The low middle ages had the central concern to preserve and transmit the Greco-Roman philosophical legacy. Boethius, it was the one who devoted himself to such a complex task.
Boethius was born in Rome around 480. From a noble family, he studied in Athens for 18 years, Ali gained access to the ceilings of Greek philosophers ignored in the medieval west. It is therefore proposed to translate them into Latin and propose a conciliation between Plato and Aristotle. Finally, despite his ambitious project, he could only translate part of the Aristotelian work, translate and comment on the Isagogé de Porfirio, write some treatises on logic, theology and the famous dialogue De consolatione philosophiae. His task could not be completed because his political occupations at the court of Theodoric in Ravenna, converged towards his imprisonment in early death in 525.
Boethius is not an original thinker, but his influence during the Middle Ages is enormous. De consolatione philosophiae is the main source of medieval logic and an important source for arithmetic, geometry and music.
Greek writer, probably originally from Syria and contemporary from Boethius, pretends to be a disciple of Paul and voncerted in the Areopagus of Athens. It is estimated that his works are after 480 and before 533, since they are sited pro pyrmera once in a theological discussion in Constantinople. It is attributed to texts of enormous influence in the medieval world: Mystical Theology, Divine Names, The Celestial Hierarchy and The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy. It was translated several times into Latin and Thomas Aquinas will quote it no less than 1,700 times.
The Pseudo-Dionysius adapts to Christianity the neoplatonic philosophy of Proclus (similar to Augustine with Plotinus) assuming that “emanation” is a creation of divine free will.
Negative theology
It is argued that the only possible knowledge about God is “non-knowing”, just as in neoplatonism.
“ The universal cause that is above all things has no essence, no life, no reason, no mind, no body (...) or anything of the things that are, neither possesses the being, nor possesses anything” Mystical Theology
The mystics of medieval thought will incorporate this idea of the divine, as well as the hierarchical vision of the universe. The transcendence of God is placed above all else. God is present and communicates to each of the beings who come from him, but not in the same way.
First there is the celestial hierarchy, formed by three orders of angels (each of which consists of three “choirs”), then the ecclesiastical hierarchy, composed of bishops, priests and deacons, and finally, the rest of humanity.
Each sector of the hierarchy is enlightened and governed by the higher level. the static and hierarchical vision will be the comovision that will dominate the whole medieval order and exercise a theoretical seduction comparable to what happens today with the theory of evolution.
Escoto, a lay Irish man, could be considered the most original author of the period. Between 851 and 862 he translates the works of the Pseudo-Dionysius into Latin and then writes his main work: The Division of Nature. He will also write comments on The Ceelestial Hierarchy and the Gospel of John .
This author divides nature (the realidadd) into four species:
Natura creans increata or the one that creates and is not created.
Creata creans or the one that is createdand creates.
Creata nec creans or the one that is created poro does not create.
Nec creata nec creans or which is neither created nor created.
This division is static in appearance, because the four oppose each other in pairs, the third is opposed to the first and the fourth to the second, but in fact, it is dynamic, refers to the circle of procession and return taken from the neoplatonics. God, it is conceived with the uncreated and creative nature from whom everything proceeds and to whom everything will return. A certain pantheism is noted in the thought of E scoto (not coincidentally, the church will condemn him in the 13th century) as he affirms “God is the essence of all things” and that “He creates himself”.
Escoto also proposes a synthesis between positive theologies (kataphatiké) and negative theolgoies (apophatiké). It will say that the names that are preached of God with the addition of particles such as “super” or “hyper” (superessential, for example) soh affirmative expressions that acquire negative force:
“ 'It is essence' is affirmation, 'it is not essence' is denial; but 'it is supra-essential' behaves both as affirmation and negation.”
