ABSTRACT
Many mystics in the Christian tradition interpret the mystic way and its culmination in the mystic union in terms derived from romantic love, and very often they make use of erotic metaphors to describe their actions, attitudes and experiences. Thus for example St Bernard of Clairvaux developed a form of nuptial mysticism on his interpretation of the Song of Songs, and this was very influential in the works of a large number of Christian mystics. Unlike Jose Ortega y Gasset romantic lover, it is not ‘the most intimate and mysterious preferences which form our individual character’ that determine whether the believer should love God. The kind of loving union with God sought by the mystic can most fruitfully be interpreted as an intimate personal relationship in which the whole life and character of the mystic is transformed in the likeness of the divine love.
