| Evelyn Underhill |
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Called simply "Mrs. Moore" by many of her friends, she published over thirty books either under her maiden name Underhill or under the pseudonym John Cordelier, as was the case with the 1912 release '' The Spiral Way .'' Initially an atheist, she gradually began to acquire an interest in Neoplatonism and from there became increasingly drawn to Catholic ism, becoming eventually a prominent Anglo-Catholic . Her spiritual mentor was Baron Friedrich Von Hügel , who encouraged her to adopt a much more Christocentric view as opposed to the more merely Theistic one she previously held. After his death in 1925, her writings became more focused on the Holy Spirit . Neither her husband nor her parents shared her interest in spiritual matters. Before undertaking many of her better known expository works on mysticism, Underhill wrote three highly unconventional through profoundly spiritual novels. Like Charles Williams , Underhill uses her narratives to explore the sacramental intersection of the physical with the spiritual. She then uses that sacramental framework very effectively to illustrate the unfolding of a human drama. Her novels are entitled ''The Grey World'' (1904), ''The Lost Word'' (1907), and ''The Column of Dust'' (1909). In her earlier wrirings Underhill often wrote using the terms "mysticism" and "mystics" but later began to adopt the terms "spirituality" and "saints" because she felt they were less given to misunderstanding. In later years, her focus increasingly became interested in "practical mysticism," that is, in laying out a spirituality that the average, ordinary person could enjoy. To this end, she conducted many Ecumenical retreats. Though conferred with an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Aberdeen University--and though named fellow of both King's College for Women and King's College--she possessed no degrees herself. Despite this fact, she was the first woman to lecture to the clergy in the Church Of England as well as the first woman to officially conduct spiritual retreats for the Church. She was also the first woman to establish Ecumenical links between churches and one of the first woman theologians to lecture in English colleges and universities, as she did frequently. She was schooled in the classics, well read in Western spirituality, well informed (in addition to theology) in the philosophy, psychology, and physics of her day, and acquired the prestigious post as editor of '' The Spectator .'' More than any other person, she was responsible for introducing the forgotten authors of medieval and Catholic spirituality to a largely '' reported that on the subject of theology, she was "unmatched by any of the professional teachers of her day." BOOKS
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