Christian Mysticism in Relation to Eastern Mysticism - Part 1

[Guest guest]

Dear All,

 

We concluded Chapter 10 of " The Experience of God in the Old and New Testaments "

with:

 

" We have to keep constantly before our minds that this is the ultimate goal of

humanity. This is the " new heaven " and the " new earth " , prophesied in the Old

Testament and revealed in the Apocalypse of St John. [39] This world of space

and time and the human mode of consciousness which goes with it is destined to

pass away. In fact, as the Buddha saw so clearly and as modern physics

recognises, it is always passing away at every moment. The time-space world is

an appearance, determined by a particular mode of consciousness, of the one

infinite and eternal reality, which manifests itself under these conditions. We

have constantly to learn to see beyond the passing forms of this world to the

eternal reality which is always there. It means passing from our present mode of

consciousness, which is conditioned by time and space, into the deeper level of

consciousness which transcends the dualities external and internal, subject and

object, conscious and unconscious, and becomes one with the non-dual Reality,

the Brahman, the Atman, the Tao, the Void, the Word, the Truth, whatever name we

give to that which cannot be named. It is this alone that gives reality to our

lives and a meaning to human existence. "

 

A New Vision of Reality (Western Science, Eastern Mysticism and Christian Faith)

Chapter 10, Pg.226

 

Note:

 

[39] Isaiah 65:17; Revelation 21:1

 

Here now, is the start of a new chapter, titled " Christian Mysticism in Relation

to Eastern Mysticism. "

 

Enjoy!

 

violet

 

 

 

Christian Mysticism in Relation to Eastern Mysticism - Part 1

 

(P.227) In this work we are exploring the divine mystery which is behind human

life. The thesis is that corresponding to the sacred mystery there is a

universal wisdom which comes down from ancient times and which was formulated in

India, China, the Arab world, and in Christianity. At the Renaissance, and

particularly with the rise of modern science and philosophy, it was largely lost

in the West. Only very recently have we in the West come to realise the

existence of this universal wisdom and only now are we beginning to recover some

of it. In the previous chapter we looked at the experience of God in the Old and

New Testaments and this chapter will trace the development of this experience in

later Christian mysticism, looking particularly at the similarities and

dissimilarities between this and the mysticism of the East. A few key points set

out the basis of this development.

 

In the Hebrew tradition there is a profound sense of dualism. God is understood

as totally separate from creation and from humanity. While there is a tendency

in Hinduism towards pantheism where God is identified with nature, the tendency

in the Hebrew tradition is precisely the opposite and it is the utter

transcendence of God that is emphasised. Further, this dualism is emphasised by

the conception of sin. Humanity is separated from God not only by being part of

creation but also by sin. Within this scheme the relation of the human person to

God is seen in terms of obedience and disobedience, law and righteousness. This

brings out the moral character of the Hebrew revelation. (P.228) In exploring

the divine mystery behind human life it becomes clear that each tradition has

its own insight into the mystery. The Hebrew insight is particularly a moral

insight and therefore God is seen as essentially holy, that is, separated from

sinners but at the same time just and merciful. On the human side the demand is

for faith, justice and humility. There is a beautiful passage in the prophet

Micah which reads, " He has showed you, O man, what is good; and what does the

Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with

your God? " [1] That is the Hebrew way to God. It is essentially a moral

approach.

 

Another characteristic of the Hebrew tradition is that God is always conceived

in personal terms. He is angry and repents. He is jealous and vengeful. He is

full of hatred but also loves and forgives. And yet, as we saw, behind that

there is a mystical tradition, an experience of God beyond all human

limitations, eternal and unchanging, beyond human comprehension. Always, in all

the traditions, we are in the presence of a mystery, and it is recognised that

all human language is inadequate to express it. Even so, it is the language of

God as person that in the Hebrew tradition is used to convey something of this

mystery.

 

The New Testament is built upon the tradition of the Old. The emphasis is on the

moral character of God, and personal language is used to speak of the divine

mystery. Jesus himself thinks and speaks in the context of this tradition. On

the other hand, whereas in the Old Testament God is totally above creation, in

the heaven of heavens above, and is, as it were, looking down upon humanity on

earth, Jesus in his person bridges that gulf. In him God becomes man, so that he

becomes the mediator between God and humanity. As we saw in the last chapter,

Jesus has a unique experience of God as Abba, Father, which he expressed in

saying, " No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father

except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. " [2] (P.229)

This experience of God, which is unique to Jesus, he now communicates to his

disciples by the gift of the Spirit. Christian mysticism is that experience of

God in the Spirit coming through Christ from the Father. This makes us members,

as we saw, of the mystical body of Christ. The whole of humanity is brought

together in principle in this unity of the Spirit, recovering the unity which

was lost through sin. This being brought back to unity extends to the body

itself. Not only the soul but also the body is recreated and renewed as a

spiritual body ('soma pneumatikon'), in the mystical body of Christ. The whole

person, and eventually the whole creation, is restored to unity with the Father,

in the Spirit, through the Son. That is the basic pattern of the Christian

revelation and of the Christian experience of God.

 

A New Vision of Reality (Western Science, Eastern Mysticism and

Christian Faith)

Chapter 11, P.227-229

Bede Griffiths

Templegate Publishers - Springfield, Illinois

ISBN 0-87243-180-0

 

Notes:

 

[1] Micah 6:8

 

[2] Matthew 11:27; Luke 10:22