via negativa

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via negativa

noun

A concept of God built up through negative statements about his nature. The medieval Roman Catholic Church recognized two opposite roads to grace: the via negativa of the monk's cell and the hermit's cave, and the via affirmativa of immersion in human affairs, of being in the world whether or not one is of it.
Similar: apophatic theology

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MLA

"via negativa." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/via%20negativa. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

via negativa. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/via%20negativa

Chicago

"via negativa." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/via%20negativa.

BibTeX

@misc{via_negativa_2026,
  title = {via negativa},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/via%20negativa},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}