{"id":142,"date":"2009-01-14T11:02:02","date_gmt":"2009-01-14T11:02:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/tonyjones\/2009\/01\/is-mysticism-gnostic.html"},"modified":"2009-01-14T11:02:02","modified_gmt":"2009-01-14T11:02:02","slug":"is-mysticism-gnostic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/tonyjones\/2009\/01\/is-mysticism-gnostic.html","title":{"rendered":"Is Mysticism Gnostic?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In my Monday post<\/a>, I mused that the “secret knowledge” vibe expounded by some conservative Christians opens them to the charge of gnosticism.  Some commenters mentioned that the other primary characteristic of gnosticism is a strict, platonic dualism.  This, too, I think is descriptive of some conservatives in their conception of the body-spirit split, their lack of interest in creation care, etc.<\/p>\n

In that post, I also linked to another blogger who questioned my Christianity<\/a>.  His point is common among my hyper-conservative critics: they think that my<\/a> books<\/a> on prayer<\/a> and spirituality<\/a> display mystical tendencies that are somehow anti-Christian.  Contra that point, I think commenter Albert the Abstainer makes a good point:<\/p>\n

\n

Exclusive mysticism is ego-deception. Genuine mysticism is a process
\nof shedding the deceptions of the ego in the fires of longing created
\nby the Divine. If it is hidden, it is hidden in plain sight, in the
\ncontemplation of the love that draws, in the silent spaces where that
\nquiet voice is deafening Presence. <\/p>\n

Genuine mysticism crosses the boundaries of cultural and religious
\ntraditions, and is not housed in frames of secrecy. Reading the poetry
\nof the mystics from different traditions, many sighs of recognition
\nerupt within me. When the Beloved is present, all wrappings, veils and
\ncontainers lay scattered on the floor.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

True Christian mysticism is not in search of some secret revelation from God to the individual.  It is, instead, a contemplative Christian practice is meant to clear the table of all the distractions of life so that we who wish to can simply rest in God’s presence.  There’s no magic involved. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In my Monday post, I mused that the “secret knowledge” vibe expounded by some conservative Christians opens them to the charge of gnosticism.  Some commenters mentioned that the other primary characteristic of gnosticism is a strict, platonic dualism.  This, too, I think is descriptive of some conservatives in their conception of the body-spirit split, their…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":134,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spirituality"],"yoast_head":"\nIs Mysticism Gnostic? - The New Christians<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/tonyjones\/2009\/01\/is-mysticism-gnostic.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is Mysticism Gnostic? - The New Christians\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In my Monday post, I mused that the “secret knowledge” vibe expounded by some conservative Christians opens them to the charge of gnosticism.  Some commenters mentioned that the other primary characteristic of gnosticism is a strict, platonic dualism.  This, too, I think is descriptive of some conservatives in their conception of the body-spirit split, their…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/tonyjones\/2009\/01\/is-mysticism-gnostic.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The New Christians\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2009-01-14T11:02:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Tony Jones\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Is Mysticism Gnostic? - The New Christians","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/tonyjones\/2009\/01\/is-mysticism-gnostic.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Is Mysticism Gnostic? 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