Liturgical Liaisons

Synopsis: When Jesus offers his body as a promise to his disciples, he initiates a liturgical framework that is driven by irony and betrayal. Through these deconstructive elements, however, the promise invites the disciples into an intimate space where they anticipate the fulfillment of what is to come. This anticipatory energy provides the common thread between Donne and Dickinson, who draw specifically on the unstable story that unfolds during the Last Supper in order to develop a liturgical poetics. By tracing the implications of the body as a textual presence, Liturgical Liaisons opens into new readings of Donne and Dickinson in a way that enriches how these figures are understood as poets. The result is a risky and rewarding understanding of how these two figures challenged accepted theological norms of their day. Endorsements: "Liturgical Liaisons examines the development of liturgical poetics in Donne and Dickinson. . . . Here is liturgical risk--love must pass through betrayal. Heit offers fresh, imaginative thinking on deeply serious issues." --George Newlands, Glasgow University "An engaging and thoughtful meditation on Christ's body and the Last Supper as a signifier of displaced and deferred meaning, Liturgical Liaisons uses the related disciplines of theology and philosophy to open up the liturgical value of Donne and Dickinson's poetry. . . . This is a fascinating and delicate contribution to the growing academic interest in the relationship between literature and theology." --Linda Freedman, author of Emily Dickinson and the Religious Imagination "Liturgical Liaisons is a sophisticated, luminous interpretation of John Donne and Emily Dickinson's poetry that brilliantly draws on theological and literary methodologies. . . . Whether discussing Heidegger or the Psalms, Derrida or the Last Supper, Heit is a subtle, thoughtful, and ambitious critic. This is a compelling, interdisciplinary, and scholarly book that contributes to a new comprehension of Donne and Dickinson, an inspired conjunction that now seems utterly convincing." --Richard A. Kaye, Hunter College and the Graduate Center Author Biography: Jamey Heit holds his doctorate from Glasgow University's Centre for Literature, Theology and the Arts. He is the author of multiple books and has presented his work at a variety of international conferences.