Branch of theology that explains mystical practices and states
Part of a series on
Christian mysticism
Theology and philosophy
Apophatic
Ascetical
Cataphatic
Catholic spirituality
Hellenistic
Mystical theology
Neoplatonic
Henosis
Practices
Monasticism
Monasticism
Asceticism
Spiritual direction
Meditation
Meditation
Lectio Divina
Invoking of Mystic Saints
Active asceticism
Contemplation
Hesychasm
Jesus Prayer
Quietism
Stages of Christian perfection
Hesychia
Divinization
Catharsis
Theosis
Kenosis
Spiritual dryness
Religious ecstasy
Passive asceticism
Abstinence
Esoteric
Charismatic
Esoteric
People (by era or century)
Antiquity
Ancient African
Origen
Thomasines
Gregory of Nyssa
Pseudo-Dionysius
Desert Fathers
Paul of Thebes
Anthony the Great
Arsenius the Great
Poemen
Macarius of Egypt
Moses the Black
Syncletica
Athanasius
John Chrysostom
Hilarion
John Cassian
11th · 12th
Bernard of Clairvaux
Guigo II
Hildegard of Bingen
Symeon the New Theologian
13th · 14th
Dominican
Dominic de Guzmán
Franciscan
Francis of Assisi
Anthony of Padua
Bonaventure
Jacopone da Todi
Angela of Foligno
English
Richard Rolle
Walter Hilton
Julian of Norwich
Margery Kempe
Flemish
Beatrice of Nazareth
Lutgardis
Hadewijch
John van Ruysbroeck
German
Meister Eckhart
Johannes Tauler
Henry Suso
Female
Beatrice of Nazareth
Bridget of Sweden
Catherine of Siena
Mechthild of Magdeburg
Marguerite Porete
15th · 16th
Spanish
Ignatius of Loyola
Francisco de Osuna
John of Ávila
Teresa of Ávila
John of the Cross
Others
Catherine of Genoa
17th · 18th
French
Margaret Mary Alacoque
Pierre de Bérulle
Jean-Jacques Olier
Louis de Montfort
Charles de Condren
John Eudes
John of St. Samson
Others
Mary of Jesus of Ágreda
Anne Catherine Emmerich
Veronica Giuliani
Francis de Sales
19th
Dina Bélanger
Catherine Labouré
Mélanie Calvat
Maximin Giraud
Bernadette Soubirous
Conchita de Armida
Luisa Piccarreta
Mary of the Divine Heart
Thérèse of Lisieux
Gemma Galgani
20th
Padre Pio
Therese Neumann
Marthe Robin
Alexandrina of Balazar
Faustina Kowalska
Sister Lúcia of Fátima
Edgar Cayce
Simone Weil
Alfred Delp
Thomas Merton
Charles de Foucauld
Edvige Carboni
Elena Aiello
Contemporary papal views
Aspects of meditation (Orationis Formas, 1989)
Reflection on the New Age (2003)
Literature and media
Lingua ignota
Ordo Virtutum
Scivias
Ascent of Mount Carmel
Dark Night of the Soul
Spiritual Canticle
Way of Perfection
Book of the First Monks
The Interior Castle
Abbey of the Holy Ghost
A Dialogue of Comfort against Tribulation
From Willow Creek to Sacred Heart
The Glories of Mary
The Imitation of Christ
The Ladder of Divine Ascent
Philokalia
Revelations of Divine Love
The Story of a Soul
Theologia Germanica
Devotio Moderna
Fatima in Lucia's Own Words
Calls from the Message of Fatima
The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima
Sol de Fátima
The Cloud of Unknowing
On the Consolation of Philosophy
The Mirror of Simple Souls
Sister Catherine Treatise
Tractatus de Purgatorio Sancti Patricii
The Vision of Adamnán
Divine Comedy
Inferno
Purgatorio
Paradiso
Fatima
v
t
e
Part of a series on
Esotericism
Key concepts
Western esotericism
Eastern esotericism
Mysticism
Gnosis
Correspondences
Magic
Astrology
Alchemy
Meditation
Theosophy
Theurgy
Spiritual Hierarchy
Hermeticism
Kabbalah
Occult
Transcendental Unity of Religions
Metaphysics
Mystical theology
Esoteric rites
Initiation
Transmission
Rites of passage
Purification
Divination
Astral projection
Invocation
Evocation
Visualization
Egregore
Propitiation
Sacrifice
Exorcism
Esoteric societies
Sufi tariqas
Philadelphian Society
Freemasonry
S.R.I.A.
Élus Coëns
Rosicrucians
OTO
Golden Dawn
Thelemic Order
Notable figures
Pythagoras
Plato
Hermes Trismegistus
Dionysius
Ibn Arabi
Paracelsus
Dee
Böhme
Lévi
Blavatsky
Waite
Mathers
Hall
Crowley
Gurdjieff
Guénon
Evola
Schuon
Steiner
Jung
v
t
e
Mystical theology is the branch of theology in the Christian tradition that deals with divine encounter[1] and the self-communication of God with the faithful;[2] such as to explain mystical practices and states, as induced by contemplative practices such as contemplative prayer, called theoria from the Greek for contemplation.
It can be contrasted to an extent with propositional theology e.g., systematic theology, dogmatic theology, scholastic theology, ecclesiology or treated as their forerunner: its subject and aim is not knowledge but divine encounter.
^"Mystical theology explores and interprets every doctrine to help believers find there a doorway into a living, transformative encounter with the divine reality to which, Christians believe, their theological language is meant to point." Introduction, McIntosh, Mark A. (25 February 2020). "Mystical Theology at the Heart of Theology". The Oxford Handbook of Mystical Theology: 1–5. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198722380.002.
^"Understood in its ancient expansive sense, mystical theology is not a sub-discipline, attending to particular states of spiritual experience; rather it is the Christian theological mind itself whenever it seeks to recognize and understand more deeply the hidden (i.e. mystical) self-communication of God in all things, at work to achieve their reconciling, healing, and perfecting, their greatest possible participation in God. " Abstract, McIntosh, Mark A. (25 February 2020). "Mystical Theology at the Heart of Theology". The Oxford Handbook of Mystical Theology. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198722380.013.2.
Mysticaltheology is the branch of theology in the Christian tradition that deals with divine encounter and the self-communication of God with the faithful;...
Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mysticaltheology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation [of the person] for...
early Church Fathers, who used the term as an adjective, as in mysticaltheology and mystical contemplation. Theoria enabled the Fathers to perceive depths...
realities." Under the influence of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite the mysticaltheology came to denote the investigation of the allegorical truth of the Bible...
Orthodox Churches) and the mystical traditions of western Europe, that apophatic theology became a central element of Christian theology and contemplative practice...
theological concern was exegesis of mysticaltheology in Christian traditions. He argued in The MysticalTheology of the Eastern Church (1944) that theologians...
Within the Christian tradition, bridal theology, also referred to as mystical marriage, is the New Testament portrayal of communion with Jesus as a marriage...
202. Lossky, V. The MysticalTheology of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Louth, Andrew (2007). "The Place of Theosis in Orthodox Theology". In Christensen,...
mystical holism. Tamar Ross develops an evolving Modern / Open Orthodox feminist approach to the problems of revelation, developed from the theology of...
Henosis, the classical Greek word for mystical "oneness", "union" or "unity" Hypostatic union, term in Christian theology to describe the presence of both...
appropriated diagrammatic aspects of Llull's thought for his own mysticaltheology. Whereas Llull's use of figures and combinatorics had been literal...
Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, κατά". Vladimir Lossky, The MysticalTheology of the Orthodox Church (1957 [1944]), page 25.[need quotation to verify]...
Christian theology of the Eucharist. For some it may be symbolic, for others it becomes a more literal or mystical understanding. In Catholic theology the use...
was a Saxon canon regular and a leading theologian and writer on mysticaltheology. As with many medieval figures, little is known about Hugh's early...
termed V Lossky's MysticalTheology of the Eastern Church as a "neopatristic synthesis". Lossky's main tenet of the MysticalTheology was to show through...
emperors. Athanasius was a Church Father, the chief proponent of Nicene theology against the anti-Nicenes, and a noted Egyptian Christian leader of the...
scholastic Bonaventure (Franciscan). The century also saw a flourishing of mysticaltheology, with women such as Mechthild of Magdeburg playing a prominent role...
Romanian) Vladimir Lossky, Teologia mistică a Bisericii de Răsărit (The MysticalTheology of the Eastern Church), translation from French, Anastasia Ed., Bucharest...
refers to the development of mystical practices and theory within Christianity. It has often been connected to mysticaltheology, especially in the Roman...
monasticism Christian mysticism Enclosed religious orders Immured anchorite Mysticaltheology Shugendō Sadhu Stylite "The cell of enclosure, however, was equated...
the Christian community through baptism and Eucharist. Roman Catholic theology enumerates seven sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation (Chrismation), Eucharist...
central distinctives of Erasmus' writing on Christian living and his mysticaltheology: "the sum and summary of our religion is peace and unanimity" At the...
pleasures with desire and passion. Morality is not seen in the ancient theology as a balancing act between right and wrong, but a form of spiritual transformation...
stillness". Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, a scholar of Eastern Orthodox theology, distinguishes five distinct usages of the term "hesychasm": "solitary...
Church "as a purely mystical body, the understanding of which cannot be attained through the development of a rational or natural theology." The church includes...