Wisdom's Children: A Christian Esoteric Tradition

Portada
State University of New York Press, 1999 M09 30 - 370 páginas
The first book in English to provide an in-depth introduction to the Christian theosophic tradition that began with Jacob Bo¬hme, Wisdom's Children brings us into a startling new world of experiential spirituality that is in fact the Christian equivalent of Sufism and Kabbalism. With biographic introductions to major theosophers and detailed discussions of theosophic authors such as John Pordage, Jane Leade, Dionysius Freher, and Johann Gichtel—as well as a survey of their major theosophic cosmological and metaphysical teachings—this book is an indispensable guide to the hidden history of Protestantism and its ramifications today.

With chapters discussing theosophy in relation to Gnosticism, magic, astrology, alchemy, and other Western esoteric traditions, Wisdom's Children is situated solidly in its historical context using primary works from the tradition itself. The book also provides unexpected insights into how this modern gnostic tradition speaks to us today, and suggests how this tradition could spark a "new Renaissance" to link spirituality, the arts, and the sciences in a new and encompassing vision.
 

Contenido

The Visionary Science of Dr John Pordage
3
Jane Leade the Philadelphians and the Doctrine
57
Dionysius Andreas Freher Allen Leppington and William Law
79
Johannes Kelpius and Pennsylvania Theosophy
93
Christopher Walton and His Theosophic College
113
PART
127
The Divine Emanation of Worlds
135
Spiritual Regeneration
142
Theosophy and Gnosticism
219
Alchemy and Theosophy
235
Theosophy and Chivalry
247
Theosophy Herbal Medicine Magic and Astrology
259
Theosophy and Modern Science
277
Toward a New Psychology
283
Hierohistory and Metahistory
293
Revelation Authority and the Apostolic Tradition
309

The Science of Imagination
157
The Eye in the Heart
169
PLATES FOLLOW CHAPTER 14 PAGE
176
Frontispiece from Böhme The Way to Christ from Theosophia
176
The Physiology of the Soul
177
Turning Wrath into Love
197
Penetrating the Merely Astral
207
CONCLUSION
319
NOTES
327
Angelology and Paradise
339
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
353
INDEX
367
Derechos de autor

Otras ediciones - Ver todas

Términos y frases comunes

Acerca del autor (1999)

Arthur Versluis is Assistant Professor of American Thought and Language at Michigan State University. His previous books include The Hermetic Book of Nature: An American Revolution in Consciousness; Gnosis and Literature; Theosophia: Hidden Dimensions of Christianity; and Native American Traditions, among others.

Información bibliográfica