Russian Sophiology and the Hebrew Poetry of Proverbs 8:22‐31

Abstract

The Russian Sophiological tradition, championed and dogmatically defined by Sergei Bulgakov (1871‐1944), continues to receive energetic responses from a wide array of theologians, philosophers and slavists. However, these responses have, until now, neglected the possibility of a Sophiological hermeneutic. This article, by applying the philosophy of Hans‐Georg Gadamer (1900‐2002), pioneers such a hermeneutic. From this point of departure it will be argued that the Hebrew text of Proverbs 8:22‐31 supports the theological claims of Russian Sophiology more so than the Septuagint. In other words, the Hebrew text is the more ‘sophianic’ scriptural variant. To demonstrate this claim, three key aspects of the passage will be analysed. These include its traditional poetic structure, its theme of ‘playful beauty’, and its language of fertility and birth‐giving. It will first be suggested that the poetic structure embodies the Bulgakovian distinction‐in‐unity of Divine Sophia and Creaturely Sophia. Thereafter, some characteristic lexical nuances of the Hebrew, such as the controversial ‘amon’, will be read as supportive of Sophiological ‘playful beauty’. Finally, it will be shown how the semantic field of feminine birth‐giving, so fundamental to Sophiology, is fully present only in the Hebrew variant. These investigations will altogether demonstrate that the sophianic narrative of Proverbs 8:22‐31 was diluted in the LXX translation, and that for a biblical‐based Sophiology, those interested would find more support for their arguments in the Masoretic text. An exploration of the above claims will not only supplement the current sophiological engagement with classical wisdom creation narratives, but could even reassess Orthodox theology’s broader attitude to the Masoretic text. Although Russian Sophiology provides the central axis of the article, particular convergences with modern ‘western Sophiology’ will be highlighted, especially where these complement the ideas of Russian sophiologists.