Quietism is a term with multiple meanings and definitions.

• Quietism is a Christian philosophy that swept through France, Italy and Spain during the 17th century, but it had much earlier origins. The mystics known as Quietists insist with more or less emphasis on intellectual stillness and interior passivity as essential conditions of perfection; and all have been officially proscribed as heresy in very explicit terms by the Roman Catholic Church.

• Quietism is the term used to describe one of the phases which British Quakers went through, after their enthusiastic beginnings and as a result of the persecution on the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 and before the 19th century phase of evangelicalism.

• Quietism is a principal trend in Iraqi Shiism, which seeks to keep politics out of religion. This contrasts sharply with the Iranian Shia government, which, after taking power in 1979, marginalized and persecuted Iranian quietists school in that country. Sh'ia traditions of non-involvement in politics create anomalies in modern Muslim culture: Grand Ayatollah Sistani of Iraq identifies himself as a follower of the quietist school of thought, despite his indirect but decisive role in most major Iraqi political decisions. [1] [2]

• Quietism can be used in a general sense to mean peace or tranquillity of mind; calmness; indifference; apathy; dispassion; indisturbance; inaction.

  Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ... Philosophy is a discipline or field of study involving the investigation, analysis, and development of ideas at a general, abstract, or fundamental level. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... An intellectual is a person who uses his or her intellect to study, reflect, or speculate on a variety of different ideas. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the ‘catholic’ or orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... The Roman Catholic Church, also called the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian body in the world. ... The Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as Quakers, or Friends, is a religious community founded in England in the 17th century. ... Shiʻa Islam (Arabic شيعى follower; English has traditionally used Shiite) makes up the second largest sect of believers in Islam, constituting about 30%–35% of all Muslim. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... His Hounarable Eminence Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Husaini Sistani (Arabic: السيد علي الحسيني السيستاني Persian: سید علی حسینی سیستانی), born approximately August 4, 1930, is a Grand Ayatollah, a Shia marja and currently an important person in relation to the occupation of Iraq. ...

Christian philosophy

Origins of Christian philosophy

The state of impeturbable serenity or ataraxia was seen as a desirable state of mind by Epicurus and the Stoic philosophers alike, and by their Roman followers, such as the emperor Marcus Aurelius. Quietism has been compared to the Buddhist doctrine of Nirvana. The possibility of achieving a sinless state and union with the Christian Godhead are denied by the Roman Catholic Church. Ataraxia (Αταραξία) is a Greek term used by Pyrrho and Epicurus for tranquility, freedom from disturbance of judgement, and is the first step to achieve Hêdonê, the pleasure. ... Epicurus (Epikouros or Eπίκουρος in Greek) (born Samos 341 BC–died Athens, 270 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosopher who was the founder of Epicureanism, one of the most popular schools of Hellenistic Philosophy. ... Stoicism is a school of philosophy commonly associated with such Greek philosophers as Zeno of Citium, Cleanthes, or Chrysippus and with such later Romans as Cicero, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, and Epictetus. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that existed in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East between 753 BC and its downfall in AD 476. ... Marcus Aurelius alabaster bust. ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, who lived between approximately 566 and 486 BCE. Originating in India, Buddhism gradually spread throughout Asia to Central Asia... In Buddhism and other Indian religions, nirvāna (from the Sanskrit निर्वाण, Pali: Nibbāna -- Chinese: 涅槃; Pinyin: niè pán; Thailand: นิพพาน), literally extinction and/or extinguishing, is the culmination of the yogis pursuit of liberation. ... In Christianity, the Godhead is a unit consisting of God the Father, Jesus Christ (the Son), and the Holy Spirit. ...

Among the "errors" condemned by the Council of Vienne (1311-12) are the propositions: that man in the present life can attain such a degree of perfection as to become utterly sinless; that the "perfect" have no need to fast or pray, but may freely grant the body whatsoever it craves (a tacit reference to the Cathars or Albigenses of southern France and Catalonia); that they are not subject to any human authority or bound by the precepts of the Church. Similar assertions of individual autonymy on the part of the Fraticelli led to their condemnation by John XXII in 1317. The same pope in 1329 proscribed among the errors of Meister Eckhart the assertions that we are totally transformed into God just as in the sacrament the bread is changed into the body of Christ (see transubstantiation) and the value of internal actions, which are wrought by the Godhead abiding within us. Above all else, the Roman Catholic Council of Vienne was the Ecumenical Council that withdrew papal support for the Knights Templar, confirming the destruction of the rich Order by the bureaucrats of Philip IV of France. ... Events Bolingbroke Castle passes to the House of Lancaster. ... Events June 15 : Battle near Rozgoni Battle near Thebes Siege of Rostock begins Births November 13 - King Edward III of England Deaths June 19 - Piers Gaveston, favourite of Edward II of England September 7 - King Ferdinand IV of Castile Categories: 1312 ... Six Sigma is a quality management program to achieve six sigma levels of quality. ... // Sin has been a term most usually used in a religious context, and today describes any lack of conformity to the will of God; especially, any willful disregard for the norms revealed by God is a sin. ... Fasting is the act of willingly (and generally briefly) abstaining from all food and in some cases drink, sexual intercourse, or any sexual desire (including masturbation), or in other cases from certain types or groups of food (e. ... Prayer is an effort to communicate with God, or to some deity or deities, or another form of spiritual entity, or otherwise, either to offer praise, to make a request, or simply to express ones thoughts and emotions. ... Cathars being expelled from Carcassone in 1209. ... The Albigensian Crusade (1209-1229) was a brutal 20-year military campaign initiated by the Roman Catholic Church to eliminate the religion practiced by the Cathars of Languedoc, which the Roman Catholic hierarchy considered heretical. ... History of Catalonia See History of Catalonia, Catalan Countries Development of Catalonia into a Mediterranean Power The territory that is now Catalonia was colonized by Ancient Greeks and Carthaginians. ... In politics, authority generally refers to the ability to make laws, independent of the power to enforce them, or the ability to permit something. ... A medieval Roman Catholic group which can trace its origins to the Franciscan Spirituals, but which came into being as a separate entity - and problem - for the Church in 1318, when Angelo da Clareno defied the authority of Pope John XXII. Other figures included Michael of Cesena and Peter Olivi. ... Pope John XXII, né Jacques dEuse (1249 – December 4, 1334),was the son of a shoemaker in Cahors. ... Events The Great Famine of 1315-1317. ... Events Antipope Nicholas V is excommunicated by Pope John XXII. Aimone of Savoy becomes Count of Savoy. ... Johannes Eckhart von Hochheim, better and also known as Meister Eckhart (1260-1327/8) was a German theologian, philosopher and mystic, born near Erfurt, in Thuringia. ... Transubstantiation is the belief held by many Christian denominations that the Eucharistic elements of bread and wine are changed into the body and blood of Jesus during Consecration. ...

Quietism further developed in the mysticism of the great 16th century Spaniards, Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross. Its final orthodox Catholic defender was Miguel de Molinos, referred to by the Catholic Encyclopedia as the "founder" of Quietism. The apostle of the Quietist movement in 17th-century France was Molinos' correspondent, the prolific writer Mme Guyon, who won an influential convert at the court of Louis XIV in Madame de Maintenon and an ally within the Catholic hierarchy in Archbishop Fénelon. Mysticism, from the Greek (mueo, to conceal), is the pursuit of achieving communion with, or conscious awareness of ultimate reality, the divine, spiritual truth, or God through direct, personal experience (intuition or insight) rather than rational thought; the belief in the existence of realities beyond perceptual or intellectual apprehension that... Teresa of Avila by Peter Paul Rubens Saint Teresa of Avila (known in religion as Teresa de Jesús, baptised as Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada) was a Spanish Roman Catholic mystic and monastic reformer; born at Avila (53 miles north-west of Madrid), Old Castile, March 28, 1515; died... Saint John of the Cross (Juan de la Cruz) (June 24, 1542 – December 14, 1591) was a Spanish Carmelite friar born at Fontiveros, a small village near Avila. ... Miguel de Molinos (c. ... The Catholic Encyclopedia is an English-language encyclopedia published in 1913 by the The writing of the encyclopedia began on January 11, 1905 under the supervision of five editors: Charles G. Herbermann, Professor of Latin and Librarian of the College of the City of New York Edward A. Pace, then... Jeanne-Marie Bouvier de la Motte-Guyon Jeanne-Marie Bouvier de la Motte-Guyon (April 13, 1648 - June 9, 1717) was a French mystic and one of the key advocates of Quietism. ... Louis XIV (Louis-Dieudonné) (September 5, 1638 – September 1, 1715) reigned as King of France and King of Navarre from May 14, 1643 until his death. ... Françoise dAubigné, marquise de Maintenon Françoise dAubigné, marquise de Maintenon (November 27, 1635 - April 15, 1719), the second wife of Louis XIV, was born in a prison at Niort. ... François de Salignac de la Mothe, more commonly known as François Fénelon (1651 - 1715), was a French Roman Catholic theologian, poet and writer. ...

Molinos and the doctrines of Quietism were finally condemned by Pope Innocent XI in the Bull Coelestis Pastor of 1687. A commission in France found most of Madame Guyon’s works intolerable, and the government confined her, first to a convent, then in the Bastille. After Fénelon’s spirited defense in a print war with Bossuet, in 1699 Pope Innocent XII prohibited the circulation of Fénelon’s Maxims of the Saints. The inquisition's proceedings against remaining Quietists in Italy lasted until the eighteenth century. The Blessed Innocent XI, né Benedetto Odescalchi (May 16, 1611 – August 12, 1689) was pope from 1676 to 1689. ... Papal bull of Pope Urban VIII, 1637, sealed with a leaden bulla. ... Events March 19 - The men under explorer Robert Cavelier de La Salle murder him while searching for the mouth of the Mississippi River. ... The Bastille The Bastille was a prison in Paris, known formally as Bastille Saint-Antoine—Number 232, Rue Saint-Antoine. ... Jacques_Benigne Bossuet (September 27, 1627 - April 12, 1704) was a French bishop, theologian, and court preacher. ... Pedro Berruguete. ...

Theology

Quietism states that man's highest perfection consists of a psychical self-annihilation and a subsequent absorption of the soul into the Divine, even during the present life. In this way, the mind is withdrawn from worldly interests to passively and constantly contemplate God. Madame Guyon maintained that she could not sin, for sin was Self, and she had rid herself of Self. The concept of the divine or of The Divine, meaning matters relating to a god, forms an important ingredient in many religious faiths (but compare Buddhism, for example, or Scientology). ... The mind is the term most commonly used to describe the higher functions of the human brain, particularly those of which humans are subjectively conscious, such as personality, thought, reason, memory, intelligence and emotion. ...

Whatever its theological implications, it is undeniable that the personal autonomy implied by Quietism had an undermining effect on church unity, conformity and discipline. Theology is reasoned discourse concerning God (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason). It also refers to the study of other religious topics. ...

See also

• Christian mysticism
• Religious Society of Friends

Mysticism is the philosophy and practice of a direct experience of God. ... The Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as Quakers, or Friends, is a religious community founded in England in the 17th century. ...

External links

• Catholic Encyclopedia: Quietism as a "false or exaggerated mysticism"
• Columbia Encyclopedia on quietism
• More information
• Encyclopedia.com on quietism
• Encyclopædia Britannica1911: "Quietism" Informative.

Further reading

• Dandelion, P., A Sociological Analysis of the Theology of Quakers: The Silent Revolution New York, Ontario & Lampeter: Edwin Mellen Press, 1996.