God (Divine comedy)

## God

Dante and Beatrice gaze upon the highest Heaven; from Gustave Doré's illustrations to the Divine Comedy, Paradiso Canto 28, lines 16–39.

## Appearances

### Portrayed by

Described as an intensely bright point of light surrounded by nine circles of angels (Paradiso Canto 28)

### Appears in

The Empyrean, the highest Heaven in Dante's cosmology which is the seat of God. (Divine Comedy, Paradiso)

In Dante's Christian theological framework presented in the Divine Comedy, God represents the supreme being, the creator of the universe.

## Overviews

In Dante's conception of the Christian universe, God sits at the very top of the celestial spheres in the Empyrean heaven. The Empyrean is non-material and the abode of God, angels, and the blessed souls.God is represented as an intensely bright point of light surrounded by concentric circles of angels in different orders. In Paradiso XXVIII, Dante sees God in this form when he reaches the top of the celestial spheres.Theological doctrines are important to Dante's depiction of God. For example, free will versus predestination is discussed, and souls in Paradise fully comprehend and love God through knowledge and contemplation.God is the prime mover that causes the motions of all the celestial spheres encircling the Earth according to Ptolemaic cosmology. The Primum Mobile sphere is moved directly by God.Souls in Paradise experience increasing levels of happiness and closeness to God as they ascend through the higher celestial spheres, with those in the Empyrean experiencing complete union and bliss. Salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ as the savior of humanity, as explained to Dante in response to his question about access to heaven for those born before Christ.

#### Paradiso

* Paradiso is the third and final part of Dante's Divine Comedy, following Inferno and Purgatorio.
* It depicts Dante's spiritual journey through the nine spheres of Heaven and the Empyrean, guided by the soul of his beloved Beatrice.
* Allegorically, it represents the soul's ascent towards union with God as the ultimate goal and fulfillment.
* Dante travels through the realms associated with theology, virtues and blessed souls to finally behold the triune God in the Empyrean beyond the physical universe.
* It uses imagery drawn from medieval Christian theology, philosophy and science to portray the perfection and harmony of the afterlife in God's presence.

## Powers

God exists in Empyrean, which transcends time, space and physical existence as a whole. The Empyrean exists entirely within God's mind as a single ray. So God encompasses and emanates the entire realm. By necessity, God infinitely exceeds all of His creations even the highest celestial beings who reside in the Empyrean alongside Him. They can only imperfectly perceive and comprehend God's nature.. . All descriptions of God in the Divine Comedy are said to be unable to capture even an imperfect view of His vastness. Dante admits his own conceptions and descriptions are "feeble" in comparison. God is so great that it cannot be conveyed, even through metaphor or comparision.

* **Omnipotence**
* **Omnipresence**
* **Omniscience**

## Gallery

John Flaxman's illustrations for Dante's Divine Comedy.
## videos

The 9 Heavens & God's Realm of Pure EnergyDante's Inferno, Purgatorio & Paradiso - A Complete Summary of The Divine Comedy