Mysticism and Reform, 1400-1750

Importantly, King is also sceptical of the concept of a 'mystical canon' of 'classics', remaining aware that writers such as Luther likely engaged with these texts individually, rather than as a coherent body of thought later labelled 'mysticism' (pp. 50, 71). Marotti succinctly summarises the contents of More's works and her role in these struggles, but we should be careful not to overstate the claim that her works presented a form of 'personal autonomy' which threatened 'the structure of subordination' built into the rules of religious orders (p. 157). When read together, Cameron's theoretical framework compliments Apetrei's exploration of the consequences of such a theory in the polemical clashes between Anglicans, Catholics and Philadelphians in England.