The Hypsistarian Church of God Most High

Part One of a Hypothetical Reconstruction of Pagan Monotheism

Last week, in The Case for Pagan Monotheism, I discussed recently scholarly literature that has made a case for the existence of monotheistic religion within the pagans of Late Antiquity (and perhaps earlier). This week I am going to begin my presentation of a reconstruction of this religion. Before I start, though, let me clarify where I am coming from and what I hope to achieve.

Why Reconstruct Pagan Monotheism?

Why reconstruct pagan monotheism? I have two reasons for doing so.

First, as a role-playing game designer and worldbuilder by vocation, reconstructing ancient religions is simply something I enjoy. The insights I gain from this effort will be directly useful in the continuing development of the fictional “Auran Empire” that forms the centerpiece of my role-playing game intellectual property. So, even if Tree of Woe did not exist, I would make this reconstruction for my own creative purposes.

Second, as a philosopher of the Right, I believe that reconstructing pagan monotheism can make a valuable contribution towards what Nelson Elliott calls “alt-ecumenism.” Our current religious institutions have become corrupted by the forces that they ought to oppose, and right-wingers of very different religions nowadays have more in common with each other than with the members of corrupted sects that are nominally their own. Yet all too often there is mutual antagonism between right-wing Christianity and right-wing Paganism. This must be overcome. By reconstructing pagan monotheism, I hope to demonstrate that many right-wing Christians and Pagans are ultimately worshipping the same high and holy God, and by doing so improve comity among our allies.

Which Pagan Monotheism are we Reconstructing?

As my article last week discussed, pagan monotheism was not so much a religion as a collection of religions that extended across the entire Mediterranean over hundreds and possibly thousands of years. The vast scope of its practice makes a generalized reconstruction of pagan monotheism absurd. Therefore, we must narrow our focus to a particular branch on the tree of pagan monotheism. The branch I have decided to reconstruct is the Hypsistarian Church of God Most High, one of the most widespread and well-evidenced of the pagan monotheistic cults.

In reconstructing Hypsistarianism, I will be relying primarily on the archeological evidence for the worship of Theos Hypsistos that was assembled and analyzed by Stephen Mitchell in One God and Pagan Monotheism in Antiquity. I will also make use of the critical descriptions of Hypsistarian practice found in the writing of Gregory of Nazianzus, Gregory of Nyssa, and Epiphanius of Salamis.

However, a complete reconstruction of Hypsistarianism from these sources would be impossible. To supplement the reconstruction I will also be referring to selected theurgical incantations to a monotheistic God found in the Greek Magical Papyri as well as the Platonic philosophical and religious writing of Plutarch of Chaeronea.

A number of reasons dictated my selection of Plutarch’s writings over those of other monotheist philosophers, such as Xenocrates, Aristotle, Plotinus, and Iamblichus.

• First, Plutarch was both a leading Platonic philosopher and High Priest of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. As such, he is one of the only voices from antiquity who can speak with authority both on the God of the philosophers and the gods of the temples. (And we will see that Apollo is an important being in Hypsistarianism.)

• Second, Plutarch, alone of the Platonic philosophers, developed a robust theodicy that explained evil as an active spiritual force. Since recognition of evil is central to alt-ecumenism, Plutarch is a natural choice.

• Third, despite writing extensively about Pythagoreanism, Stoicism, Epicureanism, Chaldeanism, and Zoroastrianism, Plutarch says very little about Judaism or Christianity. As such his views better represent a pre-Judaic and pre-Christian understanding of pagan monotheism.

• Finally, on a purely subjective level, I find Plutarch’s ethics and eschatology more congenial to my own spiritual beliefs than those of many of the other ancients.

The Evidence Available on Theos Hypsistos

Classicist Stephen Mitchell has documented 375 pieces of archeological evidence for the worship of Theos Hypsistos - God Most High. The earliest inscriptions date to the 2nd Century BC while the latest inscriptions date to the 4th Century AD. The strongest pieces of evidence are the two inscriptions found on the Hellenistic-era wall of the ancient city of Oenoanda.

The first inscription is small. It is a humble dedication by a woman, Chromatis, of a lamp to God Most High. The lamp itself stood in a small niche at the top of an altar near the inscription; the next section of the wall had a ledge cut where a row of lamps could be placed.

The second inscription, however, is far larger and more profound. It is the opening verses of an pronouncement from the Oracle of Apollo at Claros. It purports to tell us the name and essence of God Most High:

Born of himself, untaught, without a mother, immutable, not contained in a name, known by many names, dwelling in fire, this is Theos. We, his angels, are a small part of Theos. To you who ask this question about Theos, what his essential nature is, he has pronounced that Aether is God who sees all, on whom you should gaze and pray at dawn, looking towards the sunrise.

The two Oenoanda epigraphs - the lamp and the oracle - are the keys to understanding the core of Hypsistarian belief.

• God Most High is self-created, immutable, and omniscient. These characteristics are of course foundational to being a monotheistic god.

• God Most High is served by angels who are a “small part” of him. Indeed, the speaker who is explaining the nature of God Most High in the inscription is one such angel. But who is that angel? Written sources from Late Antiquity, including the Theosophy of Tubingen and the Divine Institutions of Lactantius, which quote the inscription, reveal that the speaker of the Oenoanda inscription is none other than the god Apollo, pagan god of the sun, prophecy, healing, and other attributes. Apollo is one of many angels of God Most High! That would suggest that the other Olympian “gods” might be understood as the equivalent to Christian angels.

• God Most High is known by many names, and one of those names is Aether. In Hellenistic philosophy, Aether was the imperishable substance of which the High Heavens were made. In Hellenistic religion, Aether was personified as the cosmogonic god who created the heavens. So God Most High is an imperishable creator. Interestingly enough, a unity of God and Heaven was also made by Chinese religion, where the term shangdi (Highest God) was often used synonymously with tian (Heaven). The word Aether itself is a Homeric Greek term, αἰθήρ, which means “pure air” or “clear sky.” It is related to αἴθω "to incinerate, to burn, to shine.” That’s interesting because…

• God Most High is associated with light and fire. In some contexts, his worshippers would dedicate lamps to Him, or set up rows of lamps in his shrines. Moreover, his worshippers were instructed to pray to him at dawn with their faces directed towards the sunrise.

In fact, the last line of the oracle was carved into the wall of a tower in such a way that it would have been the first place in the entire religious site of Oenoanda to be struck by the sun’s rays at dawn. As Mitchell explains:

The sanctuary, where the faithful gathered for worship, was the semicircular open area in front of the oracle inscription. As the verses told them, they would have stood facing east, with their backs to the tower and the text, gazing up at heaven and offering their prayers to all-seeing Aether.

The evidence for the close correlation between the light of the sun and the worship of Theos Hypsistos does not end there. Mitchell notes:

Lamps and fire were essential to a cult which was associated with the upper air of heaven and with the sun. An inscription from Alexandria virtually conflates Theos Hypsistos with Helios in the dedicatory formula “For god the highest, who sees all, and for Helios and the Nemesis.” This association is complete on the text of an altar from Pergamum, which has been restored as a dedication to Helios Theos Hypsistos. A restored text from the territory of Phrygian Tiberiopolis appears to mention the offering of a fire shovel and perhaps of a lamp. The dedication of an altar at Pergamum, to “the Lord God who exists for eternity,” surely Hypsistos, included a lantern-stand and a lantern. The remains of a sanctuary… in Thrace include a limestone altar with four lamps carved into its upper surface, and over sixty lamps were recovered from the sanctuary on Delos…

Although the essence of the divinity was beyond reach in the upper air of heaven, the Aether, it was tangibly embodied in the element of fire and in light, whether from the sun or from a humble oil-lamp. By dedicating a lamp in the sanctuary it was possible for even the most insignificant devotee to establish a direct link with the eternal heavenly fire.

In later writing, Mitchell adds to the evidence for fire’s centrality:

Lamps played an important part in the worship of Theos Hypsistos… [N]ew evidence includes a lamp depicting an eagle and a bucranion from Pella in Macedonia…. [T]he small dedicatory altar from Gortyn in Crete is reported to have been… associated with many terracotta lamps… N. Franken’s study of several bronze appliances belong to hanging lamps [showed that] in three cases these were for Theos Hypsistos. These elaborate lamps had a ritual rather than a narrowly functional significance. They show part of the theological apparatus of the cult, which was symbolized also by prayers offered to the rising sun, and implied reverence for the divine fire of the supreme deity revealed in the Oenoanda oracle.

Likewise, the archeological evidence for Hypsistarian belief in angels is not limited to the Oenoanda inscription. A number of inscriptions found in Asia Minor attest to the belief in theios angelos or angels of God. One inscription devoted to Theos Hypsistos in Lydia identifies a man Stratonicus as “priest of the One and Only God,” while identifying “Hosios Dikaios,” the Phrygian god of justice, as an angel of God Most High. Elsewhere in Lydia, a series of monuments all depict the angel of justice as a rider with a billowing cloak. These Lydian stelae not only confirm the belief in angels, they also show us the manner in which Hypsistarians prayed. Quoting Mitchell:

The Lydian stelae relating to the angel cults depict worshippers raising their hands, the most common gesture of prayer, which is recalled on two votive texts for Theos Hypsistos from Berytus and expressly mentioned on an inscription from Alexandria.

They also reveal something singular about the rituals of the Hypsistarians:

No text or document found to date associates Theos Hypsistos in any way with animal sacrifice.

From this evidence we can begin to sketch out the nature of Hypsistarian worship. Before doing so, however, let us first turn for a moment to textual evidence for Theos Hypsistos, to see if we can find attestation confirming what the archeological evidence suggests and/or new details that can add to our reconstruction.

Sadly, of whatever texts might have been written about the Hypsistarians, only a few survive. All are by Patristic theologians writing in the 4th century AD — that is, near the end of the attested 600-year span of the religion. Their commentaries must not be interpreted as canonical of Hypsistarian belief, because they come from sources external to the religion. That said, they confirm certain aspects which are suggested in the archeological record.

The first commentary is by Gregory of Nazianzen, writing in Orations (book 18):

… the combined product of two of the greatest opposites — Greek error and legal imposture, some parts of each of which it escaped, of others it was compounded. For, on the one side, they reject idols and sacrifices, but reverence fire and lights; on the other, they observe the Sabbath and petty regulations as to certain meats, but despise circumcision. These lowly men call themselves Hypsistarii, and the Almighty is, so they say, the only object of their worship… By their way of life they anticipate the faith and only lack in name what they possess in attitude.

The second commentary is by Gregory of Nyssa, writing in Against Eunomius (book II):

Let us examine the words that follow: He is always and absolutely one, remaining uniformly and unchangeably the only God. If he is speaking about the Father, we agree with him, for the Father is most truly one, alone and always absolutely uniform and unchangeable, never at any time present or future ceasing to be what He is... But if he is inventing some other God besides the Father, let him dispute with the Jews or with those who are called Hypsistiani, between whom and the Christians there is this difference, that they acknowledge that there is a God Whom they term the Highest or Almighty, but do not admit that he is Father; while a Christian, if he believe not in the Father, no Christian at all.

These passages, though brief, do allow us to confirm four points:

• The Hypsistarians were numerous and widely-known enough that Gregory of Nyssa could use them to illustrate Eumonius’s error in Christian doctrine. This confirms the archeological evidence that worship of Theos Hypsistos was widespread.

• The Hypsistarians exclusively worshipped a unchangeable monotheistic God, whom they called God Most High or God Almighty, but they did not accept the existence of the Trinity. This confirms the archeological evidence that, whatever influence Judaism might have had on the religion, Christianity had (apparently) little or none.

• The Hypsistarians reverenced fire and light. This confirms the archeological evidence at the Oenoanda shrine and other epigraphs.

• The Hypsistarians reject idols and sacrifices. This confirms the archeological evidence that Mitchell has compiled that shows that the Hypsistarian faith did not practice animal sacrifice and did not worship an icon or representation of God.

In addition, Gregory of Nazianzen asserts that the Hypsistarians obeyed the Sabbath, maintained “petty regulations as to certain meats” (presumably pork and shellfish), but eschewed circumcision. However, we have to be cautious about accepting those as definitive traits of Hypsistarian belief. Gregory wrote in 374 AD, and within a few decades Hypsistarian worship largely disappears. In other words, Gregory is writing about the beliefs of “Late” Hypsistarians, who would have had centuries of influence from Judaism and Christianity.

The third commentary is by Epiphanius of Salamis, writing in his Panarion, and it is far more detailed:

[T]here has been for some time now, from the days of Constantius to the present, a sect… [who have] arisen from pagans; they do not adhere to Judaism, nor are they Christians, nor do they come from Samaritans. They are simply pagans who admit the existence of gods but worship none of them; they adore one God only, whom they call the Almighty. They also construct for themselves certain houses or spacious areas, like fora, which they call proseuchai…

In other locations they have built for themselves something like proper churches, where they gather at evening and morning with much lighting of lamps and torches and lengthy singing of hymns and acclamations to God by the zealous among them, through which hymns and acclamations fondly think to conciliate God.

Epiphanius has thus added several details to our understanding of Hypsistarianism:

• Hypsistarian worshippers are pagans who admit the existence of gods but venerate only God Most High.

• Hypsistarian worship takes place either in open forums (fora), prayer houses (proseuchai) or churches.

• Hypsistarian worship takes place morning and evening and involves lighting of lamps and torches while singing hymns and acclamations to God Most High.

Epiphanius’s assertions have been confirmed by recent archeological evidence. Confession texts found in Lydia contain features confirming prayer morning and evening, as well as the practice of singing the god’s praises. An inscription in Sibidunda records the dedication of a bronze incense burner to Theos Hypsistos, emphasizing the role of fire and air in the god’s worship. More importantly, four sanctuaries of Hypsistos have been identified, confirming the existence of Hypsistarian prayer-houses and churches. Mitchell explains:

One [sanctuary] is buried between the streets of modern Sofia in Bulgaria, the ancient Serdica… It appears from the sculptural remains, including the figure of a deity supported by an eagle and two altars with lamps carved into their upper surfaces, that the sanctuary was not unpretentious. We should probably think of an enclosed rather than an open-air sanctuary, since altars with lamps were probably located inside rather than outside a building.

It is easier to envisage the open-air sanctuary in the Pnyx at Athens. Fifty-eight niches designed to hold dedicatory offerings have been identified… Twelve dedications to Hypsistos have been found in the Pnyx itself… [T]he theater-like form of the site was ideally suited for open-air communal worship… We can envisage similar arrangement at Oenoanda. Although the rocky slope outside the city wall is badly weathered and eroded, it is clear that there was a rough semicircular space of about 25 meters, in front of the door to tower were the oracle was engraved. This too could have been a small, open-air “theater” where a group of worshippers could gather.

A structure on the island of Delos… seems to have been specifically designed for the cult. The building was an assembly hall, typical of communal centers in this period, where associates might meet for cult or other purposes. It is identified as a shrine by three dedications to Theos Hypsistos… [O]ver sixty lamps were found in the building…

Other buildings for the cult are attested epigraphically… A devotee from Phrygia paid for columns and a propylon, which suggests the monumental entrance to a colonnaded area enclosing either a small temple or an open sanctuary around an altar.

The symbol of the eagle found in Sardica is not unique. Mitchell records:

The eagle appears on dedications to Theos Hypsistos at Philippopolis, Mytilene, Chersoneses in Create, on five of the inscriptions from Tanais, at Tralles, Thyateira, a Macedonian foundation, Nicomedia, and Amastris.

The eagle, then, must be taken as the sacred animal or symbol of God Most Hight. But what is not found is any icon of God Most High himself. Quoting Mitchell:

There was no distinctive iconography of the god. Unlike other deities, Theos Hypsistos did not appear to men in human form… The lack of any representations of the god and the absence of animal sacrifice from the rituals distinguish the worship of Hypsistos from most other pagan cults….

Hypsistarianism, Reconstructed

We’re now ready to put the pieces together to reconstruct the Hypsistarian Church of God Most High:

• God Most High is an aniconic (unrepresented or “invisible”) monotheist god who is self-begotten, imperishable, and unchangeable.

• God Most High is served by angels, such as Apollo and Hosios Dikaios; the angels are the small-g gods of other pagan practice. The angels are in some way a “part” of God Most High.

• God Most High is worshipped in three types of sanctuaries: open air sanctuaries, prayer-houses, and churches. The open-air sanctuaries resemble Greco-Roman theaters. The prayer-houses resemble the assembly halls of Late Antiquity. The churches resemble classical temples, with monumental gateways (propylon) and colonnaded roofed interiors. All three sanctuaries have altars where lamps or incense burners can be lit, and niches in the walls where lamps or candles can be placed. All three sanctuaries are frequently decorated with statues or carvings of eagles or angels, but never of God Most High himself. At least some of the sanctuaries are aligned so that at sunrise, rays of light illuminate certain sacred texts.

• God Most High is worshipped in morning and evening, specifically at sunrise and sunset. When praying, worshippers face the sun (east in the morning and west in the evening), raise their hands high, and sing hymns and offer acclamations to God.

• Although the “essence of the divinity” resided in the highest heaven, the Aether, God Most High was considered to be spiritually present in the element of fire and in light, whether from the sun or from a lamp. Lamps therefore played a special role in the worship. By dedicating a lamp in a sanctuary, the devotee to establish a direct link with the eternal heavenly fire of God Most High. Worshippers dedicated lamps to God Most High, and often or always lit torches and lamps before or during their prayers.

• God Most High is never worshipped with animal sacrifice.

• It is possibly that worshippers of God Most High kept the Sabbath or at least had a holy day of rest. Which day? Given the Hypsistarian’s close association with solar monotheism, it might have been Sunday.

We now know where Hypsistarians prayed, when they prayed, and how they prayed. What we do not yet know is what they prayed for. Of the approximately 375 prayers, invocations, and dedications to God Most High that have been discovered, only a few have been translated into English. Translating them would be the first step towards a thorough understanding of Hypsistarian prayer. Unless I become fluent in Ancient Greek in the next seven days, I intend instead to rely on Mitchell’s summary of these inscriptions to discover exactly what Hypsistarians prayed for.¹

Thereafter, I’ll introduce some material from Plutarch’s Moralia and the Greek Magical Papyri that I believe is compatible with Hypsistarianism, and demonstrate how we can reconstruct the cosmology, theodicy, teleology, morality, and eschatology of Hypsistarianism.

1. If you happen to be fluent in Ancient Greek and would like to translate Hypsistarian inscriptions, please reach out.