P. Van Geest | Akateeminen Kirjakauppa

In the course of the past years an interest in the mystagogy of the Church
Fathers developed at various Dutch universities. Interest in the mystagogy
of the Church Fathers increased because it was recognised that its study
did justice both to the intention of the Church Fathers themselves and to
the increasing demand for spirituality. It was not their primary intention
to put forward a rational reflection on the depositum fidei as such
or to pass on knowledge of it as a goal in itself. Their goal was rather
to initiate a process aimed not so much at intellectual formation as at an
existential transformation by means of rituals, catechesis and the
explanation of stories and images from biblical traditions.
In this
book the main focus was on the mystagogy of the Church Fathers. The
assumption was that philological, historical and theological methods
complement each other in the approach to the Church Fathers as
mystagogues. Consequently the manner in which they attempt to shape their
introduction into the mystery of Christ was regarded from an
interdisciplinary point of view. The contributions to this book form a
first sketch of the research area of the mystagogy of the Church Fathers,
as it is taking shape at present.