The Mysteries of Western Christianity

Saints or heretics? The mystics of Western Christianity, men and women, burning with divine love, sought to find the path that leads to mystical union with God, often defying social and religious norms. Most did not hesitate to strongly criticize their Church for its corruption and lack of true spirituality. Their teachings were considered suspect, many were handed over to the Inquisition, while some were condemned and put to death at the stake. Persecution and accusation of heresy led to oblivion of their works and bold mystical ideas until modern times. Few were recognized as saints, bringing a breath of spirituality to Western Christianity. The present study, documented with sources and original texts, sheds light on this overlooked and misunderstood form of religiosity, the mysticism of the West. It brings us people, their teachings, their paradoxical and controversial spiritual experiences, such as visions, prophecies, trances and flatulences. It also traces their interrelationships, sources of inspiration and influence, in a thorough and readable manner. The reader, through the spiritual richness and diversity of ideas of Western mystics, will deepen their understanding of the religious phenomenon and the mystical path that leads to communion and mystical union with the divine.

A comprehensive and well-documented study of the phenomenon of mysticism in the context of Western Christianity. The great figures of male and female mystics, the inner experiences, the paradoxical experiences (visions, trances, prophecies, etc.), their teaching and the typology of the secret path to union with God are presented. Their relations with their Churches and the thorny problem of orthodoxy and heresy in their mysticism are also examined.