Meister Eckhart
Meister Eckhart was a German Dominican theologian, philosopher, and mystic whose radical sermons on detachment, the birth of the Word in the soul, and the 'ground' (*Grund*) of God and the soul represent one of the most profound expressions of Christian mystical thought. His concept of 'releasement' (*Gelassenheit*) and his insistence that the soul's deepest ground is identical with God's ground influenced German idealism, Heidegger, and contemporary theology.
Key Ideas
Key Contributions
- ● Developed the concept of the 'ground' (Grund) of God and the soul as a depth beyond all attributes where God and soul are one
- ● Articulated detachment (Abegeschiedenheit) as the highest spiritual virtue — radical letting-go of all creaturely attachments
- ● Taught that the Word is born in the detached soul just as it is eternally born in the Father
- ● Helped create German as a language of philosophical and mystical expression through his vernacular sermons
- ● Influenced Heidegger's concept of Gelassenheit, German idealism, and contemporary theology
Core Questions
Key Claims
- ✓ The ground of God and the ground of the soul are one and the same ground
- ✓ Detachment is the highest spiritual virtue — more fundamental than love or humility
- ✓ When the soul is perfectly empty and detached, the Word is born in it as it is born in the Father
- ✓ God in his deepest ground (the Godhead) is beyond being, beyond goodness, beyond all names and attributes
- ✓ The soul must let go even of God as an object to find God in the ground
Biography
Life
Eckhart von Hochheim was born around 1260 in Hochheim, Thuringia, in the Holy Roman Empire. He entered the Dominican order as a young man and studied at the University of Paris, where he earned the title 'Meister' (Master of Theology) — hence 'Meister Eckhart.' He held prominent positions within the Dominican order, including Prior of Erfurt and Vicar of Thuringia.
Eckhart taught at Paris, Strasbourg, and Cologne, lecturing both in Latin for academic audiences and preaching in the vernacular German for lay congregations. His German sermons, delivered to communities of Dominican nuns and Beguines, are among the most important philosophical texts in the German language and helped create German as a language of philosophical expression.
Mystical Theology
Eckhart's thought centers on the relationship between God and the soul at their deepest level. His key concepts include:
The Ground (Grund): Both God and the soul have a 'ground' — a depth beyond all determinations, names, and attributes. In this ground, God and the soul are one. God in his ground is beyond even being and goodness — Eckhart sometimes calls this the 'Godhead' (Gottheit) as distinct from the personal God of theology.
Detachment (Abegeschiedenheit): The highest spiritual virtue is not love or humility but detachment — the radical letting-go of all creaturely attachments, including attachment to God as an object. Only through complete detachment can the soul become empty enough for God to be born within it.
The Birth of the Word in the Soul: The eternal generation of the Son from the Father is not only a Trinitarian event in God but occurs continually in the detached soul. When the soul is perfectly empty, the Word is born in it just as it is born in the Father — making the soul, in some sense, one with God.
Condemnation
In 1326, the Archbishop of Cologne initiated proceedings against Eckhart for heresy. Eckhart defended himself vigorously, insisting on the orthodoxy of his teachings when properly understood. In 1329, Pope John XXII issued the bull In Agro Dominico, condemning seventeen of Eckhart's propositions as heretical and eleven as suspect. Eckhart had died by this time (around 1328), before the final verdict.
Despite the condemnation, Eckhart's influence persisted through his disciples (Johannes Tauler, Heinrich Suso, the anonymous author of the Theologia Germanica) and resurfaced powerfully in German idealism, Heidegger's concept of Gelassenheit, and modern theology.
Methods
Notable Quotes
"{'text': 'The eye through which I see God is the same eye through which God sees me.', 'source': 'German Sermons (Sermon 12)', 'year': 1310}"
"{'text': "If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is 'thank you,' it will be enough.", 'source': 'Attributed (popularized in later tradition)', 'year': 1310}"
"{'text': 'The soul must go beyond God to find God.', 'source': 'German Sermons (paraphrased)', 'year': 1310}"
"{'text': 'God is not good. I am good.', 'source': 'German Sermons (provocative formulation meaning God transcends the category of goodness)', 'year': 1310}"
Major Works
- Talks of Instruction Book (1298)
- Opus Tripartitum Book (1305)
- German Sermons Lecture (1310)
- The Book of Divine Consolation Book (1314)
Influenced
- Martin Heidegger · Intellectual Influence
- Nicholas of Cusa · Intellectual Influence
Influenced by
- Eriugena · Intellectual Influence
- Thomas Aquinas · Intellectual Influence
- Hildegard of Bingen · Intellectual Influence
Sources
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Meister Eckhart: Philosopher of Christianity (Flasch, 2015)
- The Cambridge Companion to Meister Eckhart (Hackett, 2013)
External Links
Translations
Discussions
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