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The Mystics Would Like a Word: Six Women Who Met God and Found a Spirituality for Today
Discover a rich legacy of audacious women who forged a spirituality that is more inclusive, surprising, and empowering than we ever imagined.
Is there a Christian spirituality that embraces the entire reality of womanhood?
The answer, Shannon K. Evans suggests, is an emphatic yes. There is a spirituality that meets us in every part of our lives, developed by the women who came before us. Six mystics—Teresa of Ávila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Siena, and Thérèse of Lisieux—revealed a faith big enough to hold the female experiences of sex and desire, the yearning for bodily autonomy, the challenges of motherhood and identity, as well as life with male authority and—sometimes—violence. These women, self-determining, stubborn, and unapologetically themselves, asked questions in their time that are startlingly prescient today, and fought for women’s experiences to be heard, understood, respected, and recognized as holy.
In The Mystics Would Like a Word, readers will discover the story of Christian faith and spirituality as told by these extraordinary and wise women, one that speaks directly to today’s unique experiences, and leads to wholeness, healing, and spiritual vitality.
Is there a Christian spirituality that embraces the entire reality of womanhood?
The answer, Shannon K. Evans suggests, is an emphatic yes. There is a spirituality that meets us in every part of our lives, developed by the women who came before us. Six mystics—Teresa of Ávila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Siena, and Thérèse of Lisieux—revealed a faith big enough to hold the female experiences of sex and desire, the yearning for bodily autonomy, the challenges of motherhood and identity, as well as life with male authority and—sometimes—violence. These women, self-determining, stubborn, and unapologetically themselves, asked questions in their time that are startlingly prescient today, and fought for women’s experiences to be heard, understood, respected, and recognized as holy.
In The Mystics Would Like a Word, readers will discover the story of Christian faith and spirituality as told by these extraordinary and wise women, one that speaks directly to today’s unique experiences, and leads to wholeness, healing, and spiritual vitality.
208 pages, Hardcover
Published September 10, 2024
101 people are currently reading
3722 people want to read
About the author
Shannon K. Evans
10 books124 followersShannon K. Evans is passionate about exploring deeper ways of contemplating God so that our experience of the Divine grows further loving and curious, rather than static and complacent. She is the spirituality and culture editor at the National Catholic Reporter and the author of the books “Feminist Prayers for My Daughter: Powerful Petitions for Every Stage of Her Life” and “Rewilding Motherhood: Your Path to an Empowered Feminine Spirituality.”
With interest in ecofeminism, contemplative practice, and social change, Shannon leads workshops and retreats across the country that spark curiosity and compassion.
Having previously lived in Indonesia for two years, Shannon loves to travel, but is happiest at home on the Iowa prairie with her family and beloved chickens.
With interest in ecofeminism, contemplative practice, and social change, Shannon leads workshops and retreats across the country that spark curiosity and compassion.
Having previously lived in Indonesia for two years, Shannon loves to travel, but is happiest at home on the Iowa prairie with her family and beloved chickens.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 101 reviews
July 31, 2024
Having studied female medieval mystics as an undergraduate, I was excited to pick this up and read about how the author connected those writings to the world of today. I hate to say it, but I was disappointed. I enjoyed the author’s humor and writing style for the most part. She was quick to admit she was no expert and remained humble about that throughout. There were a couple of chapters I really appreciated, particularly those connecting Hildegard of Bingen with creativity and art. The chapters on sexuality, mental illness, horror, and the divine feminine were all very interesting, but I didn’t always see the full connection between the Mystic’s writings and the author’s. Having some familiarity with the six women described in this book, I felt there were some leaps and license taken, but I admit I’m also not an expert. The main issue I had with this book was that in an attempt at humor (I think) there were several moments when quotation marks and italics were used in a way that came off bitter and sarcastic toward evangelical Christians or anyone with a different theological viewpoint from the author. The tone came off exclusionary and worked against the book’s purpose to make women feel more included in the Christian Tradition. I can overlook this and still get some knowledge and application from this book; it wasn’t a bad read for me, just not stellar. But I can see other audiences dismissing or discarding this book completely, hence my overall disappointment. This was a "not for me" book, but I can see it being right for certain audiences.
July 22, 2025
This is a lively overview of six European women of faith—Teresa of Avila, Margery Kempe, Julian of Norwich, Hildegard of Bingen, Thérèse of Lisieux, and Catherine of Siena—now celebrated as Christian mystics for their exceptional experiences with the Divine. It is chatty and accessible, written in Ms. Evans' Millennial vernacular and with obvious affection for these women—most of whom lived vulnerable, fractured lives. I was particularly touched by the chapters about Teresa of Avila, a pioneer of contemplative theology, and the nod to enigmatic 14th century Julian of Norwich, author of the first-known book written in English by a woman.
Most of the The Mystics, however, is consumed by Ms. Evans' life stories, relayed in a chatty "book club and bottles of Chardonnay" style (she manages to squeeze in a fuck-around-and-find-out to demonstrate how the modern Christian woman isn't afraid to swear). The female saints feel like an afterthought as the pertinent details of their lives all too neatly dovetail into the author's own. A self-defined liberal Catholic feminist, Ms. Evans wades deeply into the waters of cultural relativism, squeezing the mystics' lives, their work and revelations into her worldview. I was deeply troubled by her fetishization of mental illness (see, chapter about Margery Kempe) and exasperated by the 21st century buzz-themes overlayed on women who lived centuries previous. (see: Intergenerational trauma. Climate justice. Mother Wound. Divine Feminine.) She wants desperately for these women to exemplify the post-modern pushback against the patriarchy and what a stretch that is, for these women all gave themselves over to a higher power, centering not themselves, but their faith. One takeaway is that Shannon Evans wants to make Christianity comfortable and relevant to white liberal women by smoothing out the rough edges and introducing some cool characters as feminist icons.
While these aspects made me grumpy, I still applaud the loving approach to highlighting these extraordinary women and their contributions to faith and culture. I am definitely inspired to seek out original works and explore some of these lives more deeply and that's the best takeaway of all.
Most of the The Mystics, however, is consumed by Ms. Evans' life stories, relayed in a chatty "book club and bottles of Chardonnay" style (she manages to squeeze in a fuck-around-and-find-out to demonstrate how the modern Christian woman isn't afraid to swear). The female saints feel like an afterthought as the pertinent details of their lives all too neatly dovetail into the author's own. A self-defined liberal Catholic feminist, Ms. Evans wades deeply into the waters of cultural relativism, squeezing the mystics' lives, their work and revelations into her worldview. I was deeply troubled by her fetishization of mental illness (see, chapter about Margery Kempe) and exasperated by the 21st century buzz-themes overlayed on women who lived centuries previous. (see: Intergenerational trauma. Climate justice. Mother Wound. Divine Feminine.) She wants desperately for these women to exemplify the post-modern pushback against the patriarchy and what a stretch that is, for these women all gave themselves over to a higher power, centering not themselves, but their faith. One takeaway is that Shannon Evans wants to make Christianity comfortable and relevant to white liberal women by smoothing out the rough edges and introducing some cool characters as feminist icons.
While these aspects made me grumpy, I still applaud the loving approach to highlighting these extraordinary women and their contributions to faith and culture. I am definitely inspired to seek out original works and explore some of these lives more deeply and that's the best takeaway of all.
December 24, 2024
I was looking forward to the release of this book all year. I’m so sad to only be able to give it 2 stars. If you’re looking for a blog-style narrative connected to the author’s personal experiences, this book would be right up your alley. If, however, you’re looking for a book that focuses primarily on these 6 women mystics, this isn’t the book. While I was reading, I couldn’t help thinking, YES, the mystics WOULD like a word…so stop talking about yourself and let them actually speak! To be clear, I agreed with Evans on most of her theological points, so it isn’t her theology I have qualms with - just the lack of the mystics she promised we would hear from.
In addition to focusing primarily on the author’s experiences and excluding the experiences of the mystics, I also didn’t appreciate the blog style that this book was written in. It felt contrived to me. At times, it felt like Evans was trying to excessively micromanage our reactions to the women presented and sound edgy and cool while doing it. (For example, calling the mystics “chicks” and reacting to an assertion with “Oh snap!”) Perhaps she was trying to appeal to younger readers by writing it in a blog style. But if she hadn’t tried so hard to make it relatable to the modern reader, I think it would’ve been way more enjoyable to read. The mystics are already mysterious and cool! Just presenting the best parts of what they’ve written would’ve been automatically fascinating.
To Evans’ credit, though, this book did leave me even more interested in the mystics than I was before, and now I’m longing to get my hands on each of their individual books. One of the parts of the book that I thought Evans handled well is when she writes about Teresa of Avila’s book “The Interior Castle.” Teresa saw our spiritual lives as a descent into ourselves rather than an ascent away from ourselves towards a God who is vaguely “out there” in the sky. Teresa imagined our spiritual lives as a mansion with many levels that humans gradually descend through as we become more spiritually mature. A descent into the self rather than an ascent away from the self is SO cool! I was so moved that I went ahead and immediately ordered “The Interior Castle” from my library! (Evans also thoughtfully recommended a version translated by a woman, and I made sure I ordered that particular version.)
I hope more authors write books on this subject! Just as long as the mystics actually get a word in this time…
In addition to focusing primarily on the author’s experiences and excluding the experiences of the mystics, I also didn’t appreciate the blog style that this book was written in. It felt contrived to me. At times, it felt like Evans was trying to excessively micromanage our reactions to the women presented and sound edgy and cool while doing it. (For example, calling the mystics “chicks” and reacting to an assertion with “Oh snap!”) Perhaps she was trying to appeal to younger readers by writing it in a blog style. But if she hadn’t tried so hard to make it relatable to the modern reader, I think it would’ve been way more enjoyable to read. The mystics are already mysterious and cool! Just presenting the best parts of what they’ve written would’ve been automatically fascinating.
To Evans’ credit, though, this book did leave me even more interested in the mystics than I was before, and now I’m longing to get my hands on each of their individual books. One of the parts of the book that I thought Evans handled well is when she writes about Teresa of Avila’s book “The Interior Castle.” Teresa saw our spiritual lives as a descent into ourselves rather than an ascent away from ourselves towards a God who is vaguely “out there” in the sky. Teresa imagined our spiritual lives as a mansion with many levels that humans gradually descend through as we become more spiritually mature. A descent into the self rather than an ascent away from the self is SO cool! I was so moved that I went ahead and immediately ordered “The Interior Castle” from my library! (Evans also thoughtfully recommended a version translated by a woman, and I made sure I ordered that particular version.)
I hope more authors write books on this subject! Just as long as the mystics actually get a word in this time…
December 24, 2024
I greatly appreciate that Shannon K. Evans has brought renewed attention to six incredible women: Teresa of Avila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Therese of Lisieux, and Catherine of Siena. It has inspired me to learn more about them and to read more of their writings.
I was hoping that a book called “The Mystics Would Like a Word” would be mostly about the lives and writings of the mystics. Unfortunately, there was surprisingly little about the mystics or their writings. The book was much more about the author’s life and opinions than it is about the mystics.
Each chapter is an essay with its own subject which includes a connection to one of the mystics. While I largely agreed with the points that Evans was making, the connections between the essay subjects and the mystics were often quite weak and contrived. It felt sort of like Evans wrote the essays first and then shoehorned in a few mentions of something similar in the lives of the mystics and/or a short quote from them.
I was hoping that a book called “The Mystics Would Like a Word” would be mostly about the lives and writings of the mystics. Unfortunately, there was surprisingly little about the mystics or their writings. The book was much more about the author’s life and opinions than it is about the mystics.
Each chapter is an essay with its own subject which includes a connection to one of the mystics. While I largely agreed with the points that Evans was making, the connections between the essay subjects and the mystics were often quite weak and contrived. It felt sort of like Evans wrote the essays first and then shoehorned in a few mentions of something similar in the lives of the mystics and/or a short quote from them.
January 24, 2025
A bit heartbroken to only give this two stars; I’ve had high hopes for this book since it was announced. Two of these saints are so dear to my heart and spiritual life. There’s a lot to the author’s somewhat unconventional place in the Catholic world that I have deeply appreciated. And this book felt like a letdown of all of these things.
Maybe this book is meant to be introductory, or for teens. Maybe I’m a stodgy over-serious trad who doesn’t like humor (doubtful lol). Maybe my hopes were too high, or I was overly familiar with the primary material. All I know is that by 20 pages in I was frustrated, and by 30 I was seriously debating whether this would be a DNF (a did not finish, seriously rare for me). I did ultimately finish, as I believe this to have been a work of good faith, but honestly could not recommend.
There’s some interesting content in here, (and it got progressively better as it went) but it’s pretty obscured by everything else. The writing style, depth level, and humor all felt so juvenile as to be almost insulting to the topics and people it addressed. It reads not like an examination of womanhood and the depth of mysticism but more like a teenager trying to figure out how to say something exactly the right balance of cool and shocking. For a topic as intimate as mysticism, there’s a tone of something (maybe defensiveness, maybe the humor which is all of the brand you nervously chatter when trying to talk about something big with someone you don’t know very well), that feels aggressively distancing. And honestly, someone who decries patriarchy and claims to want to give women mystics a shot at a serious voice and representation really ought to do a bit better with such brilliant material than calling them cutesie meme nicknames like “ the girls” or “petty queen” and sharing, ultimately, very little of their wisdom.
Maybe this book is meant to be introductory, or for teens. Maybe I’m a stodgy over-serious trad who doesn’t like humor (doubtful lol). Maybe my hopes were too high, or I was overly familiar with the primary material. All I know is that by 20 pages in I was frustrated, and by 30 I was seriously debating whether this would be a DNF (a did not finish, seriously rare for me). I did ultimately finish, as I believe this to have been a work of good faith, but honestly could not recommend.
There’s some interesting content in here, (and it got progressively better as it went) but it’s pretty obscured by everything else. The writing style, depth level, and humor all felt so juvenile as to be almost insulting to the topics and people it addressed. It reads not like an examination of womanhood and the depth of mysticism but more like a teenager trying to figure out how to say something exactly the right balance of cool and shocking. For a topic as intimate as mysticism, there’s a tone of something (maybe defensiveness, maybe the humor which is all of the brand you nervously chatter when trying to talk about something big with someone you don’t know very well), that feels aggressively distancing. And honestly, someone who decries patriarchy and claims to want to give women mystics a shot at a serious voice and representation really ought to do a bit better with such brilliant material than calling them cutesie meme nicknames like “ the girls” or “petty queen” and sharing, ultimately, very little of their wisdom.
February 23, 2025
I had very scant knowledge of these women before and though they are fascinating, this book wasn’t mostly about them. It’s more a blog-style overview that takes a premise and then uses some details of the saint’s life to illustrate. It seemed like there were a lot of interpretive leaps. It wasn’t my favorite but it did make me want to read more about the lives of the saints.
May 17, 2025
4.5 ⭐️ rounded up
I’m fairly theologically naive so this wasn’t too text-heavy. Easy reading but full of information and wonder and #girlpower. I appreciated the linkages between the Mystics’ writings and the authors personal life. I’ve definitely collected more books about these influential women to learn more about them!
I’m fairly theologically naive so this wasn’t too text-heavy. Easy reading but full of information and wonder and #girlpower. I appreciated the linkages between the Mystics’ writings and the authors personal life. I’ve definitely collected more books about these influential women to learn more about them!
August 5, 2024
Are we manipulating scripture to make peace with our own lives? This might be spiritual but its not Christian. Just saying
December 29, 2024
Thank you for writing this. This was very timely and helpful as I am learning and unlearning about who and how to connect with the Divine.
The stories about the mystics in this book and the author herself brings me a lot of hope. I have very little knowledge about these saints and was fascinated by some of their stories, and down right shocked by another. So many of the issues I’m experiencing with Christianity today have been issues for a long time, and the parts that feel so real and important have also been tested by time. I love the highlights of these women mystics and am encouraged by their commitment to what is true, good and beautiful. I learned so much from their stories and would read it again. These mystics and the author herself encourage a real, authentic lived faith, which looks authentic for each one. Faith , hope and love, these three will remain, the greatest of these is love.
The stories about the mystics in this book and the author herself brings me a lot of hope. I have very little knowledge about these saints and was fascinated by some of their stories, and down right shocked by another. So many of the issues I’m experiencing with Christianity today have been issues for a long time, and the parts that feel so real and important have also been tested by time. I love the highlights of these women mystics and am encouraged by their commitment to what is true, good and beautiful. I learned so much from their stories and would read it again. These mystics and the author herself encourage a real, authentic lived faith, which looks authentic for each one. Faith , hope and love, these three will remain, the greatest of these is love.
September 19, 2024
i could write a whole essay about my issues with the pathologization of margery kempe in this book.
June 4, 2025
I wanted more details on the lives of the mystics rather than the authors life.
February 19, 2025
I didn’t know anything about Christian mystics and after reading this book, I still don’t feel like I know much. Shannon Evans used the life and writings of six female mystics as a launching point to discuss a wide range of modern concerns, from environmental justice to horror. Unfortunately, she is not an expert on any of the those topics and so the book reads like a series of novice blog posts. I did appreciate her end of chapter questions, which prompted some great discussions with my book club.
November 17, 2024
DNF just not for me
August 26, 2024
"The Mystics Would Like A Word" by Shannon K. Evans
5🌟/5🌟
The main reason I picked this book up was because I saw a few chapters on Margery Kempe. This book seemed as good as any place to start reading about Margery.
I didn't know what to expect when I started "The Mystics Would Like a Word" but I am so glad to have read it! I'm not Catholic, but the author didn't grow up Catholic either, and she appropriately explained context and background information when needed for the uninformed Protestant like me. This book helped me see the beauty of the Catholic tradition and piqued my interest in medieval church history.
In the book, Shannon examines six remarkable women mystics, summarizing their lives, showing how she has been challenged and inspired by these women, and then asking the readers to consider for themselves how these women might inspire us today. This book made me uncomfortable at times-- in a good way! I had to reconsider some preconceived notions about Catholicism. I was introduced to new ideas about spirituality and faith.
There were so many things I appreciated about this book. First, the author's writing style is very relatable and engaging. She has a great writing voice, and I found myself smiling and laughing many times. I really appreciated a section of the book about nature, environmental justice, and climate change. I also loved how Shannon showed how these women advocated for themselves in difficult circumstances, confident in their callings, mission, and purpose.
The most uncomfortable part for me was being introduced to the concept of the divine feminine. It's a new concept to me, one that I have no exposure to. And yet, I am interested in learning more. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in exploring their spirituality, particularly those who are interested in learning from women who have gone before us, facing similar challenges as the modern reader, albeit in a widely different context.
Thank you, Convergent Books, for this digital copy to read and review.
5🌟/5🌟
The main reason I picked this book up was because I saw a few chapters on Margery Kempe. This book seemed as good as any place to start reading about Margery.
I didn't know what to expect when I started "The Mystics Would Like a Word" but I am so glad to have read it! I'm not Catholic, but the author didn't grow up Catholic either, and she appropriately explained context and background information when needed for the uninformed Protestant like me. This book helped me see the beauty of the Catholic tradition and piqued my interest in medieval church history.
In the book, Shannon examines six remarkable women mystics, summarizing their lives, showing how she has been challenged and inspired by these women, and then asking the readers to consider for themselves how these women might inspire us today. This book made me uncomfortable at times-- in a good way! I had to reconsider some preconceived notions about Catholicism. I was introduced to new ideas about spirituality and faith.
There were so many things I appreciated about this book. First, the author's writing style is very relatable and engaging. She has a great writing voice, and I found myself smiling and laughing many times. I really appreciated a section of the book about nature, environmental justice, and climate change. I also loved how Shannon showed how these women advocated for themselves in difficult circumstances, confident in their callings, mission, and purpose.
The most uncomfortable part for me was being introduced to the concept of the divine feminine. It's a new concept to me, one that I have no exposure to. And yet, I am interested in learning more. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in exploring their spirituality, particularly those who are interested in learning from women who have gone before us, facing similar challenges as the modern reader, albeit in a widely different context.
Thank you, Convergent Books, for this digital copy to read and review.
September 9, 2024
I recognized the names of the six women mystics Shannon K. Evans writes about in this book, but didn’t know a lot about most of them. If you’ve read extensively about any of these women — Teresa of Ávila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Thérèse of Lisieux, and Catherine of Siena — this book may not reveal any new information about them, but it is a great introduction to their lives and works and the contributions they made to the Christian Church.
Evans’s writing is gorgeous (and funny!) and applies the themes she sees in each mystic’s life and work to the lives of modern women: challenges faced and indignities borne, but also the joys of being in relationship with community and with God. Even in the midst of (and sometimes because of) their backgrounds, traumas, illnesses, and faults, these women pursued a relationship with God and positively impacted their communities because their love of God inspired them — compelled them — to do so. Evans shows us the beautiful example they can be for us in our own faith lives, and in a way that feels relevant and applicable to our lives now, in today’s world, despite the fact that these women lived centuries ago.
This book made me laugh and cry, and at one point I had to switch highlighters because my first one started running out of ink from how much I was using it to annotate. It makes me want to look into each mystic’s own writings and other commentaries on each of them. I highly recommend it! Thank you to Convergent Books and the author for the ARC.
Evans’s writing is gorgeous (and funny!) and applies the themes she sees in each mystic’s life and work to the lives of modern women: challenges faced and indignities borne, but also the joys of being in relationship with community and with God. Even in the midst of (and sometimes because of) their backgrounds, traumas, illnesses, and faults, these women pursued a relationship with God and positively impacted their communities because their love of God inspired them — compelled them — to do so. Evans shows us the beautiful example they can be for us in our own faith lives, and in a way that feels relevant and applicable to our lives now, in today’s world, despite the fact that these women lived centuries ago.
This book made me laugh and cry, and at one point I had to switch highlighters because my first one started running out of ink from how much I was using it to annotate. It makes me want to look into each mystic’s own writings and other commentaries on each of them. I highly recommend it! Thank you to Convergent Books and the author for the ARC.
October 12, 2024
I love being Catholic for a lot of reasons, and one of them is the great women who came before and reveal Christ to us in their own ways. Evans tells us their stories and connects them to our world today - social media, environmental justice, etc - and shows us how these 6 women to continue to reveal Jesus to us.
TELL ME WHEN YOU READ THIS SO WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT
TELL ME WHEN YOU READ THIS SO WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT
December 27, 2024
A wonderful blend of biography and personal reflection on these mystical female saints. Shannon Evans is witty, with an intelligent and personable voice that elevates and connects the vastness of faith and feminine.
January 10, 2025
What an inspiring, powerful book! I keep using the word "expansive" to describe Shannon's writing. This is encouraging and thought provoking and absolutely worth a read! I'm excited to read more of her work!
April 25, 2025
This book met me at the perfect time in my own journey through Spiritual Direction. Balm to my thoughts and soul. Loved the final line, "Everything is held. Nothing is scary." Looking forward to incorporating that in my Centering Prayer practice. Thank you for your book!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 3, 2024
Didn’t love her writing style but appreciated the topic.
January 31, 2025
A great introduction to some badass female mystics.
November 12, 2024
Highlighted so much. Learned so much. I have so many more questions and am eager to learn more. Bravo!
January 21, 2025
Think of this as a broad, fun intro to some of the most famous female mystics. I gobbled the book up but got a little pulled out of the narrative by Evans’ commentary.
February 3, 2025
4.5 stars
I have enjoyed Shannon Evans's other books, and so I picked this one up on a whim. I truly enjoyed this dive into six women mystics (Teresa of Ávila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Siena, Thérèse of Lisieux) and what we can learn from them. Each mystic gets two chapters, each with a different take on what we can learn from them. The topics range from sexuality to environmental justice to the divine feminine to horror/gore (that was the last chapter and it was honestly a little gross). This is an engaging and thoughtful exploration of the spirituality of these women and how we can be connected to their spirituality today. The questions at the end of each chapter are strong and this would make for a good discussion.
Evans does mention at the beginning that because of the criteria she used, these women are exclusively white. With that in mind, I did think that her chapter on environmental justice should have mentioned environmental racism and the nature gap, where Black Americans have less access to safe and clean outdoor spaces. I thought that was an important point that she missed.
Other than that, I very much enjoyed this book and recommend it for a group study or a personal read.
I have enjoyed Shannon Evans's other books, and so I picked this one up on a whim. I truly enjoyed this dive into six women mystics (Teresa of Ávila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Siena, Thérèse of Lisieux) and what we can learn from them. Each mystic gets two chapters, each with a different take on what we can learn from them. The topics range from sexuality to environmental justice to the divine feminine to horror/gore (that was the last chapter and it was honestly a little gross). This is an engaging and thoughtful exploration of the spirituality of these women and how we can be connected to their spirituality today. The questions at the end of each chapter are strong and this would make for a good discussion.
Evans does mention at the beginning that because of the criteria she used, these women are exclusively white. With that in mind, I did think that her chapter on environmental justice should have mentioned environmental racism and the nature gap, where Black Americans have less access to safe and clean outdoor spaces. I thought that was an important point that she missed.
Other than that, I very much enjoyed this book and recommend it for a group study or a personal read.
February 21, 2025
I read this for a book club, and really enjoyed book club! We read one section a week; each section includes information on a mystic. The questions at the end of each chapter were helpful for our conversations. Ultimately, we did spend a good chunk of book club saying, "Where are the mystics!!" or "The mystics would indeed like a word." By this, we meant that this book ... doesn't really include a lot of info on mystics?
The style of this book is to take some facts about a mystic's life, and to use those few facts as a jumping point for the author's reflections on her own life and faith. Sometimes, this worked really well for me (e.g., environmental justice and Hildegard of Bingen). Other times, the connection between the mystic's life and the author's writing decisions felt less clear (e.g., the idea of the "mother wound" and Therese of Lisieux). Every time, there felt like some kind of stretch: either a stretch between the mystic's life and the author's writing focus and/or a stretch between the slim facts about a mystic given and the interpretation the author gives (e.g., diagnosing mystics with mental illnesses, imagining relationships between mystics and other people in their lives, or potentially over-applying a trauma-focused lens). Interestingly, in one quick sentence buried within the Catherine of Siena section, the author briefly mentions that she had selected the focus of a chapter before even "researching" Catherine of Sienna. This perhaps off-handed peek behind the scenes of the author's process matched the "stretch" feeling/thought I had throughout the book. This approach was disappointing.
Sometimes, too, I wondered about how the author thinks about these mystics in conversation with each other. For example, in a simplified way, when discussing Teresa of Avila, she takes away a message of turning inward; when discussing Catherine of Siena she takes away a message of turning outward. What is the combination or synthesis of these perspectives? I can guess, but the book does not include this kind of explicit connection across sections. And, then, it ends abruptly.
One decision here that was most perplexing and, I think, unfair, was the explicit decision (shared in the intro) to leave out parts of the mystics' lives that are complicated or "aged poorly" (I'm guessing oppression here). This seems like a missed opportunity to take these women up in full complexity, in a more complete context of their lives and time. It also runs the risk of dismissing oppressions and oppressive actions. Similarly, the author shares a story in which she herself went on a mission trip that was certainly damaging to her (i.e., the sexism laced throughout that mission trip's teachings) and was, I imagine and she hinted at, damaging to the people she came in contact with. Here, following perhaps a similar line of thinking that she applied to her decision to leave out oppressions from mystics, she expresses that she was a victim and then moves on quickly (Like, my lady: white lady to white lady, are we just going to not apologize or unpack the harm that we do because, uh, we want some kind of focus on a relationship with God? But, like, isn't owning up to our harms part of our relationship with God?).
Overall, I am grateful that I read this because it inspired me to learn more about the mystics included here and because this book topic/title alone inspired me to join a book club that I'm not sure I would have joined otherwise. I am inspired to read something with more info and primary source about the mystics. I think my disappointment with the lack of grounded info here largely has to do with how the book was marketed (i.e., as being about these mystics). Rather than a dive into these mystics' lives, this felt like a blog post (which is not an insult!! blog posts are good!!) that's inspired by a brief blurb about a mystic. While I'm not sure I would have finished this book if I hadn't read it with such a fantastic book club, ultimately this book club - and, yes, that means this book - enriched my life. So that is good! I am thankful.
Some ideas in this book will stay with me: the idea that sharing your ideas/art/work is not self-important but, rather, generous; the reminder of "the little way" and images of people as unique flowers/plants; and images of the divine mother.
The style of this book is to take some facts about a mystic's life, and to use those few facts as a jumping point for the author's reflections on her own life and faith. Sometimes, this worked really well for me (e.g., environmental justice and Hildegard of Bingen). Other times, the connection between the mystic's life and the author's writing decisions felt less clear (e.g., the idea of the "mother wound" and Therese of Lisieux). Every time, there felt like some kind of stretch: either a stretch between the mystic's life and the author's writing focus and/or a stretch between the slim facts about a mystic given and the interpretation the author gives (e.g., diagnosing mystics with mental illnesses, imagining relationships between mystics and other people in their lives, or potentially over-applying a trauma-focused lens). Interestingly, in one quick sentence buried within the Catherine of Siena section, the author briefly mentions that she had selected the focus of a chapter before even "researching" Catherine of Sienna. This perhaps off-handed peek behind the scenes of the author's process matched the "stretch" feeling/thought I had throughout the book. This approach was disappointing.
Sometimes, too, I wondered about how the author thinks about these mystics in conversation with each other. For example, in a simplified way, when discussing Teresa of Avila, she takes away a message of turning inward; when discussing Catherine of Siena she takes away a message of turning outward. What is the combination or synthesis of these perspectives? I can guess, but the book does not include this kind of explicit connection across sections. And, then, it ends abruptly.
One decision here that was most perplexing and, I think, unfair, was the explicit decision (shared in the intro) to leave out parts of the mystics' lives that are complicated or "aged poorly" (I'm guessing oppression here). This seems like a missed opportunity to take these women up in full complexity, in a more complete context of their lives and time. It also runs the risk of dismissing oppressions and oppressive actions. Similarly, the author shares a story in which she herself went on a mission trip that was certainly damaging to her (i.e., the sexism laced throughout that mission trip's teachings) and was, I imagine and she hinted at, damaging to the people she came in contact with. Here, following perhaps a similar line of thinking that she applied to her decision to leave out oppressions from mystics, she expresses that she was a victim and then moves on quickly (Like, my lady: white lady to white lady, are we just going to not apologize or unpack the harm that we do because, uh, we want some kind of focus on a relationship with God? But, like, isn't owning up to our harms part of our relationship with God?).
Overall, I am grateful that I read this because it inspired me to learn more about the mystics included here and because this book topic/title alone inspired me to join a book club that I'm not sure I would have joined otherwise. I am inspired to read something with more info and primary source about the mystics. I think my disappointment with the lack of grounded info here largely has to do with how the book was marketed (i.e., as being about these mystics). Rather than a dive into these mystics' lives, this felt like a blog post (which is not an insult!! blog posts are good!!) that's inspired by a brief blurb about a mystic. While I'm not sure I would have finished this book if I hadn't read it with such a fantastic book club, ultimately this book club - and, yes, that means this book - enriched my life. So that is good! I am thankful.
Some ideas in this book will stay with me: the idea that sharing your ideas/art/work is not self-important but, rather, generous; the reminder of "the little way" and images of people as unique flowers/plants; and images of the divine mother.
June 2, 2024
I want to first began by saying I received an early copy of this book through NetGalley, and I'm grateful for it as it came just on time for when I was feeling pretty despondent about my faith.
I am a Christian. I call myself an Expanded Christian because I do not limit myself only to Christian practices and rituals or only to Christian texts. I love reading the Tao Te Ching, the Bhagavad Gita, and learning of other spiritual and religious traditions. I love chanting and listening to mantra and feeling the power of the words spoken. However, of late, I was craving something new from my religion of origin, something I didn't know, something that spoke to the ills of the world that we are seeing today.
Unfortunately, I wasn't getting it from my church home, so I started exploring other churches get a bit here or a bit there. But this book spoke to so much of what I wanted the church to speak to, so much of what I wanted to hear sermons on, so much of how I could show up to these issues that we all face, but that are especially faced by women in this world. My only gripe is that there were no women of color, and though the author states that there were no Christian mystics of color, I do think the diary of Perpetua would have fit nicely in with the women that were already present in the book, especially as Perpetua was believed to be an early Christian woman of color, who was martyred in Carthage along with another woman of color, Felicitas or Felicity, because of Perpetua and Felicitas' fervent desire to proclaim and uphold their Christian faith in a time where people were murdered for not renouncing it.
Still, even without Perpetua and her prison companion, Felicitas, this book hit the spot. I knew of Teresa of Avila and her visions and most famous writing, The Interior Castle, but I didn't know as much as I wanted to know about her like the fact that she was convinced we cannot know God without knowing ourselves. I mean I knew that the Oracle of Delphi, spoke of knowing thy self, but I did not know that there was a Christian who supported that or connected it with knowing the Divine.
I also was not familiar with any of the other women mentioned in the book, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Theresa of Lisieux, Julian of Norwich or Catherine of Siena. I didn't know what each of these women had to teach me, but I soon learned how each spoke to tenets that I hold true in my expansiveness such as seeing God in all including in the physical beauty of our home, Earth, like Hildegard of Bingen, how to continue to maintain the whole of me as I seek to join myself in matrimony to another as Margery Kempe did, how blessed we can be if we stop trying to keep God as simply masculine and allow God to be both feminine or even non-binary as Julian of Norwich did, how to show up in our purpose and not get caught up in trying to achieve fame as Therese of Lisieux did, how to balance action with contemplation so we can avoid the horror that Catherine of Siena and actually my mother and so many others experience when they do only for others and forget about themselves.
I enjoyed learning what these women could teach me, and I'm grateful for Shannon K. Evans for sharing each of them with me along with sharing some additional books to read to learn more about them and to find more of what I was looking for spiritually at this time.
Interestingly, she mentioned both God is a Black Woman by Christena Cleveland and the Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd. A few days after finishing this book, someone else recommended the Book of Longings, and I knew it was finally time to read it after acquiring it shortly after its release in 2020. I finished it yesterday and concurrently started reading God is a Black Woman.
I look forward to revisiting this book from time to time to check in on whether I am incorporating the teachings that it expounds upon. I love the author's wit and style of writing. It feels like I'm having a chat with a friend rather than reading a book, which made it a quick read for me and something that I generally am not as fast it in the nonfiction arena as I am in the fiction one. Still, I felt the need to savor and integrate the teachings of each woman, so as not to lose anything of what they wanted to teach me.
Again, I'm grateful for the early release copy of this book and I think that anyone who is looking for more feminine voices in Christianity and looking for how those voices can inform how we show up in the world today, this is THE book to read. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
I am a Christian. I call myself an Expanded Christian because I do not limit myself only to Christian practices and rituals or only to Christian texts. I love reading the Tao Te Ching, the Bhagavad Gita, and learning of other spiritual and religious traditions. I love chanting and listening to mantra and feeling the power of the words spoken. However, of late, I was craving something new from my religion of origin, something I didn't know, something that spoke to the ills of the world that we are seeing today.
Unfortunately, I wasn't getting it from my church home, so I started exploring other churches get a bit here or a bit there. But this book spoke to so much of what I wanted the church to speak to, so much of what I wanted to hear sermons on, so much of how I could show up to these issues that we all face, but that are especially faced by women in this world. My only gripe is that there were no women of color, and though the author states that there were no Christian mystics of color, I do think the diary of Perpetua would have fit nicely in with the women that were already present in the book, especially as Perpetua was believed to be an early Christian woman of color, who was martyred in Carthage along with another woman of color, Felicitas or Felicity, because of Perpetua and Felicitas' fervent desire to proclaim and uphold their Christian faith in a time where people were murdered for not renouncing it.
Still, even without Perpetua and her prison companion, Felicitas, this book hit the spot. I knew of Teresa of Avila and her visions and most famous writing, The Interior Castle, but I didn't know as much as I wanted to know about her like the fact that she was convinced we cannot know God without knowing ourselves. I mean I knew that the Oracle of Delphi, spoke of knowing thy self, but I did not know that there was a Christian who supported that or connected it with knowing the Divine.
I also was not familiar with any of the other women mentioned in the book, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Theresa of Lisieux, Julian of Norwich or Catherine of Siena. I didn't know what each of these women had to teach me, but I soon learned how each spoke to tenets that I hold true in my expansiveness such as seeing God in all including in the physical beauty of our home, Earth, like Hildegard of Bingen, how to continue to maintain the whole of me as I seek to join myself in matrimony to another as Margery Kempe did, how blessed we can be if we stop trying to keep God as simply masculine and allow God to be both feminine or even non-binary as Julian of Norwich did, how to show up in our purpose and not get caught up in trying to achieve fame as Therese of Lisieux did, how to balance action with contemplation so we can avoid the horror that Catherine of Siena and actually my mother and so many others experience when they do only for others and forget about themselves.
I enjoyed learning what these women could teach me, and I'm grateful for Shannon K. Evans for sharing each of them with me along with sharing some additional books to read to learn more about them and to find more of what I was looking for spiritually at this time.
Interestingly, she mentioned both God is a Black Woman by Christena Cleveland and the Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd. A few days after finishing this book, someone else recommended the Book of Longings, and I knew it was finally time to read it after acquiring it shortly after its release in 2020. I finished it yesterday and concurrently started reading God is a Black Woman.
I look forward to revisiting this book from time to time to check in on whether I am incorporating the teachings that it expounds upon. I love the author's wit and style of writing. It feels like I'm having a chat with a friend rather than reading a book, which made it a quick read for me and something that I generally am not as fast it in the nonfiction arena as I am in the fiction one. Still, I felt the need to savor and integrate the teachings of each woman, so as not to lose anything of what they wanted to teach me.
Again, I'm grateful for the early release copy of this book and I think that anyone who is looking for more feminine voices in Christianity and looking for how those voices can inform how we show up in the world today, this is THE book to read. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
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June 23, 2024Hooray for Christian feminism! Hooray for learning more about important Christian women in history! However, this book wasn't quite what I expected. For a book of this title, I would have liked to see more from the Christian mystics themselves. I liked hearing about the author's personal life/spiritual journey and some of the application points were helpful, but I think less than half of each chapter was about the historical mystics. Still, what was there was interesting and encouraging, and I get that we know little about historical female mystics, and that there are already other books about them.
My other hang-up with this book is that what interests me in mysticism is wanting a personal encounter with God, like the kind described in the Bible, but without going against the Bible's teachings. In my opinion, this book has some unbiblical content. One specific example would be referring to God as "They" or the divine mother (though Evans tries to make a case for this); another example is urging people to trust themselves rather than the Holy Spirit (even though Jeremiah 17:9 says "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" and Proverbs 3:5-6 says "Trust in the Lord [not yourself] with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path"). Now granted, some of the sayings of the mystics were pretty "out there," too, but I felt that the author made some big reaches even beyond what the mystics said. I could be wrong. I would just encourage other readers to "test everything and hold fast to what is good" and true (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Also... was not expecting to read the f-word in a religious book, especially in reference to Mary the mother of Jesus...
Even though I took some things in the book with a grain of salt, I still got good nuggets of spiritual nourishment. Evans made a lot of good points, even if she didn't convince me on everything. Maybe I'm just not the target audience for this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free eARC! I post this review with my honest opinions.
My other hang-up with this book is that what interests me in mysticism is wanting a personal encounter with God, like the kind described in the Bible, but without going against the Bible's teachings. In my opinion, this book has some unbiblical content. One specific example would be referring to God as "They" or the divine mother (though Evans tries to make a case for this); another example is urging people to trust themselves rather than the Holy Spirit (even though Jeremiah 17:9 says "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" and Proverbs 3:5-6 says "Trust in the Lord [not yourself] with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path"). Now granted, some of the sayings of the mystics were pretty "out there," too, but I felt that the author made some big reaches even beyond what the mystics said. I could be wrong. I would just encourage other readers to "test everything and hold fast to what is good" and true (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Also... was not expecting to read the f-word in a religious book, especially in reference to Mary the mother of Jesus...
Even though I took some things in the book with a grain of salt, I still got good nuggets of spiritual nourishment. Evans made a lot of good points, even if she didn't convince me on everything. Maybe I'm just not the target audience for this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free eARC! I post this review with my honest opinions.
September 12, 2024
Despite being a voracious reader, I rarely find myself anticipating the release of a book. That cannot be said for Shannon K. Evan’s The Mystics Would Like a Word. I have been hungrily eyeing the calendar since pre-ordering weeks (months?) ago. Initially, this was based on the way a book about female mystics tickled every bit of the spiritual, intellectual, and feminist parts of my brain, but within the first chapters, I realized that it was the author herself who most brought out in me that visceral C.S. Lewisian feeling of “You too?” Reading these pages was like wrapping myself in the relief of not being alone.
So much of my path over the past few years has been one of disentangling myself from the very human response in each of us which mandates that “For the sake of maintaining our sense of belonging, we discipline ourselves into staying within the received boundaries of what we are allowed to think, believe, or practice rather than what we actually think, believe, or want to practice.”
I delighted in the way she told her own intensely relatable story while presenting in a whole new way the stories of six saintly women (Teresa of Ávila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Siena, Thérèse of Lisieux), whose lives and writings I thought I’d already sucked the marrow from. Plus, anyone who also manages to weave in the words and ideas of more modern writers whom I consider life-changing wisdom teachers themselves (Pema Chodron, Mary Oliver, Mirabai Starr, Sue Monk Kidd, Clarissa Pinkola Estes, (related aside: someone else has read Lyanda Lynn Haupt too?!)) gets a special place alongside them on my bookshelf of favorites.
I loved this one from start to finish. Here’s to a world where more women’s voices and experiences are heard and respected; where women build true friendships to lift each other up and share our collective wisdom; and where more women lead the way.
So much of my path over the past few years has been one of disentangling myself from the very human response in each of us which mandates that “For the sake of maintaining our sense of belonging, we discipline ourselves into staying within the received boundaries of what we are allowed to think, believe, or practice rather than what we actually think, believe, or want to practice.”
I delighted in the way she told her own intensely relatable story while presenting in a whole new way the stories of six saintly women (Teresa of Ávila, Margery Kempe, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Siena, Thérèse of Lisieux), whose lives and writings I thought I’d already sucked the marrow from. Plus, anyone who also manages to weave in the words and ideas of more modern writers whom I consider life-changing wisdom teachers themselves (Pema Chodron, Mary Oliver, Mirabai Starr, Sue Monk Kidd, Clarissa Pinkola Estes, (related aside: someone else has read Lyanda Lynn Haupt too?!)) gets a special place alongside them on my bookshelf of favorites.
I loved this one from start to finish. Here’s to a world where more women’s voices and experiences are heard and respected; where women build true friendships to lift each other up and share our collective wisdom; and where more women lead the way.
September 4, 2025
Sort of a quirky format for a book, each chapter focusing on a female mystic (Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Siena, etc.) with a little about their life and writings serving as a jumping off point for connections to incidents from the author's life and to her beliefs, all of which seem reasonable/useful to me (focusing on "original blessing" rather than "original sin", willingness to face our own mortality, equal rights for women.......). Don't know enough about the original sources to evaluate whether the author is cherry-picking these interpretations or links.
The writing style is irreverent and casual (numerous free-standing "ok, fair" comments, allusions to a mystic as "our girl", a tossed-off FAFO, etc. etc. etc.) which will be a matter of taste for each reader of course -- to me sort of disarming and funny at first but a bit labored over the span of a couple hundred pages.
Some of the bio tidbits were fascinating to me, ex. Margery Kempe (who anchors a chapter on mental health that reviews the author's experiences with self-injury) had what must be the mother of all midlife crises:
"In 1413, at age forty, Margery took matters into her own hands. She left her children--including an infant--with her own mother, nannies, and her husband and embarked on a pilgrimage that would keep her away for five years." (p. 46). Her fourteen children, that is.
I remember being pleased that my wife was able to get away for the occasional weekend retreat, sometimes of the silent variety, when our kids were little. If we'd had 14 rather than 2 kids and the trip were extended that much ("instructions for the house plants are on the table. Back in about five years") it would have been more challenging, even if grandma and nannies available.
The writing style is irreverent and casual (numerous free-standing "ok, fair" comments, allusions to a mystic as "our girl", a tossed-off FAFO, etc. etc. etc.) which will be a matter of taste for each reader of course -- to me sort of disarming and funny at first but a bit labored over the span of a couple hundred pages.
Some of the bio tidbits were fascinating to me, ex. Margery Kempe (who anchors a chapter on mental health that reviews the author's experiences with self-injury) had what must be the mother of all midlife crises:
"In 1413, at age forty, Margery took matters into her own hands. She left her children--including an infant--with her own mother, nannies, and her husband and embarked on a pilgrimage that would keep her away for five years." (p. 46). Her fourteen children, that is.
I remember being pleased that my wife was able to get away for the occasional weekend retreat, sometimes of the silent variety, when our kids were little. If we'd had 14 rather than 2 kids and the trip were extended that much ("instructions for the house plants are on the table. Back in about five years") it would have been more challenging, even if grandma and nannies available.
Currently reading
September 27, 2024“From behind the bars of patriarchy, women can be downright cruel to those who wander free.”
“For the sake of maintaining our (women’s) sense of belonging, we discipline ourselves into staying within the received boundaries of what we are allowed to think, believe, or practice rather than what we actually think, believe, or want to practice. We look to spouses, family, members, pastors, and news anchors to tell us what parameters we ought to stay within. We trust the authority of outside voices far more than we trust the guidance of our own souls.”
“ if we are sincerely seeking to live in union with the spirit, then trusting in ourselves as portals of divine life, can be a way to move from spiritual childhood into spiritual maturity. Jesus himself said the kingdom of heaven is not to your left or to your right but is within you (Luke 17:21)
“If our faith formation is grounded in the nurture of relationship rather than the criticism inherent to projects of human accomplishment, then growth is framed and measured differently. In such an economy, failure is often the best teacher, solidarity Trump’s competition, and progress looks more like a spiral than a straight line. “
“ there is no such thing as falling behind; there is no such thing as getting ahead; there is even no such thing as losing our way, it is the Way who carries us.”
“The soul is not something to make smaller so that, as some say, God can be made bigger within us. On the contrary, Teresa of Avila encourages us to relish the vastness of the soul, to celebrate it as a sliver of God, a part of the fathomless expanse of love that is the great I am. This can be trusted. You can be trusted.”
“For the sake of maintaining our (women’s) sense of belonging, we discipline ourselves into staying within the received boundaries of what we are allowed to think, believe, or practice rather than what we actually think, believe, or want to practice. We look to spouses, family, members, pastors, and news anchors to tell us what parameters we ought to stay within. We trust the authority of outside voices far more than we trust the guidance of our own souls.”
“ if we are sincerely seeking to live in union with the spirit, then trusting in ourselves as portals of divine life, can be a way to move from spiritual childhood into spiritual maturity. Jesus himself said the kingdom of heaven is not to your left or to your right but is within you (Luke 17:21)
“If our faith formation is grounded in the nurture of relationship rather than the criticism inherent to projects of human accomplishment, then growth is framed and measured differently. In such an economy, failure is often the best teacher, solidarity Trump’s competition, and progress looks more like a spiral than a straight line. “
“ there is no such thing as falling behind; there is no such thing as getting ahead; there is even no such thing as losing our way, it is the Way who carries us.”
“The soul is not something to make smaller so that, as some say, God can be made bigger within us. On the contrary, Teresa of Avila encourages us to relish the vastness of the soul, to celebrate it as a sliver of God, a part of the fathomless expanse of love that is the great I am. This can be trusted. You can be trusted.”
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