Domine Exaudi Orationem Meam (Denis the Carthusian's Commentary on the Psalms)

Domine Exaudi is the fifth of six volumes of Denis the Carthusian’s monumental Commentary on the Davidic Psalms. Denis (1402–1471), known as the “ecstatic Doctor,” devoted himself to expounding all 150 Psalms according to the traditional fourfold sense of Scripture: literal, allegorical, tropological, and anagogical. This volume continues the effort to make his rich spiritual and theological insights available in English for the first time.

Denis understood the Psalter to be the heart of Christian prayer—the foundation of the Divine Office and a wellspring for every serious life of devotion. By revealing the allegorical and Christocentric depth hidden within the literal text, he leads the reader to perceive the presence and mysteries of Christ throughout the Psalms. Through the tropological sense, Denis shows how the Psalms instruct the believer in what to love, what to avoid, and how to live a life pleasing to God. And through their anagogical dimension, he opens the reader to the Psalms’ counsel on our ultimate end, stirring hope by directing the mind toward the heavenly homeland to which the Trinity beckons.

Using “Scripture to interpret Scripture,” Denis draws not only on the patristic tradition but also on the speculative clarity of St. Thomas Aquinas and the mystical theology of Dionysius the Areopagite. The result is a uniquely powerful work of biblical commentary—a synthesis of erudition, spiritual depth, and contemplative insight from one of the great Carthusian masters.