Mirrors of the Divine: Late Ancient Christianity and the Vision of God by Emily R. Cain (review)

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Reviewed by:

• Mirrors of the Divine: Late Ancient Christianity and the Vision of God by Emily R. Cain
• Derek King

Emily R. Cain Mirrors of the Divine: Late Ancient Christianity and the Vision of God Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2023 Pp. viii + 194. $83.00.

What does it mean to see God? For Christians, the matter is complicated. On the one hand, the Bible insists that no one can see God and live (Exodus 33.20). On the other hand, Jesus says the pure in heart will see God (Matthew 5.8). In Mirrors of the Divine, Emily Cain approaches the matter with care. She shows why this theme flourished in ancient Christianity and its significance for us today.

Cain summarizes the book's argument in the Introduction: "In this book, I focus on a selection of theological discussions on vision and mirrors, and I argue that these philosophical and theological speculations of vision of God are also the very location for important discursive struggles over claims of Christian identity, Christian agency, and Christian epistemology" (6). Identity, agency, and epistemology moor the historical arguments, as they are markers that direct her engagement toward contemporary relevance.

The outline of the book is simple and clear. She begins with an extensive background of ancient theories on sight. Ancient philosophers were primarily interested in how we internally processed external stimuli. Many thought the process was material, too. In "extramission," for example, "our vision is sent out to meet the light" (20). In "intromission" and "atomism," on the other hand, "particles stream from an object toward the viewer" (24). The difference illustrates well the dynamic of the activity and passivity involved in vision. Along with the Hebrew Bible and New Testament, these ancient views are foundational for later thought on vision that Cain turns toward next. [End Page 590]

Cain next examines vision in two influential Christian thinkers: Tertullian of Carthage and Clement of Alexandria. She argues that Tertullian uses a philosophically inconsistent view of the world, mixing the Stoic and Epicurean theories of visual perception, to create a spiritual hierarchy (64). Considering spiritual identity, Cain specifically examines how Tertullian applies this to gender, suggesting that gendered embodiment is important for one's seeing God and therefore one's place in the hierarchy. Clement, though, sees baptism as a kind of "cataract surgery," thereby opening up a kind of spiritual vision for the baptized believer (75–79). Like Tertullian, Cain argues that Clement merges different ancient theories of vision to make his point (84). Cain then moves to an excursus on mirrors and their role in self-reflection. She distinguishes the "philosopher's mirror"—which was the mirror of wisdom, aimed at wise self-reflection (91)—and "mirror of vanity"—corrupting and self-serving, captured well in the story of Narcissus (93). Mirrors were often unstable reflectors.

After this excursus, Cain turns to Gregory of Nyssa and Augustine. Gregory perfectly captures vision's subjectivity, since for him vision implies mutability (114). Like with the dynamics of the mirror, vision can be a means of "self-improvement" or "self-corruption." Gregory applies this to eternity, too: since our visual rays cannot capture infinity, neither will we ever see God fully. There will, rather, be an eternal growing into the infinite God. Vision, for Augustine as for Gregory, is transformative. Although vision carries with it a certain subjectivity, Augustine defends the reliability of images, too (141). Though our vision often fails, Augustine sees vision as a source of hope and stable place for theological epistemology. Cain concludes with a reflection on reflection. She summarizes central conclusions and suggests how they might be relevant to the contemporary world, particularly identity, agency, and epistemology.

Cain's book is excellent in several ways. Most substantially, it is an excellent introduction to ancient thinking on vision and mirrors. The question, "What does it mean to see God?," is a critical one to Christian theology. Modern Christian theologians have noticed how ancient thinkers make much of seeing God. But it is not easy to make sense of how these influential theologians think about seeing without the historical and philosophical background Cain provides. She also shows how the context of each author...