The Mysticism of Ordinary Life : Theology, Philosophy, and Feminism

The Mysticism of Ordinary Life: Theology, Philosophy, and Feminism presents a new vision of Christian mystical theology. It offers critical interpretations of Catholic theologians, postmodern philosophers, and intersectional feminists who draw on mystical traditions to affirm ordinary life. It raises questions about normativity, gender, and race, while arguing that the everyday experience of the grace of divine union can be an empowering source of social transformation. It develops Christian teachings about the Word made flesh, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and the Christian spiritual life, while exploring the mystical significance of philosophical discourses about immanence, alterity, in-betweenness, nothingness, and embodiment. The discussion of Latino/a and Black sources in North America expands the Western mystical canon and opens new horizons for interdisciplinary dialogue. The volume challenges contemporary culture to recognize and draw inspiration from quotidian manifestations of the unknown God of incarnate love. It includes detailed studies of Grace Jantzen, Amy Hollywood, Catherine Keller, Karl Rahner, Adrienne von Speyr, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Michel Henry, Michel de Certeau, Luce Irigaray, Julia Kristeva, Gloría Anzaldúa, Ada María Isasi-Díaz, Alice Walker, M. Shawn Copeland, and more. Cover The Mysticism of Ordinary Life Theology, Philosophy, and Feminism Copyright Contents Acknowledgments Introduction: A New Vision of Christian Mystical Theology Mysticism as the Grace of Divine Union What Makes a Life Ordinary? Comparable Studies The Path Ahead Part I: Catholic Mystical Theologians In The Twentieth Century 1 Grace in the Ordinary: The Mystical Theology of Karl Rahner A Christian Theology of Universal Grace An Ascetical Mysticism of Ordinary Life A Gender-Neutral Theory of Mysticism? A Prayerful Thinker at Heart 2. Obedience, Love, and Suffering: The Mystical Theology of Adrienne von Speyr and Hans Urs von Balthasar The Relationship between Speyr and Balthasar Gender Theory and Hagiography Feminist Critiques of Speyr and Balthasar’s Gender Theory Hagiography as Immanent Critique Mystical Obedience Mystical Marriage Mystical Suffering and Death Part II: Christian Mysticism And Postmodern Philosophy 3. Immanence and Alterity: The Mystical Styles of Michel Henry and Michel de Certeau Mystical Immanence: Michel Henry Henry’s Philosophical Interpretation of Christian Mysticism Henry’s Other(s) Henry on Suffering and Joy Mystical Alterity: Michel de Certeau Certeau’s History and Theory of Christian Mysticism A Heterological Mysticism of Ordinary Life The Prospects for a Christian Mystical Theology after Certeau 4. The Other Within: Constructs of Mystical Femininity in Luce Irigaray and Julia Kristeva Remembered Origins Early Irigaray: Mysticisms in Conflict Early Kristeva: Dialectical Tensions New Beginnings Irigaray on Nature and Grace Kristeva on Hatred and Love The “French Feminist” Politics of Gender and Racial Difference Gender Essentialism? Traces of Race Breathing, Writing, and Loving Irigaray’s Practice of Yoga Kristeva’s Text on Teresa Seeking a Greater Love Part III: Intersectional Feminism: Mystical Traditions from the American Side of the Atlantic 5. The Divine in Between: Gloria Anzaldúa, Ada María Isasi-Díaz, and Other Mestizo/a Mystical Sources Mystical Mestizaje The Mysticism of La Lucha and Lo Cotidiano Mystical Encounters with La Virgen de Guadalupe Via Crucis 6. Divine Darkness Revisited: Alice Walker, M. Shawn Copeland, and Other Womanist and Black Mystical Sources Mystical Blackness: Between Being and Nothingness The Graced Lives of Black Women Mystical Narratives of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Evangelists Mystical Characters in Walker’s Fiction The Mysticism of Christian Womanist Theologians Mystical Corporeality Crucified Bodies Erotic, Joyous Bodies The Embodied Spirit of Freedom A Return to Mystical Darkness Conclusion Bibliography Index The Mysticism of Ordinary Life presents a new vision of Christian mystical theology, offering critical interpretations of the theologians, philosophers, and intersectional feminists who draw on mystical traditions to affirm ordinary life, arguing that everyday experiences of divine grace can be an empowering source of social transformation.