Les formes de la Theologie chez Denys l'Areopagite
In the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius one finds explicit mention of three forms of theology, which we can call the mystical, the symbolic and the discursive. Moreover, numerous remarks of the author show that he explicitly considered the problem of the relationships among these different forms of theo...
| Published in: | Gregorianum |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | French |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Ed. Pontificia Univ. Gregoriana
1978
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| In: |
Gregorianum
Year: 1978, Volume: 59, Issue: 1, Pages: 39-69 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | In the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius one finds explicit mention of three forms of theology, which we can call the mystical, the symbolic and the discursive. Moreover, numerous remarks of the author show that he explicitly considered the problem of the relationships among these different forms of theology. It is this problem, one that has hitherto been virtually neglected, which this article proposes to examine. The first part seeks to establish what concept of God governs the entire reflection of Pseudo-Dionysius. This concept is essentially dynamic: God is conceived as thearche: as the principle of all things. The only adequate knowledge of this principle is negative: God is always the Unknowable. How then can He be reached? It is proper to mystical theology to attain the unknowable God « in the more than luminous darkness of silence ». This mystical sense of God constitutes the horizon of the whole theological discourse, and is to be considered the term of a spiritual process which one could well call mystical experience. This simple knowledge, corresponding to the circular movement of the spirit, has no other content than the mystery of faith. It rejoins therefore the discursive theology of the Divine Names, which seeks to ascend from created effects to the First Cause, and to determine its intelligible names. Ascending in this way to the Principle of all things, its movement is complex: on the one hand it uses reasoning and on the other it relies on the simple knowledge of mystical experience. Symbolic theology has never been deeply studied. It presupposes that the mind perceives in sensible realities a reflexion of God, and thus ascends in a straight line to the creative Principle. It must be recognized that for Dionysius it depended for its elaboration on the liturgical and aesthetic milieu in which he lived. Essentially contemplative, this theology also constitutes an approach to the Unknowable. The reflection of Dionysius leads us to consider that there are varied possibilities of approach to the unique mystery of God. It invites us not to consider as the only theology that which bases itself on the dialectic of concepts. A true concept of God demands that we take account of the mystical and symbolic approaches as well. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Gregorianum
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