St. Anselm of Canterbury

Today is the feast day (and death anniversary) of St Anselm of Canterbury (c. 1033 - 1109). He was the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1093-1109, during which he defended the church in the Investiture Controversy. He is known for his "ontological argument" for the existence of God---God is "that than which nothing greater can be thought." He is also known for his work, "Cur Deus Homo" ("Why Did God Become Human?") in which he argued a "legal" definition of Christ's atonement--that Christ's death paid the penalty that human sin incurred against God's righteousness. Still another legacy of his writings is the idea that religious faith, by its very nature, seeks deeper understanding ("fides quaerens intellectum"), a concept that Karl Barth used as a framework for his "Church Dogmatics" ... The stuff you remember from school, even though you can’t remember where you put your phone, LOL