Theophany
Theophany ( Greek θεός theos “god”; φαίνεσθαι phainesthai “to show oneself”, “to appear”) literally means “appearance of a god”, the manifestation of God in the human world or in nature. Theophany can also be understood as God's self-revelation in nature and human reason, more precisely: in the external and internal world. The term is mainly used in the language of Christian theology .
While the Iliad provides the earliest source of descriptions of theophany in the classical tradition, the Epic of Gilgamesh is believed to be the earliest direct description of theophany. In the Gilgamesh epic, the protagonist meets Siduri , a goddess who is associated with brewing and fertility. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the Bible is the primary source of events cited as theophany.
Theophany in the Greek tradition
When Zeus reveals himself to Semele in his true form, she is blinded by his divinity and burns, since the sight of the god is more than a mortal can endure. However, most of the theophanes in Greek tradition are not fatal.
Biblical Traditions
The New Catholic Encyclopedia cites examples such as Gen 3, 8 and further Gen 16: 7-14. This is originally an angel who appears to Hagar . In the further course it is said, however, that God spoke directly to her, that she saw and experienced God (Gen 16:13). Another example is Gen 22: 11-15, a representation of the angel of the Lord (not of God himself) speaking to Abraham . Nevertheless, the angel uses the words of God in the first person in the representation (Gen 22:12 b). Although angels appear in both cases, God speaks through them. This makes them a manifestation of God. Compare Moses and the Burning Bush . Originally Moses saw an angel in the bush, but then spoke directly to God (Ex 3). Ri 5,4f., Dtn 33,2 and Hab 3,3, which localize the origin of Adonais in the south, are considered to be particularly old Theophany descriptions.
According to the Gospels and Christian tradition, Jesus Christ is seen as the Incarnate Son of God (Jn 1:14). However, the New Catholic Encyclopedia makes reference to some theophania in the Gospels, such as Mk 1: 9-11 and Lk 9: 28-36, where the baptism and transfiguration of Jesus Christ are retold. Although Jesus Christ was viewed by his disciples as a manifestation of God during his life, one would only speak of a theophany here if his divine splendor and abundance of power had shown and not - as was the case according to the presentation of the Gospels - of his humanity would have been veiled. Traditional analyzes of these passages led Christian scholars to understand theophania as a clear utterance of God to man, with "unambiguous" indicating that people are unequivocally aware of the presence of God.
Orthodox Christianity
The feast of theophany is celebrated in the Orthodox Church on January 6th, with a special commemoration of the baptism of Christ in the Jordan. The Great Water Consecration also takes place on this day, but not primarily the water, as the name suggests, but through the water the entire creation is blessed.
Bishop Eusebius of Caesarea , who lived in the 4th century, wrote a book called Theophania , which references Christ's incarnation .
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Joseph Smith , Jr., the prophet and founder of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , claimed to have been visited by God the Father and Jesus Christ in a grove near his home at the age of 14 to be a theophany in response to his home first spoken prayer. This vision is believed to be the origin of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Theophany in other faiths
Since Hinduism is often understood as polytheistic or pantheistic , theophany has a different meaning here than in Judaism or Christianity. The most famous theophany in the Eastern traditions is contained in the Bhagavad Gita , part of the Mahabharata work . In the Gita, the famous warrior Arjuna asked Krishna for revelation of his true form after Arjuna had received several teaching lessons from Krishna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra . The request for revelation indicates that Krishna is above mortals. In the main part of Chapter XI, Krishna agrees and gives Arjuna spiritual eyesight that enables him to see Krishna in his true, terrifying and awe-inspiring form. This theophany was quoted by Robert Oppenheimer when he witnessed the first atomic bomb test: Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds ("Now I am death, the destroyer of the worlds"). The passage incorrectly translated by Oppenheimer originally means in the German translation: "I am the time that destroys all the world, appeared to take people away" (Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11/32).
Trivia
More recently, the science fiction author Philip K. Dick reported on a theophany of a gnostic nature he experienced on February 3, 1974, which later became the basis for his semi-biographical books Valis (1981) and Radio Free Albemuth (1985).
See also
swell
- Friedrich Kirchner , Dictionary of Basic Philosophical Terms , 1907.
- Hans-Peter Müller, The cultic representation of theophany . Vetus Testamentum, Vol. 14, Fasc. 2 (April 1964), pp. 183-191.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Reference book of the Catholic University of America , 2001.