The Christian Mysticism Podcast

St. Hildegard of Bingen was a 12th century German nun and mystic who eventually was canonized and given the title of doctor of the church by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012. She was not only a visionary mystic who was given the gift of seeing and understanding the deepest mysteries of the Christian faith through spectacularly colorful images, but St. Hildegard was also a woman with incredible achievements. Among those achievements were being an abbess, a writer, a poet, a composer, a dramatist, a philosopher, a botanist, and a medical writer and practitioner.St. Hildegard's music also matched her incredible visions. There are more surviving chants by St. Hildegard than by any other composer from the entire Middle Ages, Moreover, she is one of the few known medieval composers to have written both the music and the words.Here are some links you can follow to see and hear St. Hildegard's brilliance as we discuss in this episode:Illustrations for Scivias (Know the Way)https://www.healthyhildegard.com/scivias-illustrations/Text for  Scivias (Know the Way)http://www.columbia.edu/itc/english/f2003/client_edit/documents/scivias.htmlIllustrations and text for Liber Divinorum Operum (Book of Divine Works)http://www.hildegard-society.org/p/liber-divinorum-operum.htmlHildegard's musichttp://www.hildegard-society.org/p/music.htmlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52Clyua6LKk (9 hours of music)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8MGiPo5IxU&list=RDEMpkCeOPHCumrjqOP395xk5A&start_radio=1&rv=0YTOiJ-zjP0https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYcEChBSClo&list=OLAK5uy_nJez_L5_xEzOeIgUp4rEsPrdri_ZJIG-EIf you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

16th century mystic St. John of the Cross was a very complex man who had a difficult life. However, his moving poetry and scientific detailed accounts showed a pathway to God within. A close associate of St. Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross was focused on self-emptying and self-abandonment, with close similarities to Meister Eckhart and the Cloud of Unknowing.If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Protestant Reformation in the 16th century not only changed how Christians viewed the Church, but also how they viewed mysticism. In this episode, Dr. Carlos Eire discusses the startling differences between Protestant mysticism and the mysticism of the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. The different conception of human nature and our relationship with God held by Protestant reformers such as Martin Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin led to a completely different perception of mysticism. It also bred rebellion among Protestants, who took mysticism to the extreme.If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Venerable Maria de Jesus de Agreda was a 17th century Franciscan Conceptionist nun whose life was filled with mystical ecstasies and revelations. She experienced extreme bilocation, traveling to the other side of the world to spread the gospel to Native Americans without ever leaving her convent. She also received visits from the Virgin Mary where she dictated her life story to Maria de Agreda, who wrote it all down in a multi-volume tome with a million words.If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

St. Francis of Assisi was the first Christian mystic to manifest the Stigmata, and he went on to experience almost every other mystic physical phenomena along with divine encounters with Christ. Francis had a deep love for God's creation and was known as the "Nature Mystic," but he also extolled the virtues of poverty and was on the front lines confronting the Cathar heresy and Waldensian heresy in the 13th century.If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode, Dr. Carlos Eire discusses the physical phenomena exhibited by mystics from both past and current history. From cataleptic ecstasies, levitation, and bilocation, to stigmata, telepathy, and incorruptible bodies, Dr. Eire explains the amazing feats of Christian mystics that defy nature. We also talk about the failed attempts by science to explain these phenomena, which brought about the rise of dogmatic materialism. If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Few Christian mystics wrote so much about their divine encounters with God and provided as much rich detail as St. Teresa of Avila. The Spanish saint described them as ecstasies, all while the Spanish Inquisition was examining her experiences and looking for heresies. In this episode, the second and final pert of this two-episode series on St. Teresa, Dr. Carlos Eire describes some of the many mystical encounters she wrote about and how her mysticism continued until her death and beyond. In the previous episode (Part 1), Dr. Eire went over her incredible life that some would say was as amazing as her mystical encounters with God. We spoke about the life of St. Teresa of Avila, her setbacks and amazing accomplishments during the Spanish Inquisition, and the family secret that if it had ever been discovered, might have ended her calling in the Church.Dr. Carlos Eire has written a wonderful book on the life of St. Teresa of Avila: The Life of Saint Teresa of Avila: A Biography. You can get a copy of it HERE.If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

St. Teresa of Avila led an incredible life that some would say was as amazing as her mystical encounters with God. In the first part of this two-part series, we look at the life of St. Teresa of Avila, her setbacks and amazing accomplishments during the Spanish Inquisition, and the family secret that if it had ever been discovered, might have ended her calling in the Church.In the next episode of the podcast, we will delve into St. Teresa's mystical experiences and divine encounters.Dr. Carlos Eire has written a wonderful book on the life of St. Teresa of Avila: The Life of Saint Teresa of Avila: A Biography. You can get a copy of the it HERE.If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Julian of Norwich was a 14th-century English hermit nun whose extreme dedication to God led to her having intense visions of Christ. Julian wrote extensively about those visions, providing us with unique perspectives on the Christ's love for us, sin and redemption, and our place in God's universe. The story and visions of Julian and her message of hope have regained popularity in modern times, where she is perhaps best known for the words she received from Christ in one of her visions: “All things shall be well, all manner of things shall be well...”If you have any questions, you can email us at christianmysticismpodcast@gmail.com. Your question and the answer may appear in a future episode of the podcast.You can visit our podcast website HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Discover the radical insights of Meister Eckhart, a 14th-century mystic who believed the divine spark resides in everyone. Delve into his concept of 'galassenheit' and the controversy that branded him a heretic. Explore the notion of the 'eternal now,' which challenges our understanding of time and emphasizes living in the present. Uncover the deep connections between Eckhart's teachings and later mystical thought, all while celebrating the universal accessibility of God.