9.26.09 MYSTICISM

westminster abbey in london is one of the few places in the world that doien'disappoint. the man part of wetminster is the cathedral: an enormous, basilica-stle monastery of gothic architecture that leaves one with a breathtaking vision of the height and depth of, if not God at least of the worshipers' concept of God. with the sheer amount of space between the floor and soaring vaults, from the back of the nave to the altar, as well as the complicated artistry on every wall and window, you find yourself awed by everything that speaks of the unimaginable greatness of God. you have a peculiar sense that God is very present and yet not altogether accessible. this is not an unpleasnt experience; on the contrary, you realize that your idea of God has probably been domesticated and confined.

we might refer to such an experience as mystical, although the term is commonly associated in the western mind with something that is highly subjective and meant for only the few. thisis..a stunted definition. in ancient christian theologuy, mystical refers to the wonder of the christian story, the fulfilling of the Father's plan of redemption in Christ, which paul refers to as the 'mystery' I tim 3.16..

ambrose of milan, the 4th century bishop, declared that our very faith 'is the mystery of the trinity', as is the Lord's supper and ..baptism..john cassian taught that scripture too contains the mystery in the form of words, which describe the works of God that are disclosed to human minds only by grace. because God Himself in mystery, we should expect to find throughout the divine text depths and hidden realities that exceed our knowledge. none of these mysteries should be regarded as problems. the distance between creature and Creator is not something to be overcome or removed as if it were an obstacle to growth in the christian life...like many important points of theology, the knowledge of God and the unknowable God have produced a balancing act that historic christianity has sought to preserve. as a result , christianity has struggled since the 3rd century to avoid what (is)...called a 'tyranny of epistemology' in its understanding of God and God's revelation to us. simply put, this tyranny occurs when christians think of God as a great field of investigation, a problem to be solved..

in a fascinating , little-known book..the life of moses (commentary on exodus 1-20), gregory of nyssa attempts to present an anatomy of christian spirituality which he says is a movement from light to darkenss...he was very aware of those in his day who claimed to have a rational knowldege of God that violated the very essence of God. such people asserted that if you know descriptions for God's essence, you could intellectually grasp the being of the divine. in respone, gregory wrote, 'how can our mind, whic always operated on a dimensional image, comprehend a nature that has no dimension?' .. as moses went through stages in his ascent to God, so must we. the first stage..'the way of light'..involves our detachment from the love of things and the purification of the soul..'blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God'. only by purifying ourselves can we become recipients of divine knowledge..we would do well to think of acquiring knowledge about God not through purely rational means, as protestants are wont to do, but by making ourselves a worthy receptacle that can hold such knowledge..second stage is illumination, characterized by an awareness of moving from the sensible to invisible realities. in gregorys progression..this is tha stage of moses' journey in which he entering the cloud..the cloud blocks all outward appearances, compelling and accustoming the sould to look within. here we find the image of God and thereby a knowledge of God. .we must not confuse this knowledge of God with knowledge of God as he is. there is only an awareness of God's presence..the third stage ..depicts moses entering the darkness and seeing God in it..moses approached the thick darkness where God was....john 1.18 states, 'no one has ever seen God'..this darkness expresses that the divine nature remains inaccessible because god is infinite..it should be obvious, then , that no finite mind can plumb the depths of God..gregory puts it, 'how can one arrive at the boundary sought for when there is no boundary?' this is the kind of effect westminster abbey can hav..here is whaer gregory..makes his most noteworthy contribution to christian theology: that the christian life must first be defined by seeking God without end and 'that true satisfaction of the soul's desire consists in constantly going on with this quest and never ceasing in the ascent to God'. this is a joyful conclusion, since it ensures that one can always progess in holiness because spiritual progress is on of infinite growth. for the platonist, all change is regarded as a defect ofr loss; in gregory's system, the process of changing may be redeemed by perpetual growth in the good. it is this sort of movement that describes our transformation 'from one degree of glory to another II cor 3.18 esv. however much the christian is transformed into the likeness of God, God remains ever beyond, so that the sould must always push forward in anticipation in this life and in the one to come.

we must pursue the viruous life. it begins by emulating those whom God has used to fufill His purposes of good. this notion dates back to plato and plutarch, who wrote of the many lives of great men worthy of admiration and imitation. in this same vein, the roman stoic philosoqher seneca wrote, 'plato, aristotle, and the whole throng of sages..derived more benefiet from the character of socrates than from his words'. a similar emphasis is found in the Bible job (patience)..abraham (faith..Jesus..go and DO likewise..and paul..'be imitators of me'

you can't teach virtue by means of words (note: what about 'the things you have learned and received and HEARD and seen in me, practice these things..phil. 4.9)..5th century..palladius..'teaching consists of virtuous acts of conduct: cheerfulness, courageousness, bravery, goodness..which generates words like a flame of fire'...mystical understanding works like this: it's always a mixture of knowledge and ignorance, possession and quest, immanence and transcendence...what we discover in the end is that the intellect by itself can never lead anyone to the virtues of the soul...protestantism..built on a gnostic scheme of a knowledge that saves (?!)..the sermon, not the liturgy is central.