The Darkness of God: Negativity in Christian Mysticism [Paperback]

Denys Turner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 13, 1998 | ISBN-10: 0521645611 | ISBN-13: 978-0521645614 | Edition: First Paperback Edition

For the medieval mystical tradition, the Christian soul meets God in a "cloud of unknowing," a divine darkness of ignorance. This meeting with God is beyond all knowing and beyond all experiencing. Mysticisms of the modern period, on the contrary, place "mystical experience" at the center, and contemporary readers are inclined to misunderstand the medieval tradition in "experientialist" terms. Denys Turner argues that the distinctiveness and contemporary relevance of medieval mysticism lies precisely in its rejection of "mystical experience," and locates the mystical firmly within the grasp of the ordinary and the everyday. The argument covers some central authorities in the period from Augustine to John of the Cross.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This book lives up to its dust-jacket billing as a `timely and important' and `exciting' book..." Theological Studies

"[Turner's] prose is clear and precise, and he has a gift for finding good analogical examples for explaining difficult distinctions." Kent Emery, Jr.; Speculum

"This book is rich in lucid exposition, critical analysis, and useful understanding. It is essential and enjoyable reading for anyone who wants to know more about medieval mysticism." Alan R. Perreiah, Lexington Theological Quarterly

Book Description

Denys Turner argues that the distinctiveness and contemporary relevance of medieval mysticism lies in its rejection of 'mystical experience', and locates the mystical firmly within the grasp of the ordinary and the everyday.

Product Details

• Paperback: 292 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; First Paperback Edition edition (November 13, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521645611
• ISBN-13: 978-0521645614
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #456,503 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thought-provoking historical analysis of Christian mysticism, June 2, 2002

By 

Kim Boykin (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Darkness of God: Negativity in Christian Mysticism (Paperback)

This book is a history of some important metaphors in Western (as opposed to Orthodox) Christian mysticism: darkness and light, interiority, and ascent. Turner traces these metaphors from the Hebraic and Greek traditions (specifically, Moses' encounter with God on Mt. Sinai and Plato's "Allegory of the Cave") through Denys the Areopagite (Pseudo-Dionysius), Augustine, Bonaventure, Eckhart, "The Cloud of Unknowing," Denys the Carthusian, and John of the Cross, with mentions also of Julian of Norwich, Marguerite Porete, and Teresa of Avila, among others.

Turner's thesis is that the contemporary understanding of these metaphors, which assumes that this language points to experience, is so different from the medieval understanding, which rejected "experientialism," that it doesn't make sense to speak of a single "mystical tradition" encompassing both. I'm not sure I finally bought the argument, but I enjoyed the ride. Turner explores lots of interesting issues along the way, e.g., the use of paradoxical language in theology; systematic "vs." mystical theology; the unknowability of the self; the ascetic practice of detachment; and John of the Cross's "dark nights" in relation to depression.

I would not recommend this book unless you have some background in theology and philosophy and have read at least a few of the authors Turner discusses. Turner writes well, but the book is dense and academic. I'm not sure I would have read the whole thing if it hadn't been assigned reading for one of my doctoral courses, but I'm glad I did. I now have a much better understanding of the Neoplatonic tradition in Christianity and of how the various famous mystics are connected with one another, and Turner provides lots of food for thought about the Western Christian mystical tradition.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Solid scholarship and an inventive approach!, April 29, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Darkness of God: Negativity in Christian Mysticism (Paperback)

This book will impress you. Turner challenges the recent trend of reading mystical texts as being about "experiences." Rather, he proposes that that the works of such authors as Augustine, Eckhart, Dionysius and Denys the Carthusian exemplify Christian appeals to neoplatonic metaphors of light and interiority in an effort to speak not of a subjective experience, but of an ontological reality that transcends experience's grasp. The insights Turner brings to this topic quicken the spirit and redeem the thought of spiritual greats!

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Overwhelming Illumination, July 14, 2006

By 

benjamin (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Darkness of God: Negativity in Christian Mysticism (Paperback)

The Darkness of God is a brilliant collection of studies in Western medieval theology (or, as this particular strand of thought is called today, "mysticism") on apophatic theology - that is, the theology of "unsaying" and "unknowing". A significant part of Turner's thesis is that it is entirely inaccurate to read much of medieval theology/mysticism as being "experiential" - that is, concerned primarily with subjective, ecstatic experiences of God. Rather, much of apophatic theology existed as a type of non- or anti- experientialism. It was more concerned with the exposition of certain Biblical modes of thought and theological ways of speaking of God's transcendence: all theological negation must itself be negated.

Western mysticism is suspended between two poles of early Christian thought: Augustinian interiority, in which the self understand her or himself as being made in the image of God the Trinity on the one hand and, on the other hand, the writings of Dionysius the Aeropagite (also known simply as St. Denis or Denys, now called Pseudo-Dionysius due to Renaissance, Protestant and modern suspicion concerning his real identity as being that of an unknown and unnameable 5th or 6th century Syrian monk), whose mystical writings on negative theology, inspired heavily by the Exodus narrative of Moses ascending Mt. Sinai, were just as influential. It is the dialectic of Trinitarian cataphasis ("saying") and Mosaic apophasis ("unsaying") that gives this medieval thought its dynamic.

In many ways, this dialectic reaches its summit in the writings of St. Bonaventure, "the Prince of the Mystics" and greatest known disciple of St. Francis of Assisi who wrote simply and profoundly "Christ is all our language of God". Thinkers such as Meister Eckhart are also engaged; unlike Dionysius who recieves only one essay, Eckhart - like Augustine - recieves two essays. The anonymous author of the popular and well-loved 14th century English work The Cloud of Unknowing is discussed, and after him Denys the Carthusian, a fifteenth century mystical writer and, finally, St. John of the Cross, "the Mystical Doctor" of the 16th century.

It is from Eckart to John of the Cross that Turner covers some thematic developments, concluding his study with a fine essay titled "From Mystical Theology to Mysticism". It is in the High Middle Ages that there is an increasing transformation of mystical theology from being non-experiential to being explicitly aimed against any notions of subjective experience. Insofar as Turner is discussing negative theology, he can accurately make his claim that St. John of the Cross (for example) is not interested in "hyping" subjective experiences, but one cannot read the Mystical Doctor and think that experience is absent from his writing, especially his poems! But, to simply think - and it is at risk of being implicit in this fine work - that "experience" was absent from the thought of medieval mystics is entirely erroneous.

This, then, is the one area that the book really falls short, and readers should not be under the presupposition that the medieval and high medieval era were against what Turner negatively refers to as "experientialism". The intimate experience of God was deeply important to many, including cataphatic "mystics" such as St. Bernard of Clairvaux. This book is a well written and deeply insightful look into "Negativity in Christian Mysticism" (the subtitle), but it would have been welcome if Turner had placed apophatic theology into dialogue - and dialectic - with other forms of theology/mysticism that are not *today* considered "apophatic". Perhaps it is ironic that it is those mystics considered to be "apophatic" *today* that are used by Turner to fight against the notion, equally present *today*, that apophaticism is all about individual experience. This irony should not detract, however, from the depth, rigor and intellectual and spiritual stimulation that these dense and thoughtful essays will bring to its readers.