Edited by Paul E. Szarmach (NHC Fellow, 1981–82) The European Middle Ages bequeathed to the world a legacy of spiritual and intellectual brilliance that has shaped many of the ideals, preconceptions, and institutions we now take for granted. An Introduction to the Medieval Mystics of Europe examines this phenomenon in vivid and scholarly accounts of the lives … Continued
By Moshe Sluhovsky (NHC Fellow, 2002–03) From 1400 through 1700, the number of reports of demonic possessions among European women was extraordinarily high. During the same period, a new type of mysticism—popular with women—emerged that greatly affected the risk of possession and, as a result, the practice of exorcism. Many feared that in moments of … Continued
By Nicholas of CusaTranslated by Jasper Hopkins (NHC Fellow, 1983–84) Nicholas of Cusa (1401-1464), sometimes misleadingly referred to as the first "modern" philosopher, was born in Kues, Germany (today Bernkastel-Kues). He became a canon lawyer and a cardinal. His two best-known works are De Docta Ignorantia (On Learned Ignorance) and De Visione Dei (On the Vision of God).
By Bernard McGinn (NHC Fellow, 1999–00) "Perhaps no mystic in the history of Christianity has been more influential and more controversial than the Dominican Meister Eckhart. Few, if any mystics have been as challenging to modern readers and as resistant to agreed-upon interpretation." So begins McGinn's much lauded introduction to the intriguing preacher and philosopher. … Continued
By Robert D. Richardson (NHC Fellow, 1999–00) The definitive biography of the fascinating William James, whose life and writing put an indelible stamp on psychology, philosophy, teaching, and religion — on modernism itselfPivotal member of the Metaphysical Club, author of The Varieties of Religious Experience, eldest sibling in the extraordinary James family, William emerges here … Continued