“There are few figures in the history of Western spirituality who are more enigmatic than the fifth-or sixth-century writer known as the Pseudo-Dionysius. The real identity of the person who chose to write under the pseudonym of Dionysius the Areopagite is unknown. Even the exact dates of his writings have never been determined. Moreover, the texts themselves, though relatively short, are at points seemingly impenetrable and have mystified readers over the centuries. Yet the influence of this shadowy figure on a broad range of mystical writers from the early Middle Ages on is readily discernible. His formulation of a method of negative theology that stresses the impotence of humans’ attempt to penetrate the ‘cloud of unknowing’ is famous, as is his meditation on the divine names.”
