Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite

Life

Pseudo-Dionysius was an anonymous Christian writer thought to have been active in the late fifth or early sixth century. He wrote in the guise of the Dionysius mentioned in Acts 17:34, a member of the Areopagus who believed after hearing Paul preach in Athens. The prefix "Pseudo-" means "false" or "writing under another's name" and indicates that the author borrowed the name of a figure from the apostolic age. His actual name, birthplace, and dates of birth and death are unknown. Many scholars believe he was a monk from Syria. His writings are first known to have been cited in the first half of the sixth century.

Work and Contributions

The surviving writings are commonly called the "Dionysian corpus" (Corpus Dionysiacum). They consist of four treatises and ten letters.

• The Divine Names: Examines the meaning of the names by which Scripture refers to God (such as Good, Light, and Life).
• The Mystical Theology: Holds that God transcends all human concepts and therefore describes a way of approaching God through successive negations, declaring one by one that "God is not ..." This approach is called negative (apophatic) theology.
• The Celestial Hierarchy: Divides the angels into three triads comprising nine ranks. The first triad consists of seraphim, cherubim, and thrones; the second of dominions, virtues, and powers; and the third of principalities, archangels, and angels.
• The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy: Offers a symbolic interpretation of rites such as baptism and the Eucharist, as well as of the orders of clergy.

His writings contain many concepts and expressions close to Neoplatonic philosophy, particularly the thought of the fifth-century philosopher Proclus. Because the works were believed to have been written by a disciple of an apostle, they acquired great authority. In the Eastern Church, Maximus the Confessor wrote commentaries on them. In the West, John Scotus Eriugena and others translated them into Latin in the ninth century. Thereafter, medieval theologians, including Thomas Aquinas, cited them frequently, and they left a deep mark on the Western mystical tradition.

Influence on the Korean Church

Within Korean Protestantism, the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius are not widely read firsthand. He is mainly introduced in seminary courses on church history, spiritual theology, and systematic theology, where concepts such as the nine ranks of angels and negative theology are explained as originating in his works. His name also comes up at times in debates over contemplative prayer. Critics cite him when tracing the roots of this form of prayer to Christian mysticism, while defenders regard him as part of the Church's long spiritual heritage.

Assessment

• The question of authorship: In the fifteenth century Lorenzo Valla, and in the sixteenth century Erasmus, questioned whether these writings dated from the apostolic age. In the late nineteenth century, research demonstrated their dependence on the thought of Proclus. Since then, the view that they were written in the fifth century or later has become the scholarly consensus.
• Criticism by the Reformers: In The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, Martin Luther criticized him as more a Platonist than a Christian. In the Institutes of the Christian Religion, John Calvin criticized his doctrine of the angelic hierarchy as speculation without basis in Scripture.
• Present-day assessment: In the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, many accept that the writings do not date from the apostolic age while still highly valuing their theological and spiritual worth. Within Protestantism, opinions are divided: some criticize the writings as a mysticism that relies more on philosophy than on Scripture, while others regard them as a theological resource that deeply explores the transcendence of God.