Jun 2005 Christian Spirituality By George A Lane SJ

The Nature of Mysticism (Continued from previous issue) Visions are traditionally classified into three types: corporeal, imaginative, and intellectual. A corporeal vision is an experience in which a person sees or hears something that is actually physically present outside his imagination. An imaginative vision will seem entirely the same as the corporeal, but it is actually entirely within the imagination. This does not make the imaginative vision any the less genuine. An intellectual vision is an experience of insight or realization with no perceptible sense elements. Are there corporeal visions? Many have doubts whether there have ever been such visions. Not the least of these are John of the Cross and Theresa of Avila. The impression of reality that a vision seems to have on the visionary is no criterion whether the vision is corporeal or imaginative. A vision of an angel, a pure spirit, must be imaginative. Jesus and Mary have been seen dressed in clothes foreign to the age and culture in which they lived. What is even more significant is the problem of how Christ can now appear bodily as an infant. The presupposition is in favour of visions being imaginative rather than corporeal. The question of placing these visions within the context of mysticism still remains. The traditional understanding is that visions are not directly caused by God, but are rather an overflow of a more central, purely spiritual process, that of infused contemplation. And so it depends somewhat on a person's temperament whether or not or how the intimate contact with God overflows into a vision. This context helps to give an understanding of the historical and psychological determinations in visions. It also shows how errors can occur in them. In other words, whatever God causes directly is the intimate mystical union with Himself. He does not directly cause the concomitant experience which may manifest itself in a vision. That experience will be determined partially by the mystical experience of God and partially by the person's own experience and mental makeup. The case of St Margaret Mary Alacoque illustrates the historical and psychological determinations in visions. Many have wondered about the origin of the flame above the Sacred Heart, the crown of thorns, and the cross above the heart. Where did they come from? Margaret Mary was a Visitation nun, and all of these symbols were present in the pictorial and devotional traditions of the Visitation order for some time. The mystical experience did not infuse new images and pictures into her mind; they were there and they simply became more clearly focused and more effectively organized as a result of the mystical experience which she had. The ultimate norm for determining the genuinity of a mystical experience has always been an increase in a person's virtue. By their fruits you shall know them. If God truly establishes a unique union in the depths of a soul, it can only result in a much greater degree of humility and charity in the life of the person. This is the only sure criterion. The great mystics of the Church have always been suspicious of visions and the other concomitant phenomena. History confirms the opinion of a leading theologian that three out of four "visions," even of pious and "normal" people, are pure hallucinations. Finally, there is the question of personal or ecclesial mysticism. Personal visions are those whose object and content solely concern the perfection of the individual himself. Ecclesial or prophetic visions are those which in addition to this induce or commission the visionary to address his environment and ultimately the Church with a message or warning, requiring something, or even on occasion foretelling the future. The revelations to St Margaret Mary Alacoque will also illustrate the ecclesial function of mysticism. The Church in the seventeeth century was badly infected with Jansenism. The good news of God's redemptive love for men was clearly contained in the sacred scripture as it always had been, but it was being widely ignored. The purpose and function of the private revelations of the Sacred Heart was simply to recall attention to the fundamental reality of Christ's unfailing love for humankind. The Sacred Heart devotion did precisely this. The mystical graces granted to St Margaret Mary were eventually for the good and benefit of the whole Church. Though our own age and culture are generally unsympathetic to mysticism, yet it is too much a part of the history of the Church to be cast aside. We should have a positive attitude, a respect for genuine mysticism. But where does one find genuine mysticism? The attitude of the Church has always been one of extreme caution in this regard. Perhaps this should be our attitude too, caution and respect, while at the same time we acknowledge the immense good that has come to the Church from the authentic mystics.

- To Be Continued - © Copyright Shalom 2005. All rights reserved.