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Context Shapes Eckhart's Thought
- Ideas arise inside cultural contexts, so Meister Eckhart's thought must be read against 13th-century consumer and noble cultures.
- Joel F. Harrington argues Eckhart's rejection of materialism responded to a growing money culture and widespread spiritual dissatisfaction.
From Noble Quest To Spiritual Quest
- Eckhart transformed the noble chivalric quest into a lifelong religious quest focused on union with God.
- Harrington sees Eckhart's choice of the Dominican order as a deliberate embrace of a difficult, service-oriented vocation.
Negative Theology As Inner Knowing
- Eckhart practices negative theology: knowing God by removing images, words, and attachments rather than via visions.
- Harrington prefers calling Eckhart's approach 'intuitive' mysticism—knowledge that comes from within rather than from external signs.