The Ladder of Divine Ascent
Encyclopedia
Monasticism
Monasticism is a religious way of life characterized by the practice of renouncing worldly pursuits to fully devote one's self to spiritual work...
in Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity comprises the Christian traditions and churches that developed in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, Northeastern Africa, India and parts of the Far East over several centuries of religious antiquity. The term is generally used in Western Christianity to...
written by John Climacus
John Climacus
Saint John Climacus , also known as John of the Ladder, John Scholasticus and John Sinaites, was a 7th century Christian monk at the monastery on Mount Sinai. He is revered as a saint by the Roman Catholic, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches.We have almost no...
in ca. AD 600 at the request of John, Abbot of Raithu
Raithu
Raithu is the former name of El-Tor, the capital of South Sinai.----Raitu in Telugu language means Farmer.* Raithu Bidda, a 1939 Telugu film....
, a monastery situated on the shores of the Red Sea.
The Scala, which obtained an immense popularity and has made its author famous in the Church, is addressed to anchorite
Anchorite
Anchorite denotes someone who, for religious reasons, withdraws from secular society so as to be able to lead an intensely prayer-oriented, ascetic, and—circumstances permitting—Eucharist-focused life...
s and cenobites
Cenobitic
Cenobitic monasticism is a monastic tradition that stresses community life. Often in the West, the community belongs to a religious order and the life of the cenobitic monk is regulated by a religious rule, a collection of precepts...
and treats of the means by which the highest degree of religious perfection may be attained. Divided into thirty parts, or "steps", in memory of the thirty years of the life of Christ, the Divine model of the religious, it presents a picture of all the virtues and contains a great many parables and historical touches, drawn principally from the monastic life, and exhibiting the practical application of the precepts.
At the same time, as the work is mostly written in a concise, sententious form, with the aid of aphorisms, and as the reasonings are not sufficiently closely connected, it is at times somewhat obscure. This explains its having been the subject of various commentaries, even in very early times. The most ancient of the manuscripts containing the Scala is found in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris and was probably brought from Florence by Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de' Medici was an Italian noblewoman who was Queen consort of France from 1547 until 1559, as the wife of King Henry II of France....
. In some of these manuscripts, the work bears the title of "Spiritual Tables" (Plakes pneumatikai).
Steps or Rungs on the Ladder to Heaven
The Scala consists of 30 chapters, or "rungs",- 1–4: Renouncement of the world and obedience to a spiritual father
- 1. Περί αποταγής (On renunciation of the worldWorld (theology)-Christian views on the World:In Christianity, the concept connotes the fallen and corrupt world order of human society. The world is frequently cited alongside the flesh and the Devil as a source of temptation that Christians should flee...
, or asceticismAsceticismAsceticism describes a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from various sorts of worldly pleasures often with the aim of pursuing religious and spiritual goals...
) - 2. Περί απροσπαθείας (On detachment)
- 3. Περί ξενιτείας (On exile or pilgrimage; concerning dreams that beginners have)
- 4. Περί υπακοής (On blessed and ever-memorable obedience (in addition to episodes involving many individuals))
- 1. Περί αποταγής (On renunciation of the world
- 5–7: Penitence and affliction (πένθος) as paths to true joy
- 5. Περί μετανοίαςMetanoiaMetanoia in the context of rhetoric is a device used to retract a statement just made, and then state it in a better way. As such, metanoia is similar to correction...
(On painstaking and true repentance, which constitutes the life of the holy convicts, and about the Prison) - 6. Περί μνήμης θανάτουMemento moriMemento mori is a Latin phrase translated as "Remember your mortality", "Remember you must die" or "Remember you will die". It names a genre of artistic work which varies widely, but which all share the same purpose: to remind people of their own mortality...
(On remembrance of death) - 7. Περί του χαροποιού πένθους (On joy-making mourning)
- 5. Περί μετανοίας
- 8–17: Defeat of vices and acquisition of virtue
- 8. Περί αοργησίας (On freedom from anger and on meekness)
- 9. Περί μνησικακίας (On remembrance of wrongs)
- 10. Περί καταλαλιάς (On slander or calumny)
- 11. Περί πολυλογίας και σιωπής (On talkativeness and silence)
- 12. Περί ψεύδους (On lying)
- 13. Περί ακηδίας (On despondency)
- 14. Περί γαστριμαργίας (On that clamorous mistress, the stomach)
- 15. Περί αγνείας (On incorruptible purity and chastity, to which the corruptible attain by toil and sweat)
- 16. Περί φιλαργυρίας (On love of money, or avarice)
- 17. Περί ακτημοσύνης (On non-possessiveness (that hastens one Heavenwards))
- 18–26: Avoidance of the traps of asceticism (laziness, pride, mental stagnation)
- 18. Περί αναισθησίας (On insensibility, that is, deadening of the soul and the death of the mind before the death of the body)
- 19. Περί ύπνου και προσευχής (On sleep, prayer, and psalmody with the brotherhood)
- 20. Περί αγρυπνίας (On bodily vigil and how to use it to attain spiritual vigil, and how to practice it)
- 21. Περί δειλίας (On unmanly and puerile cowardice)
- 22. Περί κενοδοξίας (On the many forms of vainglory)
- 23. Περί υπερηφανείας, Περί λογισμών βλασφημίας (On mad pride and (in the same Step) on unclean blasphemous thoughts; concerning unmentionable blasphemous thoughts)
- 24. Περί πραότητος και απλότητος (On meekness, simplicity, and guilelessness, which come not from nature but from conscious effort, and on guile)
- 25. Περί ταπεινοφροσύνης (On the destroyer of the passions, most sublime humility, which is rooted in spiritual perception)
- 26. Περί διακρίσεως (On discernment of thoughts, passions and virtues; on expert discernment; brief summary of all aforementioned)
- 27–29: Acquisition of hesychiaHesychasmHesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches, such as the Byzantine Rite, practised by the Hesychast Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches,...
, or peace of the soul, of prayer, and of apatheiaApatheiaApatheia in Stoic philosophy refers to a state of mind where one is free from emotional disturbance. This might be translated as equanimity or indifference...
(dispassion or equanimity with respect to afflictions or suffering)- 27. Περί ησυχίας (On holy stillness of body and soul; different aspects of stillness and how to distinguish them)
- 28. Περί προσευχής (On holy and blessed prayer, the mother of virtues, and on the attitude of mind and body in prayer)
- 29. Περί απαθείας (Concerning Heaven on earth, or Godlike dispassion and perfection, and the resurrection of the soul before the general resurrection)
- 30. Περί αγάπηςAgapeAgape is one of the Greek words translated into English as love, one which became particularly appropriated in Christian theology as the love of God or Christ for mankind. In the New Testament, it refers to the fatherly love of God for humans, as well as the human reciprocal love for God; the term...
, ελπίδοςElpisIn Greek mythology, Elpis was the personification of hope , perhaps a child of Nyx and mother of Pheme, the goddess of fame, renown and rumor. She was depicted as a young woman, usually carrying flowers or cornucopia in her hands...
και πίστεωςPistisIn Greek mythology, Pistis was the personification of good faith, trust and reliability. She is mentioned together with such other personifications as Elpis , Sophrosyne , and the Charites, who were all associated with honesty and harmony among people.Her Roman equivalent was Fides, a personified...
(Concerning the linking together of the supreme trinity among the virtues; a brief exhortation summarizing all that has said at length in this book)
It was translated into Latin by Ambrogio the Camaldolese (Ambrosius Camaldulensis) (Venice, 1531 and 1569; Cologne, 1583, 1593, with a commentary by Denis the Carthusian
Denis the Carthusian
Denis the Carthusian , also known as Denys van Leeuwen or Denis Ryckel, was a Roman Catholic theologian and mystic.-Life:...
; and 1601). The Greek of the Scala, with the scholia of Elias, Archbishop of Crete, and also the text of the "Liber ad Pastorem", were published by Matthæus Raderus with a Latin translation (Paris, 1633). The whole is reproduced in Patrologia Graeca
Patrologia Graeca
The Patrologia Graeca is an edited collection of writings by the Christian Church Fathers and various secular writers, in the ancient Koine or medieval variants of the Greek language. It consists of 161 volumes produced in 1857–1866 by J. P. Migne's Imprimerie Catholique...
, vol. 88 (Paris, 1860). Translations of the Scala have been published in Spanish by Louis of Granada
Louis of Granada
Louis of Granada was a Dominican theologian, writer, and preacher.- Biography :He was born of poor parents at Granada. At the age of nineteen he was received into the Dominican Order in the convent of Santa Cruz, Granada. His philosophical studies once over, he was chosen by his superiors to...
(Salamanca, 1551), in Italian (Venice, 1585), in modern Greek by Maximus Margunius, Bishop of Cerigo (Venice, 1590), and in French by Arnauld d'Andilly (Paris, 1688). The last-named of these translations is preceded by a life of the saint by Le Maistre de Sacy.
One translation of the Scala, La Escala Espiritual de San Juan Clímaco, became the first book printed in the Americas, in 1532.
English language editions
Archimandrite
The title Archimandrite , primarily used in the Eastern Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic churches, originally referred to a superior abbot whom a bishop appointed to supervise...
Lazarus Moore's translation is generally preferred over the Paulist Press edition of the Ladder—especially because of the verse numberings, which are the standard way of referencing Climacus' sayings (these are also present in older versions of Archimandrite Lazarus' translation). It is also physically beautiful and much nicer to have on one's bookshelf. It contains an icon of "The Ladder," many other embellishments, and is printed on high quality paper. All that said, the Paulist Press edition is also worth having, especially because of the helpful introduction by Bishop Kallistos.
- Luibheid, Colm; Russell, Norman. John Climacus: The Ladder of Divine Ascent. Paulist Press. [ISBN 0809123304]
- Mack, John. Ascending the Heights: A Layman's Guide to the Ladder of Divine Ascent. [ISBN 1888212179]
See also
- AnchoriteAnchoriteAnchorite denotes someone who, for religious reasons, withdraws from secular society so as to be able to lead an intensely prayer-oriented, ascetic, and—circumstances permitting—Eucharist-focused life...
- Axis mundiAxis mundiThe axis mundi , in religion or mythology, is the world center and/or the connection between heaven and Earth. As the celestial pole and geographic pole, it expresses a point of connection between sky and earth where the four compass directions meet...
, or world pillar - CenobiteCenobiticCenobitic monasticism is a monastic tradition that stresses community life. Often in the West, the community belongs to a religious order and the life of the cenobitic monk is regulated by a religious rule, a collection of precepts...
- Orthodox Monastic OrdersDegrees of Eastern Orthodox monasticismThe degrees of Eastern Orthodox monasticism are the stages an Eastern Orthodox monk or nun passes through in their religious vocation.In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the process of becoming a monk or nun is intentionally slow, as the monastic vows taken are considered to entail a lifelong...
- Great chain of beingGreat chain of beingThe great chain of being , is a Christian concept detailing a strict, religious hierarchical structure of all matter and life, believed to have been decreed by the Christian God.-Divisions:...
, or the scala natura (ladder of nature) - HesychasmHesychasmHesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches, such as the Byzantine Rite, practised by the Hesychast Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches,...
- Jacob's LadderJacob's LadderJacob's Ladder is a "ladder to heaven", described by biblical Jacob in the Book of GenesisJacob's Ladder may also refer to:* Ladder of Jacob, a pseudepigraphic text of the Old Testament...
- PhilokaliaPhilokaliaThe Philokalia is a collection of texts written between the 4th and 15th centuries by spiritual masters of the Eastern Orthodox hesychast tradition. They were originally written for the guidance and instruction of monks in "the practise of the contemplative life". The collection was compiled in...
- Seraphim of SarovSeraphim of SarovSaint Seraphim of Sarov , born Prokhor Moshnin , is one of the most renowned Russian monks and mystics in the Orthodox Church. He is generally considered the greatest of the 19th century startsy and, arguably, the first...
- PassionsStoic PassionsStoic Passions refers to various forms of emotional suffering in Stoicism, a school of Hellenistic philosophy.-Primary Passions:The Stoics named four primary passions. In On Passions, Andronicus reported the Stoic definitions of these passions Stoic Passions refers to various forms of emotional...