For the writer, teacher, and mystic Andrew Harvey, the treasures of Christianity have never been tapped because so few people have taken seriously the direct path to Christ and the love and the passion that can ensue from an acceptance of the divine within. The author of many books including Son of Man and The Direct Path states in this inspiring 9 1/4 hour audio course: "A mystic is someone who, through various inner experiences, intuits that the ground of their being is something called a soul or spark of God. In this deep formless spirit, they connect directly to the Godhead who is manifesting all the universes at every moment." This understanding can embolden Christians and others to incarnate the radical teachings of Jesus and to live a mystical relationship with Him that is radiantly alive and in loving service of others. In session one, Harvey alludes to the six illusions that prevent mystical activism in the world. But they can be overcome.
In session two, he presents "The Diagram of Sacred Passion." Christ comes alive in us through eight thresholds and mysteries: the New Birth, the Temptation, the Transfiguration, your Gethsemane, the Cross, the Resurrection, the Ascension, and the Pentecost. All the while, we will wage a war with the false self and struggle to see the divine in all things. Harvey moves on to describe "The Map of Christing" which includes the mystical path experienced by so many saints: awakening, illumination, and union. Here he also covers the dark night of the soul and the body as the temple of the Spirit. Through prayer, silence, and ardent devotion, the love at the center of creation draws us into its orb, and we are transformed.
Harvey is especially cogent in his commentary on the Feminine aspect of God — the energy bringing together that which has been separated for so long: earth and heaven, prayer and action, the masculine impulse and the feminine powers. The author traces how the world's religions have honored the Divine Mother, who always challenges us to transform our world with love and compassion.
In two sessions, the author suggests ways to practice the presence of Christ through the inspiration of the saints, in making our lives a continual prayer, and by exploring mystical consciousness. The last two sessions offer meditations for the Christ path including invoking the Holy Spirit, the practice of breathing in the Christ, the maranatha prayer, the Jesus prayer, the Sacred Heart of Jesus meditation, and much more. Also drawing upon insights from the ancient Desert Fathers and Mothers, St. John of the Cross, Thomas Merton, Bede Griffiths, and many others, Andrew Harvey presents his own imaginative, passionate , and adventuresome vision of the Christ path.
