Spiritual experiencesare famously transformative. They sometimes inspire dramatic effects ofconversion and healing, of vision and new life direction. But even in theirmore quotidian forms they expand our cognitive and emotional capacities, helpcultivate virtues, and intensify our feelings of closeness to God, others, andthings we deem ultimate. For Matthew Wickman, spiritual experience makes us feel more deeply alive. Andliterature functions as a special medium for capturing the nuances of spiritualexperiences, helping us reflect more deeply on them and become more receptiveto them.
In Wickman’s experience, which he reflects on in his new book from the Maxwell Institute’s Living Faith Series, LIFE TO THE WHOLE BEING: THE SPIRITUAL MEMOIR OF A LITERATURE PROFESSOR, literature has also helped him negotiate the complex relationship between spirituality, faith, and organized religion. He discusses all this by way of deeply personal experiences, theological reflection, and discussion of literary texts by Virginia Woolf, Denise Levertov, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Christian Wiman, and more.
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