The heart of the Christian faith is a direct encounter with God so profound that it can be referred to as union. It is an experience that cannot be described in words, but it can be glimpsed—in the radiant lives of the men and women called mystics. Here James Harpur presents the stories of some of the most influential Christian mystics from the past two thousand years. He provides their historical and ecclesiastical contexts, as well as appreciations of the unique contributions of each of them to the ongoing articulation of the way of love and union. Love Burning in the Soul is a comprehensive and highly readable survey of the great Christian mystical tradition for everyone. Included are: Clement of Alexandria * Gregory of Nyssa * John Scotus Eriugena * Bernard of Clairvaux * Hildegard of Bingen * Francis of Assisi * Mechtild of Magdeburg * Meister Eckhart * John Tauler * Jan van Ruysbroeck * Gregory Palamas * Richard Rolle * Julian of Norwich * Catherine of Siena * Jacob Boehme * George Fox * Teresa of Ávila * François Fénelon * Jean Pierre de Caussade * William Blake * Pierre Teilhard de Chardin * Thomas Merton * Many others

Love Burning in the Soul: The Story of Christian Mystics, from Saint Paul to Thomas Merton

History

Harpur, James

World

New Seeds

A landmark work of scholarship and literary translation, The Gnostic Bible presents the most significant and beautiful sacred texts of gnostic mysticism. The gnostics were religious thinkers who believed that salvation is found through mystical knowledge and personal religious experience. Gnostic writings offer striking perspectives on both early Christian and non-Christian thought. Dating from the first to the thirteenth centuries, the selections in this volume represent Jewish, Christian, Hermetic, Mandaean, Manichaean, Islamic, and Cathar forms of gnostic spirituality, and their sources include Egypt, the Greco-Roman world, the Middle East, Syria, Iraq, China, and France. These texts show that gnosticism was a world religion that sought truths in a wide variety of traditions and expressed those truths in powerful and provocative mystical poetry and prose. This is the first time that such a diverse collection of ancient gnostic texts has been published in a single volume, and many of the texts have never before been translated into English.

The Gnostic Bible

Religion & Spirituality

Christian Books & Bibles

Where God Happens: Discovering Christ in One Another and Other Lessons from the Desert Fathers

Rowan Williams

Desmond Tutu

Where God Happens: Discovering Christ in One Another

The place "where God happens," according to Rowan Williams's striking new reading of the Desert Fathers and Mothers, is between each other . It's a truth that we of the twenty-first century most urgently need to learn in order to heal the experience of alienation that has become endemic to our age, and these odd and appealing ancient figures, surprisingly, hold keys to this healing. The fourth-century Christian hermits of Egypt, Syria, and Palestine understood the truth of Christian community profoundly, and their lives demonstrate it vividly—even though they often lived in solitude and isolation. The author breaks through our preconceived ideas of the Desert Fathers to reveal them in a new light: as true and worthy role models—even for us in our modern lives—who have much to teach us about dealing with the anxieties, uncertainties, and sense of isolation that have become hallmarks of modern life. They especially embody valuable insights about community, about how to live together in an intimate and meaningful way. Williams makes these radical figures, who clearly have a special place in his heart, come to life in a new way for everyone. The book includes an appendix of selections from the teachings of the Desert Fathers.

Chanting the psalms, or psalmody, is an ancient practice of vital importance in the Christian spiritual tradition. Today many think of it as a discipline that belongs only in monasteries—but psalmody is a spiritual treasure that is available to anyone who prays. You don’t need to be musical or a monk to do it, and it can be enjoyed in church liturgical worship, in groups, or even individually as part of a personal rule of prayer. Cynthia Bourgeault brings the practice into the twenty-first century, providing a history of Christian psalmody as well as an appreciation of its place in contemplative practice today. And she teaches you how to do it as you chant along with her on the accompanying CD in which she demonstrates the basic techniques and easy melodies that anyone can learn. “Even if you can’t read music,” Cynthia says, “or if somewhere along the way you’ve absorbed the message that your voice is no good or you can’t sing on pitch, I’ll still hope to show you that chanting the psalms is accessible to nearly everyone.”

Chanting the Psalms: A Practical Guide with Instructional CD

BOURGEAULT, CYNTHIA

This pocket-sized treasury of wisdom from the influential Christian contemplative, political activist, social visionary, and literary figure is abridged from the larger collection Seeds by Robert Inchausti (Shambhala, 2002).

The Pocket Thomas Merton (Shambhala Pocket Classics)

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Alternative Medicine

Hundreds of sayings were attributed to the sage from Nazareth by ancient admirers. More than fifteen hundred versions of five hundred quotations are attributed to Jesus in the New Testament, the Gospel of Thomas, and other Gospels found at Nag Hammadi. Marvin Meyer has combed additional Jewish, Muslim, and Christian sources for another 200 of the most fascinating epigrams and parables ascribed to Jesus. Dr. Meyer includes an intriguing introduction and annotations that put the sayings into perspective.

The Unknown Sayings of Jesus

Meyer, Marvin

Thousands have fallen in love with the anonymously authored book The Way of a Pilgrim—the account of an ordinary man's encounter with the Eastern Orthodox Christian practice of the Jesus Prayer, which consists of the constant repetition of the short phrase, "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy upon me." Here is the perfect introduction to this life-changing practice, as it was taught by one of the great spiritual lights of Russia. Bishop Ignatius Brianchaniov (1807–1867) provides wise instruction and advice covering all aspects of the practice, from how to get started, to approaching difficulties that arise, to dealing with friends and family who don't get what you're doing, to making this prayer (also called the Prayer of the Heart) the foundation of your life.

On the Prayer of Jesus: The Classic Guide to the Practice of Unceasing Prayer Found in The Way of a Pilgrim

Brianchaninov, Ignatius

This introduction to the writing and preaching of the greatest medieval European mystic contains selections from his sermons, treatises, and sayings, as well as Table Talk, the records of his informal advice to his spiritual children.

Meister Eckhart, from Whom God Hid Nothing: Sermons, Writings, and Sayings

Literature & Fiction

Meister Eckhart

History & Criticism

From John Chrysostom in the fourth century to Teresa of Avila in the sixteenth to William Butler Yeats in the twentieth, this wide-ranging collection is a treasury of writings on prayer from throughout the history of Christianity. Lorraine Kisly has arranged the material according to the great general themes of prayer—such as praise, thanksgiving, repentance, and purification—to make this anthology serve as a course in Christian prayer for anyone, as well as a marvelous companion for the contemplative journey in general. "If this book is read truly," says Bishop Seraphim Sigrist, in his introduction, "the reader will surely find the beginning of prayer itself, and this is to open another book with no end at all." Christian Teachings on the Practice of Prayer features writings by: • Angela of Foligno • Augustine of Hippo • Bernard of Clairvaux • Dietrich Bonhoeffer • Ephrem of Syria • Francis of Assisi • John Donne • George Fox • C. G. Jung • Søren Kierkegaard • C. S. Lewis • Martin Luther • Thomas Merton • Meister Eckhart • Henri Nouwen • Flannery O'Connor • Marguerite Porete • Seraphin of Sarov • Teresa of Avila • Pierre Teilhard de Chardin • John Wesley • Evelyn Underhill • many more

Christian Teachings on the Practice of Prayer: From the Early Church to the Present

Kisly, Lorraine

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