The Return to the Mystical

This is the most recent mystical theology scholarship - a discipline that has found new energy and influence. This is examined through the lens of Wittgenstein's philosophy. The 'return of religion' since the beginning of the century has created a renewed interest in spirituality and mysticism. This book is intended as a guide to the most recent scholarship regarding mystical theology. The author takes as his starting point the philosophical writings of Ludwig Wittgenstein. Using these writings he crafts a tool to interpret the Western mystical tradition beginning with the works of Dionysius the Areopagite in the High Middle Ages and moving through such figures as Osuna, Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross and Jean Gerson. His central argument is that what he terms the theologia mystica is an ancient method for effecting transformation of the heart in the individual and as such is ripe for return as an object of serious academic study.

ISBN 1441104445   Pages 256 ISBN13 9781441104441 (What's this?)   Weight (grammes) 476 Publisher Continuum Publishing Corporation   Published in New York Imprint Continuum Publishing Corporation   Height (mm) 234 Format Paperback   Width (mm) 156 Publication date 16 Jun 2011   Spine width (mm) 18 DEWEY 248.22   Academic level General, Undergraduate, Postgraduate DEWEY edition DC23

Introduction; 1. What this book is not about; 2. A Form of Writing; 3. Origins of the Theologia Mystica; 4. Theology-Speculative and Mystical; 5. The Spanish School Teresa of Avila; 6. The Spanish School John of the Cross; 7. The Reconstruction of the Medieval; 8. The Return to the Mystical.

Situating his inquiry amidst the debate over mystical language and the 'core experience', Tyler deftly exposes and explores the mystical, transformational element in Wittgenstein's thought and life. In turn, Wittgenstein provides Tyler a clear lens through which he reexamines the mystical theology of seminal figures from Dionysius the Areopagite to Teresa of Avila. An immensely important contribution to the comparative study of mysticism, The Return of the Mystical also significantly advances our understanding of Wittgenstein.

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