The Stages of Revelation in the History of God with Humanity

In Jurgen Moltmann's book, "The Trinity and the Kingdom," he has a fairly long section about Joachim of Fiore's teaching about the Kingdom of God. Moltman writes:

"Joachim counted as an "Enthusiast" and an outsider. But in fact, ever since the middle ages, there is hardly anyone who has influenced European movements for liberty in church, state and culture more profoundly than this twelfth-century Cisterian abbot from Calabria, who believed that in his visions he had penetrated the concordance of the Old and New Testaments, and the mystery of the Book of Revelation."

-Jurgen Moltmann, The Trinity and the Kingdom(Harper & Row, 1981), p. 203.

Joachim's teaching about the unity of scripture arises from his vision of the three stages of history: the kingdom of the Father; the kingdom of the Son; the kingdom of the Spirit.

I recite Joachim's words here:

"The myteries of the Holy Scripture point us to three orders of the world: to the first, in which we were under Law; to the second, in which we are under grace; to the third, which we already imminently expect, and in which we shall be under a yet more abundant grace . . . The first condition is therefore that of perception, the second of a partially perfected wisdom, the third, the fullness of knowledge. The first condition is in the bondage of slaves, the second in the bondage of sons, the third of liberty. The first in fear, the second in faith, the third in love. The first in the condition of thralls, the second of freedmen, the third of friends. The first of boys, the second of men, the third of the aged. The first stands in the light of the stars, the second in the light of the dawn, the third in the brightness of day . . . The first condition is related to the Father, the second to the Son, the third to the Holy Spirit."

-Concordia Novi ac Veteris Testamenti,Venice 1519, Lib. V, 84, 112, trans. by E. Benz, Eranos-Jahrbuch 1956, pp. 314.

I will continue on with this next post, and review how Joachim applies these three stages to deal with the very different portrayals of God in holy scripture. Also, I want to discuss the possible application of Joachim's three stages to understand spiritual development. Time to go to work.