The Neoplatonic Tetrad in the Context of the Topic of the Hierarchy of Beings in the Patristic Thought: Maximus the Confessor and John of Damascus

Abstract

The article traces how the topic of the hierarchy of the participating beings, given by Dionysius the Areopagite on the basis of the Neoplatonic tetrad (Goodness, Being, Life, Mind), and, as it is supposed, of the doctrine of the hierarchy of natural beings by Gregory of Nyssa, were developed in the doctrines of Maximus the Confessor and John of Damascus. «Ambigua», 7; 24, along with «Centuries on Charity», 3.24-25, by Maximus, and «Exposition of the Orthodox Faith», 86, by Damascene are considered. The paper then analyzes in which way Maximus and Damascus followed Dionysius and in which way they did not. It is shown that Maximus was influenced, through Dionysus, by both the Neoplatonic tetrad and Gregory's teaching on the taxonomy of the beings, while Damascus demonstrates adherence to only the first line.