The Globalization of Hesychasm and the Jesus Prayer: Contesting Contemplation (Continuum Advances in Religious Studies, 5)

The Meditative Prayer Practices Known As Hesychasm And The Jesus Prayer Have Played An Important Role In The History Of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. This Book Explores How These Prayer Practices Have Spread From A Primarily Monastic Setting Within Orthodox Christianity, Into General Orthodox Christian Usage, And Finally Into Wider Contemporary Western Culture. As A Result Of This Gradual Geographic Shift From A Local To A Global Setting, Caused Mainly By Immigration And Dissemination Of Related Texts, There Has Been A Parallel Shift Of Interpretation Causing Disagreement. By Analyzing Ongoing Conversations On The Practices, This Book Shows How Such Disagreements Are Due To Differences In The Way Groups Understand The Ideas Of Authority And Tradition. These Fundamental Ideas Lie Beneath Much Of The Current Discussion On Particular Aspects Of The Practices And Also Contribute To The Wider Academic Debate Over The Globalization And Appropriation Of Religious Traditions. Christopher D.l. Johnson. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "The meditative prayer practices known as Hesychasm and the Jesus Prayer have played an important role in the history of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. This book explores how these prayer practices have spread from a primarily monastic setting within Orthodox Christianity, into general Orthodox Christian usage, and finally into wider contemporary Western culture. As a result of this gradual geographic shift from a local to a global setting, caused mainly by immigration and dissemination of related texts, there has been a parallel shift of interpretation causing disagreement. By analyzing ongoing conversations on the practices, this book shows how such disagreements are due to differences in the way groups understand the ideas of authority and tradition. These fundamental ideas lie beneath much of the current discussion on particular aspects of the practices and also contribute to the wider academic debate over the globalization and appropriation of religious traditions."--Bloomsbury Publishing. The meditative prayer practices known as Hesychasm and the Jesus Prayer have played an important role in the history of Eastern Orthodox Christianity.This book explores how these prayer practices have spread from a primarily monastic setting within Orthodox Christianity, into general Orthodox Christian usage, and finally into wider contemporary Western culture. As a result of this gradual geographic shift from a local to a global setting, caused mainly by immigration and dissemination of related texts, there has been a parallel shift of interpretation causing disagreement. By analyzing ongoing conversations on the practices, this book shows how such disagreements are due to differences in the way groups understand the ideas of authority and tradition. These fundamental ideas lie beneath much of the current discussion on particular aspects of the practices and also contribute to the wider academic debate over the globalization and appropriation of religious traditions. > Johnson (religious studies, U. of Alabama-Tuscaloosa) describes how two religious practices that began in Orthodox Christian monastic settings have spread into the wider world. The transformation in the interpretation of the practices parallels that in other situations in which a local practice goes global and enters a wider sphere of contestation, he says. He covers the practices themselves, the history of how they have spread, where they have spread, discussions about the practice, authority, tradition, and appropriations. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)