A Sociology of Mystic Practices

“Dann Wigner’s book draws on his exciting research into ECM groups in the Southwestern USA, focusing on how they engage in mystical practices derived from long-standing Christian traditions. Using ethnographic methods, Wigner explores how ECM members embody and make sense of these practices, furnishing an illuminating discussion of one of the most intriguing and unpredictable movements in contemporary Christianity.”


—Mathew Guest, Durham University, UK





“This book is a welcome contribution to the scholarship on the Emerging Church Movement. It provides compelling snapshots of how Emerging Christianity is expressed on the ground, exploring how Emerging Christians engage with mystical traditions. Its insights about ‘spiritual borrowing’ raise questions for future research in the field.”


—Gladys Ganiel, Queen's University Belfast





“The Christian life is best understood as a series of practices which come from, and form, faith. While the faith does not change, the shape of the practices does. Dann Wigner has explored and understands the shape faithful practices are taking in an ever-changing and emerging church, and for this we must be grateful.”


—William Brosend, School of Theology, The University of the South, Sewanee, TN