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March 15th, 2007
earthmystic
 | 10:38 am - 111 Mystics Update
In case there's anyone out there in LJ-land who's still interested in my in-depth reading/blogging excursion through the history of western mysticism, here's an update:
![[info]](http://stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) 101mystics is now 111 Mystics!
I am still working on the reading list (I'm up to John Cassian as of today), and after a too-long hiatus, I hope to get back to blogging about the mystics. Only, I won't be doing so here. Look for posts on the 111 Mystics at my Wordpress blog: http://mccolman.wordpress.com.
See you there!
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July 25th, 2006
earthmystic
| 03:10 pm - Introduction to World Mysticism (Evening at Emory)
Emory University has just announced a class I'm teaching this fall as part of the Evening at Emory Program:
Introduction to World Mysticism (4 sessions: Tuesdays, September 26-October 17; 7:00-9:00 pm) Madonna is studying the Kabbalah. The DaVinci Code is a runaway bestseller. Seven hundred years after he died, everyone's reading Rumi. Yoga, Buddhism and other eastern practices are more popular among Americans than ever. So what gives? At the heart of all these cultural trends is mysticism, a vague word that can be translated as "the spiritual principle at the heart of religion." Many people believe mysticism is the golden thread that unites all the world's religions. Others scoff at the idea. Come decide for yourself in this class as we explore major themes and writings from the world's great mystical traditions. Using Andrew Harvey's The Essential Mystics as our textbook, we'll examine the world's great wisdom traditions — Taoism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, as well as pagan and philosophical forms of mysticism — acknowledging both the common ground and the distinctive qualities of each mystical path. Class is taught from an academic/nonsectarian perspective.
Textbook: The Essential Mystics: Selections from the World's Great Wisdom Traditions edited by Andrew Harvey Instructor: Carl McColman, author of The Aspiring Mystic
What will be covered: - Session 1: Defining our terms, posing the question: is there such a thing as a "world mysticism"? Pro and con arguments.
- Session 2: Indigenous, Taoist, and Hindu mysticism
- Session 3: Jewish (Kabbalah), Christian, and Islam (Sufi) mysticism
- Session 4: Buddhist and pagan/philosophical mysticism; summary/revisiting our question
Registration fee: $90 Register now!
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March 14th, 2006
earthmystic
 | 08:44 am - 101 Mystics Update
For the latest news on my journey through the 101 Mystics, read this post.
A reminder: I'm not actively posting to this community journal any longer; so if you want to stay on top of my slower-than-molasses journey through the mystical tradition, get in the habit of reading my main blog, ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=92) earthmystic.
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December 3rd, 2005
earthmystic
| 10:27 am - Just a reminder...
I am now posting all my "101 mystics" posts to my main journal, earthmystic.
Read my lastest post, on Gregory of Nyssa, here.
If you've friended this journal and haven't friended mine, I hope you'll do so. Eventually I'll be taking this journal offline.
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October 28th, 2005
earthmystic
| 07:29 am - Evagrius
I'm currently reading Evagrius Ponticus. As stated before, all new 101 Mystics posts will now be at my main journal, earthmystic.
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October 27th, 2005
earthmystic
| 08:33 am - Go to earthmystic for an update to this blog...
Hello. This is just a note reminding readers that I am no longer posting to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif?v=92) 101mystics. Instead, my mystics-related posts are now appearing at earthmystic. If you want to read my final post about Ephrem the Syrian, click here.
If you haven't already done so, please add earthmystic to your friends list. Eventually I'll be closing 101mystics down, and I don't want anyone to miss the continued journey!
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September 7th, 2005
earthmystic
| 09:26 am - The Future of this Blog
Okay, I guess it's obvious to folks that I haven't been really showing up to this blog in a while.
That's due to several factors...
1. Ol' Ephrem the Syrian and I just aren't really clicking;
2. I've put more of my energy into forming the Atlanta Christian Mysticism Meetup Group than into maintaining 101mystics;
3. The general emotional chaos I've been exploring since my mom had a stroke on June 3.
Well, if something's not working, fix it — or at least, try something new. So in that spirit, here's what I'm thinking about doing...
1. I remain committed to reading the 101 mystics, even if it takes the rest of my life to do so. I'll keep the Reading List up on my website. Hey, it's a handy tool just in its own right: last night at the Meetup, gratefulbear mentioned that he was interested in Ramon Lull, and I pointed out that an anthology of his writings is included in the list. gratefulbear then mentioned that, while he liked the 101 Mystics concept, he didn't really want to plow through all the books in order (indeed, he gave me the impression that he might have an allergic reaction to Augustine!) I replied that I hoped anyone who is interested in this reading list will make it their own, i.e. read the books in whatever order and at whatever pace suits them.
2. It seems to me that it makes more sense to have one moderately active blog rather than two less-than-active blogs. So I'm going to try incorporating my future "101 Mystics" entries into my main blog, which is earthmystic. So if you aren't already reading my blog, please do so (and please add me to your friends list so that I know you're reading it). If you're not interested in all the non-mysticism related postings to my blog, here's what I'll do: any entries related to the 101 Mystics will feature this icon:
That way, you can skim over the rest of my blog efficiently.
If after a few months this seems to work, I will phase this blog out. Thanks to everyone for reading so far, and do come over to earthmystic to keep the party rolling (in fact, check it out today, I'm finally posting something about Ephrem!).
Cheers,
Carl
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June 9th, 2005
earthmystic
| 10:55 am - Feast of St. Ephrem
In the Anglican calendar, today is the feast of St. Columba of Iona, apostle to Scotland and third patron of Ireland after Patrick and Brigid. Obviously, Columba is a saint I have great affection for! But the Roman Catholic Calendar lists today as an optional memorial day for St. Ephrem.
One of these days I'm actually going to write something substantial about St. Ephrem (I promise!). But for now, I just wanted to briefly acknowledge him on his day.
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June 3rd, 2005
earthmystic
 | 05:24 pm - Checking in/A cool reading list
First of all, sorry I've been quiet on this blog — I've been busy with my writing (yeay!) and doing some research for an article that I'm writing. So St. Ephrem has had to be patient. But I hope to get back into his work by next week (the 9th is his feastday).
Meanwhile: for those of you who have been following this blog from the beginning, you know the first mystic I read was a living figure: Fr. William McNamara. Well, today I found his online recommended reading list. I would commend it to anyone interested in the spiritual life from a classic Catholic mystical perspective. Happy reading!
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May 17th, 2005
earthmystic
| 08:07 pm - Ephrem the Syrian
 The seventh of my 101 mystics is Saint Ephrem (Ephraem) the Syrian, who lived in the fourth century and is described in the Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church as a "Biblical exegete and ecclesiastical writer." He wrote in Syriac, the language which evolved from the Aramaic that Jesus and his disciples spoke; in his day this would have been the third most important language in the Roman Empire behind Latin and Greek (and therefore, the third most important language in Christendom). Ephrem's legacy is found in his hymns, which cover a wide variety of Biblical and theological themes. Like the Alexandrian mystics I've already read, Ephrem's writing explores in great depth the typological interpretation of Hebrew Scripture to illuminate the church's teachings regarding the nature and mission of Christ. Ephrem was a passionate defender of the Virgin Birth and Mary's sinlessness (the Catholic Church declared him a "doctor of the church" in 1920, perhaps because he is seen as a powerful witness for the Immaculate Conception), and was a fierce apologist against both the paganism of the Emperor Julian the Apostate (who reigned during Ephrem's life, 360-363 CE) and against the heresy du jour, Arianism.
I'm reading Ephrem's works collected in Ephrem the Syrian: Hymns, a volume in the splendid and wonderful "Classics of Western Spirituality" series published by Paulist press (out of seven mystics I've read so far, this is the third CWS volume I've read; indeed, of the 99 books I'm reading for this blog, 57 of them are CWS volumes!). This book collects a total of 85 of Ephrem's hymns, including hymns on the nativity, hymns against Julian, and hymns on virginity and on Our Lord's symbols.
Why should Ephrem be considered a mystic? He doesn't have the same kind of theology of mystery that is found in the writings of Clement or Origen; nor does he seem to be influenced by Neoplatonism. But what I find remarkable, and lovely, is how his writing is filled with poetic (these are verse writings, after all) and lyrical imagery of light. His work is also clearly suffused with a sense of divine intimacy and compassion. Spirituality of light + theology of divine love = mysticism, at least in my book!
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