I write this as an Orthodox Christian and I believe that Orthodoxy with the mysticism that it has preserved is the answer for growth in holiness, in union with God, in theosis. But the pursuit of Theosis, if you will, the practice of the mysticism is all involved in the sacramental life, the cycles of prayer of the Church, the practice of confession, and obedience, so that for one to plumb the depths of the mystical Tradition of the Church, which is preserved in the Orthodox Church, one must necessarily unite oneself to the Church whose rhythms of spirituality foster the mysticism.
A small example- the romanticized praise music so common these days actually draws the spirit of man away from the depths of Stillness that the Spirit of God calls us to when He calls us to 'be still and know that I am God.' On the other hand the gentle chanting of the psalms in worship is conducive to the spirit entering into the Stillness.
Endless controversy will be provoked by the attempt as is seen. The mystical practice of the Church is not contradicted in Scripture but neither is it spelled out, and the theology behind it has been preserved in the Tradition of the Church and not in Scripture. One needs a Church that recognizes that the Church is the ground and pillar of the Truth in order to have enough peace to pursue the mystical life that leads to Theosis.
