Apophatic, or Negative, Theology

[Soulfyre]

Apophatic (as opposed to Catophatic) Theology, also referred to as "Negative" Theology, is often considered a distinguishing component of Orthodox Christianity (although this is not strictly true). Briefly, Apophatic Theology would assert that God in His essence is unknowable. This does not mean that nothing can be truly known about God, but that human reason and language ultimately fail to fully explicate who God is. Rather, it is easier to approach a knowledge of the Holy by understanding what God is not, thereby establishing a circumference to our understanding of God, outside of which God is not. Paradoxically, within this circumference lies the Infinite Unknowable, before whom all definitions and all similitudes fail. Interestingly, Francis Schaeffer, under whom I studied at L'Abri, would often assert that we may know God truly, but never exhaustively, which is similar in understanding. Hence Jesus Christ could be described as "God from God, Light from Light, Very God from Very God", and understood as the very image of God when he said, "He who has seen me has seen the Father." Nevertheless, one could state that even in seeing Christ, one could scarcely comprehend the nature of the hypostasis--the eternal God become flesh. Hence the mystery of Holiness remains.

(to be continued)

God bless and keep you,

Matthew (soulfyre)