Recently I was reminded of the line from Karl Rahner who said, "The Christian of the future will be a mystic or he will not exist at all." In fact I made note of this line in a recent post. The more that I sit with this thought the more it stirs in me.
Teresa of Avila
While mystic means a number of things it is at least two things. First a mystic is one who has stronger God images and experiences that are personal (as opposed to theoretical) and intimate (as opposed to distant). These personal and intimate experiences and images with God lead to the second characteristic of the mystic: a mystic has more trust in the inward authority that is within each human being (as opposed to putting all trust in outward authorities).
We live in a time where God is not talked about as personal but as more of a "ideal projection" and we also live in a time when outer sources have more authority than inward sources. That is to say we live in a time when we don't trust someone saying, "I know this because it is in the very fiber of my being." Rather we live in a time where one has to prove what is known. (Which is why some religious people get frustrated when a study is published that validates a religious truth known for generations, such as meditation contributes to wholeness or simplicity leads to greater fulfillment.)
So may the rise of the age of mystics dawn soon because I do believe it is the way back to Jesus.