the mystical theology of valentin weigel - DataSpace at Princeton ...

Weigel suggests will allow the soul to turn inwards to the One, namely prayer. Moreover,
as we will see, the form of prayer Weigel advocates turns out to be a practice very similar
to Dionysian apophasis.
Dionysius in Weigel II: No Unity without Hierarchy (Or, why does God
need a Church anyway?)
In this section, I show how Weigel deprives his church of its two most important
functions (preaching the Word and administering the sacraments) by embedding God
himself and the entire universe inside each person, such that there is hardly anything left
for the Church to do that every layperson could not do herself. Christians can still
participate in normal church life (be baptized, receive communion and so on) if they wish,
but Weigel specifies that the sacraments can only function as valid salvific currency, so
to speak, because they are linked to the spiritual gold standard of the internal treasure. As
Weigel puts it, external ceremonies only derive their effectiveness from the inner reality
of faith, as a shadow from the object casting it. 624 Likewise, Scripture can only convey
the Gospel message because it is an expression of the inner Word. 625 For Weigel, what is
most real and most meaningful is God within. 626 Any external manifestations thereof
remain connected to their source but ultimately fall far short of it—and, since God
himself is indwelling in every person, why would anybody settle for scraps of paper or
(Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt: Frommann Holzboog, 2008), 25. The idea that Scripture and the Sacraments are
only effective on account of an inner faith is omnipresent in Weigel’s work, but see for instance Weigel,
Seligmachende Erkenntnis, 80; Vom Leben Christi, 112-116; Der güldene Griff, 66-67.
624 Weigel, Vom Gesetz, 25. The idea that Scripture and the Sacraments are only effective on account of an
inner faith is omnipresent in Weigel’s work, but see for instance Weigel, Seligmachende Erkenntnis Gottes,
112-116; Weigel, Der güldene Griff, 66-67.
625 “Die Schrifft ist nicht auß der schrifft kommen, ist auch nicht von ihr selbst da, sondern aus dem geiste
ist sie gefloßen, und gedictiret.” Weigel, Seligmachende Erkenntnis Gottes, 76.
626 For a discussion of God’s indwelling in Weigel’s work, see p. 131ff (Chapter 2), above.
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