Apophatic theology, also known as negative theology and the Via Negativa, is a way of thinking about religion that tries to understand God by focusing on what cannot be said about Him. It uses statements that describe what God is not, rather than what God is. This is the opposite of cataphatic theology, also called affirmative theology, which tries to understand God by making positive statements about what God is.

The apophatic tradition is often connected to mysticism, which seeks to see God in a way that goes beyond normal understanding or perception.

Etymology and definition

The word "apophatic" comes from Ancient Greek: ἀπόφασις (noun), which means "denial." It is derived from the Greek verb ἀπόφημι (apophēmi), meaning "to deny." According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, "apophatic" (adjective) refers to "a way of speaking that involves denying something or gaining knowledge through what is not said." This term was first used in English in 1850. It comes from the Latinized form of the Greek word apophatikos, which is based on apophasis ("denial, negation"). Apophasis is made from apo ("away from") and phanai ("to speak"), which is related to the Greek word pheme ("voice"). These words trace back to the ancient root bha- ("to speak, tell, say").

In religious and philosophical discussions, the "negative way" or "via negativa" (Latin) is a method of understanding God by focusing on what God is not, rather than what God is. This approach contrasts with the "positive way" or "via kataphatica" (Latin), which describes God by using positive attributes. According to Deirdre Carabine, the ancient writer Pseudo Dionysius explained the "positive way" as a method of understanding God by saying, "God is Love," "God is Beauty," and "God is Good." These statements highlight God's connection to the qualities found in creation. However, the "negative way" emphasizes that God is beyond all human understanding and cannot be described using ordinary language. This is because God is completely separate from everything that exists.

The idea that God is both present in the world (immanent) and completely beyond the world (transcendent) helps explain why both methods are true. At the same time, God is both knowable and unknowable. In literary and rhetorical studies, the idea that language cannot fully describe God or other complex ideas is often discussed under the term "Topos of ineffability" (German: Unsagbarkeitstopos). This concept highlights the limits of human language in expressing certain truths.

Origins and development

According to Fagenblat, "negative theology is as old as philosophy itself." Ideas related to it appear in Plato's unwritten teachings and are also found in writings from Neo-Platonic, Gnostic, and early Christian thinkers. A focus on apophatic thought, which emphasizes what cannot be said about God, is also present in the works of Philo of Alexandria.

According to Carabine, "apophasis proper" in Greek philosophy begins with Neo-Platonism, which explored the nature of the One. This idea reached its peak in the writings of Proclus. Carabine notes two key developments in apophatic theology: the blending of Jewish traditions with Platonic philosophy in Philo's works, and the influence of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, who introduced Neo-Platonic ideas into Christian thought.

Early Church Fathers were influenced by Philo, and Meredith claims that Philo "is the real founder of the apophatic tradition." However, it was Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite and Maximus the Confessor whose writings shaped Hesychasm, a contemplative monastic tradition in Eastern Orthodox Churches, and the mystical traditions of Western Europe. These writings made apophatic theology a central part of Christian theology and spiritual practice.

The story of Elijah hearing a "still, small voice" in 1 Kings 19:11-13 has been suggested as a biblical example of apophatic prayer.

Greek philosophy

For the ancient Greeks, knowing about the gods was very important for proper worship. Poets had an important role in this, and a key question was how people could learn about the forms of the Divine. Epiphany, which means a sudden realization, was important in gaining this knowledge. Xenophanes (c. 570 – c. 475 BC) noted that knowledge of the Divine forms is limited by the human imagination. Greek philosophers realized that this knowledge could only be shared through myths and visual art, which depend on culture.

According to Herodotus (484–425 BC), Homer and Hesiod (between 750 and 650 BC) taught the Greeks about the Divine forms of the gods. Hesiod described in his Theogony the birth of the gods and the creation of the world. This work became an "ur-text" for early stories about divine experiences in Greek literature. It also explored the limits of human understanding of the divine. Platt noted that the Muses, who gave Hesiod knowledge of the gods, align more with the idea of apophatic religious thought, which focuses on what cannot be said about the divine.

Parmenides (fl. late sixth or early fifth century BC) wrote a poem called On Nature, which describes a revelation about two ways of thinking. "The way of conviction" explores true reality, called "what-is," which is unchanging, perfect, and whole. "The way of opinion" is the world of appearances, where senses lead to false beliefs. Parmenides’ idea of unchanging truth and changing opinions is shown in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. This idea, along with the story of Moses climbing Mount Sinai, was used by Gregory of Nyssa and Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite to explain a Christian view of the soul’s journey toward God. Cook noted that Parmenides’ poem describes a religious journey similar to mystery cults, giving philosophical shape to religious ideas. Cook also said the philosopher’s task is to use "negative thinking" to move past obstacles in the search for wisdom.

Plato (428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) supported Parmenides’ view over Heraclitus’ theory of constant change. He greatly influenced the development of apophatic thought. In his dialogue Parmenides, Plato explored the idea of timeless truth, focusing on eternal forms like Truth, Beauty, and Goodness, which are the real goals of knowledge. His Theory of Forms explains how unchanging reality can exist alongside changing things, by treating the changing world as an illusion.

In The Republic, Plato argued that the real objects of knowledge are not the changing things people see, but the unchanging Forms. He claimed the Form of the Good is the highest object of knowledge. His argument is shown in the Allegory of the Cave, where humans are like prisoners who only see shadows of the real world. Plato believed people should be educated to seek knowledge by turning away from physical desires and toward higher thinking, leading to an understanding of the Forms, or the "first principles of all knowledge."

Cook noted that the Theory of Forms has a religious tone and influenced later thinkers like Proclus and Plotinus. The pursuit of Truth, Beauty, and Goodness became central to the apophatic tradition. However, Carabine warned against assuming Plato was the founder of the negative way, noting that later thinkers like Proclus and Plotinus linked the Forms to a single divine source, which Plato did not do.

Middle Platonism (1st century BC–3rd century AD) studied Plato’s "Unwritten Doctrines," which included ideas from Pythagoras about the Monad and Dyad. Middle Platonism proposed a hierarchy of being, with God as the first principle, identified with Plato’s Form of the Good. Philo (c. 25 BC – c. 50 AD), an influential thinker, used Middle Platonic ideas to interpret Hebrew scriptures and influenced early Christianity. Craig D. Allert said Philo helped create a language for describing God’s transcendence, emphasizing that God is beyond description.

Neo-Platonism was a mystical form of Platonism that developed outside the mainstream of Academic Platonism. It began with Plotinus (204/5–270 AD) and ended with the closing of the Platonic Academy in 529 AD. It arose from the blending of Greek thought with

Christianity

The Book of Revelation 8:1 mentions "the silence of the perpetual choir in heaven." According to Dan Merkur:

The silence of the perpetual choir in heaven has mystical meanings, as silence is connected to the idea of unity in mystical experiences where differences disappear. The word "silence" also refers to the "still small voice" (1 Kings 19:12), which Elijah heard on Mount Horeb. This voice showed that God is not fully understood through visions but through a belief that God cannot be described in simple terms.

The Early Church Fathers were influenced by Philo, a Jewish philosopher who lived around 25 BC to 50 AD. Philo saw Moses as an example of human virtue and Mount Sinai as a symbol of the journey toward understanding God. His ideas about Moses were followed by Clement of Alexandria, Origen, the Cappadocian Fathers, Pseudo-Dionysius, and Maximus the Confessor.

The moment when God appeared to Moses in the burning bush was often discussed by the Early Church Fathers, especially Gregory of Nyssa, who lived around 335 to 395 AD. Gregory emphasized that God cannot be fully known. This idea continued in later mystical traditions. These thinkers believed that even though God is unknowable, people can follow Jesus, because "following Christ is the human way of seeing God."

Clement of Alexandria, who lived around 150 to 215 AD, was one of the first to support apophatic theology. Apophatic theology teaches that God is unknowable, but only in terms of God’s true nature, not God’s powers or actions. According to R.A. Baker, Clement’s writings describe "theoria" as a process that moves from simply thinking about God to a deeper spiritual understanding. Clement’s apophatic ideas are closely connected to this kind of spiritual vision. For Clement, God is both beyond human understanding and present in the world. Baker explains that Clement’s ideas are more influenced by Plato’s philosophy than by the Bible. Clement’s view of God as unknowable combines ideas from Plato and Philo, as seen through a Christian perspective. Osborne says this is a mix of Christian and other traditions, while Baker notes that Plato’s ideas explain the negative view of God, and the Bible explains the positive view. Theoria and thinking deeply are ways to understand God, but they come after becoming emotionally balanced.

Tertullian, who lived around 155 to 240 AD, wrote:

What is infinite can only be known by itself. This gives us a basic idea of God, even though we cannot fully understand Him. God is both known and unknown, because our inability to grasp Him fully helps us understand His greatness.

Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, who lived from 313 to 386 AD, wrote in his Catechetical Homilies:

We do not explain what God is, but we admit that we do not know Him completely. It is best to say we do not know God fully.

Augustine of Hippo, who lived from 354 to 430 AD, described God as "other, completely other" in his book Confessions. He wrote, "If you understand [something], it is not God," in another work. A famous story says that Augustine once met a child who was trying to pour the entire sea into a small hole in the sand. Augustine told the child it was impossible, and the child replied that it was just as impossible to understand God’s greatness with the human mind.

The Christological dogma, created by the Fourth Ecumenical Council in Chalcedon in 451 AD, is based on the ideas of dyophysitism and hypostatic union. These terms describe how Jesus has both a human and divine nature in one person. This idea is beyond human understanding and must be described using negative language, as it is a unique union of divinity and humanity.

Apophatic theology was most clearly explained by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, who lived in the late 5th to early 6th century. He studied under Proclus and combined Christian ideas with Neo-Platonic philosophy. His writings greatly influenced the contemplative traditions of the Eastern Orthodox Churches and later Western mysticism.

Pseudo-Dionysius was a name used by someone who wrote about a man mentioned in the Bible, in Acts of the Apostles chapter 17. In this story, Paul spoke to people in Athens about a god they did not know, called the "Unknown God." Paul taught that Jesus Christ is this unknown God, and this led a man named Dionysius to become a Christian. However, Pseudo-Dionysius connected this idea to Neo-Platonic philosophy, blending Christianity with ideas from ancient Greek thinkers.

Pseudo-Dionysius explored apophasis, or the idea that God is beyond all descriptions, within Christian philosophy. He believed that God is the cause of everything but is not described by any of the qualities found in the universe. There is no contradiction between saying things about God and saying they are not true, because God is beyond all descriptions. In this way, God is the One who cannot be fully known, and people must approach God through unknowing.

According to Corrigan and Harrington, "Dionysius' main focus was explaining how a God who is completely unknowable and beyond all limits can still be present in creation and bring everything back to its source." Drawing on Neo-Platonism, Pseudo-Dionysius described the journey to God as a process of purification, enlightenment, and union with God. He also described the universe as a series of levels that help close the gap between God and humans.

In Orthodox Christianity, apophatic theology is considered more important than cataphatic theology, which uses positive descriptions of God. The Cappadocian Fathers, who lived in the 4th century, believed God exists but in a way that is different from everything else. Everything else was created, but God is uncreated. God’s true nature is completely unknown, but humans can learn about God’s qualities through God’s actions in the world. Gregory of Nyssa, John Chrysostom, and Basil the Great emphasized the importance of negative theology in understanding God. John of Damascus wrote that positive statements about God do not describe God’s nature but show what surrounds God.

Maximus the Confessor, who lived from 580 to 622 AD, used ideas from Pseudo-Dionysius and influenced the theology and spiritual practices of the Eastern Orthodox Churches. Gregory Palamas, who lived from 1296 to 1359 AD, developed the theology of Hesychasm, which includes practices like contemplative prayer and theosis, or "deification."

Important 20th-century Orthodox theologians include Vladimir Lossky, John Meyendorff, John S. Romanides, and Georges Florovsky. Lossky, based on

Islam

In Islam, different groups and schools of thought use various beliefs to understand God (known as Allah in Arabic) or the ultimate reality. One approach is called "negative theology," which uses the Arabic term ta'tīl, meaning "setting aside," "canceling," "negating," or "nullifying." The Mu'tazili school of Kalam, which spread widely after the teachings of Wasil ibn Ata, is often referred to as the Mu'aṭṭilah, a name that comes from their practice of negation. This term is sometimes used in a way that shows disapproval.

Rajab ʿAlī Tabrīzī, a 17th-century Iranian Shi'ite philosopher and mystic, helped introduce an apophatic theology, which emphasizes that God is beyond human understanding and cannot be described with attributes. He taught that God's nature is completely unknowable and without qualities, and that any descriptions of God in religious texts must be understood as negative affirmations—meaning they describe what God is not, rather than what God is.

Shia Islam often uses "negative theology." As stated by the Persian Ismaili missionary Abu Yaqub al-Sijistani, "No description of God's transcendence is more clear and powerful than the one that uses phrases showing that God is beyond all human-like qualities, even when those phrases themselves are negative."

Literalists reject any ideas that conflict with the exact wording of the Qur'ān or the stories about the Prophet Muhammad. They believe that all descriptions of God in religious texts, even those that seem human-like (such as "hand" or "foot"), should be taken as true attributes of God.

Many Sunnites, including the Ash'aris and Maturidis, follow a middle ground between negation and anthropomorphism (the belief that God has human-like qualities). However, the way they combine these ideas varies greatly among different groups.

Judaism

Maimonides (1135/1138–1204) was "the most influential medieval Jewish thinker who explained the via negativa." Maimonides and Samuel ibn Tibbon were influenced by Bahya ibn Paquda, who explained that our inability to describe God is because God is absolutely one. God, who is "truly One" (האחד האמת), does not have properties and is unlike anything else, making Him impossible to describe. In The Guide for the Perplexed, Maimonides wrote:

God's existence is absolute and has no parts. We can only know that He exists, not what He is like. It is wrong to think God has any positive traits, such as strength or wisdom. God also has no accidents, which are things that can be described by traits. Therefore, God has no positive traits. However, negative traits are needed to help people understand what must be believed about God. When we say God exists, we mean His non-existence is impossible. He is alive, not dead. He is the first, meaning nothing caused Him to exist. He has power, wisdom, and will, not weakness or ignorance. He is One, meaning there is only one God. Every trait we say about God describes either His actions or, when talking about His being, the absence of the opposite.

Rabbi Yosef Wineberg wrote that Maimonides said God is knowledge, and that God's essence, being, and knowledge are completely one, "a perfect unity and not a group of parts at all." Wineberg quotes Maimonides as saying:

This kind of unity, where God's knowledge is one with God Himself, is beyond what humans can express, hear, or clearly understand.

Fagenblat noted that negative theology became important in Jewish thought only in modern times. Yeshayahu Leibowitz (1903–1994) was a key modern Jewish thinker of negative theology. Leibowitz believed that faith means obeying God's commandments, not forming an image of God. This is because Leibowitz thought God cannot be described, and human understanding of God is different from God's own understanding. Therefore, all questions about God are not meaningful.

The work of Jewish philosopher Jacques Derrida, especially his method called deconstruction, has often been compared to negative theology. This comparison led to renewed interest in apophaticism (describing God by saying what He is not) in the late 20th century, even among philosophers and scholars not focused on theology. However, Derrida disagreed with critics who said deconstruction was like secular negative theology, claiming it was only a surface similarity. Derrida argued that negative theology aims to show God's incomprehensible, transcendent reality, which is the opposite of deconstruction's goal to remove ideas about what exists (metaphysics of presence).

Later in his career, in his essay "Sauf le nom," Derrida saw apophatic theology as a way to highlight the limits of language and the problems that arise from them. He wrote:

There is one form of apophaticism that can respond to God's deepest desires, as shown through God's presence or absence. Another form of apophaticism may remain distant from all human desires.

Scholars like Stephen Shakespeare noted that, despite Derrida's interest in Jewish theology, his writing on negative theology mainly used Christian sources and language. Derrida's ideas, especially his later work on negative theology, greatly influenced the Weak Theology movement and postmodern theology overall.

David Wood and Robert Bernasconi wrote that Derrida explained deconstruction in a way similar to negative theology, focusing on what cannot be said.

Indian parallels

Early Indian philosophical works that use negative theology include the Principal Upanishads (800 BC to the start of the common era) and the Brahma Sutras (from 450 BC to 200 AD). The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad describes Brahman as "neti neti," meaning "neither this, nor that." The Brahma Sutras also use negative theology, stating: "Whenever we deny something unreal, it is in reference to something real."

Buddhist philosophy also uses the method of negation. The Buddha taught the idea of anatta, which means there is no unchanging, true self. The Madhyamaka school, founded by Nagarjuna (2nd–3rd century AD), rejects all fixed ideas and promotes the concept of emptiness (shunyata). Negative theology is also found in Mahayana sutras, especially the prajñaparamita texts. These ideas appear in all forms of Buddhism.

In medieval Hindu philosophy, negative theology is seen in the works of Shankara (8th century), a philosopher of Advaita Vedanta (non-dualism), and Bhartṛhari (5th century), a grammarian. Shankara believes Brahman, the transcendent reality, is understood by denying all appearances, including language. Bhartṛhari argues that language has both visible and hidden aspects, with the hidden part revealing Brahman.

In Advaita Vedanta, Brahman is described as Nirguna, meaning it has no qualities. Anything that can be imagined or thought of is not considered the ultimate reality. The Taittiriya hymn describes Brahman as "one where the mind does not reach." However, Hindu texts also describe Brahman positively, such as equating it with bliss. These descriptions show that Brahman's qualities are similar to those of humans but are not the same.

Negative theology also appears in debates between Buddhist and Hindu thinkers. The discussion often asks: Is Brahman an object of experience? If so, how can this experience be shared with others who have not had it? The answer is to compare the experience to common ones while clearly stating they are not the same.

Bahá'í Faith

Bahá'í people believe that God is a being that cannot be fully understood. Bahá'í writings say, "there is no direct connection between God and His creation, and no similarity can exist between the temporary and the Eternal, the dependent and the Absolute."

According to the Bahá'í Faith, the only way to get closer to God is by learning about the Manifestation of God, which reflects God's reality like a mirror shows the image of the sun. Stephen Lambden has written a paper titled "The Background and Centrality of Apophatic Theology in Bábí and Bahá'í Scripture." Ian Kluge has also studied Apophatic Theology and the Bahá'í Faith in the second part of his paper titled "Neoplatonism and the Bahá'í Writings."

Apophatic theology and atheism

The via negativa teaches that understanding God through direct descriptions is not the main way to reach God. Instead, some people try to explain God only by saying what God is not. A challenge with this method is that there is no clear way to decide what God is not, unless God is seen as a personal experience of complete life and universal perfect goodness that applies to all reality. Apophatic theology is sometimes compared to atheism or agnosticism because it does not claim God exists in a direct way. However, this comparison is not fair because atheism denies God's existence clearly, while negative theology says God cannot be described with any qualities. In negative theology, the idea that "God exists" is accepted, but qualities about God are not given, which helps separate theism from atheism. Negative theology works together with, not against, positive theology. Religious experiences, such as feeling the holy or sacred, are different from other human experiences, so they cannot be reduced to other types of experiences. In apophatic theology, denying certain beliefs about God in the via negativa also means denying the opposite beliefs about God if the method used is to stay consistent.