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The Elements of the Spiritual Life: A Study in Ascetical Theology
"My aim in writing this book has been to give to my brethren of the Anglican Communion what we do not at present possess, a comprehensive study of the Christian spiritual life. The need of such a work is becoming increasingly clear; there are signs in many quarters of a real desire for the spiritual life, and priests are beginning to discover the vital and practical importance of a knowledge of ascetical theology. . . . "The plan of the book is simple. Part I deals with the action of God in the soul by grace; Part II with the human resistance to the divine will and the means whereby that resistance may be overcome; Part III is a brief outline of the divine economy of the sacraments; Part IV is concerned with the life of prayer, and in Part V we consider the end of the spiritual life and the ways by which that end may be reached, concluding with a chapter on the guidance of souls with some consideration of the qualities of the ideal director." --from the Preface
358 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1932
About the author
Frederic Percy Harton
2 booksFrederic Percy Harton AKC (10 June 1889 – 3 November 1958) was an Anglican priest and author.
Reverend Harton served as Dean of Wells (1951–1958) and was the husband of writer Sibyl Harton.
Reverend Harton served as Dean of Wells (1951–1958) and was the husband of writer Sibyl Harton.
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May 4, 2026
In the introductory chapter to his beloved English Spirituality (1963), Martin Thornton calls Harton's Elements (1932) "the most maligned of all the books of this age", continuing:
"For twenty years, Anglicans have been saying that this book needs to be replaced, but although it could undoubtedly be improved it still supplies the student with the bare bones of ascetical doctrine. It is not the author's fault if it is in the nature of bare bones to be a little on the dry side."
Thornton describes his own work as designed to "complement" Harton's, yet it is undoubtedly the case today that far more Anglicans read Thornton than bother with Harton. That struck me as problematic so, like Ezekiel, I decided I too must survey the Valley of Dry Bones.
What Harton offers is a clear, classical account of the Christian life as fundamentally supernatural—a participation in the life of God through grace. Drawing heavily on Roman Catholic ascetical theology (with only a light Anglican gloss), he lays out a coherent structure: habitual and actual grace, the infused virtues, the gifts of the Spirit, the reality of sin and concupiscence, and the disciplined path of repentance and mortification. Whatever its stylistic limitations, the book succeeds in something many modern works do not—it provides a framework in which the spiritual life actually makes sense as a unified whole.
The strength of the book lies in its seriousness. Harton refuses to reduce Christianity to moralism or vague piety; instead, he insists that growth in holiness is real, demanding, and ordered. His treatment of grace as transformative rather than merely declarative, his integration of virtue and ascetic discipline, and his insistence on perseverance in prayer and sacramental life all form a compelling vision of spiritual development. At its best, the book gives the reader categories that are often lacking in Anglican formation—especially a sense of the interior structure of the soul and the necessity of deliberate cooperation with grace. One comes away with the conviction that the “normal” Christian life is one of steady growth toward union with God in charity.
That said, Harton’s weaknesses are also evident. His treatment of the sacraments—particularly penance—is essentially Roman and at times risks a legalistic tone, and his account of prayer leans heavily toward a Dionysian, quasi-quietist contemplative ideal that can feel both unclear and pastorally questionable. Most notably, the liturgy, though affirmed, is not given the central place it arguably deserves; private and interior spirituality dominates. Even so, as a “skeleton” of the spiritual life, Harton proves far more substantial than his reputation suggests: dry, perhaps—but solid.
Can these bones live? Lord, you know.
"For twenty years, Anglicans have been saying that this book needs to be replaced, but although it could undoubtedly be improved it still supplies the student with the bare bones of ascetical doctrine. It is not the author's fault if it is in the nature of bare bones to be a little on the dry side."
Thornton describes his own work as designed to "complement" Harton's, yet it is undoubtedly the case today that far more Anglicans read Thornton than bother with Harton. That struck me as problematic so, like Ezekiel, I decided I too must survey the Valley of Dry Bones.
What Harton offers is a clear, classical account of the Christian life as fundamentally supernatural—a participation in the life of God through grace. Drawing heavily on Roman Catholic ascetical theology (with only a light Anglican gloss), he lays out a coherent structure: habitual and actual grace, the infused virtues, the gifts of the Spirit, the reality of sin and concupiscence, and the disciplined path of repentance and mortification. Whatever its stylistic limitations, the book succeeds in something many modern works do not—it provides a framework in which the spiritual life actually makes sense as a unified whole.
The strength of the book lies in its seriousness. Harton refuses to reduce Christianity to moralism or vague piety; instead, he insists that growth in holiness is real, demanding, and ordered. His treatment of grace as transformative rather than merely declarative, his integration of virtue and ascetic discipline, and his insistence on perseverance in prayer and sacramental life all form a compelling vision of spiritual development. At its best, the book gives the reader categories that are often lacking in Anglican formation—especially a sense of the interior structure of the soul and the necessity of deliberate cooperation with grace. One comes away with the conviction that the “normal” Christian life is one of steady growth toward union with God in charity.
That said, Harton’s weaknesses are also evident. His treatment of the sacraments—particularly penance—is essentially Roman and at times risks a legalistic tone, and his account of prayer leans heavily toward a Dionysian, quasi-quietist contemplative ideal that can feel both unclear and pastorally questionable. Most notably, the liturgy, though affirmed, is not given the central place it arguably deserves; private and interior spirituality dominates. Even so, as a “skeleton” of the spiritual life, Harton proves far more substantial than his reputation suggests: dry, perhaps—but solid.
Can these bones live? Lord, you know.
July 1, 2023
“It is vital that there should be experts in spiritual direction who can deal with exceptional souls, but the majority of souls are not exceptional, and should be able to find what they need at home if their clergy would take the science of the spiritual life seriously and study to become directors of souls.” (336)
This quotation gives you the burden of Harton's book. It is a study of ascetical theology, which means three things. First, it means that it is a study. That is, it is based on a careful and thorough examination. “The subject should be studied seriously and in good authorities," he says, adding that "One good text-book should be mastered to show the way, and then as wide reading as possible in the great masters, the old masters. It is not books about the masters, but the masters themselves that should be read.” (232) I have no doubt he intended his book to provide that good textbook, though he recommends nine others, one of which comes in three volumes. The second thing he means is that it is a study of a particular discipline. Pierre Pourat in his three-tome textbook provides the taxonomic branching that accounts for the subdivision of ascetical theology. There is dogmatic theology which teaches us what to think. Moral theology is concerned with Christian behavior. Spiritual theology coordinates these two: the study of attaining to Christian perfection which coordinates and crowns dogma and ethical instruction. This third branch is subdivided into the study of the disciplines toward that end, which is the concern of ascetical theology, and then mystical theology, which deals with the recondite subject of Christian proficiency or perfection. The third thing Harton means when he says that this book is a study in ascetical theology is that the study of the disciplines given to achieve Christian perfection need to be studied, mastered, understood, handed on, and therefore require direction by directors.
Compare it to the doctrine of the Trinity. This doctrine must be derived from Scripture, from special revelation. If you want to study the doctrine of the Trinity in an advanced way so as to master it and instruct others in this doctrine, you cannot simply study Scripture and hope from that source alone to formulate a robust and comprehensive statement of the doctrine. You will have to study the masters: Hillary, Augustine, the Cappadocians, and Thomas Aquinas, among others. Harton believes the same applies to the subdivision of ascetical theology. This doctrine is latent in Scripture, it is revealed in Scripture, but it is developed and formulated in robust and comprehensive ways as the Holy Spirit guides his people into all truth down through the ages.
The book is divided into five parts. The first deals with the nature of the Christian life, coordinating the responsibility of the Christian and the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. The supernatural power is grace, which operates in us and ought to become operative in our habits. This results in a “Habitual Grace" which "enlightens the intellect and deepens its intuitive knowledge of God and divine things; it unifies the affections and centralizes them upon the love of God; and it strengthens the will by aligning it with the will of God. Thus the soul in grace is enabled to grow to its full stature.” (17) Full stature is the promise of maturity, perfection. Harton then examines and defines the three theological virtues, follows it with the same for the four cardinal virtues, all compact but with a theological precision I can only call Thomistic. It is an illuminating exposition of how discipline ought to respond to grace, how the believer should be empowered by grace as the natural is perfected.
The second part of the book deals with sin, including an explanation of the three enemies and the three inner sources of sin: lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. One of the great strengths of this book is to write about these things in the context of Christian discipline, as part of a comprehensive understanding of the whole of the Christian's duty. He defines and explains sin and then explains repentance and mortification. “Christian asceticism is not directed towards the destruction of the body, but its subjection to the Spirit, and this involves the careful regulation of the pleasures of sense." He divides these pleasures into "sinful and legitimate; with the former the virtue of Temperance is not concerned, they have to be resisted, not used; it is concerned with the right use of legitimate sensible pleasures.” (66-7) That precision in defining the object of temperance, I find, brings everything into focus clearly.
The third section deals with the sacraments. I have questions about this section I will raise later. But what I really need is a Baptist theologian to give me a theological evaluation of this book. I wonder if all Catholic Anglicans (is that the same as an Anglo-Catholic?) would have seven sacraments. More on this below.
Having defined and explained the Christian life as a Spirit-empowered discipline that is constantly at war with sin and constantly endeavoring to develop and maintain the habits of virtue, he comes to the fourth section, prayer. He is very thorough in explaining and subdividing prayer into various kinds. This is the heart of the discipline: the Christian life is a life of prayer. It is a discipline of the will. “By detachment we strive to give our whole self to God, that all our willing, loving and desiring may be in Him. This involves the discipline of the whole man and the collecting of all the powers of the soul into one, that, being detached from the pursuit of pleasure for its own sake, the soul may find pleasure in God alone.” (169) This section is rich in practical instruction as well as wise insight, such as this reflection on why we are so often distracted in prayer: “A further and deeper cause of distraction lies in the heart. It cannot be too clearly realized that what we are in the rest of life, that we are too in our prayer.” (269) Much to think about there!
Last of all comes a consideration of perfection. Here there is a lot of instruction for the director of souls, including a summary of the message of the whole book: “The imitation of Christ is not a vague general thing which comes by desire—it has to be deliberately practiced, bit by bit and virtue by virtue.” (316) There is the whole book in one sentence.
This quotation gives you the burden of Harton's book. It is a study of ascetical theology, which means three things. First, it means that it is a study. That is, it is based on a careful and thorough examination. “The subject should be studied seriously and in good authorities," he says, adding that "One good text-book should be mastered to show the way, and then as wide reading as possible in the great masters, the old masters. It is not books about the masters, but the masters themselves that should be read.” (232) I have no doubt he intended his book to provide that good textbook, though he recommends nine others, one of which comes in three volumes. The second thing he means is that it is a study of a particular discipline. Pierre Pourat in his three-tome textbook provides the taxonomic branching that accounts for the subdivision of ascetical theology. There is dogmatic theology which teaches us what to think. Moral theology is concerned with Christian behavior. Spiritual theology coordinates these two: the study of attaining to Christian perfection which coordinates and crowns dogma and ethical instruction. This third branch is subdivided into the study of the disciplines toward that end, which is the concern of ascetical theology, and then mystical theology, which deals with the recondite subject of Christian proficiency or perfection. The third thing Harton means when he says that this book is a study in ascetical theology is that the study of the disciplines given to achieve Christian perfection need to be studied, mastered, understood, handed on, and therefore require direction by directors.
Compare it to the doctrine of the Trinity. This doctrine must be derived from Scripture, from special revelation. If you want to study the doctrine of the Trinity in an advanced way so as to master it and instruct others in this doctrine, you cannot simply study Scripture and hope from that source alone to formulate a robust and comprehensive statement of the doctrine. You will have to study the masters: Hillary, Augustine, the Cappadocians, and Thomas Aquinas, among others. Harton believes the same applies to the subdivision of ascetical theology. This doctrine is latent in Scripture, it is revealed in Scripture, but it is developed and formulated in robust and comprehensive ways as the Holy Spirit guides his people into all truth down through the ages.
The book is divided into five parts. The first deals with the nature of the Christian life, coordinating the responsibility of the Christian and the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. The supernatural power is grace, which operates in us and ought to become operative in our habits. This results in a “Habitual Grace" which "enlightens the intellect and deepens its intuitive knowledge of God and divine things; it unifies the affections and centralizes them upon the love of God; and it strengthens the will by aligning it with the will of God. Thus the soul in grace is enabled to grow to its full stature.” (17) Full stature is the promise of maturity, perfection. Harton then examines and defines the three theological virtues, follows it with the same for the four cardinal virtues, all compact but with a theological precision I can only call Thomistic. It is an illuminating exposition of how discipline ought to respond to grace, how the believer should be empowered by grace as the natural is perfected.
The second part of the book deals with sin, including an explanation of the three enemies and the three inner sources of sin: lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. One of the great strengths of this book is to write about these things in the context of Christian discipline, as part of a comprehensive understanding of the whole of the Christian's duty. He defines and explains sin and then explains repentance and mortification. “Christian asceticism is not directed towards the destruction of the body, but its subjection to the Spirit, and this involves the careful regulation of the pleasures of sense." He divides these pleasures into "sinful and legitimate; with the former the virtue of Temperance is not concerned, they have to be resisted, not used; it is concerned with the right use of legitimate sensible pleasures.” (66-7) That precision in defining the object of temperance, I find, brings everything into focus clearly.
The third section deals with the sacraments. I have questions about this section I will raise later. But what I really need is a Baptist theologian to give me a theological evaluation of this book. I wonder if all Catholic Anglicans (is that the same as an Anglo-Catholic?) would have seven sacraments. More on this below.
Having defined and explained the Christian life as a Spirit-empowered discipline that is constantly at war with sin and constantly endeavoring to develop and maintain the habits of virtue, he comes to the fourth section, prayer. He is very thorough in explaining and subdividing prayer into various kinds. This is the heart of the discipline: the Christian life is a life of prayer. It is a discipline of the will. “By detachment we strive to give our whole self to God, that all our willing, loving and desiring may be in Him. This involves the discipline of the whole man and the collecting of all the powers of the soul into one, that, being detached from the pursuit of pleasure for its own sake, the soul may find pleasure in God alone.” (169) This section is rich in practical instruction as well as wise insight, such as this reflection on why we are so often distracted in prayer: “A further and deeper cause of distraction lies in the heart. It cannot be too clearly realized that what we are in the rest of life, that we are too in our prayer.” (269) Much to think about there!
Last of all comes a consideration of perfection. Here there is a lot of instruction for the director of souls, including a summary of the message of the whole book: “The imitation of Christ is not a vague general thing which comes by desire—it has to be deliberately practiced, bit by bit and virtue by virtue.” (316) There is the whole book in one sentence.
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