Meeting Scotus: On Scholasticism and Its Ghosts

Recalling the story of the ghost of Duns Scotus that haunts Merton Library, we investigate in this article whether Christian theology contains room for belief in ghosts. We conclude that there is no good reason why ghosts should not exist within a proper dogmatic account of death and resurrection, but that there is no theological need to affirm that ghosts do exist either. Thus we suggest that this matter is dogmatically indifferent. That same dogmatic account, however, demands that we take seriously the continuing lively voices of those, like Scotus, who have gone before as we pursue our own theological vocations.