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A central issue in the study of the correlation between modernity, the turn to the religious subject and the history of mysticism, concerns the critical ? some would argue ?subversive? ? character and practice of mysticism and spirituality. Is this critical practice merely the resistance effect of the modern pastoral investment in the subject? Or is there something distinctive in mysticism and spirituality that draws it strength from various sources - knowledge, experience, desire or perhaps even one?s body ? and operates from a specific position or ?locus?? This volume explores these questions with the aim of developing a theory of critical spirituality, that is to say, of its historical appearances and its contemporary forms and characteristics

In this study the engagement of scholars in theology and religious studies with Freudian psychoanalysis is examined. The book focuses on the explicit or implicit theological ideas and aims that have determined its reception. The analysis includes a review of Freud's theories as suggestions for reconfigurations of psychoanalysis are made in order to further theorize on concepts or fields of attention that are important in theology and religious studies. The aim of this double critical review is to establish what the theoretical potential of Freud's psychoanalysis might be.

Abstract
This article focuses on some psychological aspects of Henri Bremond's work, notably the development of a psychologie de la foi, the research into the sentiment réligieux and his reflections on the relation between what is traditionally called fides qua and fides quae. It is argued that in the center of the writings of Bremond, who is working in the context of the modernist movement and the rediscovery of the Catholic spiritual and mystical traditions in the modern era, one can detect a deep concern about the relation between religious (spiritual) experience and the official church teachings and institutions, and more specifically the relation between reflective thought and conscious reasoning on the one hand and 'implicit' spontaneous understanding and reasoning on the other hand. Also, in his writings one finds a fundamental discussion on the relation between mysticism and asceticism, and mysticism and poetry. Through the collection of material (mystics and their writings) and the elaboration of fundamental thematics, Bremond has become an important and also influential author. This article addresses this issue in particular in a short inquiry into the influence of Bremond on the work of Michel de Certeau.

The emergence and downfall of fascism and the Nazi regime in the mid-twentieth century mark the definitive decline of Europe's geopolitical hegemony. The end of the Second World War is the beginning of both decolonization processes and the founding of the United Nations as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In this context, we find a variety of philosophical interpretations on religious traditions, secular conceptualizations of reason and political theories. In and outside of Europe, philosophical and spiritual movements develop different political orientations, whereas fruitful dialogues between religious and secular philosophical positions emerge. In this volume, such positions and interactions are explored in an exemplary way.

Abstract
The emergence of a scholarly and popular interest in religious experience, spirituality and mysticism around 1900 plays a crucial role in the further transformations in religion in the twentieth century and in contemporary Western and non-Western societies. This volume contains philosophical reflections on the emergence of these new constellations, discourses and practices. The 'rediscovery' of the various spiritual and mystical sources and traditions, and the turn towards the individual's religious experiences, can be situated against the background of a growing critique of global scientific positivism and the rise of secular (atheistic, Marxist) philosophies. The turn to spirituality and mysticism is associated with political projects of anti-imperialist emancipation in for example, India, the Islamic countries, Russia and Latin-America. Through philosophical inquiries into key authors such as Bergson, Blondel, James, Heidegger, Bremond, Weil, Solov'ëv, Rodó, Iqbal and Vivekenanda, this volume presents a comprehensive perspective on the fundamental issues and discussions that inspired the turn to spirituality in a modern era of secular reason.