Christian mystics such as Pseudo-Dionysius and St. Francis of Assisi presented widely varying and even radical views about God. They each had their own firmly held beliefs about the nature of the Divine and how we should think or talk about it, if at all.While Pseudo-Dionysius promoted the concept of the via negativa and the unreachable distance of the Divine, St. Francis turned his attention toward Jesus’ human nature and accessibility and God’s universal love. Pseudo-Dionysius got most of his philosophical authority through a fake apostolic pedigree--a persona which he invented for himself. And it is worth noting that most of his ideas would have been deemed intolerable if not for this important “apostolic background.” Much of his actual …show more content…
Negative theology (the via negativa) started with Gregory of Nyssa but became fully fleshed-out with the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius. Ideas about the “super-essentiality” of the Divine began to take hold. “Beyond all names, even beyond Being itself, lies the dark reality of the divine super-essence… God’s nature remains beyond definition. Even the character of personhood does not apply.” To Pseudo-Dionysius, God was utterly indescribable. Though he refers to God as the “Absolute One,” but by this he means that God is neither singular nor plural--his “absoluteness” is on a completely different plane of being than our human definitions of number. Another major belief held by Pseudo-Dionysius is that just as God created everything in an ecstatic motion of love, each human must now attempt to lose himself in ecstatic ascent and “return” to God, by a transcendent overcoming of all cognitive function. One quote can perhaps wrap up all of Pseudo-Dionysius’ beliefs into one simple …show more content…
The idea of a far-off God who can never truly be spoken of or thought of and who can never come close to being understood by anyone may be appealing to some very profound mystics, but the majority of humanity doesn’t need all that. What we need, I think, is a simple idea of God, like the one St. Francis put forth: Jesus the poor man, who preached and fished and did all the things normal people do. Far more reassuring is the idea of the God who made Creation not by some complex process of inverting into his own essence and spitting out a byproduct, but by a purposeful, loving formation of every unique thing in the universe. When we feel scared or sad or alone in the world, we need a God who loves us all unconditionally, rather than a God who sits high above us all, refusing or unable to be moved by our prayers. Additionally, a Jesus who was humble and poor may motivate humans to practice our humility and selflessness. A God who is all-loving may incite us to be more forgiving and kind to those around us as well. Pseudo-Dionysius’ unknowable God does nothing for us--but Francis’ loving, human-like God can help comfort and inspire