Mystery and the World

Maria Clara Bingemer is Professor of Systematic Theology at the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She teaches Fundamental Theology and Theology of God. She is the author of many books and articles in various languages, including Simone Weil (2015), A Face for God (2014) and Mary, Mother of God, Mother of the Poor (1987), and is co-editor with Peter Casarella of Witnessing: Prophecy, Politics, Wisdom (2014). She is a member of the editorial board of Concilium.

"Maria Clara Bingemer dares to take on our contemporary secular culture and insists on our need for religious experience. While arguing for the reality of religion, she posits a particular course, for all of us, to rediscover the Transcendent. ... Through her account of how it is that we are this way, she proposes other narratives that bring us to an encounter of passion for God. It's Bingemer at her best."James F. Keenan, Canisius Professor, Boston College"Reading Dr Bingemer's book, the idea of mystical thought as an outdated, esoteric tradition fairly crumbles in our hands. By carefully laying out the spiritual experiences and ethical concerns of a number of modern mystical personalities who sought a life of grace outside the official church or at its fringes, she challenges people of faith to open their eyes to their tacit conspiracy in the ongoing degradation of human life and the ecology of the earth."James W. Heisig, Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture"Throught well-researched analysis of the modern era and discussion of some of the mystics of more recent times, she reveals to the reader how the religious belief, whilst changed, is not dead and is still an important aspect of our existence."Studies in Spirituality, Volume 27, 2017

• Foreword by Peter J. CasarellaIntroduction1. Premature or Late Modernity: A Question of Culture2. Secular Culture and the Crisis of Religion3. Religious or Mystical Experience: A New Moment, a New Configuration, New Challenges4. Mystical Biographies and Theological Narrative5. Stories and Experiences of LoveConclusionAppendix: Translator's Note Regarding Sources and Footnotes for Chapter 5BibliographyIndex