Mysticism

'Across a seemingly unbridgeable culture gap these very human saints of the Egyptian wilderness speak to our condition in the new demon-filled deserts of the urban west' (Martin Smith SSJE).

The fourth century European saint, John Cassian, has been honoured for over 1600 years by the universal church as one of the greatest of early monastic writers. His two great works, the Institutes and the Conferences, set out a vision for western...

St John of the Cross tells us how God leads us from violence to gentleness until we are gentle enough to experience the awesome gentleness of the inner life of God.

Dom Henri Le Saux (1910-1973) was a French Benedictine monk who pioneered relations between East and West when he was sent to India to found a Benedictine community. This is his story.

There is a paradox in Christian life and prayer: that God’s light is darkness and God’s nearness is hiddenness. Jesus, the human face of God, is our way and orientation through that darkness and incomprehension which are so often part of our...

This book provides an introduction and companion to the study of the fourteenth-century Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich. The meaning of the Revelations for those who are living a contemplative life today is explored through...

This book contains four papers read at a conference held on 2–3 February 2023 to mark 650 years of the Revelations of Divine Love. They show the breadth and reach of Julian’s inspiration in today’s world, from personal issues such as impatience and...

This short introduction to the spirituality of the leaders of the Carmelite Reform is a lively and approachable way into their thought and writings. Mother Mary Clare has set them in the context of their historical background in sixteenth-century...

Stories and sayings of the Desert Fathers, with an introduction to each section to help us understand the world of the early monks.

Eight Chapters on Perfection is Hilton’s translation of a Latin text by the Aragonese Friar Dom Lluis de Font, and is the only surviving record of that manuscript. It is a text of great humanity and wisdom about the possibilities of friendship and...

Clear, practical advice for Christians trying to balance duty to others with prayer and contemplation. The supreme example of the ‘mixed life’ is Christ himself.