Second Simplicity: The Inner Shape of Christianity

by Barnhart, Bruno

• ISBN13: 9780809138326
• ISBN10: 0809138328
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-04-01
• Publisher: Paulist Pr

Summary

Bruno Barnhart's new book uncovers the contours of a Christian wisdom and explores the ways that a Christian faith often bound by rule, structure, and order can open itself to the unitive vision at its root.
This book proposes an opening of consciousness beyond thought, of theological vision beyond rational knowledge, and of Christianity beyond the perimeter of church. Bruno Barnhart invites us to move into a fuller experience of Christianity, an experience of wisdom that brings all created reality into unity with God. Therein lies the "second simplicity."

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 1
The Silence	p. 9
Apophatic Spirituality	p. 12
Unitive Reality, Unitive Experience	p. 16
The Maximum: Meaning of Meanings	p. 19
The Perennial Philosophy	p. 21
The Unitive Self	p. 24
Monasticism	p. 28
Baptism and Christian Spirituality	p. 30
Unitive Reality in the New Testament	p. 33
One: A Meditation	p. 37
The Word	p. 39
Duality: The Human Condition	p. 44
The Word in the World	p. 45
The Gospel of the Word Incarnate	p. 47
Christian Wisdom	p. 51
The First Wisdom: Its Container and Shadow	p. 55
Institutional Christianity	p. 61
The Christ-Quantum and the Dominance of the West	p. 66
The West Today	p. 71
The Critical Period: Shadow and Light	p. 73
Progression in Christianity: Redshift	p. 77
The Gospel of Matthew: Christianity as the New Torah	p. 81
Two: A Meditation	p. 82
The Music	p. 87
Transition from Two to Three: The New Testament	p. 91
Luke and Acts: The Divine Movement	p. 94
The Third Age	p. 98
Third Order Emergences Today	p. 101
The Feminine: Human and Divine	p. 106
Human Energy	p. 114
Divinization and Creativity	p. 115
New Creation as Continuing Event	p. 118
The Fire of History	p. 121
Music and Spirit	p. 123
Poetry and Wisdom	p. 131
Three: A Meditation	p. 135
The Dance	p. 141
The Missing Fourth	p. 147
Return to the Ground	p. 154
The Body of Christ	p. 161
The Fullness: Mandala and Christ-Mystery	p. 167
Contemporary Encounters at the Frontier of Four	p. 174
Work	p. 175
Mark's Gospel and the Cruciform Christ-Mystery	p. 182
Eucharist and Omega	p. 187
The Unity of Four: Sophia	p. 198
Four: A Meditation	p. 206
Epilogue	p. 209
From Old to New: Glossary of Terms	p. 215
Quaternity, Mandala	p. 221
The Christian Mandala and Its Variants	p. 227
Notes	p. 237
Bibliography	p. 255
Abbreviations	p. 267
Index of Authors	p. 270
Index of Subjects	p. 273
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.