Section VII – Dan Burke’s Endorsement and the Depth of the Catholic Mystical Tradition
Dan Burke also states, “David Torkington is a man who understands Catholic mystical tradition. If you allow him, he will lead you into the depths of prayer and into the heart of God.” Having studied the mystical doctors, especially Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross. I agree with Burke. In the episodes that follow, I will lay out my reasons for this conviction.
Dan Burke’s formal assessment of Torkington is striking for its clarity and confidence. He writes that “David Torkington is a man who understands Catholic mystical tradition. If you allow him, he will lead you into the depths of prayer and into the heart of God.”¹ This endorsement is not given lightly. Burke, co-founder of the Avila Institute and a leading voice in contemporary Catholic spiritual formation, has devoted his life to preserving and transmitting the wisdom of the Church’s mystical doctors. When he attests to Torkington’s fidelity, he speaks from deep familiarity with the tradition.
Burke’s words touch the very essence of Catholic mysticism. Mysticism is not about extraordinary experiences. It is about the gradual, transforming union with God that unfolds through ordinary fidelity, prayer, virtue, surrender, and persevering cooperation with grace. The mystical doctors insist that contemplative prayer is not reserved for the few. It is the natural flowering of baptismal grace. The question is not whether one is called to contemplation, but whether one is willing to cooperate with God’s invitation.
Torkington’s strength lies in his ability to articulate this tradition in language that is accessible yet doctrinally exact. He does not soften the demands of the interior life, nor does he portray contemplation as a specialized vocation. Instead, he situates the reader firmly within the path walked by the saints. His work shows that the journey toward the heart of God begins in humility, advances through perseverance, and is sustained by grace working in silence and surrender.² [The deepest transformation, he insists, is not achieved by human technique but received through God’s gentle action upon the receptive soul.]
The resonance with Saint Teresa of Avila is clear. Teresa teaches that prayer is fundamentally a relationship, that progress is measured not by consolations but by growth in love, and that recollection opens the path to deeper intimacy with God.³ Torkington echoes her realism: dryness, distraction, and struggle are not failures but stages in which God enlarges the soul’s capacity for Him.
Saint John of the Cross forms another pillar of this tradition.[ He teaches that union with God requires purification, both active and passive, by which attachments that obscure divine love are removed.⁴] Torkington incorporates this truth with pastoral clarity, helping readers understand that suffering, when united with Christ, becomes the very means through which God prepares the soul for deeper union.
Saint Thomas Aquinas stands behind this same teaching. Aquinas defines contemplation as a simple, loving gaze upon divine truth, and identifies charity as the virtue that unites the soul to God.⁵ Torkington’s emphasis on being drawn “into the heart of God” reflects Aquinas’s vision of contemplation as a foretaste of heaven.
Saint John Henry Newman adds yet another dimension. Newman emphasizes that authentic Christianity unfolds through interior assent to grace, quiet fidelity to duty, and a growing awareness of God’s presence.⁶ He cautions against reducing religion to external observance or intellectual theory. The heart must be surrendered. Burke’s endorsement suggests that Torkington fosters precisely this Newman-like surrender.
[Burke’s praise also highlights a pastoral reality. Many Catholics today long for deep prayer but lack guidance rooted in the classical tradition. Faced with a wide array of spiritual writings, they often struggle to discern what is theologically reliable. Burke’s testimony that Torkington “understands Catholic mystical tradition” assures readers that his teaching is neither idiosyncratic nor improvised. It stands squarely within the great stream of tradition that has nourished saints for centuries.]
Finally, Burke’s words reveal something essential about the spiritual journey: the path of prayer is a movement into God, led by God. To be drawn “into the depths of prayer and into the heart of God” implies growth, purification, and transformation. The soul must consent to follow. It must relinquish self-reliance and embrace the gentle yet demanding school of divine love. Torkington, shaped by the mystical doctors, invites readers into that school. Burke’s confidence in him is therefore a pastoral invitation for the faithful to trust the path he presents.
[For those seeking depth in the interior life, this endorsement matters. It signals that Torkington offers not novelty but continuity; not private spirituality but the distilled wisdom of the Church’s mystical tradition expressed in contemporary form. Burke’s words are not merely complimentary, they are a pastoral recommendation that Torkington’s teaching can safely and fruitfully guide souls toward God.]
Reflection Question
What step can I take this week to walk more faithfully along the path of prayer the mystical tradition sets before me?
Citations
¹ Dan Burke, endorsement quoted in David Torkington, Never Too Late to Love: The Way of the Mystics (London: The Catholic Truth Society, 2012).
² David Torkington, Never Too Late to Love: The Way of the Mystics (London: The Catholic Truth Society, 2012), 14–18.
³ Teresa of Avila, The Interior Castle, trans. Kieran Kavanaugh and Otilio Rodriguez (ICS Publications, 1989), 35–38.
⁴ John of the Cross, The Dark Night of the Soul, trans. E. Allison Peers (Image Books, 1959), 79–80.
⁵ Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, II–II, q. 180, a. 4.
⁶ John Henry Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, vol. 5 (Longmans, Green, and Co., 1891).
We think we take ourselves to prayer. We think it is perfect autonomy. God takes us to prayer, He is progenitor of the relationship.
Time set aside of God, He set aside time for it. He sets the time aside of the soul.
ToA, JoC, we want everything yesterday. Prayer doesn’t deliver like amazon. Were impatient, but God is very patient.
He answers when He needs to, the 11th hour, why? Answer when comes protects the soul from the soul from attacks. Enemy a lot time over the answer.
In a world impatient, we often get annoyed with tech problems when talking about the BVM.
Bring that level of awe into patience with God.