02/03/2021
✨Dante’s Unique Angelology ✨
The glittering 13th c. mosaics in the cupola of the Baptistery of Florence depict the hierarchy of the angels according the early-Christian treatise 'De Coelesti Hierarchia' by Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite, which assigns roles to each of the angelic classes. The Seraphim are the highest class, closest to God, followed by Cherubim, Thrones, Dominations, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, and Angels.
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In his Paradiso, Dante gets original as he identifies each order of angels with Aristotle’s mover-intelligences of the celestial spheres. Similar to mirrors, Dante’s angels reflect the Divine Light, which remains one in itself—constant—down through the created universe. This means that while the angels in Dante’s Paradiso are countless, each is unique as it expresses its individuality by mirroring the Eternal Goodness in a different way and to a different degree.
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Might we apply this glorious Angelology to our own unique human existence—on Earth as it is in Heaven?
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The Comedy is filled with beautiful poetic notions like this one...delve into Dante’s masterpiece in the upcoming Divine Dante course with the The British Institute of Florence—we would love to have you on the journey. ✨
https://www.britishinstitute.it/en/library/harold-acton-library/virtual-cultural-programme/divine-dante
