cover image Growth of Mysticism: From Gregory the Great Through the 12 Century

Growth of Mysticism: From Gregory the Great Through the 12 Century

Bernard McGinn. Crossroad Publishing Company, $49.5 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-8245-1450-1

In his first volume, The Foundations of Mysticism, McGinn traced the development of Christian mysticism in the West from its earliest expressions to its fifth-century forms. This second book in a planned four-volume study guides the reader on a spectacular tour of the landscape of Christian mysticism as it evolves from 500 C.E. to 1200 C.E. After exploring the cultural forces that allowed the early medieval growth of mystical traditions, the volume examines the unique contributions of Pope Gregory the Great, John Scotus Erigena and such great contemplatives as Bernard of Clairvaux. McGinn demonstrates brilliantly that, while mysticism often arose out of the monastic emphasis on order and charity, the medieval Christian mystical tradition finds its true life in the variety of its expressions. A seminal study from the leading authority on Christian mysticism. (Dec.)