The Church in an Age of Secular Mysticisms: Why Spiritualities Without God Fail to Transform Us - Paperback

by Andrew Root (Author)

How Do You Minister to People Who Are Spiritual but Not Religious?

Post-Christian life and society do not eliminate a desire for the transcendent; rather, they create an environment for new and divergent spiritual communities and practices to flourish. We are flooded with spiritualities that appeal to human desires for nonreligious personal transformation. But many fail to deliver because they fall into the trap of the self.

In the last book of the Ministry in a Secular Age series, leading practical theologian Andrew Root shows the differences between these spiritualities and authentic Christian transformation. He explores the dangers of following or adapting these reigning mysticisms and explains why the self has become so important yet so burdened with guilt--and how we should think about both.

To help us understand our confusing cultural landscape, he maps spiritualities using twenty of the best memoirs from 2015 to 2020 in which "secular mystics" promote their mystical and transformational pathways. Root concludes with a more excellent way--even a mysticism--centered on the theology of the cross that pastors and leaders can use to form their own imaginations and practices.

Back Jacket

How Do You Minister to People Who Are Spiritual but Not Religious?

In a secular age that offers a buffet of spiritualities focused on the self and on personal transformation, Andrew Root demonstrates the difference between these reigning mysticisms and an authentic Christian view of transformation.

"Root playfully illustrates how we have become trapped in the present by way of the past, and neither heroics nor introspection nor ourselves will save us. Instead, he posits an enticing, ancient transformation in confession and surrender to something beyond ourselves. A balm for those guilted by Instagram and self-help, Root's book is both illuminating intellectual history and an essential guide for spiritual leaders navigating secular mysticisms."
--Erin Raffety, Princeton University and Princeton Seminary

"A theological gem. This book is a primer on spiritual theology and philosophical theology that inspires readers to recover and reconsider traditions of confession and surrender. Root balances wit and humor with intellectual depth. This thought-provoking book is an important read that challenges mainline pastors and congregations striving for relevance in the secular age."
--Kermit Moss, Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary

"A gifted practical theologian, Root invites us to wrestle with the nature of historical and contemporary mysticism in the Western world so that we might resist a spirituality that essentially ends in the self and respond to the transformative invitation to Christ-centered relationships. Ministry leaders will benefit greatly from Root's practical wisdom."
--Angela Reed, Truett Seminary, Baylor University

"Root's final book of the Ministry in a Secular Age series passes on a legacy: the mystery of how a theology of the cross paradoxically offers a path for transformation of the self. At the end of his secular pilgrimage, Root becomes a mystical guide, pointing passionately at how transcendence may be found in the receptive life--a life of passive surrender and confession."
--Bård Norheim, NLA University College, Norway; coauthor of The Four Speeches Every Leader Has to Know

Author Biography

Andrew Root (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary) is Carrie Olson Baalson Professor of Youth and Family Ministry at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he teaches on theology of ministry, youth ministry, and culture. He is the author of over 20 books on youth ministry and practical theology, including the acclaimed Ministry in a Secular Age series. Root speaks worldwide to church groups, university and college communities, youth workers, and other ministry professionals. He also hosts the popular and influential When Church Stops Working podcast.