Julia RizzaProfessor DrogulaDevelopment of Western CivilizationApril 8, 2014Different Accounts of Christian MysticismThe late Middle Ages saw great theological discrepancies through the progression of Christian mysticism. The exploration of spiritual practices and the unification of the soul during this period led to great philosophical works. The Cloud of Unknowing and The Imitation of Christ are two notable texts that address the aspiration to achieve union with God. The Cloud of Unknowing is an anonymously written spiritual exercise that accentuates the movement toward the contemplative life recognizing what is unknown to man. In contrast, The Imitation of Christ by Thomas Kempis is a spiritual guide that emphasizes that the way to be fully Christian is to live in imitation of Jesus Christ. While many of the thoughts regarding human reason and withdrawal from the corporeal world are similar in the texts, the two are inherently different as the narrative in The Imitation of Christ is more compelling because it focuses on a humanistic goal while gaining union and salvation with God A key element of these mystical texts is how they are to be approached by the reader and what the reader is to gain by going through this process. The Cloud of the Unknowing and The Imitation of Christ both share the same ultimate goal of drawing closer to God and the union of the soul with Him. To achieve this goal, both works warn that it is necessary to endure a laborious process. The Imitation of Christ states that if you do not endure the process voluntarily, “you create a burden on yourself and increase the burden” (Kempis, 38). Kempis and the author of The Cloud of the Unknowing mutually agree that, if one is unwilling, they should... middle of paper... Knowledge and The Imitation of Christ contain similarities that link the two works, but in truth , they are fundamentally different. The texts contrast in how they are to be attempted, in how they explain how one should live earthly life, the realization of knowledge, and the attainability of God. The Imitation of Christ provides a more convincing account of how one can attain the unity of the soul with God because it is more humanistic. Kempis invites people to suffer and carry their cross as Christ carried his. Human beings understand through reason and bodily objects, and this work offers people the ultimate perfection to aspire to even if one cannot be exactly as Christ is. The Imitation of Christ is a more compelling account of Christian mysticism because it focuses on how one can use outward imitation in a human way to spiritually achieve unity with Christ..