Gender,mysticism, and enthusiasm in the British post-Reformation

Abstract

The seventeenth century is seen as a watershed in the history of Western Christian mysticism, marking its development as a distinct ‘science’, and the separation of spheres distancing academic theology from spirituality, a divorce which clearly has gendered dimensions. This article explores that shift in the British context. First, it considers the resurgence of mystical currents in the turbulent crisis of authority in the middle decades of the seventeenth century. The conclusion is that gender played a central role in the Anglican-rationalist reaction against ‘enthusiasm’, and the pathologizing of mystical divinity as a form of melancholy. Second, there is discussion of the doctrine of revelation expounded by two female mystics (the Benedictine nun, Gertrude More, and the Franco-Flemish spiritualist, Antoinette Bourignon) and their supporters.     

Kierkegaard, mysticism, and jest: The story of little Ludvig

Throughout his authorship, Kierkegaard appears remarkably uninterested in the tradition of Christian mysticism. Indeed, in the only two places in the authorship where he broaches the topic directly, the discussion is disclaimed in such a way as to suggest that Kierkegaard really has nothing to say about it at all. However, attending to the successive incarnations of the character(s) named “Ludvig” throughout the authorship – an appellation that harbors an especially self-referential dimension for Kierkegaard – the present paper attempts to elucidate what may, with due reservation, be referred to as the mystical element in Kierkegaard’s thought. The ultimate yield of this endeavor is a vision of “mysticism” that is more act than thought oriented, and a vision of the author “Kierkegaard” that is more delightful than melancholy.     

Suffering, Prayer, and Miracles

Unrelieved suffering leads many to ask, “How can I trust a miracle-working God, who will not help me or my loved ones?” From brief exegeses of Jesus' healing of a man born blind (Jn 9) and of Jesus' response to Pilate's murderous oppression (Lk 13), I argue that (1) God uses suffering to call its witnesses to repentance and to acts of steadfast love that fulfill the creation of humanity; (2) miracles are real, rare, and ambiguous; (3) God is good and powerful enough to deliver everyone decisively, but God's patient commitment to human freedom and universal reconciliation preclude it; (4) all suffering is sacrificial and will become meaningful; and that (5) there are at least three faithful and coordinate responses to suffering.     

Christian Prayer and the Local Congregation: A Social Analysis of Individual Prayer Petitions

Abstract

Prayer requests from members and attendees of a progressive Christian church located in a large American City was the subject of this investigation. This church serves congregants from Roman Catholic and Protestant backgrounds, and a large, but not exclusively gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender community. ap Siôn’s study of prayer typology and subject contents from rural England influenced this investigation. This study used computer technology and document analysis to categorize 8,059 individual prayer card requests submitted between 2014-2018 from church members and attendees. Results showed the most common prayer requests were “Thanks and Thanksgiving” prayers with “Praise and Adoration” prayers among the least common. Few references to sin and forgiveness were found. The most frequently mentioned subjects of prayers were those referencing personal needs and concerns. Findings and comparison with ap Siôn and other research suggest these prayer requests demonstrate the social and theological cohesiveness of Christian prayer. Additional research is suggested comparing Christian prayer with prayers in other religions and how prayer behaviors interact with the rise of multiculturalism in society.     

Theology and narrative: the self,the novel,the Bible

This paper critically evaluates the work of Charles Taylor and Alasdair MacIntyre by comparing their understanding of the narrative structure of selfhood with paradigms derived from three other sources: Heidegger’s conception of human being as Dasein; Rowan Williams’ interpretation of Dostoevsky’s theology of narrative; and Kierkegaard’s project of reading the Old Testament narrative of Abraham and Isaac as part of the Christian God’s autobiography. These comparisons suggest that Taylor and MacIntyre’s own narratives of Western culture lack a certain, theologically required openness to a variety of specific ways in which both individuality and history resist understanding in narrative terms as much as they demand it.     

Thomas Aquinas Holds Fast: Objections to Aquinas within Today's Debate on Divine Action

Various authors within the contemporary debate on divine action in nature and contemporary science argue both for and against a Thomistic account of divine action through the notions of primary and secondary causes. In this paper I argue that those who support a Thomistic account of divine action often fail to explain Aquinas' doctrine in full, while those who argue against it base their objections on an incomplete knowledge of this doctrine, or identify it with Austin Farrer's doctrine of double agency – again failing to do Aquinas justice. I analyse these objections, indicating how they do not address Aquinas' doctrine by offering a brief but full account of the latter.     

Prayer, Process, and the Future of Medicine

The wall of separation between spirituality and medicine is crumbling. Physicians are discovering the importance of prayer, spirituality, and religious participation in enhancing physical and mental health and responding to stressful life circumstances. A new metaphysical model is needed to replace the dualistic Cartesian-Newtonian model that has undergirded modern biomedicine. The process-relational metaphysics, influenced by the seminal thought of Alfred North Whitehead, is a fruitful alternative model for the future partnership of spirituality and medicine. A process-relational metaphysic supports this new partnership through its affirmation of (1) the relational nature of life, (2) the essential relatedness of mind, body, and spirit, (3) the multifactorial nature of causation in terms of health and illness, and (4) the affirmation of creativity and the redefinition of divine and human power in terms of partnership. This new metaphysical foundation provides a basis for including spiritual concerns in the care of patients, the education of physicians, and in professional self-care. Physicians are called to be partners with their patients, nurturing their own spiritual well-being even as they care for the spiritual well-being of their patients.