My First Post

Wow I'm excited my very own first post. I was actually inspired by my friend Linda who just started her own bog, with a wonderful post on the origins of famous Montréal Challenge/WYD quotes.

In Search of My Beatrice??????
What an odd title for a blog, you must think, who is the Beatrice and why should I search for her?
The Beatrice that I'm referring to is found in Dante Alighieri’s La Vita Nuova (The New Life), and Divina Comédia (Divine Comedy). I know what you’re thinking... the Divine Comedy isn't that that book about hell? What sort of person is this Colin creating a blog about someone from hell? Well the Divine Comedy is actually an Italian epic poem or canticle consisting of three cantiche: Inferno (Hell), Purgatorio (Purgatory), and Paradiso (Paradise). Beatrice is Dante's allegory for Love. Dante in La Vite Nouva, falls in love with Beatrice and his infatuation in Beatrice develops into a love so pure that Dante claims that "She has ineffable courtesy, is my beautitude, the destroyer of all vices and the queen of virtue, salvation." Latter Beatrice takes over from Virgil and becomes Dante’s guide in the Divina Comédia leading him into Paradise.

This is what I seek the Love that transforms me and leads me into paradise. And this blog will contain my mussing, as I continue to seek and journey with that transforming Love.

N.B. I believe this William Blake illustration of "Beatrice Addressing Dante" to be in the Public Domain, please contact me if you are the copyright holder and I will remove it.