Pauline mysticism
Encyclopedia
Pauline mysticism is mysticism associated with Pauline Christianity
. Pauline mysticism shows distinct differences from mystical theology
.
Pauline mysticism centres around the mystery of Christ in the believer and the believer in Christ, who is believed to be the one and only mediator between man and God, whereas Mystical theology
allows for people from all religions to partake in a journey towards obtaining oneness with the divine and shows secret paths to seekers on how to obtain such oneness.
As per the Boston Collaborative Encyclopedia of Western Theology with regards to the views of Albert Schweitzer
, Schweitzer did not believe that Paul represents an appropriation of Hellenistic or Greek ideas into Christianity. Pauline mysticism is not about “being one with God or being in God” (Schweitzer, 1930, 3) and sonship to God is not conceived as “an immediate mystical relation to God, but as mediated and effected by means of a mystical union with Christ”.
Paul does not commend any kind of “God-mysticism”, but rather saw human beings to enter into relation with God by means of a “Christ-mysticism”, and it is this mysticism which is central to Paul's message.
The fundamental thought of Pauline mysticism runs thus: in the mystery of "I am in Christ; in Him I know myself as a being who is raised above this sensuous, sinful, and transient world and already belongs to the transcendent; in Him I am assured of resurrection; in Him I am a Child of God"
Another feature of Paul’s mysticism is that the Christian is “conceived as having died and risen again with Him”, thus, the believer has been set free from sin and the Law and now possesses the Spirit of Christ and is thus assured of resurrection. .
According to Schweitzer, the Christ-mysticism experienced by Christians is reckoned by Paul to be a kind of co-experiencing of Christ’s death and resurrection: And as for redemption, it is accomplished by Jesus’ resurrection. The perishable world is a stage on which angels of heaven and demons do battle. Jesus also becomes a Messianic King with command over angels who is able to defeat all who oppose God.
Paul emphasise justification by faith alone (Sola fide
), in the Epistle to the Romans. Christ’s death is portrayed as a sin offering, which erases sin and makes God’s forgiveness possible. This “righteousness by faith” is also individualistic and detached from participation in the mystical Body of Christ, and it does not lead to an ethical theory:
Paul arrives at the idea of a faith which rejects not only the works of the Law, but works in general. Yet, ethics are not absent from the thought of Paul, but rather they are re-conceived. By participating in Christ’s death and resurrection, the believer becomes a new creation. In principle the believer is no longer able to sin. However, this participation proceeds gradually making ethics necessary. “It is only in so far as a man is purified and liberated from the world that he becomes capable of truly ethical action”. Paul describes ethical action in many ways, including sanctification, giving up the service of sin, and living for God. Love is seen as the highest manifestation of this ethical life..
Paul is seen as the architect of this "cross centred" theology, referred to Jesus as "Christ" and stressing his messianic role. His resurrection is seen as the prototype for the future resurrection of all of humanity. St. Paul had often been criticized for directing attention away from the life and teachings of Jesus to a more mystical religion revolving around the godlike Christ, one focused upon his saving death. It had also been pointed out that his concept is almost entirely absent from the speeches of the disciples as described in the book of Acts.
Redemption is seen as an act of ascent, not mystical experience.
According to David Wells, the type of Christian spirituality that became increasingly popular in this postmodern age, is distinctly different from "Agape faith". In his book Above All Earthly Pow’rs: Christ in a Postmodern
World
In the Pauline message, salvation is given and never forged or manufactured. In line with the description of Agape faith, Pauline mysticism is not a works based mysticism, but emphasizes the grace of God in Christ Jesus that becomes available to the believer by faith.
The wisdom revealed through the mystical teachings of the Apostle Paul, as well as the Soteriology
, Christology
, Redemption
theology and interpretation of Scripture for Pauline mysticism differs significantly from Sophia (wisdom) and the mysticism associated therewith. Sophia (wisdom), also known as Christian Theosophy
, is a central term in Hellenistic philosophy and religion, Platonism
, Gnosticism
, the Eastern Orthodox Church
, and Esoteric Christianity
(see main article Sophia (wisdom)).
(1896-1990) pointed out that Gustav Adolf Deissmann
categorized mysticism to be of two types: acting, and reacting. The two different models have be called proactive mysticism, and reactive spirituality. Reactive spirituality is of grace, an “experience in which the action of God . . . produces a reaction towards God.”James S. Stewart, A Man In Christ (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, n.d.) 163.
In this kind of mysticism God initiates and man responds. On the other hand, proactive mysticism is of works, a mystic communion resulting from the mystic’s “own action, from which a reaction follows on the part of Deity.” In other words, by engaging intentional mystical practices, man initiates, then God responds. Though disagreeing with labeling the apostle’s theology of the spiritual life “Christian mysticism,” Stewart’s distinction helps differentiate between Paul’s reactive spirituality, and proactive mysticism. Of this distinction Professor Stewart wrote:
Much religion has been made of the latter kind [i.e., proactive mysticism]. Man’s action has been regarded as the primary thing. The soul has endeavoured to ascend towards God. Spiritual exercises [e.g., spiritual disciplines] have been made the ladder for the ascent. But all this savors of the religion of works as contrasted with the religion of grace. Paul’s attitude was different. His mysticism was essentially of the reacting kind. Christ, not Paul, held the initiative. Union with the eternal was not a human achievement: it was the gift of God. It came, not by any spiritual exercises [e.g., spiritual disciplines], but by God’s self-revelation, God’s self-impartation. The words “It pleased God to reveal His Son in me,” which remind us that the Damascus experience itself was the foundation of the apostle’s mysticism, are Paul’s emphatic way of saying that God’s action always holds priority: His servant simply reacts to the action of God. James S. Stewart, A Man In Christ (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, n.d.) 164
Stewart then concludes by stating that Paul’s spirituality was “all of grace; and it is well to be reminded by the apostle that union with Christ is not something we have to achieve by effort, but something we have to accept by faith.”James S. Stewart, A Man In Christ (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, n.d.) 164
In separating Christianity from the mystery religions, David Rightmire also observes that the apostle, “viewed communion with God as an act of divine grace, coming not by any spiritual exercises, but by God’s self-revelation (Gal. 1:16).” In other words, spirituality based upon reaction to revelation is of a different sort than spirituality conjured up through the practices and disciplines of the mystical way. The former is initiated by God, and based upon “faith,” while the latter is initiated by man, and based upon “works.”
The contemplative spirituality promoted by and amongst evangelicals today belongs to the acting, or proactive, category of mysticism. Spiritual directors advise using various spiritual disciplines or techniques—solitude and silence, fasting, walking prayer labyrinths, Taizé worship, spiritual retreats, lectio divina (reading sacred things), journaling, religious pilgrimages, and so on—to initiate intimacy and revelatory encounters with God. But as Professors Stewart and Rightmire pointed out, Paul did not embrace such a works model of spirituality. If practices (i.e., means of grace) are engaged in to promote spiritual growth, then they ought to find precedent in the revealed Word of God (i.e., prayer, Scripture reading and study, singing spiritual songs, witnessing, fellowshipping with the saints, and observing the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Table). If methods of spiritual growth are not sourced in the Bible, but are of human invention, then Paul’s question to the Galatians seems appropriate. He asked them, “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:3). Paul’s paradigm of spirituality focused upon grace. He gave no advice for experiencing spirituality via works of the mystic way.
Pauline Christianity
Pauline Christianity is a term used to refer to the Christianity associated with the beliefs and doctrines espoused by Paul of Tarsus through his writings. Most of orthodox Christianity relies heavily on these teachings and considers them to be amplifications and explanations of the teachings of...
. Pauline mysticism shows distinct differences from mystical theology
Mystical theology
Mystical theology is a branch of theology which treats of acts and experiences or states of the soul which cannot be produced by human effort.-Catholic tradition:...
.
Pauline mysticism centres around the mystery of Christ in the believer and the believer in Christ, who is believed to be the one and only mediator between man and God, whereas Mystical theology
Mystical theology
Mystical theology is a branch of theology which treats of acts and experiences or states of the soul which cannot be produced by human effort.-Catholic tradition:...
allows for people from all religions to partake in a journey towards obtaining oneness with the divine and shows secret paths to seekers on how to obtain such oneness.
Definition of Christ the Messiah
This Handbook of Jonathan Hill, defines Christ and Messiah, on pages 533 and 535 as:The mystical teachings of Paul
A survey of the mysticism of Paul the apostle explains that there are different types of Mysticism. Paul's mysticism is not of the kind that attempts a contact with the cosmic or super-natural. It is of a different kind. This mysticism is not a God-Contact- Mysticism. It is a Christ-Mediation-Mysticism, in which man cannot achieve a union with God directly, but may enter into a union with Christ, who is both man and God. This contact is made not by magical rites, sacraments or any works on our part,; but by a literal co-experiencing of Christ's death and resurrection. Pauline mysticism and Gnostic or Hellenistic Christian mysticism have been considered to be in direct contrast with one another.As per the Boston Collaborative Encyclopedia of Western Theology with regards to the views of Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer OM was a German theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary. He was born in Kaysersberg in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, at that time part of the German Empire...
, Schweitzer did not believe that Paul represents an appropriation of Hellenistic or Greek ideas into Christianity. Pauline mysticism is not about “being one with God or being in God” (Schweitzer, 1930, 3) and sonship to God is not conceived as “an immediate mystical relation to God, but as mediated and effected by means of a mystical union with Christ”.
Paul does not commend any kind of “God-mysticism”, but rather saw human beings to enter into relation with God by means of a “Christ-mysticism”, and it is this mysticism which is central to Paul's message.
The fundamental thought of Pauline mysticism runs thus: in the mystery of "I am in Christ; in Him I know myself as a being who is raised above this sensuous, sinful, and transient world and already belongs to the transcendent; in Him I am assured of resurrection; in Him I am a Child of God"
Another feature of Paul’s mysticism is that the Christian is “conceived as having died and risen again with Him”, thus, the believer has been set free from sin and the Law and now possesses the Spirit of Christ and is thus assured of resurrection. .
According to Schweitzer, the Christ-mysticism experienced by Christians is reckoned by Paul to be a kind of co-experiencing of Christ’s death and resurrection: And as for redemption, it is accomplished by Jesus’ resurrection. The perishable world is a stage on which angels of heaven and demons do battle. Jesus also becomes a Messianic King with command over angels who is able to defeat all who oppose God.
Paul emphasise justification by faith alone (Sola fide
Sola fide
Sola fide , also historically known as the doctrine of justification by faith alone, is a Christian theological doctrine that distinguishes most Protestant denominations from Catholicism, Eastern Christianity, and some in the Restoration Movement.The doctrine of sola fide or "by faith alone"...
), in the Epistle to the Romans. Christ’s death is portrayed as a sin offering, which erases sin and makes God’s forgiveness possible. This “righteousness by faith” is also individualistic and detached from participation in the mystical Body of Christ, and it does not lead to an ethical theory:
Paul arrives at the idea of a faith which rejects not only the works of the Law, but works in general. Yet, ethics are not absent from the thought of Paul, but rather they are re-conceived. By participating in Christ’s death and resurrection, the believer becomes a new creation. In principle the believer is no longer able to sin. However, this participation proceeds gradually making ethics necessary. “It is only in so far as a man is purified and liberated from the world that he becomes capable of truly ethical action”. Paul describes ethical action in many ways, including sanctification, giving up the service of sin, and living for God. Love is seen as the highest manifestation of this ethical life..
Paul is seen as the architect of this "cross centred" theology, referred to Jesus as "Christ" and stressing his messianic role. His resurrection is seen as the prototype for the future resurrection of all of humanity. St. Paul had often been criticized for directing attention away from the life and teachings of Jesus to a more mystical religion revolving around the godlike Christ, one focused upon his saving death. It had also been pointed out that his concept is almost entirely absent from the speeches of the disciples as described in the book of Acts.
Redemption is seen as an act of ascent, not mystical experience.
According to David Wells, the type of Christian spirituality that became increasingly popular in this postmodern age, is distinctly different from "Agape faith". In his book Above All Earthly Pow’rs: Christ in a Postmodern
Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
World
In the Pauline message, salvation is given and never forged or manufactured. In line with the description of Agape faith, Pauline mysticism is not a works based mysticism, but emphasizes the grace of God in Christ Jesus that becomes available to the believer by faith.
The wisdom revealed through the mystical teachings of the Apostle Paul, as well as the Soteriology
Soteriology
The branch of Christian theology that deals with salvation and redemption is called Soteriology. It is derived from the Greek sōtērion + English -logy....
, Christology
Christology
Christology is the field of study within Christian theology which is primarily concerned with the nature and person of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament. Primary considerations include the relationship of Jesus' nature and person with the nature...
, Redemption
Redemption
- Religion :* Redemption , an element of salvation to express deliverance from sin* Redemption, absolution for the past sins and/or protection from damnation* Pidyon haben, redemption of the firstborn son in Judaism...
theology and interpretation of Scripture for Pauline mysticism differs significantly from Sophia (wisdom) and the mysticism associated therewith. Sophia (wisdom), also known as Christian Theosophy
Theosophy
Theosophy, in its modern presentation, is a spiritual philosophy developed since the late 19th century. Its major themes were originally described mainly by Helena Blavatsky , co-founder of the Theosophical Society...
, is a central term in Hellenistic philosophy and religion, Platonism
Platonism
Platonism is the philosophy of Plato or the name of other philosophical systems considered closely derived from it. In a narrower sense the term might indicate the doctrine of Platonic realism...
, Gnosticism
Gnosticism
Gnosticism is a scholarly term for a set of religious beliefs and spiritual practices common to early Christianity, Hellenistic Judaism, Greco-Roman mystery religions, Zoroastrianism , and Neoplatonism.A common characteristic of some of these groups was the teaching that the realisation of Gnosis...
, the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
, and Esoteric Christianity
Esoteric Christianity
Esoteric Christianity is a term which refers to an ensemble of spiritual currents which regard Christianity as a mystery religion, and profess the existence and possession of certain esoteric doctrines or practices, hidden from the public but accessible only to a narrow circle of "enlightened",...
(see main article Sophia (wisdom)).
Reactive Spirituality versus Proactive Mysticism
In a chapter “Mysticism and Morality,” contained in his book A Man in Christ, Scottish preacher and Professor James S. StewartJames S. Stewart
James Stuart Stewart was a minister of the Church of Scotland. He taught New Testament Language, Literature and Theology at the University of Edinburgh ....
(1896-1990) pointed out that Gustav Adolf Deissmann
Gustav Adolf Deissmann
Gustav Adolf Deissmann was a German Protestant theologian, best known for his leading work on the Greek language used in the New Testament, which he showed was the koine, or commonly used tongue of the Hellenistic world of that time.-Life:Deissmann was professor of theology at the Ruprecht Karl...
categorized mysticism to be of two types: acting, and reacting. The two different models have be called proactive mysticism, and reactive spirituality. Reactive spirituality is of grace, an “experience in which the action of God . . . produces a reaction towards God.”James S. Stewart, A Man In Christ (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, n.d.) 163.
In this kind of mysticism God initiates and man responds. On the other hand, proactive mysticism is of works, a mystic communion resulting from the mystic’s “own action, from which a reaction follows on the part of Deity.” In other words, by engaging intentional mystical practices, man initiates, then God responds. Though disagreeing with labeling the apostle’s theology of the spiritual life “Christian mysticism,” Stewart’s distinction helps differentiate between Paul’s reactive spirituality, and proactive mysticism. Of this distinction Professor Stewart wrote:
Much religion has been made of the latter kind [i.e., proactive mysticism]. Man’s action has been regarded as the primary thing. The soul has endeavoured to ascend towards God. Spiritual exercises [e.g., spiritual disciplines] have been made the ladder for the ascent. But all this savors of the religion of works as contrasted with the religion of grace. Paul’s attitude was different. His mysticism was essentially of the reacting kind. Christ, not Paul, held the initiative. Union with the eternal was not a human achievement: it was the gift of God. It came, not by any spiritual exercises [e.g., spiritual disciplines], but by God’s self-revelation, God’s self-impartation. The words “It pleased God to reveal His Son in me,” which remind us that the Damascus experience itself was the foundation of the apostle’s mysticism, are Paul’s emphatic way of saying that God’s action always holds priority: His servant simply reacts to the action of God. James S. Stewart, A Man In Christ (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, n.d.) 164
Stewart then concludes by stating that Paul’s spirituality was “all of grace; and it is well to be reminded by the apostle that union with Christ is not something we have to achieve by effort, but something we have to accept by faith.”James S. Stewart, A Man In Christ (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, n.d.) 164
In separating Christianity from the mystery religions, David Rightmire also observes that the apostle, “viewed communion with God as an act of divine grace, coming not by any spiritual exercises, but by God’s self-revelation (Gal. 1:16).” In other words, spirituality based upon reaction to revelation is of a different sort than spirituality conjured up through the practices and disciplines of the mystical way. The former is initiated by God, and based upon “faith,” while the latter is initiated by man, and based upon “works.”
The contemplative spirituality promoted by and amongst evangelicals today belongs to the acting, or proactive, category of mysticism. Spiritual directors advise using various spiritual disciplines or techniques—solitude and silence, fasting, walking prayer labyrinths, Taizé worship, spiritual retreats, lectio divina (reading sacred things), journaling, religious pilgrimages, and so on—to initiate intimacy and revelatory encounters with God. But as Professors Stewart and Rightmire pointed out, Paul did not embrace such a works model of spirituality. If practices (i.e., means of grace) are engaged in to promote spiritual growth, then they ought to find precedent in the revealed Word of God (i.e., prayer, Scripture reading and study, singing spiritual songs, witnessing, fellowshipping with the saints, and observing the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Table). If methods of spiritual growth are not sourced in the Bible, but are of human invention, then Paul’s question to the Galatians seems appropriate. He asked them, “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:3). Paul’s paradigm of spirituality focused upon grace. He gave no advice for experiencing spirituality via works of the mystic way.
See Also
- Christian meditationChristian meditationChristian meditation is a form of prayer in which a structured attempt is made to get in touch with and deliberately reflect upon the revelations of God. The word meditation comes from the Latin word meditārī, which has a range of meanings including to reflect on, to study and to practice...
- Pauline ChristianityPauline ChristianityPauline Christianity is a term used to refer to the Christianity associated with the beliefs and doctrines espoused by Paul of Tarsus through his writings. Most of orthodox Christianity relies heavily on these teachings and considers them to be amplifications and explanations of the teachings of...
- RedemptionRedemption- Religion :* Redemption , an element of salvation to express deliverance from sin* Redemption, absolution for the past sins and/or protection from damnation* Pidyon haben, redemption of the firstborn son in Judaism...
- Atonement in Christianity
- SoteriologySoteriologyThe branch of Christian theology that deals with salvation and redemption is called Soteriology. It is derived from the Greek sōtērion + English -logy....
- Christian mysticismChristian mysticismChristian mysticism refers to the development of mystical practices and theory within Christianity. It has often been connected to mystical theology, especially in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions...
- Humility: The Beauty of HolinessHumility: The Beauty of HolinessHumility: The Beauty of Holiness, is a book by Andrew Murray .The focus of the books is this: that no tree can grow except on the root from which it sprang. Through all its existence it can only live by the life that was in the seed that gave it being...