| dc.description.abstract | This is a project in the intersection between patristics and liturgical history. It concerns pre-Nicene liturgical theology in general and connects more specifically to scholarly discussions on the Sanctus, not so much to the where and when, as to the why: Why did this hymn from Isa 6:3 become a constitutive component of the Eucharistic liturgy?
The Sanctus is generally believed to have entered the Eucharistic anaphora sometime during the fourth century. However, the idea of joining the heavenly hosts in worship is not restricted to an isolated liturgical element, but becomes in different ways also a perspective on the Eucharistic liturgy as a whole, especially in the eastern liturgical traditions. I ask the question if such perspectives represent fourth century innovations, or if there is continuity with preceding traditions of liturgical interpretation. My initial hypothesis is that the idea of participation in heavenly worship precedes the inclusion of the Sanctus in the anaphora. This hypothesis is tested through an analysis of selected sources from the first three centuries of the Christian era.
I start out by examining how the idea of the heavenly temple and liturgy is developed in Jewish and Christian apocalyptic mysticism, and how these concepts are thought to relate to earthly liturgical practices. I argue that apocalyptic mysticism had a deep impact on the developing Christian liturgical tradition. In the communal act of worship, some early Christian communities could see themselves as in communion with the heavenly multitude of righteous humans and angels and as taking part with them in the worship before the throne of God. I continue with analyses of the following main sources:
The Didache is the earliest of the so-called ancient church orders, and hence a core witness to early Christian liturgical practices. The Eucharist of the Didache does not seem to depend on apocalyptic mysticism. Nevertheless there are some perspectives here that are closely related to the broader idea of participation in heavenly worship, and which may shed light on the gradual growth of this concept. This concerns particularly the strong eschatological expectations and the sacrificial terminology applied to the rite.
The letters of Ignatius of Antioch contain many references to Eucharist and worship. With regard to the focus in the present study, one of the most interesting aspects concerns Ignatius’ interpretations of some of the central visual and dramatic aspects of the Eucharistic rite as images or types of heavenly and divine realities.
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The Apostolic Church Order is a little studied third century church order containing liturgical material dating back to second century Syria or Asia Minor, and is a great example of how second temple apocalyptic mysticism continued to exert influence within some Christian groups. Here the earthly Eucharistic liturgy is clearly interpreted as a type or image of the heavenly one.
Irenaeus of Lyons has the earliest explicit attestation to the idea of the Eucharist as being offered on the altar in heaven, an idea which is widely attested to in early Christian anaphoras. Out of his struggle with Valentinianism he provides profound reflection on the meaning of such imagery. In and through the Eucharistic worship of the church creation and the earthly realm is united with heaven and the spiritual realm.
With Clement of Alexandria we turn to the Alexandrian tradition and the synthesis of the Jewish Christian heritage with Greek philosophy and learning. Clement combines the Platonic idea of the ascent of the soul to the world of ideas with apocalyptic traditions of heavenly ascent mysticism. Through prayer and worship the mature Christian may elevate his soul to the noetic world and join the angels in their worship.
Origen stands in the same Alexandrian tradition as Clement and emphasizes the soul’s spiritual communion with the Logos through the Eucharist. He also speaks of how the boundaries between earth and heaven somehow are transcended through worship. Angels and saints unite with the faithful and take part with the earthly assembly in a joint worship of God.
What I find in these texts is not a fixed concept, but rather the presence of a variety of perspectives, as well as some shared tendencies, that in different ways are related to the more elaborated concepts of participation from the fourth century onwards. My findings suggest that the idea of participation in heavenly liturgy is an aspect of Christian worship that may be traced back to Jewish Christian apocalyptic mysticism, and which was preserved and developed further during the following centuries. | nb_NO |
