The Journey of the Mind to God

1. The Journey of the Mind to God Bonaventure, 1217-1274

2. Overview • Mystical: focused on gaining spiritual union with God • Experience of oneness • Beyond language or ordinary experience • Assisted by reflection, images, meditation • Not a constant experience in this life • Taste of heaven • Christ crucified: main image

3. Stages • Seeing God through vestiges in creation • Seeing God in vestiges in creation • Considering God in God’s image imprinted on human person • Considering God in image reformed by grace • Considering divine unity in its name “being” • Considering Trinity in its name “goodness” • Rest: passing over into God

4. Stages 1-2 • Start with human senses: most basic way of knowing • See evidence of God in created world • Beauty • Order • Goodness

5. Stage 3 • Turn from outer focus on world to inner focus on self • Human person made in image of God • Genesis 1:27 • Must reflect something of God’s nature • As through a (dim) mirror • The mind has trinitarian structure • Memory recalls eternity and changeless truth (cf. Plato) • Intellect understands by light of truth • Will chooses by knowledge of perfection (cf. Platonic forms) • Desires what is best (made for God; cf. Augustine)

6. Stage 4 • This image of God has been damaged by sin • Drawn away from God by concupiscence (disordered desire) • Need grace, Christ as “ladder” in human form • Affections must be healed and re-ordered • Scripture is especially useful • Mind becomes a house inhabited by Divine Wisdom • Is made a daughter, spouse, and friend of God

7. Stage 5 • Now the mind is ready to ascend: look to God “above” • What can one know about God? First, simply that God is • Eternal • Simple (one) • Pure actuality (could not be anything else) • Ground of all that exists

8. Stage 6 • Goodness of God • Trinity: communion of persons • “Goodness is diffusive of itself”: must give itself away • Dynamic, self-giving • Cannot be solitary • God is the highest good = most self-giving • Must be intrinsic to God’s own being • God is love • Vision of God possible through Christ (can now look at the mercy seat) • God is joined forever with humanity in person of Jesus Christ (still human and divine; does not discard his body)

9. Exodus 25 Then you shall make a mercy-seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width. You shall make two cherubim of gold; you shall make them of hammered work, at the two ends of the mercy-seat. Make one cherub at one end, and one cherub at the other; of one piece with the mercy-seat you shall make the cherubim at its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy-seat with their wings. They shall face each other; the faces of the cherubim shall be turned towards the mercy-seat. You shall put the mercy-seat on the top of the ark; and in the ark you shall put the covenant that I shall give you. There I will meet you, and from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the covenant, I will deliver to you all my commands for the Israelites.

10. Isaiah 6 • In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said:‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;the whole earth is full of his glory.’

11. Stage 7 • Ends in rest = mystical union • Like 6 days of creation • Only possible through Christ crucified • The mercy-seat above the Ark • How to do this ascent? • Grace, desire, prayer, God • “darkness, not clarity” • Fire: consumes passions and affections • Dynamic image of God • Death to self, look to Christ crucified