloquence in English depends on the translation. The translation in English by Gerard Manley Hopkins is: "Godhead here in hiding, whom I do adore, Masked by these bare shadows, shape and nothing more," but by alternative translation as "I adore You devoutly, O hidden God, truly present under these veils." I favor the former. Unfortunately, when fed to an automated Latin translation service, the outcome rather humorously is: "I adore latent Deity very devoteely to you, That you bark truely under these figures." Yes, yes...translation has its high points and limitations.

QuoteLike many others, Hopkins wound up "swimming the Tiber", that is, going from the Church of England to the Church of Rome: and, like many others, he was received there by John Henry Newman. The feelings of the converts' families are exemplified by a Mrs. Arnold, who wrote to Newman, "Sir, you have now for the second time been the cause of my husband's becoming a member of the Church of Rome and from the bottom of my heart I curse you for it." Not content with this, she also threw a brick through the window of the church where her husband was being received. http://www.mcs.drexel.edu/~gbrandal/Ill ... pkins.html