Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ (Library of Spiritual Classics, Volume 2)

Madame Guyon was one of the leading proponents of the movement known as Quietism. Though she was condemned and arrested in France, she was quite influential in the ensuing years with groups like the Quakers, Moravians and early Methodists. In this book, Guyon gives a spiritual path for people to

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follow if they want to draw closer to Christ. It begins with a fairly simple exercise that is akin to Lectio Divina--taking and praying a work of scripture. As she continues, she encourages us to give in to God more, to abandon our lives more, to be quiet ourselves so that we can hear God. She promises that people will draw closer to God if they will allow themselves to be. However, she also notes that this if a drawing closer is achieved, it is because of God's grace and not our work.

This edition makes an unusual text widely available. Unfortunately, it is not so much a translation as a close paraphrase of Guyon's original. The difficult though rich language of spirituality is simplified into a simpler, perhaps even self-help, style. Therefore, this is not a book for a serious student of Madame Guyon or of the Quietist movement. However, as an accessible introduction to her work, it is a suitable place to begin.

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