Dionysius the Areopagite, Letters 1-4, to Gaius Therapeutes

Written by Dionysius the Areopagite

Translated by Rev. John Parker, 1897.

Letter I to Gaius Therapeutes

Darkness becomes invisible by light, and specially by much light. Varied knowledge [ai gnoseis], and especially much varied knowledge, makes the Agnosia [Unknowing] to vanish. Take this in a superlative, but not in a defective sense, and reply with superlative truth, that the Agnosia, respecting God, escapes those who possess existing light, and knowledge of things being; and His pre-eminent darkness is both concealed by every light, and is hidden from every knowledge. And, if any one, having seen God, understood what he saw, he did not see Him, but some of His creatures that are existing and known. But He Himself, highly established above mind, and above essence, by the very fact of His being wholly unknown, and not being, both 'is' super-essentially, and is known above mind. And the all-perfect Agnosia, in its superior sense, is a knowledge of Him, Who is above all known things.

Letter II to Gaius Therapeutes

How is He, Who is beyond all, both above 'source of Divinity' and above 'source of Good'? [It is possible] provided you understand Deity and Goodness as the very Actuality of the Good-making and God-making gift, and the inimitable imitation of the super-divine and super-good (gift), by aid of which we are deified and made good. For, moreover, if this becomes source of the deification and making good of those who are being deified and made good, He, — Who is super-source of every source, even of the so-called Deity and Goodness, seeing He is beyond source of Divinity and source of Goodness, in so far as He is inimitable, and not to be retained — excels the imitations and retentions, and the things which are imitated and those participating.

Letter III to Gaius Therapeutes

'Sudden' is that which, contrary to expectation, and out of the, as yet, unmanifest, is brought into the manifest. But with regard to Christ’s love of man, I think that the Word of God suggests even this, that the Superessential proceeded forth out of the hidden, into the manifestation amongst us, by having taken substance as man. But, He is hidden, even after the manifestation, or to speak more divinely, even in the manifestation, for in truth this of Jesus has been kept hidden, and the mystery with respect to Him has been reached by no word nor mind, but even when spoken, remains unsaid, and when conceived unknown.

Letter IV to Gaius Therapeutes

[EDITOR'S NOTE: This letter, with its reference to 'theandric energies', has been taken by some readers both in ancient and modern times as evidence that the author was a Monophysite or Monothelite. St Maximus the Confessor, however, wrote a detailed commentary showing that the text is fully in agreement with the definition of Chalcedon.]

How, you ask, is Jesus, Who is beyond all, ranked essentially with all men? For, not as Author of men is he here called man, but as being in absolute whole essence truly man. But we do not define the Lord Jesus humanly, for He is not man only (neither superessential nor man only), but truly man, He Who is pre-eminently a lover of man, the Superessential, taking substance, above men and after men, from the substance of men. And it is nothing less, the ever Superessential, superfull of superessentiality, disregards the excess [te tautes periousia] of this, and having come truly into substance, took substance above substance, and above man works things of man. And a virgin supernaturally conceiving, and unstable water, holding up weight of material and earthly feet, and not giving way, but, by a supernatural power standing together so as not to be divided, demonstrate this. Why should anyone go through the rest, which are very many? Through which, he who looks with a divine vision, will know beyond mind, even the things affirmed regarding the love towards man, of (the Lord) Jesus, — things which possess a force of superlative negation. For, even, to speak summarily, He was not a man, not as 'not being man', but as 'being from men was beyond men', and was above man, having truly been born man; and for the rest, not having done things divine as God, nor things human as man, but exercising for us a certain new God-incarnate energy of God having become man.