The Origins of the Christian Mystical Tradition: From Plato to Denys

by Andrew Louth

Overview

Scholars of the patristic era have paid more attention to the dogmatic tradition in their period than to the development of Christian mystical theology. Andrew Louth aims to redress the balance. Recognizing that the intellectual form of this tradition was decisively influenced by Platonic ideas of the soul's relationship to God, Louth begins with an examination of Plato and Platonism. The discussion of the Fathers which follows shows how the mystical tradition is at the heart of their thought and how the dogmatic tradition both moulds and is the reflection of mystical insights and concerns. This new edition of a classic study of the diverse influences upon Christian spirituality includes a new Epilogue which brings the text completely up to date.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780191537585
Publisher:	OUP Oxford
Publication date:	01/25/2007
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	360 KB

About the Author

Andrew Louth is Professor of Patristic and Byzantine Studies, University of Durham.

Table of Contents

Introduction     x
Plato     1
Philo     17
Plotinus     35
Origen     51
Nicene Orthodoxy     73
Athanasius     75
Gregory of Nyssa     78
The Monastic Contribution     95
Evagrius of Pontus     97
The Macarian Homilies     110
Diadochus of Photice     122
Augustine     128
Denys the Areopagite     154
Patristic Mysticism and St. John of the Cross     174
Divine Darkness and the Dark Night     176
The Mystical Life and the Mystical Body     186
Platonism and Mysticism     186
The Communion of Saints     194
Afterword (2006)     200
Bibliography     215
Extra Bibliography     221
Index     223

Editorial Reviews

"Great summary. Fine insights."—Jill Raitt, University of Missouri, Columbia

From the Publisher