Jared Coleman, one of my favorite philosophical theo-bloggers, has just dumped his old blog and started out the new year with a new blog called delectatio Dei.

I was unsure of the exact meaning of delectatio when I first came across it.  In my mind it is associated with delight, delicious, and above all delectable.

My Encarta dictionary gives this etymology of delight:

[13th century. <Old French delit < Latin delectare "keep enticing" <delicere "allure" <lacere "entice"]

Jared will no doubt fill us in on the meaning of this theological term.  In the meantime we can keep hypothesizing!

The phrase delectatio Dei reminded me of a line from the Magnificat: “My spirit delights in God my Savior.” (Luke 1:47).  My Latin Bible is in another town so I can’t confirm the wording.

A Google search brought up some other delectatio phrases that could also serve as good titles for a blog:

• delectatio morosa, “savoring a sinful thought”
• utilitas solum est delectatio, “only usefulness is truly delightful”
• delectatio perficit operationem: “the delight when everything is working properly”
• Ubi est fruitio, ibi est delectatio: “If it’s fruitful, it’s delightful.”

Note: these translations are mine and some are a best guess.

Finally, I apologize to Jared for not having him on my blogroll.  Gonna fix that, ol’ chap…