Renewal of Mystical Theology

The word mystical makes many modern Christians uneasy. For some, it sounds like something foreign or esoteric, maybe even unbiblical. But the truth is that mystical theology has always been at the heart of the Christian tradition. At its simplest, mysticism is about direct encounter with the living God. It is not about strange visions or secret knowledge but about opening our lives to the presence of God that transforms us.

For centuries, mystical theology was considered normative in the Church. The writings of the desert fathers and mothers, Origen, St. Augustine, Gregory of Nyssa, Julian of Norwich, Teresa of Ávila, and John of the Cross, to name a few well-known early Christian figures, all spoke of God not only in intellectual terms but in experiential ones. They understood theology as more than study. It was relationship.

In recent centuries, however, mystical theology often slipped to the margins, replaced by rationalism, programmatic religion, or mere activism. And yet, the hunger for encounter has never gone away. People today are searching for an experience of God that is more than ideas. Many are leaving churches, not because they’ve stopped believing, but because they long to meet God in a deeper way.

It is time for a renewal of mystical theology in the Church.

What Is Mystical Theology?

Mystical theology begins with the conviction that God is not only knowable through doctrines or rituals but through lived experience. This doesn’t mean discarding doctrine or worship practices. Rather, it means recognizing that their purpose is to lead us into communion with God.

The Greek fathers often described this as theosis, or participation in God. St. Gregory Palamas wrote that while God’s essence remains beyond our comprehension, Christ’s energies—his presence, his love, his Spirit—are accessible to us. We are invited to not just believe about God but to know Him.

Mystical theology, then, is not an optional extra. It is the beating heart of Christian life.

Biblical Roots of Mystical Encounter

Mystical encounter is all over Scripture if we know how to see it. Moses encounters God in the burning bush and on Sinai’s mountaintop. Elijah hears the Lord not in the earthquake or fire but in the sound of sheer silence (1 Kings 19:12).

The Psalms are filled with longing for direct communion: “For God alone my soul waits in silence” (Psalm 62:1).

In the New Testament, Paul speaks of being “caught up to the third heaven” (2 Corinthians 12:2) and prays that we may “know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge” (Ephesians 3:19).

John’s Gospel is perhaps the most mystical of all, describing Jesus as the Word made flesh and inviting us into abiding union with Him.

Mystical theology is not a departure from the Bible. It is one of the most faithful ways of reading it.

What My Research Revealed

As part of my doctoral research, I studied Episcopal congregations that were intentionally cultivating contemplative life. What I discovered was that people were hungry for mystical encounter, even if they didn’t use that word.

They spoke of finding God in silence, of being changed by stillness, of experiencing Scripture in new ways like Christian meditation, Celtic liturgies, or centering prayer. They longed not for more programs but for presence.

Interestingly, many of them had not heard these practices named as part of their Christian tradition even if they grew up in the church. They thought of contemplation as “extra” or “foreign.” But when they discovered that silence, prayer, and mystical encounter had always been part of their Christian identity, they felt as though they were coming home. I heard time and time again: “Why didn’t I know this before?”

This tells us something important: the renewal of mystical theology in the Church today isn’t about importing something new. It’s about recovering what we’ve forgotten.

Why Renewal Is Needed

We live in an age of distraction. Our culture prizes productivity, entertainment, and information overload. Even in the Church, we often measure success by activity: how many programs we run, how many people attend, how many projects we accomplish.

But mystical theology reminds us that the point of it all is union with God. Without that center, our activity becomes noise.

As German Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner warned: “The Christian of the future will be a mystic or will not exist at all.” By thi,s he meant that unless Christians recover the experiential reality of God, our faith will lose its vitality and relevance.

Practical Steps Toward Renewal

So, how can we begin to renew mystical theology in our own lives and communities? Here are a few starting points:

· Reclaim silence. Create intentional spaces for silence in worship and in daily life. Let stillness be seen as prayer, not absence.

· Teach the tradition. Introduce your community to voices like Julian of Norwich, Teresa of Ávila, or John of the Cross. Show that their longing for God is part of our shared heritage.

· Practice Scripture slowly. Use Lectio Divina, a prayerful reading of Scripture that listens for God’s living word.

· Seek companionship. Mystical theology is not an individual project. Find companions or spiritual directors who can guide and encourage you.

· Link contemplation to mission. Remind people that mystical encounter does not withdraw us from the world but equips us to love it more deeply.

Renewal happens when mystical theology is normalized again, as part of ordinary Christian life, not something reserved for “advanced” believers.

An Invitation

At its heart, mystical theology is simply about love: God’s love for us, our love for Him, and the transformation that comes when we abide in that love.

If your faith has felt dry, or if you’ve longed for something deeper than information and activity, perhaps this is God’s invitation to rediscover the mystical heart of Christianity. To rest in silence. To listen for the voice of God. To encounter God not only in doctrine and ritual but in the living reality of His presence.

The renewal of mystical theology is not about becoming less Christian but more so, more rooted in Scripture, more aligned with tradition, more open to God’s Spirit at work among us. And when we embrace it, we may find that what people are searching for in all sorts of places outside the Church has been here all along.

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1. Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love (c. 1395).

2. Teresa of Ávila, The Interior Castle (1577).

3. Karl Rahner, Theological Investigations, Vol. 20: Concern for the Church (New York: Crossroad, 1981), p. 149.