Christian Mysticism

This book introduces students to Christian mysticism and modern critical responses to it. Christianity has a rich tradition of mystical theology that first emerged in the writings of the early church fathers. Christian mysticism flourished during the Middle Ages and it is this period that the book focuses on. Providing students with access to the main philosophical approaches to Christian mysticism - including those propounded by William James, Steven Katz, Denys Turner and Caroline Walker-Bynum - this book introduces students to the main themes that underpin Christian mysticism during this medieval period, reflecting on the meaning of these themes from the perspectives of each of the main critics. Covering the various strands of Christian mysticism, including early church mysticism, female mysticism, Rhineland mysticism and 'affectivist' mysticism, this book introduces students to many prominent Christian mystics. Renewed interest in medieval mystical writings has created a huge array of scholarship with which students of mysticism need to familiarise themselves. This book outlines the various modern philosophical/theological approaches in a manner that is easily accessible to a reader with little or no previous knowledge of this area, and offers a philosophical/theological introduction to Christian mystical writers beyond the patristic period.