The Liturgical Mystery
The Oxford Handbook of Mystical Theology February 25, 2020 Andrew Louth
The core of Christian mysticism is inseparable from liturgical practice, especially the Eucharist. While modern usage equates mysticism with individual experience, the original Christian meaning ties it to sacraments, above all the divine liturgy. The Eucharist should be understood not as a text but as an action performed by Christ—on the cross, eternally in heaven, and in the present liturgy. Christ draws the entire cosmos into unity with himself and his self-offering to the Father, an act of reconciliation and love with ascetical, ontological, metaphysical, and cosmic implications.