Talk 01 - An introduction to Spiritual Theology

"spiritual theology is that part of theology that, proceeding from the truths of divine revelation and the religious experience of individual persons, defines the nature of the supernatural life, formulates directives for its growth and development, and explains the process by which souls advance from the beginning of the spiritual life to its full perfection."
- Fr Jordan Aumann OP

Here is some general reading on the subject of Spiritual Theology:

First, the two great overviews on the subject by Fr Aumann:

"Spiritual Theology"
This is a more 'technical' study of the subject arranged along classical lines.

"Christian Spirituality in the Catholic Tradition"
This is a historical overview of how Catholic spirituality has developed over time.

Pope Benedict XVI General Audience 13th April 2011
This is a short but wonderfully concise treatment of holiness.

And here's some material on the question of being SBNR - spiritual, but not religious...

"Not religious, not spiritual" is a review of Nancy Ammerman's work by Anthony Robinson.

"3 Catholic practices for the “spiritual but not religious”" is an article by Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble which attempts to reach out to the SBNR by introducing them to certain Catholic spiritual practices they may find helpful.
(Personally, I think this is a great example of Catholic evangelising - rather than dismiss the SBNR or try to persuade them to be practicing Catholics overnight, this seeks to meet them where they are now and provide a space for encounter with Christ and the Church.)

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