Ways of Imperfection: An Exploration of Christian Spirituality

This book is a survey of important writers and themes in Christian spirituality, from the early church through the 14th century, plus Jean-Pierre de Caussade (18th century) and Therese of Lisieux (19th century), and skipping some prominent figures who have gotten plenty of attention elsewhere, like Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross. While the book is "scholarly" in the sense of being grounded in good scholarship, don't be put off by all the endnotes. The chapters are brief (7-15 pages), and the book is well suited to the reader with a personal religious interest in Christian spirituality. Tugwell is a Dominican, and his own take on this material comes through in a way that is engaging and that keeps the book from reading like a series of encyclopedia entries. Chapter titles: The Apostolic Fathers. The Desert Fathers. Evagrius Ponticus. Problems about Grace. The Macarian Homilies. Augustine and Western Controversies about Grace and Baptism. Monastic Rules in the West. Two Spiritual Fathers in the East: Barsanuphius and John. The Christian's "Spiritual Exercise": Guigo II. The Ladder Dismantled: The Lower Rungs. The Ladder Dismantled: The Higher Rungs. Francis of Assisi. Humbert of Romans. Some Themes in English Piety. The Cloud of Unknowing. Julian of Norwich. Jean-Pierre de Caussade. Therese of Lisieux.

It seems like a history of writings on spirituality in the Christian Church, which is basically about monks, would be a little dull, but this book is hard to put down. The author presents in each chapter a succinct and entertaining description of a particular time and place in the history of the Church, by presenting the teachings of its notable figures.At first glance the book seems to be overly scholarly, with pages and pages of references and footnotes, but the style with which it is written led me to imagine each of the people talking, or writing, or in some cases refusing to talk, as if they were in front of me. There is also no commentary by the author about the relation of the historical views with the current doctrine of any particular denomination, which is refreshing for a book about religion. That also allows a reader to relate his or her own views to the views of past thinkers instead of the author's, which was another reason I enjoyed reading the book so much.I would recommend this book to anybody who is interested in the history of Christian thought, even if it is only a mild interest.