Esoteric Christianity

Mystical approach to Christianity

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The Temple of the Rose Cross, Teophilus Schweighardt Constantiens, 1618 Part of a series on

Christian mysticism

Theology and philosophy

* Apophatic
* Ascetical
* Cataphatic
* Catholic spirituality
* Hellenistic
* Mystical theology
* Neoplatonic
* Henosis

Practices

Monasticism

* Monasticism
* New
* Silence
* Asceticism
* Mendicant
* Spiritual direction

Meditation

* Meditation
* Lectio Divina
* Invoking of Mystic Saints

Active asceticism

* Contemplation
* Hesychasm
* Jesus Prayer
* Quietism
* Stages of Christian perfection
* Hesychia
* Divinization
* Catharsis
* Theosis
* Kenosis
* Spiritual dryness
* Religious ecstasy

Passive asceticism

* Abstinence

Esoteric

* Charismatic
* Esoteric

People (by era or century)

Antiquity

* Ancient African
* Origen
* Thomasines
* Gregory of Nyssa
* Pseudo-Dionysius

Desert Fathers

* Paul of Thebes
* Anthony the Great
* Arsenius the Great
* Poemen
* Macarius of Egypt
* Moses the Black
* Syncletica
* Athanasius
* John Chrysostom
* Hilarion
* John Cassian

11th · 12th

* Bernard of Clairvaux
* Guigo II
* Hildegard of Bingen
* Symeon the New Theologian
* Saint Sava of Serbia

13th · 14th

|  Dominican

* Dominic de Guzmán

Franciscan

* Francis of Assisi
* Anthony of Padua
* Bonaventure
* Jacopone da Todi
* Angela of Foligno

English

* Richard Rolle
* Walter Hilton
* Julian of Norwich
* Margery Kempe

Flemish

* Beatrice of Nazareth
* Lutgardis
* Hadewijch
* John van Ruysbroeck

German

* Meister Eckhart
* Johannes Tauler
* Henry Suso

Female

* Beatrice of Nazareth
* Bridget of Sweden
* Catherine of Siena
* Mechthild of Magdeburg
* Marguerite Porete

15th · 16th

|  Spanish

* Ignatius of Loyola
* Francisco de Osuna
* John of Ávila
* Teresa of Ávila
* John of the Cross

Others

* Catherine of Genoa

17th · 18th

|  French

* Margaret Mary Alacoque
* Pierre de Bérulle
* Jean-Jacques Olier
* Louis de Montfort
* Charles de Condren
* John Eudes
* John of St. Samson

Others

* Mary of Jesus of Ágreda
* Anne Catherine Emmerich
* Veronica Giuliani
* Francis de Sales

19th

* Dina Bélanger
* Catherine Labouré
* Mélanie Calvat
* Maximin Giraud
* Bernadette Soubirous
* Conchita de Armida
* Luisa Piccarreta
* Mary of the Divine Heart
* Thérèse of Lisieux
* Gemma Galgani

20th

* Padre Pio
* Therese Neumann
* Marthe Robin
* Alexandrina of Balazar
* Faustina Kowalska
* Sister Lúcia of Fátima
* Edgar Cayce
* Simone Weil
* Alfred Delp
* Thomas Merton
* Charles de Foucauld
* Edvige Carboni
* Elena Aiello

Contemporary papal views

Aspects of meditation
(Orationis Formas, 1989)

Reflection on the New Age (2003)

Literature and media

* Lingua ignota
* Ordo Virtutum
* Scivias
* Ascent of Mount Carmel
* Dark Night of the Soul
* Spiritual Canticle
* Way of Perfection
* Book of the First Monks
* The Interior Castle
* Abbey of the Holy Ghost
* A Dialogue of Comfort against Tribulation
* From Willow Creek to Sacred Heart
* The Glories of Mary
* The Imitation of Christ
* The Ladder of Divine Ascent
* Philokalia
* Revelations of Divine Love
* The Story of a Soul
* Theologia Germanica
* Devotio Moderna
* Fatima in Lucia's Own Words
* Calls from the Message of Fatima
* The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima
* Sol de Fátima
* The Cloud of Unknowing
* On the Consolation of Philosophy
* The Mirror of Simple Souls
* Sister Catherine Treatise
* Tractatus de Purgatorio Sancti Patricii
* The Vision of Adamnán
* Divine Comedy
* Inferno
* Purgatorio
* Paradiso
* Fatima

* v
* t
* e

Esoteric Christianity is a mystical approach to Christianity which features "secret traditions" that require an initiation to learn or understand.[1] The term esoteric was coined in the 17th century and derives from the Greek ἐσωτερικός (esôterikos, "inner").[2]

These spiritual currents share some common features, such as heterodox or heretical Christian theology; the canonical gospels, various apocalyptic literature, and some New Testament apocrypha as sacred texts;[citation needed] and disciplina arcani, a supposed oral tradition from the Twelve Apostles containing esoteric teachings of Jesus the Christ.[1]

Esoteric Christianity is closely related to Gnosticism, and survives in a few modern churches.[1]

There are also esoteric Christian Societies such as the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia.[3]

## History

[edit]

### Ancient roots

[edit]

Some modern scholars believe that in the early stages of proto-orthodox Christianity, a nucleus of oral teachings were inherited from Palestinian and Hellenistic Judaism.[1] In the 4th century, it was believed to form the basis of a secret oral tradition which came to be called disciplina arcani.[1] Mainstream theologians, however, believe that it contained only liturgical details and certain other traditions which remain a part of some branches of mainstream Christianity.[1][4][5] Important influences on esoteric Christianity are the Christian theologians Clement of Alexandria and Origen, the leading figures of the Catechetical School of Alexandria.[6][need quotation to verify]

### Present-day denominations

[edit]

A denomination of esoteric Christianity is The Christian Community.[7] It focuses on the experiential aspect of sacraments, with the Eucharist serving as "the Rite of the Consecration of Man".[7]

Scholar Jan Shipps describes the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as having esoteric elements.[8]

## Concepts

[edit]

### Reincarnation

[edit]

Further information: Reincarnation § Christianity

Influenced by the Platonic doctrine of metempsychosis, reincarnation of the soul was accepted by most Gnostic Christian sects such as Valentinianism and the Basilidians, but denied by the proto-orthodox one.[citation needed] While hypothetically considering a complex multiple-world transmigration scheme in De Principiis, Origen denies reincarnation in his work Against Celsus and elsewhere.[9][10]

Despite this apparent contradiction, most modern esoteric Christian movements refer to Origen's writings (along with other Church Fathers and biblical passages) to validate these ideas as part of the esoteric Christian tradition outside of the Gnostic schools, who were later considered heretical in the 3rd century.[11]

## See also

[edit]

* Anthroposophy
* The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ
* Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa
* Jakob Böhme
* Vade Retro Satana
* Sigillum Dei
* Chi Rho
* Christian Kabbalah
* Christian meditation
* Christian mythology
* Christian perfection
* Christian theosophy
* Enochian magick
* George Gurdjieff
* Martinism
* Mystical theology
* Johann Reuchlin
* Rosicrucianism
* Rudolf Steiner

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f Stroumsa, Guy G. (2005). Hidden Wisdom: Esoteric Traditions and the Roots of Christian Mysticism. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 90-04-13635-5.
2. ^ "Esoteric". Oxford English Dictionary Compact Edition. Vol. 1\. Oxford University Press. 1971. p. 894.
3. ^ "Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia – An Introduction (SRIA)". freemasonrymatters.co.uk. 17 June 2016. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
4. ^ Frommann (1833). De Disciplina Arcani in vetere Ecclesia christiana obticuisse fertur (in Latin). Jena.
5. ^ Hatch, Edwin (1907). "Lecture X". The Influence of Greek Ideas and Usages upon the Christian Church. London: Williams and Norgate.
6. ^ Daniélou, Jean (1955). Origen. Translated by Walter Mitchell.[full citation needed]
7. ^ a b Melton, J. Gordon; Baumann, Martin (2010). Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices (2nd ed.). ABC-CLIO. p. 620\. ISBN 978-1-59884-204-3. 6 vols.
8. ^ Shipps, Jan (August 16–23, 1978). "The Mormons: Looking Forward and Outward". Christian Century: 761–766.
9. ^ "Quotes by Church Fathers Against Reincarnation". Catholic Answers. 2004. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011.
10. ^ Uebersax, John S. (2006). "Early Christianity and Reincarnation: Modern Misrepresentation of Quotes by Origen".
11. ^ "Articles on Esoteric Christianity". Archeosofica. Archived from the original on 2007-11-02.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Anonymous (1985). Meditations on the Tarot: A Journey Into Christian Hermeticism. New York: Tarcher/Penguin. ISBN 978-1-5854-2161-9.
* Brown, Coleston (2007). Magical Christianity: The Power of Symbols for Spiritual Renewal. Wheaton, IL: Quest Books. ISBN 978-0-8356-0855-8.
* Duncan, Anthony (1996) [1972]. The Lord of the Dance: An Essay in Mysticism. Sun Chalice Books. ISBN 978-0-9650-8395-9.
* Kirby, Richard S. (April 10, 1999). "The Focus of Esoteric Futures". WNRF.org. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
* Knight, Gareth (2010) [1975]. Experience of the Inner Worlds. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Skylight Press. ISBN 978-1-9080-1103-9.
* Knight, Gareth (2011). A History of White Magic. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Skylight Press. ISBN 978-1-9080-1104-6.
* Powell, Robert (2007). The Sophia Teachings: The Emergence of the Divine Feminine in Our Time. Aurora, CO: Lindisfarne Books. ISBN 978-1-5842-0048-2.
* Smoley, Richard (2002). Inner Christianity: A Guide to the Esoteric Tradition. Boston: Shambhala Publications. ISBN 978-1-5706-2810-8.

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