Am I not able to write to you of heavenly things? But I
fear to do so, lest I should inflict injury on you who are but babes |in
Christ¦. Pardon me in this respect, lest, as not being able to receive |such
doctrines¦, ye should be strangled by them. 2 For even I, though I am bound
|for Christ¦, yet am not on that account able to understand heavenly things,
and the places of the angels, and their gatherings under their respective
princes, things visible and invisible. Without reference to such abstruse subjects,
I am still but a learner |in other respects¦; for many things are wanting to
us, that we come not short of God. (Ignatius, Epistle to the Trallians, 5:1-2)
5.2 We learn what esoteric knowledge Ignatius has in
mind: "heavenly things" including both τας τοπουεσιας τας αγγελικας"angelic
locations" (τοποθεσία is an astro-logical term for the
"location" of the stars) and τας
συστάσεις τας άρχοντικάς "the archontic formations" (συστασειςis an
astrological term for the patterns and conjunctions that emerge in the
heavens), that is, things both visible and invisible (cf. Col 1:16). The
language suggests that Ignatius associates stars and planets with the angels or
the "archontic" powers (as in Origen Cels. 6.27-33; cf. Justin Dial.
36.4-6). What we apparently have here is a mixture of astrological and
apocalyptic ideas similar to that found in Eph. 19.1-3.
But the point made by Ignatius is that neither his bonds
nor his knowledge of heavenly things qualify him as a disciple (cf. Eph. 1.2;
3.1). "Not because of this"- the same expression as in Rom. 5.1
(based in turn on 1 Cor 4:4)-can any claims be made. An a fortiori argument
lies just below the surface: If this is true (even) of me (και γαρ εγω "yes, even I" or "even in my
case"), how much more of those who disturb you with their claims of
esoteric knowledge. In principle all are on the same footing. Both Ignatius and
the Trallians fall far short of attaining God. This sentiment is somewhat
obscured by an awkward play on words: "we lack (λειπει) many things that
we may not lack (λειπώμεθα) God." Ignatius means that we still need many
things before we can hope to gain God. "To lack God" is clearly the
obverse of the more usual expression "to attain God" (as is confirmed
by the previous reference to another martyrological theme- that of "being
a disciple"). To "attain" God, then, must mean (in some
metaphorical sense) to "acquire" him. Thus Augustine (Sermo 331.6.5)
compares martyrs who "endured so much to acquire God" (ut acquierent
deum) with lovers of gold who endure much to acquire riches.
"Acquiring" God, then, is a future-oriented form of the theme of
"having" God (cf. Mag. 12).
This section uncharacteristically emphasizes the
incompleteness of the spiritual state of Ignatius' addressees. It was the
special challenge to authority posed by the docetists of Tralles that forced
such language from Ignatius and consequently contributed to the relegation of
esoteric wisdom to the edges of Christian life and thought. (William R.
Schoedel, Ignatius of Antioch: A Commentary on the Letters of Ignatius of
Antioch [Hermeneia-A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible;
Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985], 145)
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