Christian Spirituality : The Classics

by Holder, Arthur

• ISBN13: 9780203874721
• ISBN10: 0203874722
• Copyright: 2009-07-16
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Summary

Christian Spirituality: The Classicsis a unique and comprehensive guide to thirty key Christian spirituality texts. Ranging from Origen and Augustine to Jonathan Edwards, Thérèse of Lisieux and Thomas Merton, it offers a view of the texts which is founded in scholarship, but which also presents them as living documents that invite- even compel -contemplative reflection and existential response. Each chapter briefly describes the classic text's author and audience, gives a synopsis of its contents, suggests some of its influence in history, and then explores aspects of the text's meaning for readers today. Key themes include: What is the meaning of life? How can human beings find truth? How can they discover who they really are? How can they live together in peace? How can they live more fully in God's presence in this world and be united with God in the world to come? The scholars who have written these chapters are all experts on their respective topics, but they wear their learning lightly. Anyone wishing to discover the riches of Christian spirituality will find this the ideal introduction and should be able to progress to a deeper understanding of the texts themselves.

Table of Contents

Notes on Contributors

Editor's Introduction

Origen (ca. 185 - ca. 253), Commentary on the Song of Songs

Athanasius (ca. 295-373), Life of Antony

Gregory of Nyssa (ca. 335 - ca. 395), Life of Moses

Augustine (354-430), Confessions

(Pseudo) Dionysius the Areopagite (late fifth century), On the Divine Names and Mystical Theology

Benedict of Nursia (ca. 480 - ca. 547), Rule

Gregory the Great (ca. 540-604), Book of Pastoral Rule

Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153), On Loving God

Mechthild of Magdeburg (ca. 1210 - ca. 1282), The Flowing Light of the Godhead

Bonaventure (ca. 1217/21 - 1274), The Soul's Journey into God

Marguerite Porete (d. 1310), The Mirror of Simple Souls

Gregory Palamas (1296-1359), Triads in Defense of the Holy Hesychasts

Julian of Norwich (ca. 1342 - ca. 1416), Showings

Anonymous (fourteenth century), Cloud of Unknowing

Catherine of Siena (1347-80), Dialogue

Martin Luther (1483-1546), The Freedom of a Christian

Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556), The Spiritual Exercises

Teresa of Avila (1515-82), The Interior Castle

John of the Cross (1542-91), The Dark Night

Francis de Sales (1567-1622), Introduction to the Devout Life

George Herbert (1593-1633), The Country Parson

Madame Jeanne Guyon (1648-1717), A Short and Very Easy Method of Prayer

Jonathan Edwards (1703-58), A Treatise on Religious Affections

Søren Kierkegaard (1813-55), An Occasional Discourse (Purity of Heart)

Anonymous (mid-nineteenth century), The Way of a Pilgrim

Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-97), Story of a Soul

Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941), Mysticism

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-45), Life Together

Howard Thurman (1899-1981), Jesus and the Disinherited

Thomas Merton (1915-68), New Seeds of Contemplation

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