Blind beholding
Peter Richardson, Charles M. Mueller
Metaphor and the Social World July 14, 2026 DOI: 10.1075/msw.26002.ric (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractContemporary Christian contemplative discourse integrates two seemingly opposed ways of understanding religious experience: relational intimacy with a divine entity (conceptualized through warmth, connection, spatial proximity, shared will, and resonance) and non-conceptual states of pure awareness (conceptualized through release, falling, dropping out, darkness, and cessation of attentional movement). Using Cynthia Bourgeault's The Heart of Centering Prayer as a case study, the analysis shows how conceptual blending allows these experiences to be held within a single framework. The metaphor of entering the cloud, drawn from The Cloud of Unknowing, negotiates the boundary between Christian relational theism and nondual spirituality.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism Mysticism |
| Keywords | Contemplation Theism Prayer Construals Conceptual metaphor |
| Key finding | Argues that conceptual blending allows relational intimacy with God and non-conceptual pure awareness to be integrated within contemporary Christian contemplative practice. |
Abstract
Abstract This paper examines how contemporary Christian contemplative discourse integrates two apparently opposed construals of religious experience: relational intimacy with a divine entity and non-conceptual states of pure awareness. We argue that relational intimacy is conceptualized through warmth, connection, spatial proximity, shared will, and resonance, underpinned by a linked goal schematic structure. By contrast, non-conceptual awareness is conceptualized through release, falling, dropping out, darkness, and the cessation of attentional movement, while also exhibiting various degrees of source - path - goal attenuation. Despite their apparent incompatibility, this paper argues that conceptual blending allows these perceived experiences to be encapsulated within a single framework of belief and practice. Focusing on Cynthia Bourgeault’s (2016) The Heart of Centering Prayer , we demonstrate how her use of the metaphor scenario of entering the cloud, drawn from the Christian mystical classic The Cloud of Unknowing , offers one such example. The analysis shows how metaphor and blending enable contemporary contemplative discourse to negotiate the social and theological boundary between Christian relational theism and nondual spirituality.