An Ontological Critique of Jacob Bohme, a Lutheran Mystic

Jacob Bohme is among the mystics who has analyzed the way in which multiplicity is emanated from unity. He holds that it is possible to know the station of the essence, to which he sometimes refers as non-essence or non-existence. Knowledge will be accessible if multiplicity is manifested and it is in the light of this manifestation that knowledge can be gained. Bohme argues that the intermediary link of the emergence of this multiplicity is the will of the essence, which seeks to see the wonders which the essence has. Therefore, a receptive level which he calls eternal wisdom is developed, and the essence sees the wonders contained therein as a word emanated from it. He believes that this word, which is actually an image reflected in the eternal wisdom, is Jesus Christ. In the next step, these outward appearances of knowledge are spread by the Holy Spirit.