A Course in Christian Mysticism

Thomas Merton (1915-1968), Catholic convert, Cistercian monk and hermit, poet, contemplative, social critic, and pioneer of interreligious dialogue, was a seminal figure of twentieth-century American Christianity. Jon M. Sweeney is an independent scholar and one of religion’s most respected writers. His many books include James Martin, SJ: In the Company of Jesus, in the “People of God” series; The Pope Who Quit, which was optioned by HBO; and The Pope’s Cat, a popular fiction series for children. He edited A Course in Christian Mysticism by Thomas Merton, published by Liturgical Press. Sweeney writes regularly for America in the US, and The Tablet in the UK. He is the publisher at Paraclete Press in Massachusetts, and lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with his wife and daughters.

Contents
Foreword  - Michael N. McGregor
Editor’s Prologue
Preface
Lecture 1: The Aim of This Course
Lecture 2: Mystical Theology in St. John’s Gospel
Lecture 3: Martyrs and Gnostics (Ignatius, Irenaeus, Clement, and Origen)
Lecture 4: Divinization and Mysticism (The Cappadocian Fathers)
Lecture 5: Evagrius Ponticus
Lecture 6: Contemplation and the Cosmos (Maximus the Confessor)
Lecture 7: The Dionysian Tradition
Lecture 8: Western Mysticism: The Influence of St. Augustine
Lecture 9: St. Bernard of Clairvaux
Lecture 10: St. Bernard’s Sermons on the Song of Songs. .
Lecture 11: Fourteenth Century Mysticism: The Béguines, Eckhart, Tauler
Lecture 12: Spanish Mysticism: St. Teresa of Avila and Others
Lecture 13: St. John of the Cross: Dark Nights and Spiritual Crises
More Sources and Readings
Group Discussion Topics and Questions
Editor’s Notes
Index