On the Possibility of Platonist Quietism

28 October 2023

On the Possibility of Platonist Quietism

In the late 17^th century there arose in Catholic Europe, particularly France, Italy, and Spain, an approach to their tradition that came to be known as Quietism.  Its main proponents were Miguel Molinos, Madame Guyon, Francois Malaval, and Bishop Fenelon, though there were other, less famous, teachers of the Quietist approach.

What these teachers had in common was a type of practice known as the ‘prayer of interior silence.’  This was a type of imageless and wordless prayer that brought its practitioners closer to God as they understood God.  This practice was very simple and its simplicity was one of its most attractive features.  For example, Madame Guyon wrote a manual for this approach to interior silence, or contemplation, called A Short and Easy Method of Prayer. 

At first this spiritual movement was very successful.  Molinos, for example, had numerous devoted students and Madame Guyon’s books were widely read.  Eventually, though, there was an attack on Quietism as it was thought that Quietism undermined the centrality of a sacramental life.  Molinos was arrested and charged with heresy.  He was found guilty and died in prison.  Madame Guyon was arrested four times and imprisoned in the Bastille for a period of time, though eventually released.  Bishop Fenelon was exiled from Paris and lived out his life in Cambray.  The final downfall of Quietism within the Catholic Church came when the Pope declared Quietism a heresy in a Papal edict (Bull) known as ‘Coelestis Pastor’ in 1687.  Quietism remains an official heresy in the Catholic Church to this day.

Nevertheless, Quietism was influential in the following centuries on such groups as Quakers and Pietists.  A manual of Quaker contemplation known as A Guide to True Peace, was based on the teachings of the Quietists.  Later, the Methodists would be consciously influenced by Madame Guyon.

The central teaching, and method, of Quietism is to withdraw into the soul, a turning to a silence and stillness found within and a turning away from entanglements with the world.  It is my suggestion that Platonism has striking similarities with Quietism and contemporary Contemplative Platonism could be nourished by building a bridge to the Quietist tradition as it manifested in various contexts.  I’m not saying Quietism and Platonism are ‘the same’; for one thing Quietism was a Christian movement.  Rather I am suggesting that there is enough in common, enough overlap in understanding and practice, that contemporary Contemplative Platonism could benefit by an extended encounter with the tradition of Quietism.  Here are a few observations:

1.  Platonism is filled with teachings and stories about philosophers separating themselves from the world.  This is often spoken of as ‘separating the body from the soul.’  This is congruent with how Quietists presented the prayer of interior silence. 

2.  I suspect that an obstacle to the idea of Platonist Quietism will be the so-called political dialogues such as The Republic, The Statesman, and The Laws.  This barrier is the result of a modern inability to read the Platonic dialogues allegorically, even when Plato explicitly tells the reader that the dialogue is an allegory, as in The Republic.  If, however, we start with the centrality of contemplation, then it becomes clear that these dialogues are allegories and not political treatises.  We can see the centrality of contemplation in the Dialogues by highlighting episodes of divine union that are presented therein.  For example, when Socrates enters into deep contemplation in dialogues such as The Symposium and Phaedrus, we can see this as not just an interesting episode in the life of Socrates, but instead as an example of how the practice of contemplation should be our highest priority. 

3.  It might seem that The Laws would be difficult to interpret allegorically.  I suggest, though, that the discussion regarding the nature of laws found in various societies, and the specific laws laid out in some sections of the dialogue, are an allegory for living a disciplined life as a contemplative.  It is well known that contemplatives and mystics often lead disciplined lives such as entering into contemplation at regular times, engaging in spiritual reading at specific times; things like that.  In addition, contemplatives often take on restrictive precepts, ‘restrictive’ from the perspective of ‘the world.’  The early Quaker Quietists had an extensive set of regulations governing many aspects of their lives.  The disciplines of Platonic spirituality are offered early in the Phaedo, and in scattered places in other dialogues.  Making a connection between a disciplined life of contemplation and the ‘laws’ of The Laws can unlock its allegorical basis.

4.  One aspect of Quietism that maps well onto Platonism is passivity as a spiritual ideal.  Passivity is acceptance cultivated as a spiritual practice.  Socrates embodied this teaching by accepting the verdict of his jury.  Even when Socrates had an opportunity to escape his sentence, passive acceptance overruled that opportunity and he went to his execution with equanimity.  This is similar to the reports of Madame Guyon’s behavior when she was imprisoned in the Bastille.  In both instances they used their situation to teach others regarding spiritual matters.

5.  Another aspect of Quietism that maps well onto Platonism is patience.  Plotinus uses the metaphor of waiting for the sun to rise for contemplation.  And in Quaker Quietism they used the phrase ‘waiting worship’ to describe their approach to contemplation.  This approach to contemplation cultivates patience which in turn, generates inner strength and courage.

6.  As an aside, I think there is a deep, though somewhat hidden, historical connection between Quietism and Platonism.  The connection I am seeing is that it is through Platonism, as presented by Dionysius the Areopagite in his Mystical Theology, that mysticism as we understand it in the Christian tradition, found a home.  I believe that the Quietists picked up the current of mystical contemplation after all those centuries.  In addition, the Quaker Quietists were influenced by the Cambridge Platonists; Ann Conway, for example, joined the new Quaker movement.  And Robert Barclay who wrote the chief theological work of the Quaker tradition, An Apology for the True Christian Divinity, was studying in Paris when the trials of Madame Guyon were taking place.  I believe the influence of Quietism can be found in his work.

7.  The crushing of Quietism in the late 17^th century has had a lasting impact on Western spirituality and mysticism.  In the Catholic Church, ever since this episode, Catholic mystics have had to be very careful that they distinguish themselves from Quietism; this is done by becoming very strong advocates of a sacramental life to prove that they are not undermining their centrality or their efficacy.  Protestant groups that were initially attracted to Quietism, such as Quakers and Methodists, have not been able to sustain that interest into the modern period, succumbing to a focus on ‘engagement with the world’ rather than a ‘turning inward.’ 

I believe that the often profound insights of the Quietists can find a nourishing ground within the Platonic tradition.  But it would have to be a Platonism that regarded contemplation, and a disciplined, ascetic, life as the ground from which these insights grow.