Angelomorphic pneumatology

by Bogdan Gabriel Bucur

This book discusses the occurrence of angelic imagery in early Christian discourse about the Holy Spirit. Taking as its entry-point Clement of Alexandria's less explored writings Excerpta ex Theodota, Eclogae propheticae, and Adumbrationes, it shows that Clement's angelomorphic pneumatology occurs in tandem with Spirit Christology, within a theological framework still characterized by a binitarian orientation. This complex theological articulation, supported by the exegesis of specific biblical passages (Zech 4:10; Isa 11:2-3; Matt 18:10), reworks Jewish and Christian traditions about the seven first-created angels, and constitutes a relatively widespread phenomenon in early Christianity. Evidence to support this claim is presented in the course of separated studies of Revelation, the Shepherd of Hermas, Justin Martyr, and Aphrahat. Angelomorphic pneumatology in Clement's predecessors -- Angelomorphic pneumatology in the book of Revelation -- The "seven spirits" in Revelation and Cleme