The Heavenly Hierarchy

Oversimplified

• Old text about the Angels their ranks
• Authorship is disputed

Summary

The (Celestial) Heavenly Hierarchy is an early treatise (c. 5th century) attributed to Dionysius the Areopagite that sets out the ordered ranks of the angelic world. Its influence on Orthodox angelology is decisive: it is the classic source for arranging the nine angelic orders into three triads.

Authorship is disputed. The work is traditionally ascribed to the Dionysius converted by St. Paul at Athens (Acts 17:34), but many scholars place it around AD 500 and so call the author "Pseudo-Dionysius." The Church has received its teaching regardless of the debate over its human author.

The Nine Ranks

Following Scripture, the tradition orders the angels in three triads:

• First triad — Seraphim (Isaiah 6:2-3), Cherubim (Genesis 3:24; Exodus 25:18-22), Thrones (Colossians 1:16)
• Second triad — Dominions (Ephesians 1:21), Virtues, Powers (Ephesians 6:12)
• Third triad — Principalities (Colossians 1:16), Archangels (Luke 1:26-38; Revelation 12:7-9), Angels (Psalm 91:11-12)

Why It Matters

The heavenly hierarchy is not idle speculation: it shows creation as ordered, mediating the light and knowledge of God downward through ranks, and it grounds the Church's worship "with the angels" and its veneration of the archangels.

Sources

• SaintJohnChurch, The Nine Ranks of Angels (the three triads and their scriptural warrants).
• Scriptural warrants as cited above (Isaiah 6; Colossians 1:16; Ephesians 1:21; 6:12; etc.).
• See also Angels, St. Dionysius the Areopagite, Archangel Michael.