De los nombres de Cristo (The Names of God / 1583 Leon), book

{es} Luis de León. De los nombres de Cristo'. 1583 -- 2nd ed. 1585 -- 3rd ed. 1595.

• French ed. : Le noms du Christ. Lyon ; Paris : Perisse Frères, 1856.

• Italian ed. : I nomi di Cristo. Fossano (CN) : Esperienze, 1972. -- New ed. Torino: Einaudi, 1997.

• English ed. : The Names of God. New York : Paulist Press, 1984.

Abstract

The work is written in dialogue form about three friends who discuss fourteen of the Scriptural names of Christ over a period of two days in a country estate. Each book ends in a lyrical meditation expressed in a poem. The predominant theme is the centrality and universality of Christ.

The work grew by stages. The first edition of 1583 is made up of only two books, considering nine names in total. The second edition of 1585 adds a third book, considering four names, and adds the name 'shepherd' to the first book. Finally, the posthumous edition of 1595 includes one extra name, 'lamb'. The structure of the third edition was used for the 1984 English translation.

The work quickly became popular in Spain: seven editions were printed by 1605.