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Abstract

Beauty is indissolubly combined with spiritual experience of man of all times and all religions, and so philosophers have pondered upon the tremendum et fascinosum of religious experience for a long time. It must be admitted, however, that in Christian spirituality this subject has not been picked up recently and only mystics, in their reflections on their spiritual experiences, have tried to symbolically express intangible beauty discovered in their meetings with God. A deepened reflection on the words of John Paul II in his Letter to Artists may constitute a conclusion to general deliberations on the subject of beauty as a determinant of spirituality. “When God saw that what he created was good, He also saw that it was beautiful. (...) For beauty is in a way a visible expression of goodness, just as goodness is a metaphysical condition of beauty.” (no. 3) This is a beauty in relation to which the soul feels noble elevation beyond the usual disposition for sensual pleasure. It is not only a formal and external quality, but a moment of existence to which refer such notions as glory (Biblical word, which better reveals the “beauty” of God, who reveals Himself to us), brilliance, wonder: what evokes a joyous craving, a pleasant surprise, falling in love, enthusiasm; what love reveals in the person loved; the person who is perceived as deserving the gift of our life, who we are ready to go beyond ourselves and risk our own life for.