Abstract
Following Troeltsch, who identified in the Western mystical adventure the fundamental aspects of the autonomy of individual conscience, of tolerance, of the relativity of beliefs and of ethical individualism, the author traces in the postmodern religious landscape, well beyond secularization, the kernel of a widespread mystical trend that appeared at the start of the third millennium. Its characteristics are a nomadic dimension, a hypertrophy of silence, an emotional atmosphere, sensitivity to the environment, and a sense of uncertainty. This trend presents both light and dark sides. According to the author the following elements should be considered: the heretical imperative, the sense of outward responsibility, the practice of paradox, and the plurality of the religious world.