ABSTRACT
For Dionysius, the closest parallel to the Hellenic term theourgia is the term hierourgia, the ritual enactment of divine works. Dionysian sacraments, given by God, are enacted to recreate the divine work – the incarnation of Christ. When Dionysius speaks of theourgia, he specifically means the work of God, the incarnation of Christ. For Dionysius, theourgia is first and foremost the sacred acts of Christ, particularly the incarnation, which is enacted by men through sacramental hierourgia. In some ways, Iamblichus, in particular, would have been better off distinguishing between the two words when he argues against Porphyry that theourgia is not human work that compels the gods, but rather divine work enacted by humans. Dionysian sacramental theology is thus fundamentally similar to Hellenic theourgia in that both use material symbola to harness divine energeia, but there is a subtle shift in terminology as between Dionysius and his Neoplatonic predecessors.
