The Dionysian Mystical Theology: Dionysius the Areopagite

169 Pages·2015·2.211 MB·English

by  Paul Rorem

INTRODUCING THE WORLD
OF DIONYSIUS THE AREOPAGITE—
R
The Dionysian Mystical Theology is the first book in the Mapping the Tradition series from Fortress
o
Press, which provides brief, compact guides to pivotal thinkers in Christian history. This book intro- r
duces the Pseudo-Dionysian “mystical theology” with glimpses at key stages in its interpretation and e
m
critical reception through the centuries. Part one reproduces and provides commentary on the elusive
Areopagite’s own miniature essay, The Mystical Theology, impenetrable without judicious reference to the
rest of the Dionysian corpus. Part two of the book explores the reception and critique of this Greek corpus
starting with the sixth through twelfth century and the critical reaction and opposition by Martin Luther
during the Reformation.
Praise for The Dionysian Mystical Theology
“The treatise known as The Mystical Theology ascribed to an unknown fifth-century author writing under the
pseudonym of ‘Dionysius the Areopagite’ (Acts 17:34) can be described as a founding document for much
of the history of Christian mysticism, not only because of its quasi-apostolic authority, but also due to its T
powerful teaching about how reaching union with God entails going beyond both affirmation and negation. H
Paul Rorem, who has spent decades studying Dionysius and his writings, provides the contemporary reader E
with a clear and penetrating commentary on this brief work, one of the most elusive writings in Christian
D
history. He also includes some insightful essays on aspects of the later history of Dionysianism. This is a book
to be treasured by anyone interested in the history of mysticism.” I
O
Bernard McGinn, Emeritus, University of Chicago Divinity School
N
“Centering on The Mystical Theology, the concise but elusive key text of the Areopagite, Paul Rorem offers by Y
his brilliant commentary a thorough introduction to the Dionysian corpus. Further, he presents main stages S
of reception and discloses in this way the impact of a classic source of the history of both theology and wider I
culture, including postmodernity. This book is an excellent resource for sharpening one’s own theological A
and philosophical judgment.” N
Oswald Bayer, Emeritus, University of Tübingen

M
“The influence of the mysterious early sixth-century ‘ps-Dionysius’ and his writings on both Eastern and
Western theology has been profound and pervasive; yet almost no texts in the Christian tradition are more Y
contested in their meaning and theological implications, especially today. In The Dionysian Mystical Theology, S
Paul Rorem crowns a long career of distinguished work on the Dionysian tradition with an exacting analysis T
of The Mystical Theology in the context of the complete oeuvre, and of its reception at key moments up to I
C
the Lutheran reformation. This is a magisterial little book, condensing
years of intricate scholarship.” A
L
Sarah Coakley, University of Cambridge

T
Paul Rorem, Princeton Theological Seminary’s Benjamin B. Warfield Pro- H
fessor of Medieval Church History, holds an MDiv from Luther Theological
E
Seminary, an STM from The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadel-
O
phia, and a PhD from Princeton Seminary. An ordained Lutheran minister,
he is interested in medieval church history and Pseudo-Dionysius. His L
courses cover the confessions and influence of St. Augustine, the Chris- O
tian mystical tradition, medieval Christianity, and the spiritual and theo- THE DIONYSIAN
G
logical legacy of the Pseudo-Dionysian writings. He is editor of Lutheran
Quarterly and Lutheran Quarterly Books. He is author of Hugh of Saint Victor Y
(2009) and of several volumes on the Dionysian corpus. He is the series MYSTICAL THEOLOGY
advisor for the new Mapping the Tradition series from Fortress Press.
HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY
Paul Rorem
MAPPING
the
TRADITION
The Dionysian Mystical Theology

The Dionysian
Mystical Theology
Paul Rorem
Fortress Press
Minneapolis
THE DIONYSIAN MYSTICAL THEOLOGY
Copyright © 2015 Fortress Press. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations
in critical articles or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner
without prior written permission from the publisher. Visit
http://www.augsburgfortress.org/copyrights/ or write to Permissions, Augsburg
Fortress, Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440.
Cover image: St. Dionysius the Areopagite, © Filippos Konstantaras,
logicon.deviantart.com/
Cover design: Tory Herman
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Print ISBN: 978-1-4514-9582-9
eBook ISBN: 978-1-5064-0044-0
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American
National Standard for Information Sciences — Permanence of Paper for Printed
Library Materials, ANSI Z329.48-1984.
Manufactured in the U.S.A.
This book was produced using PressBooks.com, and PDF rendering was done by
PrinceXML.
Contents
Mapping the TraditionSeries vii
Paul Rorem, series advisor
Abbreviations ix
Publication Data xi
Preface xiii
Part I.An Introduction to Pseudo-Dionysius by
Way ofThe Mystical Theology
Preamble 3
Chapter One 9
Chapter Two 21
Chapter Three 27
Chapter Four 41
Chapter Five 51
Part II.Stages of Dionysian Reception and
Interpretation
1. The Doctrinal Concerns of the First Dionysian 61
Scholiast, John of Scythopolis
2. The Early Latin Dionysius 79
Eriugena and Hugh of St. Victor
3. Martin Luther’s Christocentric Critique of 101
Pseudo-Dionysian Spirituality
4. Negative Theologies and the Cross 121
Bibliography 143
Index of Names 155
Mapping the Tradition Series
Paul Rorem, series advisor
Mapping the Tradition is a series of brief, compact guides to pivotal
thinkers in Christian history. Each volume focuses upon a particular
figure and provides a concise but lucid introduction to the central
features of each author’s work and sketches the lasting significance
of that thinker for the history of Christian theology. As well, the
seriesutilizesprimarysourceworksfromeachfigureasanentrypoint
for exposition and exploration. Guided by leading scholars in history
and theology, primary source texts are reproduced with explanatory
commentary, and are accompanied by orientational essays to the
context,contours,andhistoricalandconceptuallegacyofthecorpus.
This series is designedfor beginning and intermediate students, as
wellasinterestedgeneralreaders,whowillbenefitfromclear,helpful
surveys of thinkers, texts, and theologies from across the epochs of
Christian history and introduction to major issues and key historical
and intellectual points of development.
Forthcoming volumes in the series include:
Gillian T. W. Ahlgren, Enkindling Love: The Legacy of Teresa of Avila
and John of the Cross
Khaled Anatolios, Irenaeus of Lyons: The Making of the Great Tradition
vii
THE DIONYSIAN MYSTICAL THEOLOGY
Romanus Cessario, O.P. and Cajetan Cuddy, O.P., Thomas and the
Thomists: The Achievement of Thomas Aquinas and his Interpreters
Robert Kolb, Luther and Christian Freedom
Andrew Louth, John of Damascus: The Radiance of Orthodoxy
Paul R. Sponheim, Existing Before God: Søren Kierkegaard and the
Human Venture
Terrence N. Tice, Schleiermacher: The Psychology of Christian Faith
and Life
ThomasG.WeinandyandDanielA.Keating,Athanasius:Trinitarian-
Incarnational Soteriology and Its Reception
viii
Abbreviations
The Mystical Theology and other works by Pseudo-Dionysius will be
cited according to three editions, using the usual abbreviations:
MT The Mystical Theology
DN The Divine Names
CH The Celestial Hierarchy
EH The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy
Ep The Letters
First will be the traditional location in Migne (Patrologia Cursus
Completus, Series Graeca, volume 3), then the critical edition (Corpus
Dionysiacum, Patristische Texte und Studien, volume 33 for The Divine
Names and volume 36 for all other Dionysian works [Berlin: de
Gruyter, 1990–1991]), and finally the page number in Pseudo-
Dionysius: The Complete Works, translated by C. Luibheid (New
York: Paulist, 1987).
Biblical passages are cited and abbreviated according to the New
Revised Standard Version.
ix