Andrei A. Orlov notes in a chapter in the book, Wisdom Poured Out Like Water: Studies on Jewish and Christian Antiquity in Honor of Gabriele Boccaccini, De Gruyter, 2018
Andrei A. Orlov
23 Two Powers in Heaven… Manifested
Introduction
In recent decades there has been an increased scholarly interest in rabbinic and Hekhalot testimonies pertaining to the so-called two powers in heaven controversy. Scholars often argue about the importance of these rabbinic debates for understanding the origins of early Jewish mysticism or even the roots of early Christology. While previous studies provide many valuable insights about these portentous conceptual developments, they consistently ignore one important aspect found in these accounts, namely, the striking contrast between the theophanic attributes of the first power, represented by God, and the details of the second power’s epiphany, epitomized by Metatron. Yet, it appears that in the aforementioned accounts one can detect a peculiar tension between the two theophanic traditions: one, audial or auricularcentric, applied to the deity, and the other, visionary or ocularcentric, applied to the great angel. Thus, the second power, often represented by Metatron, is depicted with the distinctive attributes of the visionary trend, while God’s presence is portrayed through peculiar aural symbolism, namely, through the conception of the heavenly voice.
The purpose of this chapter is to explore more closely these differences in theophanic descriptions found in the two powers in heaven accounts ...
Ocular and Aural Paradigms of the Divine Presence
In the Hebrew Bible the deity often appears in an anthropomorphic shape. Such anthropomorphic symbolism comes to its most forceful expression in the Israelite priestly ideology, known to us as the Priestly source, wherein God is depicted in “the most tangible corporeal similitudes.” ...
Scholars observe that the priestly understanding of the corporeal representation of the deity finds its clearest expression in the conception of the “Glory of God” [...]. This conception is always expressed in the Priestly tradition in the symbolism grounded in mythological corporeal imagery ...
While containing forceful anthropomorphic ideologies, the Hebrew Bible also attests to polemical narratives contesting the corporeal depictions of the deity and offers a different conception of the divine presence ...
https://www.academia.edu/37789365/_Two_ ... anifested_
Andrei A. Orlov
23 Two Powers in Heaven… Manifested
Introduction
In recent decades there has been an increased scholarly interest in rabbinic and Hekhalot testimonies pertaining to the so-called two powers in heaven controversy. Scholars often argue about the importance of these rabbinic debates for understanding the origins of early Jewish mysticism or even the roots of early Christology. While previous studies provide many valuable insights about these portentous conceptual developments, they consistently ignore one important aspect found in these accounts, namely, the striking contrast between the theophanic attributes of the first power, represented by God, and the details of the second power’s epiphany, epitomized by Metatron. Yet, it appears that in the aforementioned accounts one can detect a peculiar tension between the two theophanic traditions: one, audial or auricularcentric, applied to the deity, and the other, visionary or ocularcentric, applied to the great angel. Thus, the second power, often represented by Metatron, is depicted with the distinctive attributes of the visionary trend, while God’s presence is portrayed through peculiar aural symbolism, namely, through the conception of the heavenly voice.
The purpose of this chapter is to explore more closely these differences in theophanic descriptions found in the two powers in heaven accounts ...
Ocular and Aural Paradigms of the Divine Presence
In the Hebrew Bible the deity often appears in an anthropomorphic shape. Such anthropomorphic symbolism comes to its most forceful expression in the Israelite priestly ideology, known to us as the Priestly source, wherein God is depicted in “the most tangible corporeal similitudes.” ...
Scholars observe that the priestly understanding of the corporeal representation of the deity finds its clearest expression in the conception of the “Glory of God” [...]. This conception is always expressed in the Priestly tradition in the symbolism grounded in mythological corporeal imagery ...
While containing forceful anthropomorphic ideologies, the Hebrew Bible also attests to polemical narratives contesting the corporeal depictions of the deity and offers a different conception of the divine presence ...
https://www.academia.edu/37789365/_Two_ ... anifested_
Statistics: Posted by MrMacSon — Sat Apr 06, 2024 9:42 pm