Creation and Revelation
The Oxford Handbook of Mystical Theology February 25, 2020 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198722380.013.27
Summary
The Christian mystical tradition holds a complex view of creation, balancing two perspectives: one affirming that the world reveals God through its sacramental nature, centered on the logos, and another respecting what remains hidden, especially in loss and suffering, as symbolized by the crucified Christ. Creation both reveals and conceals the divine.
Study at a glance
| Design | theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Key finding | Christian mysticism dialectically affirms creation as both revealing and concealing God, with the logos as a source of sacramental experience and the crucified Christ as a symbol of hiddenness. |
Abstract
The Christian mystical tradition gives expression to a varied, ambiguous, and shifting understanding of creation. The dialectical tension between kataphatic and apophatic mysticism frames this complex attitude towards creation. On the one hand, mystics regularly affirm the sacramental character of the created world, its capacity to reveal and make present the reality of God. Central to this theological intuition is the presence of the logos, the very principle of creation that also becomes the deep source of sacramental spiritual experience. On the other hand, mystics show deep respect for all that cannot be known, especially all that remains hidden under the shroud of loss and suffering. The image of the crucified Christ and Christ dead in the tomb is not only an emblem of salvation, but also a call to pause, in humility, before all that can never be known or understood of God. Creation reveals. But it also conceals.