It seems that throughout history, mystics in the realm of Christianity have been few and far between. Furthermore, as far as I can tell, no branch of Christianity besides Catholicism has produced any notable mystics. My questions are:
Are there any examples of mystics from non-Catholic Christian traditions?
Are there branches of Christianity that focus on mysticism rather than scripture?
Are there any good books anyone can recommend about Christian mysticism, and its history?
For the sake of curbing debate about the meaning of “mysticism,” I mean the almost exclusive reliance on direct, tangible experience of God-- rather than scripture-- as the foundation of spiritual/religious philosophy.
Well, your definition sounds like it could describe ecstatic or charismatic sects - the direct, tangible experience of God is pretty central to Pentecostalism.
There have been numerous cults that would match your description, but I’m gathering you’re going for more structured and recognized religions (like Sufism is to Islam).
Based on your definition, the entire Protestant branch of Christianity, which emphasizes acceptance of Jesus as one’s personal savior and reliance on faith alone as the key to salvation, could fall into that category, with the Pentecostal and charismatic branches being only the most obvious examples.
Yeah. I should clarify - I wouldn’t consider Pentecostals to be mystics in any sense. But I wasn’t sure what the OP was asking, exactly, since his definition of mysticism didn’t seem to match up with how I use the word.
Hmm, I’m not sure. But I would say it involves esoteric knowledge of some sort. Esoteric knowledge inspired by the divine.
Whereas Pentecostals and other charismatics believe in being instilled with the Holy Ghost - in a very direct and tangible way - and it takes the form of speaking in tongues, dancing, singing, and weirder stuff (the “laying on of hands”, snakehandling, drinking poisons . . . ). Not things I would lump under “mysticism”.
I wouldn’t put that under the mysticism category either, but I’m not sure why. What about this stuff makes me want to exclude it? I guess maybe I see mysticism as less structured, less organized, more a lifestyle than a religion. A mystic tradition probably wouldn’t rely on scripture or a large amount of written tradition. It seems to me to embody something more personal and contemplative, perhaps less social.
I guess the answer to this question would be telling: Is there a tradition of mysticism that doesn’t involve meditation?
I think the key is the notion of gaining knowledge via one’s personal relationship with God. While many Protestant churches place a heavy emphasis on the personal relationship with God, they also generally hold that theology should come soley from scriptural sources.