Premise and analogy:

• My premise is that mysticism is before and beyond religion. That it serves as the foundation, the basis and core of religion but has a life of its own and, while it is often related in some way to religion, it need not be - that religion and spirituality overlap but are not mutually dependent upon each other.

• Analogy: island chain, disconnected at the surface but a diver knows the underlying common ground

• Have each student silently reflect upon whatever personal spiritual experience they may have had in their lives and write a description of it. Participants will be encouraged to think in broad terms about what "spiritual experience" might encompass and to move beyond a traditional religious context, if warranted, in identifying such experiences in their own lives. Focus on use of "feeling" words, be objectively descriptive more than interpreting the experience (rather than saying "I experienced God’s inner presence", describe what that presence felt like; rather than saying "I saw an angel" describe what it looked like)

Round-robin reading of "Encounters with the Holy" : Notice common elements and terms used in these descriptions of mystical/visionary experience.

Discuss "Encounters with…" - identify similarities, common elements of the experiences (create list)

Read: Experience from The Celestine Prophecy (pp. 97-98) and Providence (pp. 63-66)

View Video: Thomas Keating, "Searching for God in America" series

Sharing of personal experiences (if time and willing): Option to read it yourself or have the teacher read them anonymously. I will share my own experience as well.

Distribute and, if time, read "Was Jesus a Mystic?":

Comment: Mysticism is the foundation of religion. Mysticism comes first, religion is the response to spiritual experience. However, for most of us in established religions the superficial religion comes first and may never approach the depth of spirituality.

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