The Role of Mysticism in Modern Theology

Abstract

During the course of the twentieth century the study of mysticism in Catholic theology underwent dramatic changes. Around the turn of the century concern with mysticism was found mainly in Neoscholastic theology, which tried to measure a few selected mystics (e.g., Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross) according to the reigning Neothomist paradigm. But in the first three decades of the twentieth century a number of Catholic philosophers and theologians, primarily in France and England (many sympathetic with so-called “Modernism”), gave new attention to the historical and philosophical dimensions of mysticism. This research was arrested by the crisis of the World War II and its preparations, although the historical retrieval of many mystical texts begun during that time was continued in later decades. This ongoing historical retrieval made possible a new age of theological engagement with mysticism that emerged around the time of Vatican II, as represented by figures such as Henri de Lubac, Karl Rahner, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Bernard Lonergan. Renewed efforts to make mystical literature available to a wide audience over the past decades has produced a situation in which important currents of contemporary thought, such as Postmodernism, have made significant contributions to the investigation of the meaning of Christian mysticism.