These two volumes contain a series of articles which grew out of a conference on Christian Mysticism held at Keble College, Oxford. They also form the first volumes in a new series, Contemporary Theological Explorations in Christian Mystics.
The aim of both the conference and the series is to bring mystical texts produced throughout the centuries into mainstream theological discourse, as an additional resource for the study of major theological topics. The Introduction by Louise Nelstrop sets out an overview of this project. George Pattison, in his contribution, sees mystical theology opening up theological discourse to the possibility of moving beyond a purely intellectual engagement with the divine to one that demands a response of the whole person. Oliver Davies stresses that mystical theology is much more than an intellectual apologetic or language game, while Johannes Zachhuber looks at some of the reasons for the traditional distrust of mysticism in some churches. The main ground for this distrust appears to be an assumption that a direct, personal sense of connection with God bypasses any need for solidarity with other Christians, and renders one indifferent at best to corporate forms of worship and liturgy. However, this presupposes that the God the mystic feels in touch with is not the incarnate God of the gospels, dwelling in his body, the community of Christian believers. It is therefore appropriate that the second volume is precisely on incarnational theology.
The contributors in both volumes include major established theologians, some at the cutting edge of their particular topics, such as Johannes Hoff on Nicholas of Cusa or Ben Morgan on Eckhart. There are also relative newcomers such as Philip McCosker, also writing on Cusa. They are united, however, in the tone of excitement their papers all share at exploring somewhat dangerous and easily misunderstood territory. The papers show an awareness of how the history of modern interest in mysticism, starting with William James in the early twentieth century, has bequeathed to us categories of thought and sets of terminology that, while helpful in opening up the field to modern scrutiny, can obscure for us what the mystical author is actually trying to say. Many of the papers, for instance, query the notions of gender bequeathed to us by the feminist/women's studies aspect of much of the scholarship that brought the medieval female mystics to modern attention, or the Jamesian emphasis on the private experience of the individual. These categories and conceptual packages can be anachronistic and misleading, particularly when dealing with earlier periods.
The papers range in time from Plotinus and Gregory of Nyssa through to Heidegger, Troeltsch and the present. This range is refreshing, and reinforces the theological nature of the papers. It distinguishes these volumes from much current work on mysticism which stems from a more historical interest in the thought of particular periods, such as patristics, or has arisen from the study of the medieval vernaculars across Europe.
These two volumes represent the beginnings of a project which has much to contribute to general theological exploration and will hopefully open up exciting new horizons.
