The Big Book of Christian Mysticism

THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO CONTEMPLATIVE SPIRITUALITY

Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc.

Contents

Hidden in Plain Sight

For it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness,"who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge ofthe glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

II Corinthians 4:6

For the sages say that it is impossible for rational knowledge of Godto coexist with the direct experience of God, or for conceptual knowledge of Godto coexist with immediate perception of God.

Maximus the Confessor

Mysticism is a vague word that is used in a variety of ways to mean different things. Thisis not just because human beings are sloppy and like to use words in imprecise ways—although,granted, that's part of the problem. Rather, mysticism as a word or concept isimpossible to define because it is, by nature, linked to spirituality, to mystery, to subjectiveexperience—all notoriously squishy subjects. In this book, we attempt to unlock themystery of mysticism, not only by appealing to the wisdom of the great mystics from morethan 2,000 years of Christian history and the scholars who have written about them, butalso by exploring the ways in which mysticism can enlighten our spiritual lives today.

The history of Christian mysticism includes a wide array of colorful and sometimeseccentric characters who have much to teach us, not only about Christianity andmysticism, but also about life in general. When we take the time to understand their livesin a way that honors their wisdom, we begin to find ways to apply that wisdom to our ownlives. Ultimately, our goal must be not just to explore an interesting philosophical concept,but rather to understand mysticism as a powerful tool for transforming our minds, hearts,and souls.

What do the Christian mystics tell us? That the wisdom they offer us can literally unite uswith God—or at the very least, give us such a powerful experience of God's presence thatit can revolutionize our lives. The purpose of such transformed lives is not primarily toachieve a goal (like enlightenment or spiritual bliss), but rather to participate in the HolySpirit's ongoing activity—embodying the flowing love of Christ, love that we in turn giveback to God as well as to "our neighbors as ourselves." The mystical tradition manifests ina particular tension that persists throughout Christian history and is, thus, distinct fromother expressions of Christian spirituality. You can be a Christian without being a mystic,and you can be a mystic without being a Christian. If you want to embrace Christianmysticism, however, you begin by embracing Christianity, both in its external, "religious"form, and also in its inner exploration of prayer, meditation, and contemplation.

The Problem with Mysticism

Over the years, I have found that many—perhaps most—of the books, websites, andblogs that treat the mystical dimension of Christianity tend to fall into two categories: theoverly fanciful, and the overly boring.

Christian mysticism gets overly fanciful when you place too much emphasis on having"cool" spiritual experiences like cosmic consciousness or secret visions. While it is truethat mysticism is experiential, Christian mysticism is also grounded in the love of God—alove which leads to healing, transformation, and growth in holiness. In other words,Christian mysticism is never an end to itself. The point behind mysticism is not to dazzlethe mind with ecstatic wonders or heady feelings, but to foster real and lasting changes,for the purpose of becoming more like Christ, which is to say, more compassionate, moreforgiving, more committed to serving others and making the world a better place. In otherwords, the experience is really just a small part of the overall package.

Likewise, students of Christian mysticism lose their way when they get too caught up inquests for secret knowledge, or hidden teachings that are supposedly the key to higherrealities, that somehow have been lost (or suppressed) by church authorities. I'm willing togo with the idea that many of the key principles of Christian mysticism have beenmarginalized, ignored, or even rejected by many followers of Jesus, but there's no need toget all conspiratorial about this. The keys to Christian mysticism have been hidden in plainsight.

Unfortunately, there is a certain allure to the idea that some sort of secret body ofknowledge has been squirreled away in the Vatican or in a monastery somewhere on theSinai Peninsula for the past 1,500 years. History is full of colorful characters who havepromoted themselves as the guardians of such long-lost information, offering to sharetheir esoteric teachings with a select worthy few—for a hefty fee.

The real mystical tradition in Christianity is much broader and deeper than that. It is thestory of people who receive powerful mystical experiences, undergo amazing andbeautiful transformations of consciousness, and embody the teachings of Jesus—withoutgetting lost in a fantasy world.

Another variation of this kind of fanciful mysticism is the idea that the only "real" mysticismcomes from the East, from venerable wisdom traditions such as Vedanta or Zen.Therefore, "Christian" mysticism is really just Hinduism or Buddhism with a little bit ofJesus mixed in. But in fact, Christianity has its own, homegrown mystical tradition with itsown practices, wisdom, and values. While it is true that, generally speaking, Christianmystics are more open to the wisdom of other religions than most Christians, thisopenness is rooted in loyalty to the central wisdom teachings of Christ, the Bible, and theChristian tradition.

Where can we turn to find the most authentic expressions of Christian mysticism? To thattradition, as embodied in the great mystics of history (see Appendix A). Christianmysticism is rooted in an easily identifiable body of wisdom teachings that can be tracedback to the very origins of the faith. Great saints, monks, nuns, theologians, philosophers,and artists throughout the centuries have made contributions to the faith that include theirexperience as mystics. Francis of Assisi, Hildegard of Bingen, Thomas Aquinas, andAugustine are just a few of the many Christian spiritual geniuses who lived by and taughtthe wisdom of encountering the mysterious presence of God. Because they didn't drawattention to themselves or their experiences, their mysticism is, in a very real way, hiddenin plain sight. It is not secret or occult, or part of an underground conspiracy. It is a verysimple, humble, down-to-earth spirituality that has slipped unpretentiously across thestage of history. The problem is not that mystical teachings are hidden, but rather that sofew people bother to learn the principles of Christian mysticism, much less apply them totheir own lives.

If some writers err on the side of the overly fanciful, however, others err on the side ofboredom. Many of the teachers and scholars who write about the genuine tradition ofChristian mysticism without resorting to sensationalism or exaggeration are brilliant,intelligent experts who produce profound studies filled with fascinating insights—all toooften, replete with complex ideas and arcane terminology, much of it Greek or Latin. Sincemystical spirituality is intimately related to theology which in turn is related to philosophy,most of these studies are as challenging to read as the works of Plato, Aristotle, or Kant.Even when these academics work hard to make their studies accessible to those of uswho don't have graduate degrees in logic, their books are often unavoidably dry and dull.

Many of the serious and scholarly books on mysticism tend to focus on its heritage—onthe lives and the teachings of great mystics of the past— and have little or nothing to sayconcerning why mysticism matters today. In other words, they do a great job of telling youabout mysticism, but don't really make mysticism come alive in an intimate, practical way.It seems to me that the central question we need to ask is how and why that ancientwisdom can be relevant today. How can we take the authentic Christian mysticism ofhistory and apply it to our own spiritual lives?

The Search For Authentic Experience

I'm writing about Christian mysticism because I love Christ, and because I hunger for thepresence of God in my life. I'm writing about it because I believe that the wisdom of greatmystics—Julian of Norwich, John Ruus-broec, Richard of St. Victor, Teresa of Avila—canbe applied to our lives today. I believe that, if enough of us try to conduct our livesaccording to their teachings, we can change our lives and the world.

The mystics point us to Christ, and to the powerful message of the gospel. So make nomistake: this is a book about how to live according to the teachings of the Christian faith.We look at topics like repentance, holiness, sacrifice, and prayer—difficult topics withwhich you may or may not be comfortable, depending on your background and beliefs. AllI ask as you consider them is that you try to keep an open mind. I believe one of thepowerful gifts of Christian mysticism is that it can take the truths of the gospel—ideas thatsometimes come across as rigid or repressive in many contexts—and transform them intoexciting, spiritually luminous principles by which we can ignite our lives into a profoundexperience of God's love and healing presence. If you are a devout Christian, I likewiseask you to approach this book with an open mind. Mysticism does not change the gospel.But it does shine an entirely new light on it that can help you see what has always beenthere in powerful and exciting new ways.

Christian mysticism is a concept unto itself—not just a "flavor" of some generic mysticphilosophy. The cross-fertilization between Christianity and mysticism created somethingentirely new—a unique belief system that is different from all other kinds of mysticism.

Likewise, Christian mysticism is not the same thing as basic Christianity. The two are notincompatible, however. On the contrary, authentic Christian mysticism reflects andreinforces authentic Christianity. Any perceived conflict between them arises only whensomething has gone awry with one or the other. When Christianity is true to itself as aliberating faith in Jesus, and Christian mysticism is true to itself as a Christian encounterwith the awesome mystery of God, they flow together beautifully and harmoniously.Nonetheless, while it is helpful to draw a distinction between Christianity-the-religion andChristian mysticism, the tradition has consistently emphasized that you cannot be aChristian mystic without engaging with the social and communal dimensions of theChristian faith. Indeed, the more authentic a Christian mystic is, the more engaged he orshe will be with even the most mundane aspects of religious Christianity.

Likewise, there are real differences between generic mysticism, Christian mysticism, andall the other types of mysticism—Buddhist, Jewish, Hindu, etc. These differences are notabsolute and we can, in fact, talk about mysticism in general ways. For example, we canmake this statement: "Mysticism concerns spiritual experience." This is true for mysticismin general as well as for Christian mysticism. But we must also acknowledge the realdifferences that distinguish Christian mysticism from world mysticism. For example, manyforms of non-Christian mysticism are anchored in the idea that human beings are (or canbecome) identical with God. Christianity denies this, and Christian mysticism concurs.Christian mysticism pursues participation with God, communion with God, and evenexperiences of union with God, but always distinguishes creator from creature. To denythat distinction is to move away from Christian mysticism, even if you talk about Jesus allthe time.

I'm belaboring this point because I anticipate three kinds of people will pick up this book:non-Christians who are interested in mysticism, but perhaps not favorably disposed toChristianity; Christians who are interested in, but perhaps not favorably disposed to,mysticism; and people who are interested in Christian mysticism (regardless of their faith).I point this out because I need to be clear about my own perspective: I love Christianity; Ilove mysticism in general—including all the different "types" of mysticism; and I loveChristian mysticism and understand it as a unique phenomenon. It is, however, my goal towrite an honest book, which means being honest about both my Christian faith and myfascination with mysticism.

Part of the challenge in writing about this topic is that there are plenty of people who lovemysticism, but are suspicious of Christianity. And there are others who are committed toChristianity, but are unsure about mysticism. I want to write a book that honors readerswherever they are on their own spiritual journeys. I can't guarantee that I'll win anyoneover to my point of view, but I can hope to give everyone who reads this book a newinsight or two, or something to think about. If you have a positive attitude (or, at least, anopen mind) toward both Christianity and mysticism, you will find plenty of information hereto consider as you proceed on your own spiritual journey. My goal is to inspire andencourage you to make Christian mysticism a part of your life.

I believe Christian mysticism can transform you. It's a form of alchemy that integratesChristianity's promise of new life in Christ with mysticism's promise of experiencing thepresence of God. It allows something to emerge that is greater than the sum of its parts; itilluminates a path by which you can open yourself to what the Apostle Paul calls "lettingthe mind (consciousness) of Christ be in you" and what the Apostle Peter calls "partakingof the divine nature." Christian mysticism invites you to do more than just know about God,or Christ, or spiritual transformation. It invites you into God, and into Christ, and into theexperience of transformation that can come about only through the love and grace of God.It's intimate; it's heartful and mindful; it's oriented toward making a real, powerful,profound, and lasting difference in your life and your relationships.

Of course, whether you accept the invitation is entirely up to you.

Defining Mysticism

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.

Isaiah 55:8

What, then, is time? I know well enough what it is, provided thatnobody asks me; but if I am asked what it is and try to explain, I am baffled.

Augustine

Some people think mysticism means having powerful spiritual experiences, like seeingheavenly visions, or hearing supernatural voices, or feeling a sense of communion withGod, or undergoing profound shifts in consciousness. Others see it as a spiritualdimension to (and beyond) religion, in which the cultural, ethical, and theologicaldifferences between religions are somehow resolved in a trans-verbal state of unity. Stillothers dismiss it as the fuzzy, illogical, and irrational element that makes religion andspirituality so distasteful to those who prefer to conduct their lives according to sciencerather than faith (which they see as superstition). These, and other, ways of understandingmysticism all make sense in their own context. But none of them manages to appreciatemysticism's treasures fully.

Probably the first important thing that needs to be said about mysticism is that you cannever adequately put it into words. And, although there are many different kinds ofmysticism, the inability to describe them adequately with words—in other words, theineffability of mysticism—holds true for them all. Indeed, trying to understand mysticism isfutile, and we must begin our discussion with the recognition that it cannot be preciselydefined.

Love in a Bottle

It's like trying to put love in a bottle. It just can't be done. To begin with, love is notsomething that can be pinned down to a specific point in space and time. It is a spiritualreality that can never be defined, or enclosed or "captured."

Much the same is true of mysticism. Its essence simply cannot be captured in humanlanguage—indeed, not even by the most sublime reaches of human thought. We can uselanguage to suggest mysticism—to allude to it, to point to it, to create poetic metaphors oranalogies about it that ring true—but these linguistic interpretations are ultimately likeattempts to empty the ocean with a teaspoon. Like God or spirituality or heaven,mysticism takes us beyond what the most eloquent and poetic language can everexpress. It pushes you to the limits of your imagination and then says, "take another step."And another, and another.

Dr. Seuss once wrote a book called On Beyond Zebra! that explored all the meta-lettersthat exist in his imaginary alphabet, beyond the twenty-six of the standard Englishalphabet. Mysticism is like Seuss's alphabet. It pushes beyond the normal boundaries ofhuman thought, human logic, and human rationality and knowing. It goes beyond the limitsof philosophy, theology, psychology, and science. But whereas Dr. Seuss was just playingmake-believe, mysticism points to something that countless witnesses, in cultures allacross the world and in every age from the dawn of recorded history, insist is utterlyreal—maybe even more real than the universe and consciousness we normally inhabit.