The Ecstasy of St. Teresa (of Avila), Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 16th c.
Is it possible to have an unmediated experience of God? A direct encounter with the divine that transcends any use of the senses or even the intellect?
The classical answer is – yes! And its pursuit is the goal of the mystic tradition (an element of the spiritual life that is accessible to us all, though most connected with the apophatic-affective attrait).
In this episode we examine Christian mysticism through one of its most famous teachers, St. Teresa of Avila.
If you’ve ever desired to know God directly, to encounter grace at the core of your soul, this episode is for you.
Just as some people need faith to make intellectual sense, so others need to feel it – to have the emotional experience of God’s presence, to know in the manner of the heart and not the head. These are the “affectives.” (And all of us are affective to a degree, some just more so than others.)
In this episode we explore the affective side of spiritual practice, particularly for those who relate to God by means of the senses and the created world (nature, art, music, food…) – those on the “kataphatic” side of the spectrum. Indeed there are whole schools of Christian spirituality and prayer developed by and for the kataphatic-affectives.
If you’ve ever struggled to build a consistent set of spiritual practices that felt right to you, that fit your style and personality, this series is for you.
Me and my pal Ryan having cannoli at the Pantheon. Bliss!
We begin our study at the four basic attrait combinations (think “spiritual personality types”) with an in-depth look at the kataphatic-speculative quadrant. In short, these are people who relate to God primarily by means of connection to the created world (kataphatic) and for whom things need to “make sense” (speculative).
If you are listening to this podcast, odds are better than 50/50 you fall into this category (I do!). Indeed the very need for an orderly approach to spirituality is a very “speculative” trait. And if you’d most like to listen to this on the way to your favorite museum or with a great wine, welcome to the kataphatic-speculative club!
CLICK IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD A PDF OF ATTRAIT DIAGRAM
In this episode, we’ll look at the particular schools of spiritual formation that best fit the K-S attrait and what practices are likely to help us make progress and where we need to be disciplined lest our attrait lead us into sins of excess or arrogance.
Whether you are a kataphatic-speculative or not, you surely know many people who are, and this will help you both understand them and perhaps be able to offer some wisdom for the life of faith and the work of maturity in Christ.
