Abstract: In this thesis proposal, I discuss the main arguments that deal with the issue of mystical lived experience. In distinguishing between Edith Stein's and Gerda Walther’s contributions, it is my purpose to highlight how phenomenology deals with transcendence and immanence, by pointing out the encounter between I and the Divine.
Besides providing a map of the relationship between anthropology and religious experience, I assess the extent to which our authors’ explorations lay the groundwork for a relation between the Divine and the human being which assists towards the latter’s ultimate sense of existence.
The work is structured as follows. After giving an overview of the human being's openness to the Divine, I review in particular the religious experience. Next, I provide an account of Edith Stein’s and Gerda Walther’s explorations on mysticism to make clear my methodology and the relevance of the investigation. I argue that phenomenological analysis of the mystical experience by Edith Stein and Gerda Walther brings out the ultimate meaning of the human being. Finally, the last two sections consider a proposed scheme and an essential bibliography for the research.