Description
Book SynopsisEngagingly written by one of the world s leading scholars in this field, this comprehensively revised edition tells the story of Christian spirituality from its origins in the New Testament right up to the present day.
Trade Review“This volume would be an excellent text for the upper-level or seminary student. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through professionals/practitioners.” (Choice, 1 October 2013)
"[Sheldrake's] grasp of the key figures and movements within the western Christian tradition is consistently sure-footed, and the book will be very useful for those seeking an accessible one-volume introduction to the subject by an acknowledged authority ... This is an excellent book and can be safely recommended to students and others alike." Theology (of the previous edition)
“Wonderfully encapsulates the complex manner in which the term spirituality has taken on various meanings within the Christian tradition … Those who are interested in learning more about the major movements in the Christian tradition are sure to find this book a wonderful introduction into learning more about thinkers who have ardently longed to attain wisdom.” The Heythrop Journal (of the previous edition)
“One gets the sense that Sheldrake knows and loves his subject, and more importantly, wants to share his knowledge with others. I strongly recommend this book.” Anglican Theological Review (of the previous edition)
Table of ContentsPreface xi
1 What is Spirituality? 1
Origins of the Word “Spirituality” 2
Contemporary Meaning 3
What is Christian Spirituality? 6
Spirituality and Mysticism 7
The Study of Spirituality 9
Spirituality and History 11
Interpretation 12
Types of Spirituality 15
Periods and Traditions 17
Conclusion: Criteria of Judgment 18
2 Foundations: Scriptures and Early Church 23
Christian Spirituality and the Scriptures 24
Scriptural Markers 25
Spirituality in the New Testament 27
Spirituality and the Early Church 30
Liturgy 31
Spirituality and Martyrdom 32
Shrines, Devotion, and Pilgrimage 33
Spirituality and Doctrine 34
Origen 35
Evagrius 36
The Cappadocians 36
Augustine 37
Pseudo-Dionysius 38
Christian Spirituality as Transformation and Mission 39
Theories of Spiritual Transformation 41
Conclusion 43
3 Monastic Spiritualities: 300–1150 47
The Emergence of Monasticism 50
Widows and Virgins 50
Syrian Ascetics 51
Egyptian Monasticism 52
Wisdom of the Desert 53
Monastic Rules 56
Benedictine Expansion 59
The New Hermits 61
The Cistercians 63
The Spiritual Values of Monasticism 65
Spirituality and the Conversion of Europe 67
Local Spiritualities: Ireland 68
Spirituality in the East 70
Syriac Spirituality 73
Conclusion 74
4 Spirituality in the City: 1150–1450 79
The Gregorian Reform 80
Apocalyptic Movements 81
The Vita Evangelica 82
Twelfth-Century Renaissance 83
The Rebirth of Cities 84
Cathedrals and Urban Vision 85
The City as Sacred 86
Universities as Sacred Space 87
Vita Evangelica and Urban Sensibilities 88
The Mendicant Movement 89
Dominic, Francis, Clare, and Bonaventure 90
The Beguines 94
Fourteenth-Century Mysticism 96
Julian of Norwich 98
Crossing Spiritual Boundaries: The Influence of Islam 100
Devotional Spirituality 101
Spirituality and Eastern Christianity 102
The Renaissance 104
Conclusion 106
5 Spiritualities in the Age of Reformations: 1450–1700 110
Seeds of Reform: The Devotio Moderna and Christian Humanism 113
The Crisis of Medieval Spirituality 114
Spirituality and the Lutheran Reformation 115
John Calvin and Reformed Spirituality 117
The Radical Reformation: Anabaptist Spirituality 118
Anglican Spirituality 120
George Herbert 121
Puritan Spirituality 124
Early Quakers 125
The Catholic Reformation 126
The New Orders 126
Ignatius Loyola and Early Ignatian Spirituality 126
Spirituality Beyond Europe 131
Carmelite Mysticism 133
Lay Devotion 135
Seventeenth-Century French Spirituality 137
Russian Spirituality 140
Conclusion 141
6 Spirituality in an Age of Reason: 1700–1900 145
Spirituality in the Roman Catholic Tradition 148
Pietism 150
Wesleyan Spirituality 151
American Puritanism and the Great Awakening 153
Shaker Spirituality 154
Orthodox Spirituality 156
Post-Revolutionary Catholicism 159
The English Evangelicals 161
The Oxford Movement 164
John Henry Newman 166
A Distinctive “American Spirituality” 167
Conclusion 170
7 Modernity to Postmodernity: 1900–2000 173
The Impact on Spirituality 175
The Prophetic-Critical Type 175
Charles de Foucauld (1858–1916) 176
Evelyn Underhill (1875–1941) 177
Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–1945) 179
Simone Weil (1909–1943) 181
Dorothy Day (1897–1980) 183
Thomas Merton (1915–1968) 184
Spiritualities of Liberation 186
Gustavo Gutiérrez (1928–) 186
Feminist Spirituality 188
Spiritualities of Reconciliation 190
Ecumenical Spirituality: The Example of Taizé 192
Spirituality and Inter-Religious Dialogue: Bede Griffiths 193
Eastern Orthodox Spirituality 195
Making Spirituality Democratic: The Retreat Movement 197
Making Spirituality Democratic: Pentecostal and Charismatic Spirituality 199
Conclusion 200
8 Twenty-First Century Trajectories 203
Will Christian Spiritualities Survive? 203
A Globalized World 205
Cyberspace 206
Inter-Religious Encounter 208
Christian Spirituality and Secular Spirituality 210
Spirituality, Business, and Economics 210
Spirituality and Healthcare 213
Spirituality and the Meaning of Cities 216
The Spiritual and the Spatial 217
The Spiritual and Urban Virtues 218
Other Factors? 219
The Contemporary Turn to Practice 220
Conclusion 222
Select Bibliography 223
Select Glossary 232
Index 240
