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Bernard McGinn's four-part series The Presence of God seeks to trace the trajectory of Christian mysticism from its Jewish and Greek foundations through the present. For secondary students, this series can be a useful shelf resource in the history of Western Christian thought. This first volume of the series, The Foundations Of Mysticism: Origins to the Fifth Century, is an encyclopedic collection of the sources of mystical thought present in the Mediterranean world from 600 BCE to 600 CE. The first portion of the book is spent explaining the sources of mystical thought in both the Jewish and Hellenistic worldview that predate the rise of Christianity. This section can serve as a helpful, albeit dense, introduction to the Platonic and Messianic strains of philosophy which later come to make up the essential building blocks of Christian piety. For secondary school students, this section would be a helpful introduction to the Hellenistic and Judaic worldviews that prefigure the time of Jesus. McGinns summary of the main lines of religious thought will help situate Jesus in a real time and place. The last chapter of this section traces the earliest development of the monastic tendencies in Early Christianity. The rest of the book lays out the theologies of the main thinkers of the Western church, paying particular attention to Augustine, while still providing ample information on Origen, Ambrose, Jerome, Tertullian, and John Cassian. In his treatment of Augustine, for example, McGinn explains Augustinian theology mainly by discussion of Augustines writings. Indeed, this section is a better source for theological issues in the early church than a source of information about mystical practice. The book may be criticized for its interpretation of what constitutes "mysticism", and hence, what is (and more importantly, is not) included in the body of the work. For McGinn, "mysticism" is a type of thought rather than a method or practice. It is the notion that one can be in direct union with God, as opposed to a mediated relationship. McGinn is comfortable with this approach to mysticism, and yet thankfully, he provides the reader with an Appendix about the notion of "mysticism" in religious studies to fill in any gaps his approach may leave. In this appendix, McGinn summarizes the debate about studies on mysticism and its place within "traditional" or "organized" religion. The nature of mysticism itself, and the characteristics of mystical thought as currently defined in religious studies are far more diverse from that which is presented in the present volume. McGinn's synopsis draws almost completely on textual sources, and those coming from the more recognized personages of the early church. What is left out is perhaps most interesting as a commentary on the theological bias present in Early Christian studies, rather than an indication of the depth of contemporary thought about mysticism in religion. All and all, this volume remains a valuable and accessible source for teachers. Concise and well written chapters are richly supplemented by an enormous bibliography. For teachers in religious studies and world history this volume will make for a remarkable resource in the history of Christian mysticism. review @2000 Ellen Muehlberger and RSiSS
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