MEWS, Constant J(an) 1954-

PERSONAL: Born May 4, 1954, in Sutton, Surrey, England; son of Douglas Kelson (a composer) and Nance (Radius) Mews; married, 1988; wife's name Maryna. Education: University of Auckland, New Zealand, 1972-76; University of Oxford, United Kingdom, 1977-80.

ADDRESSES: Home—35/177 Power St., Hawthorn, Victoria 3122, Australia. Offıce—Centre for Studies in Religion and Theology, School of Historical Studies, Box 11A, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Educator and historian. Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia, associate professor and director of Centre for Studies in Religion and Theology, 1987—.

WRITINGS:

(Editor, with Julie S. Barton) Hildegard of Bingen andGendered Theology in Judaeo-Christian Tradition, Monash University Centre for Studies in Religion and Theology (Clayton, Victoria, Australia), 1995.

(And translator, with Nevill Chiavaroli) The Lost LoveLetters of Heloise and Abelard: Perceptions of Dialogue in Twelfth-Century France, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1999.

Abelard and His Legacy ("Variorum Collected Studies" series), Ashgate (Burlington, VT), 2001.

(Editor) Listen, Daughter: The Speculum Virginum and the Formation of Religious Women in the Middle Ages, Palgrave (New York, NY), 2001.

(Editor) Reason and Belief in the Age of Rocelin andAbelard, Ashgate (Burlington, VT), 2002.

Abelard and Heloise, Oxford University Press (New York, NY), 2004.

Contributor to Archives d'Histoire et Littéraire du Moyen Age, Speculum, Traditio, and Viator.

SIDELIGHTS: Constant J. Mews has worked as a historian and professor of religion and theology since 1987, during which time he has studied the life and legacy of Abelard and the controversial relationship between that twelfth-century French writer and his inamorata, Heloise, in great depth. In his books The Lost Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard: Perceptions of Dialogue in Twelfth-Centry France, Abelard and His Legacy, and Abelard and Heloise, Mews shares his findings in what several critics have described as an impressive, matter of fact nature.

The Lost Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard studies the illicit love affair between the famous couple, Abelard and Heloise, during the Middle Ages. Mews sets forth evidence that reflects an epistolary debate undertaken between the two over the concept of love itself, and further investigates the influence of Heloise over Abelard based on her personal beliefs. The first half of the book is an essay written by Mews, while the second half contains reprints of the letters exchanged between the two lovers. While Mews was criticized by some reviewers for glossing over a controversy surrounding the authenticity of these letters—the book may not provide sufficient explanation to satisfy readers unfamiliar with the authentification process—overall, the book was praised as "important for Medievalists, feminists, and those captivated by the Heloise and Abelard myth" by Carolyn M. Craft in her review in Library Journal. Noting that The Lost Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard provides "valuable insights and neglected evidence," Church History contributor Susan R. Kramer went on to note that, despite the fact that Mews sometimes fails to connect his "wonderful wealth of detail" to his overall themes, "in reinterpreting Heloise's definition of true love, Mews has conferred on Heloise an independent voice in the intellectual dialogue of her time."

In his book Abelard and His Legacy, Mews goes into greater depth in his study of Abelard the man, presenting a wealth of biographical information on this fascinating figure. John Marenbon in the Journal of Ecclesiastical History affirmed that "the wealth of up-to-date bibliographical information gathered" in Mews's study "will on its own be enough" to make Abelard and His Legacy a foundational work in the study of its subject. Marenbon cited in particular Mews's "eleven-page account of Abelard's life," which the critic hailed as "a masterpiece of judicious compression." Due to the format of the book Mews was somewhat limited in what he was able to include; however, as Marenbon stated, "All those interested in Abelard will hope that he soon has the opportunity to write more discursively about a subject in which he has shown himself here and elsewhere to be such a master of every detail."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Choice, February, 2000, J. E. Parker, Jr., review of The Lost Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard: Perceptions of Dialogue in Twelfth-Century France, p. 1197.

Church History, September, 2002, Susan R. Kramer, review of The Lost Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard, p. 646.
Journal of Ecclesiastical History, October, 1997, John Marenbon, review of Abelard and His Legacy, p. 751.

Journal of Religious History, October, 1997, John O. Ward, review of Hildegard of Bingen and Gendered Theology in Judaeo-Christian Tradition, p. 349.

Library Journal, September 1, 1999, Carolyn M. Craft, review of The Lost Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard, p. 198.

Publishers Weekly, August 30, 1999, review of TheLost Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard, p. 69.*