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On Mystical Theology

work by Pseudo-Dionysius

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On Mystical Theology is a work by Pseudo-Dionysius, a 6th-century Syrian monk who sought to synthesize Neoplatonic philosophy with Christian theology and mystical experience. The treatise explores negative theology, which emphasizes the unknowability of God by negating all human concepts and images as inadequate to describe the divine reality. This approach, also known as apophatic theology, contrasts with affirmative (kataphatic) theology, which uses positive terms to describe God. Pseudo-Dionysius argued for a "God beyond God" and a divine Darkness, suggesting that true contact with the transcendent involves going beyond all positive descriptions, even of the Trinity. This mystical theology points to an experience of divine reality beyond rational comprehension.123

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