The Practical Mystic: Evelyn Underhill and Her Writings

by Evelyn Underhill

Publisher:

Canterbury Press

, 2012

Overview

Evelyn Underhill was one of the most widely read spiritual writers in the first half of the twentieth century. A prolific writer of letters and diaries as well as novels and spiritual works, she was a popular broadcaster, speaker and retreat leader. Fascinated with the nature and meaning of mystical experiences from childhood, her classic works focused on the spiritual life. Yet, she also valued practical Christian service equally. The Practical Mystic offers an introduction to Underhill’s works, a selection of her writings, and commentary.

Key Features

• Presents a selection of writings and commentary
• Offers an introduction to Underhill’s works
• Focuses on the spiritual life and practical Christian service

Contents

• Evelyn Underhill’s Life
• Evelyn Underhill’s Writings
• Mysticism
• Mysticism for All
• Union with God
• The Spiritual Life
• The Dark Night of the Soul
• Setbacks and Difficulties
• The Community of Christians
• Shared Worship and Sacraments
• Prayer
• Personal and Miscellaneous

Top Highlights

“The Christian mysticism of which Evelyn Underhill was a great exponent does not seek ultimate Reality seen as a transcendent Unity apart from the created world, but as a power that is actively at work in that world, immanent as well as transcendent. The individual soul is not absorbed into the Divine like a drop of water in the ocean, but retains its unique quality and creatureliness within the mystical union. Above all, it is the redemption brought by Christ and the restoration of human nature through his Incarnation that give both assurance and enabling to the quest of the Christian mystic. The essential reality of both transcendence and immanence is at the root of Underhill’s thought.” (Page 13)

Product Details

• Title: The Practical Mystic: Evelyn Underhill and Her Writings
• Author: Evelyn Underhill
• Series: Canterbury Studies in Spiritual Theology
• Publisher: Canterbury Press
• Print Publication Date: 2012
• Logos Release Date: 2013
• Pages: 256
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Underhill, Evelyn, 1875-1941; Underhill, Evelyn, 1875-1941 › Criticism and interpretation; Mystics › England--Biography
• ISBNs: 9781848251281, 1848251289
• Resource ID: LLS:PRCTCLMYSWRTNGS
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T02:21:45Z

About Evelyn Underhill

Evelyn Underhill (6 December 1875–15 June 1941) was an English Anglo-Catholic writer and pacifist known for her numerous works on religion and spiritual practice, in particular Christian mysticism. In the English-speaking world, she was one of the most widely read writers on such matters in the first half of the twentieth century.