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Dancing into the Divine:

The Hymn of the Dance in the
Acts of John
BARBARA E. BOWE
This srudy examines the "Hymn of the Dance" from the Acts of John in order
to explicate its literary and rhetorical character and ro discern its theological
function for this community of Johannine Gnostic Christians of the late 2nd
or early 3rd centuries. As a performative text, the hymn both celebrates and l
enacts the mystery it proclaims, namely, the lInity between the Lord as
revealer, the One revealed "011 high" and the faithful recipients of the
revelation who learn this mystery through the rhythm of this hymnic dance.
Moreover, when viewed as reprcscntative of at Icast one "gnostic wing" of
Johannine Christianity, this hymn provicles witness ro the hcterodox tr~lIl
~f Johanni;1e:eo ogy and practice and gives us a glimpse of the "intraJohannine polemic" at work in early Christianity.

TEXT: ACTS OF JOHN 94-96'

94.1

Befare he was arrested by the lawless Jews, whose lawgiver is the

lawless serpent, he assembled liS all and said, "Befare 1 am delivered
ro them, let liS sing a hyml1 ro the Father, and so go ro meet what lies

1. The original draft of this paper \Vas completed in 1980 and presented in the NT
Doctoral Seminar ar Harvard Divinity School. Since that rime rhere have been a
number of important studies of this hymn and their findings have been incorporared
into rhis revision. For the most part, however, my original analysis of the hymn
rcmains subst.antiall y the same. The English tcxt rcproduced here is taken froll1 New \
Testament Apo crypha, vol. 11, "Thc Acts uf Johl1," intruducc:d by Kurt Sclferclie ~
[hereafter NTA II] rev. ed. Willhelll1 Schneemelcher, transo R. McL. Wi!son (Louisville: Westminsrer/john Knox, 1992), 11: U: 1-84. See Appendix A for the Greek texto
laid out in the same poetic format and t;:ken froll1 Acta l ohal11/is. 2 vols. Corpus
Christianorum, Series Apocryphorum, eds. Eric junod ami jean-Daniel Ka estli
(Turnhout: Brepols, 1983) [here;:fter Junod/Kaestli, ActJJ.

,.

1 .

I~

r'I.

84

]OURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

befare (us) ." So he told us to form a circle, holding one a nother's

hJnds, and himself stood in the middle and said, "Answer Amen ro
I11e."

Section One:

.7

.10

.15

So he began to sing a hymn and to say,

"Glory be to thee, Father."
And we circled round him and answered him, "Amen."
"Glory be to tbee, Logos:
- "Amen."
Glory be to thee, Grace."
"Glory be ro thee, Spirir:
Glory be ro rbee, Holy One:
Glory be ro tby Glory."
-"Amen."
"We praise rhee, Farher:
We thank rhee, Lighr:
In whom darkness does nor reside. "
-" Amen. "

Sectioll Two:
95.1

And why we give rhanks, 1 rell you:

"1 will be saved,
And 1 will save."
"1 will be loosed,
And 1 will loose."
.5
"1 will be wounded,
And 1 wilJ wound."
"1 wilJ be born,
And 1 will bear."
"1 will ear,
.10
And 1 will be eaten."
"[ will hear,
And 1 will be beard."
"1 will be rhought,
Being wholJy rhoughr."
.15
"1 will be washed,
And 1 wilJ wash."
Grace dances.
"1 will pipe,
Dance, all of you ."
.20
"1 wilJ mourn,
Beat you alJ your breasts."
"(The) one Ogdoad
sings praises wirh us."
"The rwelfrh number
.25
dances on high."
"To the AIJ,
it belongs to dance in the height(?)."

-"Amen."
- "Alnen."

-"Anlen."
- "Anlen ."

-"Amen."
- "Anlen."

-"Amen."
-"Amen."

-"Amen."
-"Anlen."
- "Amen."

- "Anlen."

-"Amen."

BOWEIDANCING INTO THE OIVINE

"[The one] who does nor dance

.30

.35

AO

AS

.50

does nor know whar happens."

"[ will f1ee,
and 1 wil l remain."
"1 will adorn,
and 1 will be adorned."
"[ will be unired,
and [ wil l unirc."
"1 have no house,
and 1 ha ve houses."
"1 have no place,
and 1 have places."
"1 ha ve no temple,
and 1 have temples ."
"1 am a lamp to you (sing.)
who see me."
"1 am a mirror to you
who know mc."
"1 am a door ro you
<who> knock on me."
"1 am a way to you
<the> tra veler."

Scction Threc:
96 .1

.5

.10

.15

.20

Now if you follow my dance,

see yourself in Me who am speaking,
and when you have seen what 1 do,
keep silence abour my mysrcries .
You who dance, consider
what 1 do, for yours is
this passion of Man
which 1 am to suffer.
For you could by no means
ha ve understood what you suffer
unless to you as Logos
1 had been sent by the Farher.
You who saw what 1 do
saw (me) as suffering,
and seeing it you did nor stay
but were wholly moved.
Being moved roward wisdom (?)
you have me as a support (lit. couch);
rest in me .
Who 1 am you shall know
when 1 go forth.
What 1 now am seen ro be,

-"Amen."
- ~'Anlen."

-"Amen."
-"Amen."
- HAnlen."
- "Atnen."

- "Anlen ."

-"Amen."
- "Amcn."
-HAnlen."

-"Amen."

85

86

jOURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

that 1 am nat;

What 1 am yau shall see

.25

. 30

.35

when yOLl come.

If yau knew how ro suffer
you would be able nor ro slIffer.
Learn how ro suffer
and you shall be able nor ro sllffer.
Whar yOll do nor know
1 myself will reach yOll.
1 am your God,
nor (rhe God) of rhe rraitor.
1 will rhar holy souls
be made in harmony wirh me.
Undersrand rhe word
of wisdom!

Doxological Ending:

.40

.45

Say again ro me,

Glory be ro rhee, Farher
Glory be to rhee, Logos
Glory be ro rhee, [.] Spirir."
-[ "Amen ." ]
"As for me
if yo u would'" undersrand "'whar 1 was<':
By rhe Logos 1 [.] made a jesr of everyrhing
a nd was nor "made a jesr" ar aH.
1 cXlIlrcJ: (Iir. leapeo)
bllr do yOll undersrand rhe whole,
and when yo u havc lInocrstood ir, say,
Glory be to rhcc, Fathcr."
- "Amen."

INTRODUCTION
This intriguing text from the Acts of John (hereafrer, AF) is ofren
referred to as rhe "Hymn of rhe Dance" for the obvious reason thar its
~eography and antiphonal chorus describe a circle dance performed
by Jesus and theCrisciples on rhe night before his death. This hymnic
dance draws irs participants into a transformative encounter with the
divine realm through rheir union with "the Lord" who stands in their
midst. By means of a close analysis of the text, this study will elucidate
the literary character, the rhetorical form , and intended function of the
2. The standard crirical edition with extensive commentary un the text is JUl10dl
Kacstli, Acta 1 . The chaprer nUlllberings derive frol1l rhe earlier crirical eclition by R.
Lipsius allll M. 1){)llllct, ACIL !\{los/o/01'l/1I/ A{loay{l!J<l ( 1898; Darlllstadt: Wisscllschafrliche BuchgeseHschafr, 1959).

BOWEIDANCING INTO THE DIVINE

87

hymn within the A], and suggest how it may have served to shape the
religious imagination and theologieal world view of those who preserved
and perhaps used it in their communal ritual. Before turning to the hymn
itself, some brief introductory observations about th e Acts of John will

serve to situate the hymn within its largcr Iiterary, historical and-\
theological context. 3
,-J
THE ACTS OF ]OHN
The hymn is embedded within a larger wrk (AJ) which scholarly
consensus considers, in its earliest rcdaction, to be a late 2nd or perhapsJ
early 3rd-century text. 4 Multiple stages of composition as well as
multilingual text traditions account for the often fragmentary nature of>
the text. s Knut Schaferdiek claims that the earliest certain attestation ro
A] is the Manichean Psalm-book "which probab ly goes back ro the last'l !.t': \.ti'"'" ,
third of the 3rd century .. . and points to dissemination in the Syrial2j VV,/I, 'region and the Syriac language."6 Later attestation includes Eusebius
(H.E. 3.25.6), Epiphanius (Pan . 47.1.5), Didymus the Blind (Comm. on $1\_
Zech. 4.210), and Augustine (Ep. 237.2l::f), ro name the more
important early witnesses of the '4th nnd 5th centuries. 7 At the Nicene
Council of 787, the A] were discussed in connection with the Iconoclastic eontroversy; portions of A] were quoted so as to illustrate their
heretieal eharaeter, and a formal interdiet wns issued against the further . /
use of "this abominable book " (10 ltUpOV 101)10 ~l~Aov). Moreover, the .
synod judged it "worthy only to be thrown into the fire" :
l yia crvoo~ d rrEv' JlrEl~ urroypwpcr8l' Kal OU lvov 1:0\)'ro, u'A'Aa Kal
rrupl aU1:0 ii~tOv KpVOlEV urroiocr8m,"
3. For a detailed critical appraisal of rhe form and conrenrs of Aj see junod/Kaestli ,
Acta j, passim. Ir is nor rhe imention of rhe presen r wrirer to offer a crirical study of
Aj as a whole, but only to focu s on rhe hymn in AJ 94-96 .
4. See rhe discussion in Schiiferdiek (NTA U:152-53) who evaluares all the
pertinent citarions.
5. Despire cominued ecclesiasrical censure, portions of rhe AJ have survived nor
only in Greek, bur a lso in Larin, Syriac, Armenian, Georgian, Slavonic, Copric, and
Arabic versions. On rhese rexr ual rraditions, see Schiiferdiek, N TA U:156-63 and
Junod/Kaestli, Acta j, 1-63.
6. Schiiferdiek, NTA II:153. Com pare Junod/Kaest li (Acla ./, 692-94) who argue-.'I'Y~
for a n Egyprian origin of AJ while accepring rhe Syrian origin ()f the scction on rhe
'1 ~
Reve larion of rh e Mysrery of rhe Cross (AJ 79-102) as a scco ndary interpolarion.
7. See rhe detailed survey in Schiiferdiek, NTA U:] 52-56; junod/Kaes tli, Acta j, 163.
R. T hc tcxt is quotcd in A. F. Findlay, Hy/IJelys ill I-:,./y c:",.i5Ii,11I Lileralure
(EJinburgh: T "& T Clark, 1923 ),33211.202.

88

]OURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

The reasons for this harsh judgment derive from both the theological

character of the text and its apparent use by heretical groups (Manichean,
Gnostic, Encratite, and Priscillianist). Most objectionable to the ecclesiastical censors was the content of ]ohn's preaching of the gospel which is
narrated in A] 87-105. This section in particular betrays a elearly
gnostic character having affinities especially with Yakuti~GuQ.sis-.! /
The gospel section opens with a polemical comment: "Men and breth.;
ren, you have experienced nothing strange or incredible in your percepj
tion of the <Lord> ... " (AJ 88). With this statement the author rejects
what "others" have no doubt said against it and affirms the "truth" of its
own Christian gnostic perceptions.
Christ appears within this text as a l2Q1:I1lOrpholls figure wholll the
disciples eI1counter in multiple, ever-changing guises (AJ 88-93). The
disciples see him now as a young child and now as an old balding man;
at table, "sometimes his breast felt smooth and soft, but sometimes hard
like a rock" (AJ 89). His body appears both solid and then suddenly
permeable; he reveals esotcric teaching and secret gnosis reserved not fOCJ
the many, but for the few (AJ 97-102) who hear Jesus' command to
" ... ignore the many and des pise those who are outside the mystery" ~
(AJ 100). At the Illoment of crucifixion, Jcsus appears to John in a cav ~
and revcals ro hilll rhat he has "suffcred l10nc of the things which thc~ /
will say of [himJ" (AJ 101). Schaferdiek's cOl11ment on the general
character of AJ is certainly apt: "[AJ] reflects an understanding of
Christian belief ultimately accessible only to an elect cirele, within the
framework of a dualisl11 of two spheres of life, that of salvation
determined by Christ and that of evil dominated by Satan." 10
THE HYMN OF THE DANCE AND
JOHANNINE TRADITION
There is a marked " ohannine-soundin a " character to much of the]
theological language in A . naeed, there are many obvious parallels
between the language of the AJ hymn and gospel section and the Cospel]
of John and 1 John. Similarities of vocabulary with the canonical
Johannine corpus abound, as do grammatical likenesses and theological
motifs. Ratl~l~de a concordance of individual words and
parallel phrases, a few examples only will suffice. Oft-repeated verbs in
9. For an exhausrive discllssion of rhese Valentinian gnosric fearur es, see Jllnodl
Kaestli, Acta ], 589-632.
10. Sclferdiek, NTA 1I:165.

BOWE/DANCING INTO THE DIVINE

89

AJ and the Cospel of John indude qavro, aKoro, p:ro, 1tl<J'tEro.] / '

Characteristic Johannine nouns indude: Osa, AyoS, IjlwS, epa. We findJ ./

single references to aA,18wx, oc;, ap'tOC;, avao't(xcHC;, Srol in a catalogu<] ./
fashion. The repetition of ~ another featurc cOl1ll1lon ro Johannine
style evident in AJ. There are unique phrases in AJ which have parallels
only in the gospel of John: the use of o1tT1Aaiov, fOf example, for a burial
tomb. There are interesting parallels between the hymn in AJ and John
17, especially with the language of 17.21: "That tbey all may be one. Asl/'
you, Father, are in me and 1 am in yOll, ll1ay they also be in LIS" (NRSV).J
Both the AJ hymn and John 17 ell1phasi ze tbe glory of the Father which
has been givcn to the one sent and is accessible to those who are able to
receive the revelation. More impressive than any s ingle word correspon-'
dence are the many parallels between phrases in AJ and both the Cospel
and the First Epistle of John. 11 From these parallels AJ unquestionably
fits somewhere along the Johannine trajectory.12
Within the Johannine tradition, moreover, there are several important
examples of an antidocetic polemic. The author of Llohn Lappeals to
the physicality of Jeslls as Logos to a uthenticate his ll1essage: "That
which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have
seen with our eyes, which we have lookeJ upon and touched with our
hands . ... " Again, in 1 John 4.2, conkssion of Jcsus corne ilz lhe (lesh
becomes the sole criterion for distinguishing trllth from error: " .. . every
spirit which confesses that Jeslls Christ has come in lhe flesh is of
Cod .... " Ignatius of Antioch writes to the Christians in Smyrna (2.1):
"For he sllffered all these things for LIS rhat we might be saved, and he
truly suffered . ... not as some unbelievers say that his suffering was
merely an appearance .... " This warning could rightly be understood as
directed against a heterodox Christian group such as that represented by
AJ, especiaIly in reference to its denial of rhe Lord's suffering. To be sure,
rhe polemical character of AJ is itself very strong. The fate of the
Johannine theological tradition, therefore, in the late 2nd and early 3rd
centuries, in its docetic and gnostic dress, can perhaps be seen reflected in
this hymn.
The AJ as a who le purports ro be an eyewirness accounr of rhe ll1anY7
deeds (1tP:~E1C;) of John the son of Zebedee in western Asia Minor, and

IU

11. Compare, for exalllple: (nulllbering for AJ follow s stJl.ldard Bonnet) AJ 88.3
Jn 21.25; AJ 88 .1l1lJn 21.4 and 13 .23- 25; AJ 90.23 I1Jn20.27; AJ 96 .14I1JnI7.21;
AJ 96 .20 11 Jn 13.7; AJ 100.11 11 Jn 14.10; AJ 88 .4 11 1 Jn 1.1; AJ 89.4 11 1 Jn 1.1; AJ
94.2111 1 Jn 1.5; AJ 103 .11 11 1 Jn 3.18 ; 5.14 .
12. See th e very perceptive remarks by Jean-Daniel Kaestli in "Res ponse to Arthur
Dewey, " Sem eia 38 (1986): 81-88, especially 86- 88.

90

jOURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

in particular in Ephesus itself (AJ 18-55). A co njectural outline and -

proposed structure of the book, together with conjectured lacunae,

appear both in Junod/Kaestli and in Schaferdiek, who contend that the
contents of AJ once included a (now lost) Introductory section, a First
Travel-narrative of the apostle John from Jerusalem to Miletus and then
to Ephesus, John's First Stay in Ephesus (including his "Preaching of the 7
Gospel" and "Revelation of the Mystery of the Cross"), a Second
Travel-narrative from Ephesus to Smyrna and then to the cities of
~elation 2- 3, a Second Stay in Ephesus and the account of the Deathof John.
FORM AND STRUCTURE OF THE HYMNJ 3
In the context of John's first stay in Ephesus, AJ narrates John's
Preaching of the Gospel (AJ 87- 105) and we find the "Hymn of the
Dance" set within the narration of Jesus' supper with his disciples on the
night he was handed over. AJ 94 begi ns with the narrator's comment:
"But before he was arrested by the lawless Jews whose lawgiver is the
lawless serpent, he assembled us all and said: 'Before 1 am delivered to
them, Let us sing a hymn to the Father and so go out ro meet what lies
before uS." This introduction to the hymn continues the narrative style
that has characterized the gospel section as a whole (AJ 87- 105). These
chapters (AJ 98-105) demonstrate a careful overall structure including:
Introduction (87- 88)
The polymorphic nature of Christ (88-93)
The Hymn of the Dance (94-96)
The revelation of the mystery of the cross (97- 102)
Concluding exhortation (103- 105) .
The hymn lies at the centerpoint of this structure a nd in the final
redaction of th e AJ is integral to this whole gospel section, for Jesus will
later say to John after the dance ritual: "So then 1 have suffered none of
those things which they will say of me; even that suffering which 1
showed to you and to the rest in my dance , 1 will that it be called a
mystry" (AJ 101). The reference to hymn singing after the supper is a

13. In addition ro the critical edition and commentary of ]unod/Kaestli, see

especially D. I. Pallas, '''O "YJlvo<; TWV ltpSEWV TOU '!wvvou KEq>. 94-97, " M e/angeSl.,.
offerts ti Octave et Melp o Merlier 1I. Collection de l'!nstitut fran<;:ais d'Athens 93 J
(Athens, 1956),221-44. Also helpful in ana lyzing the hymn is] . ] . Thierry, Christ in
Ear/y Christian Greek Poetry (Leiden: Brill, 1972),32-37.
4-

BOWEIDANCING INTO THE DIVINE

91

familiar one from Mk 14.26 and Mt 26.30 where it most probably

referred ro rhe Hallel psalms which were sung at Passover. 14 What is

unfamiliar is rhe recounting of rhe hymn itself accompanied by rhe
gestures and antiphonal respon ses of a choral dance. It seC111S safe tu
assume, as Junod/Kaestli indeed do, that the ritual dance which the
hymn enacts reflects some liturgical practice in use in the community of
the Aj.I)
The inclusion of the hyIlln in this narrativc contexr is nat necessary for
the flow of the narrative per se. It does not intcrpret or explaill dircctl y
the events recoullted either before or after, althoLlgh the more discursive
s~ction
the hymn (AJ 96) speaks repeatedly aboLlt the suffering
t:.cAAW rcuaXElv, whlCh mystery wdl later (AJ 101) be explallled by

of

14. A number of texts from a ntiquity bear some resemblance to this hymn. In the
TJob 43:3-44:1 (a Jewish text from the 1st century B.C.E./C.E.?), Eliphas offers a
hymn at the altar of sacrifice which includes a responsive refrain by th e audience. This
text may der ive from the Egyptian Jew ish sec t known as the Therapeurae whose
practices Philo describes extensively in hi s Vita contemplativa 83- 85. Philo's description of the rites of the Therapeutae is particularly apto "After the supper they hold the
sacred vigil which is conducted in the following way. They rise up al l together and
standing in the middle of the refectory form th emse lves first into two choirs, one of
men and one of women, the leader a nd presenter chosen for eac h being the most
honored amongst them and also the most musical. Then they sing hymns to God
composed of many measures and set to Illany melodies, so meti mes chanting together,
sOllleti mes taking IIp the harmon y amiphonally, hand s and (cct kccping timc in
accompaniment, and rapt with enthll siasm reproduce some times the Iyrics of the
procession, somctimes the halt and of the wheeling and counter-wheeling of a choric
dance. Then when each choir ha s separa tely done its own part in the feast, hav ing
drllnk as in the Bacchic rites of th e st rong wine of God's love the y mix and both
rogether become a single choir... " (trans. E H. Co lson, Loeb edition) . The c10ses t
parallel ro SOllle features of th e hymn, notably the anrithetic:d characrer of some of
rhe verses, is the gnostic texr from Nag Hamm ae!i, "The Thune!er: Perfcct Mind." See
also Methoe!ius of Olumpus, "The Banquet of the Ten Virgin s" (ANF 6:351-53),
where the virgin Thekla standing in th c Illiddlc of the other virgins leads thcm in an
anriphonal chorus of praise to Christ as the Bridegrooll1. The ene! of rhe First Book of, ",Jeu describes Christ lead in g a h yIlln which incorporares an "Amen" response similar J
ro the pattern found in AJ.
15. Junod/Kaestli (Acta j , 644 ) have no doubt thar rhis hYlllnic dance reflects actual
lirurgical pracrice: "La disposition adopte pour I'excutio n de I' hylllne refl ete
certainelllent un e pratique liturgique el e l'Eglise ancienne." This asslllllption coincides
with the report of Bishop M elito of Sardis concerning Jewi sh ritu a l practice at
I'assover time. In his Paschal HOlllily , Melito makes reference to psallll si ngi ng and
dancing at the Passove r festival: " ... thou wast rejoic in g, but he was oppressed; thou
wast psalmsinging, bur he was judged (ou XPE\iEC;, EKElVO<; OE E8ltTEtO) thou gavesr
command, he was nailed; tholl wa st dancing, bllt he was being laie! in rhe romb o ... "
For a full comparison of this text with the AJ, see W. C. van Unnik, "A Note on rh e
Dance of ]eslls in th e Acrs of John ," Ve]8 (1964): 1-5.

92

]OURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

refcrence ro rh e dance. The hymn serves, rherefore, as a fitting prelude to

the passion account in AJ 97. It may be true that the hymn at one stage
had an independenr existence and only secondarily was incorporated
inro the gospel section of AJ.IO But, if so, at this redactional stage of
incorporation it became an essential element of John's interpretation of
the gospeL
RHETORICAL FORM AND FUNCTION OF THE HYMN
~

The hymn itself begins with a prose introductory invitation given in the
hortatory s ubjunctive by the Lord to some of his disciples, among wbom
is the narrator, Johll. The speaker says: "Let LIS sing a bymn to the
Father" (llvlaW/.lv 1:0V TC<X1:pa). More cxplicit dircctiolls follow in
third-person narrati o n: "So he told us to form a cirele, holding one
another's hands, and himself stood in tbe middle and said, "Answer
Amen to me" (KAaac; ouv llltV yupov <X7tOlcpawv1:wv 1:ac; <XAAlAWV-- .,/
Xtpac;, Ev ~lacp oE alnoc; YVllVOC; EAEyV To <X1lTv 7taKOn 1l0t).-J
Integral to this hymn is tbe particular circular configuration witb the
leader (alnoc;) in the center and the disciples forming a elosed (hands
held) cirele around bim. The leader tben requests a response from those /
in tbe cirele:
<X1lTv 7taKO1: Ilot-"Answer me Amen."17 The hymn
is a!l!.i.e.honal througho!!L with the echo effect of a sustained and
re~ted re~se invited by th~. The antiphonal echo binds the
voice of the leader with the voices of the respondents so that they merge
into onc voicc. Thcsc "stagc dircctiol1s," 1 bdicvc, are <1n esscntial clue ro
rhe inrended funcrion and Sitz im Leben of the final form of the h ymn as
it appears in AJ. Thercfore, one should not separate the narrative jf)
lI1troductlon from the hymlllc passages that follow.
The "hymn proper" opens with a do xology: "Glory be to thee
Father," coupled with the explanatory phrase: "And we cireled round
him and answered hilll, 'Amen.'" The doxology ascribes glory to the
divine presence under different names: "Father," "Lagos," "Grace," I
"5pirit," "Haly One," "G lary, " and "Light" with the repetitive response

To

t'

16. junod/Kaesrli, Acta j , 586- 89; Schiiferdiek, NTA 1l:164.

17. junod/Kaestli (Acta j , 641) believe rhar the author of AJ ha s adapred a
"primirive hymn" by aelding the responsive "Amen" refrain: "Un premier point nous
semble certain: le rpons 'Amen' a t introeluit par notre auteur, qui a ains i donn
une premiere marque chrtienne a un tex te qui sans e10ute ne I'ta it pas." The sa me
authors e1iscuss the stages of reelaction of AJ anel the incorporation of rhe hyml1 in
Eric Junoel anel Jean-Daniel Kaestli, "Le dossier des 'Actes de Jean ' : ta r ele la quesrion
et perspectives nOll ve ll es," ANRW 11. 25.6 (1988): 4336-43 .

BOWEIDANCING INTO THE DI VINE

93

"Amen" indicated after each second invocarion . Each of rhese ritles or

names should be understood, perhaps, as addressing the different

'

manifestations of the Father (as understood by this author), since TCn:p

is repeared for a second time in line 94.15, forming an inclusio for the
section. Although they resemble terms common in Valentianian mythoL..
ogy, rhey have closer direct affiniry wirh rerms from rhe Cospel of John
itself. As Junod/Kaestli have asserted: "Cet ensemble de titres divin a des
affinits particulieres avec la terminologie des ecrits johanniques. Outre
la parent vidente de 94, 17 avec 1 Jn 1,5, on signalera leS ,rapproachmen
suivants: Jn 1, 1 pour Ayot;; Jn 1, 14. 16-17 pour Xplt;; Jn 4, 24 pou~J
TCVE\J)la; 1 JI1 2, 20 pour UylOt;; Jn 1, 14 pour GOU ~ Mi;a."'B The
placement of rhese names in rhe opening doxology of the AJ hymn with
rhe double repetiron of TCTEP seellls ro emphasze this divine reallll.
Lines 94.15, 16, 17 mark a shifr from the preceding phrases, all of which had begun with rhe sallle invocation, Mi;a GOL The antiphonal
petirion/response format changes in 94.15 to a declaration of praise
(alVOU)lEV) and thanks (EuXapl0TOU)lEV) in the first person plural. Already, the reader should note a peculiar feature of the hymn, one
which remains constant throughout. Rhetorically, there seems to be a ']
los s of distinction in person between the singular lea der in the center and
the chorus surrounding him . Ir is often difficult to decide who exactly is speaking. For exa mple, is the subject of aiVOU)lfV and fUXaplGTOU)lfV
now the leader and chorus together, the leader speaking for th e group, or
the chorus alone? This dual characteristic, or "blurring of distinctions,"
is, 1 bclieve, an esselltial ami requisite elcmellt for the interpretatioll (lf
the hymn, as I hope to illustrate.
Line 95.1 ("And why we give thanks, I tell you") marks again a
distinct change in form from what has preceded. This verse serves as an
explanatory introduction to the second major section of the hymn which
ends at 95.50. Following this introductory verse is a series of statements
in the first person singular repeating the verbs 8A.w, EXW, ,Ei.!lt in
antithetical parallelisms. The antiphonal "Alller( co'71tT~ue's ; t regular
intervals and thereby incorporates those in the outer circle into the
Illysteries being proclaimed. In light of this new section, one needs ro
raise the form-critical question: Is this text really a hymn? We are pushed
ro this question since rhe long "1 will ... " secrion does nor be long ro rhe
ordinary form of a "hymn." A comparison of rhis hylllll in AJ with other
NT Christological hylllns s.b..Qws an absence of 1ll02! of the formal

-f

18. jllnod/Ka es tli, Acta j, 646. See <lIso rh e inrerpreur ioll of Aj 95 .18-30 where
rhese Valentinian rerm s reocclIr.

94

]OURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

.e

'1'. p' -

stylistic ekments..Jhat ha ve been identified as typical of those hymns. 19 rS \\'

Tnere are no s clauses, no strings of participles, no compact stanzas or7
presentation of the redemptive myth told in the third persono Instead, our
hymn begins with a doxology, ineludes a long revebtory speech in thl first person singular interspersed with exhortations (lines 20, 22) and
declarative statements (lines 23-30). It continues with a discourse about- ,
suffering which contains a series of exhortations (lines 96.2, 4, 5, 28-29 y
36-37), and closes with a final doxology.
At the same time tbge are many hymnic elements which warrant the'7
use of the term "hymn" in the broad sense. The passage is certainly
poetic; it contains short phrases, characteristic parallclislll, and repeti tion of certain key words. Its antiphonal mode is also typical of a hymnic
and even liturgical style and formo The doxology at the beginning and]
end, and especially the verbs alvw and E'\)Xapw,w give thi s piece an
emphatic liturgical tone . The repetition of the "Amen" response and thecommunal emphasis seem a so to pomt toward a liturgical (confessional?) setting. Therefore, although sorne formal hymnic elements are
missing, it is appropriate to use the term "hymn" in the broad sense to
describe this passage. In fact, the preface to the passage calls it that]
(f-lv1O"WI.U:v, f-lVElV 94.3, 7) and wants it to be understood as such.
.
Section 2 (95.1-48) I have termed a "revelatory speech." The "1" of
the voice speaking in this section is the one who reveals a series of
enigmatic, contradictory statements. Presumably, it is the "1" of the
leader in the center of the elosed cirele, namely, the Lord. The antiphona
"Amen" carried throughout t~e.ems to indicate t~t we are
srill itLt~ wirh rhe leaderlchorus inreracrions. One wou el expeCf
rhe characreristic "1 am" revelarory formula, since rhe self-predicarion
given in the AJ hymn appears ro be elose in style to rhar genre. In lines , /
37-48, EXW and dJ.-Ll repearedly pick up this rheme of revelatory "
predications, falling ust short of the familiar Johannine i:yw df-ll
formula. The ~cal a ncLlli!.radoxica I nature of this section is
particularly striking. It alternates the pa-ssive/active and active/passive
structure in the first part (Iines 95 .2- 36) and then alternates the positive/
negative structure in lines 37-42. The affinities between the AJ hymn and /
the ~nadi text, "~Thunder: Perfect Mind" have often been

19. The c1assic study on NT hymnic material is still R. Deichgraber, Gotteshymnus

ulld Christushymnus in der friihell Christenheit: Untersuchzmgen zu Form , Sprache
und Stil der frhchristlichen Hy1l1l1en. StUNT 5 (Gottingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht, 1967). See also J. T. Sanders, Th e New Testament Christological Hymns:
Their Historical Religious Backgrounds (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1971 ).

BOWE/DANCING INTO THE DIVINE

95

noted, with specific reference to their similar antithetical styles. 20 Compare, for example, these proclamations of the revealer in The Thunder: Q.",,~~<; I S
"For 1 am the first and the lasto 1 am the honored one and the scornedl
one. 1 am the whore and the holy one. 1 am the wife and the virgin .. . ~
(Thunder 6.13.17-20). The functoll of these antitheses, in both the
"Thunder" and in Aj, seems to be to "assert the universality and totally
otherworldly transcendence of the revealer. "21
~
Anne McGuire offers a particularly insightful study of this feature of '1 :/'~'
"The Thunder," and many of her o.bseryqtions about this gnostic tex!Jge (l'
~g~mane to the hymn in Aj.2~Speaking of the effect of the ambiguity
and paradox in the text of "Thunder," McGlIire writcs: "This ambigllity
invites the interpretive c1aim that the speaker works both to unite and to
dissolve all things, including even the duality of divine speaker and
human audience, the '1' and the 'you' of rhe text."21
The structural pattern of section two exhibits abrupt changes in three
instances. Line 95.18 gives the perplexing, interruptive statement 'H ./
XptC; XOPEEl, "Grace dances ." This is an abrupt intrusion by the
narrator into the antlphonaI pattern. The narrator makes this observation as an outsider to the dance hymn. So me have seen this line as a
liturgical direction: "Grace would be perhaps an ecclesiastical office. "24
Such a suggestion, in my view, introduces an extraneous person into the
dance which seems unnecessary. The c1ue, I think, is in the text itself an o/
points to a redactional insertion by the author of Aj.25 'H xptc; appearsJ
in the opening doxology but not in the c10sing doxology df the hymn
which otherwise repeats the opening six lines exactly (if we take nVEu,w.
aytov to be a joining of lines 94.12, 13 from the opening doxology). 'H
XptC; XOPEEl gives an indication of what is hafJpening in the process of

20. See George W. MaeRae, Introduction and Translarioll of "The Thunder:

Perfeet Mind (VI,2)," in The Nag Ha11lmadi Library in blglish, rev., James M.
Robinson, General Editor (San Francisco: Harper, 1990) fNHLJ.
21. MacRae, "Introducrion ro The Thunder: PerEcer Mind," NHL: 296. See also
idem, "The Thunder: Perfeet Mind," The Cenier for Hermeneutical Studies, Pro toco/
uf the Fifth Co//oquy, 11 March 1973.
22. Anne McGuire, "Thund er: Perfecr Mind," in Searching lhe Scriptures, vol. 2:
A Feminist COl1111lentary, ed. Elisaberh Schssler Fiorenza (Ncw York: Crossroad,
1994), 39-54.
23. MeGuirc, "Thunder: Perfeet Mind," 48.
24. D. I. Pallas, "'O "Y ~vos," makes this argument.
25. In a reeent study of the hymn which made use of the firsr draft of my own
paper, Arthur J. Dewey maintains rhar rhis verse " is another instance of lirurgical
direetions given on the redactional level of the text" ("The HYIl1Il in the Aers of John )
Dance as Hermeneutic," Semeia 38119861: 70).

~\
[

96

]OURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

rhe dance: namely, a kind of fusion of rhe one revea led, rhe revealer, and

rhose who receive rhe revelarion. Here, Xpts joins rhe dance.
A second change in form occurs at lines 95.20 and 22 with the
introducrion of rwo imperarives: px1<Jcw8c: and KO'l'cX<J8c:, verbs whichJecho the wisdom saying of Mt 11.17/Lk 7.32. These imperatives
intensify the response called for by the leader. More than the simple
"Amen" is required of those in the dance. Now the participants hear an
urgent call to continue the dance and to enter into the mourning and
beating of breasts. No bystanders are aIlowed in the dance hall. AIl must
join the dance or be left behind; to be included, they must choose to
embrace its transformative movement.
Lines 95.23-30 add still another change in form:
The one Ogdoad sings praises wirh uso The Twelfth number
dances on high. To rhe Al! ir belongs ro dance in rhe heighr.(?)
The one who does nor dance does nor know whar happens.

1,

I
j

1l

II

i'
I
1

1.

i.

. ,
i
1i.

Four short third-person declarative sentences introduce a new dimension ~

in the hymn. In form, they seem intrusive, especially since the repetitiveJ
litany ofJ}O\.w statements is resumed in Ene 31. Pallas argues that they
are a later insertion; Arthur Dewey saw in these lines the pneumatic
interpretation of Valentinian gnosis with its precosmic myth describin~)
the birth of the Aeons .26 This "birthing" of the Aeons, he claimed, recalls
and imitates the Lukan wisdom saying: "Wisdom is justified in her
children" (Lk 7.35). To be sure, Valentinian mythology and terminology
appear here, bur in rhe movement of rhe hymn, rhese lines bring rhe
dancers ro an awareness rhar rhose who dwell "on high" have come ro
dance wirh rhcm. "Grace dances; the one Ogdoad sings praises with us." Their dance, in fact, imitares the dance "on high," as line 95.25-2b7j .
makes clear: "The twelfth number dances on high." There are, indeed, .~~
three "places" (stances, spheres of reference) described in the hymn. --~
There is the group whose hands are joined in circular fashion looking
inward toward the center. Secondly, at the center is the Lord who leads

26. Arthur J. Dewey, "The Hymn in rhe Acrs of John," Unpublished New
Tesrament Seminal' Papers, Harvard Diviniry School, Spl'ing, 1976. Dewey argued in
rhar papel' rhar rhe AJ hyl11n is a symbolizarion of rhe precosl11ic l11yrh WhiCh
circulared in Valenrinian cil'eles. He drew his inrerpreri ve principies frol11 Elaine
Pagels' work (The Johallnine C ospel in Cnostic Exegesis: H eracleon5 C011111lenta1'y
011 Jo /m [NY: Abingdon, 1973]). While rhe influence of Valenrinian gnosricisl11 on rhis
rexr is wirhour quesrion (as Junod/Kaestli have ShOWIl), 1 do nor find an intenrional
use of rhe Valellrianian l11yrh as a cenrral herl11eneLltic in rhe AJ "Hymn of the
Dance. "

BOWE/DANCING INTO THE DIVINE

97

the invocati o ns to the Fa th er a nd wh o declares certain predications of

himself. Here, in lines 95.23- 30, a new dim cnsion is introduccd (avw95.26). Rather, the celestial dimension is here made mo re exp licit since
rhe openin g doxology had a lready been addressed ro OO t in rhis orher
sphere.
The reference to the Ogdoad a nd to th e Twelfth number are terms
belonging to this other,-.9ivine sphere. Lines 95 .27-30 are key: Ti) 010 OA<l
avw xo pnv n:apxl. 'AIl~V . 'O 1111 XO pEWV 10 YlVIlVOV ayvol. 'A Il~V .
However one reconstructs lines 27-28, it is dear th at the dance itself is
mea nt to be transformative for the participants Y If one does not dance
'one remains igno rant of "wha t IS - Ea ppening" (TO YEVIlEVOV) . Thi s
transformative gnosis happens in the dan ce. The nature o f the transfor~1 that happens seems to derive from rh e multiple a nd almosr
monotonous repetition of 8AW, "1 will." To each sta tement the choru~]-
answers "Amen ." The repeated affirma ti on of "Ame n" to the speaker's
will (8AW) creates a stacca to rhythm in this secti on which becomes
almost mesmerizing. The dancers, therefore, jo in their will to the w ill of
the leader.
Interesting, too, are th e three no un Lo f lin es 95 .37-42. These lines
alternate positive/negative sta tements a bo ut what~r has (EXW) ~
or does not have: a house, a place, a temp le (oh:o<;, Tn:O<;, va<;). Eac h of
these th ree no un s refers to a la ce or places belonging to the Lord. Not
un exp ectedl y, the nouns of the E[ll lin es (Iines 95.43-50) a re a related
to this same th eme in th a t rhey are a ll indi cators towa rd a place: AXVOC;, ~
~Qov >-e_.p.a,-(:tM~. The la mp, th e mirror, the door, and the way a re all ]
means by which the place is revealed. Furrhermore, the "you" addressed
here is ca ll ed a " tra ve ler." Th ere is moveme nt a nd a jou rn ey (borh
implied an d prescribed) throughout rhe h ym n, both in th e physical dance ".,M:-i\\
and in the p.l.0vement toward tra nsformation which ha ppens by mea ns of
co nfo rming one's will to the 8AW of th e dance !cade r.
The "yo u" addressed in lines 43-50 is no lo nger the "yOl!" of th e
opening doxo logy which ascribed g lory to"yo u fa ther," etc. Though
sing ular (GO L), it must refer ro those in t he cirde; but clearly sorne
transformation has happened/is happening. T he last in th e litany o f 8AW
statements (lines 35-36) indica tes, 1 think, whatkind of transformati on
thisi s:
-

:'~

27. Al! interpre ters note the tex tual difficu lti es in this ve rse a nel trans latio ns d iffer
elramatically: "To th e Univ erse belongs th e elancer" (Sch,ifereli ek/McL W il so n, NTA,
1st eel .), "To th e Al! it belongs ro dance in rh e heig ht" (Sc h,iferelie k/McL Wilson ,
NTA, rev. eel.), " Au Tout il apparr ient de elanser en ha m" (Junoel/Kaestli, Acta j ),
"Now rhe Al! belong ro rhe danccr (01' ebncing?)" (Dcwey, " D'lnce as I-Iermen e uric "),

98

]OURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

vw8lvClt 8AW
KC Vo)(mt

8Affi.

'AIl~V.

The circle of disciples as participants in the dance ha ve now beco me

one with one another. No Ionger does the speaker exhort them using
plural imperatives as he had in lines 95.20, 22. Now, they can be
addressed as one, as shown by the singular imperatives at line 96.2, 4, 5.
By means of the dance, a unitive transformaton seems to be taking place
within those who make themselves one with its rhythm and proclama.
tions. The three spheres of the participants in the circle, the Lord in the
center, and the Father who dwells in the celestial realm are fused into a
unity during the course of the hymn's movement.
The final section of the hymn begins at line 96.1 with a change in form
again. "Now, if you follow my dance, see yourself in Me who am
speaking .... " This third section could be best characterized as parenetic
since the speaker addresses the audience-"you (0ot)"-with a series of
exhortations in the singular imperative, sorne declarations in both
present and future, interspersed with various statements about himself /
and what he do es and suffers (o rrpcX00w, orrcX0XCtv). Most striking in this
section of the hymn are the rep~-all in the singular.
Again, there seems to be a transformation of the plural "you" of the
audience from lines 94.9, 15, 16, 18; 95.1,20,22, 24 to a singular ar
collective "you" beginning with line 96.2: 'SlO 0W'U1:0V EV EM-Ot AuAouvn .
. . . The speaker develops further and makes more explicit the mirrar
morif of line 95.45. The "you" who is addressed is rold to "keep silent
about the mysteries" (96.4), to "understand what Ido" (96.5, 6), to
"rest in me" (96.19), to "Iearn the suffering" (96.28), and finally to ,/
"know the AyOr, of wisdom" (96.36, 37). There is a progressive
coming-to-wisdom implied here, a transformation rhat happens as rhe
dancers make their movements one with rhe rhythm of the dance. Line
96.34, 35 affirm the will (8AW) of rhe speaker for the lasr time:
pu8M-1:;w8ut 8AW \jfuXar, yur, Err' El-"I wiU that holy souls be made in
harmony/rhythm with me." That very transformation (i.e., the dancers'
becoming one wirh the leader) happens in section three by means of a
constant grammatical interplay between rhe "1" of the speaker and the
"you" of the audience. The antiphonal "Amen" refrain of sections 1 and
2 is now replaced by the repeated grammatical shifts back and forth
between "1" and "you," in rhe end, producing the same effect.
The antithetical character of the hymn identified in section 2 color~
the~~~p.s:cially line~16.20-29: "Who 1 am you shall know )
when 1 go forth. What 1 IlOW am seen to be, that 1 am IlOt; what 1 am you

'l6)
j '--'"

BOWE/DANCING INTO THE DIVINE

99

sha ll see, when yo u come. If yo u knew how to suffcr, yo u would be able J'

nat ta suffer. Learn haw ro suffer and yau shall be able nat ta suffe r. "
These antitheses highlIght th e transforma ti on effected by the hymn, a
transformation both at rhe leve l of knowing and of be ing. Knowing rh e
revea ler will be possible o nl y when he "goes forth" and rhe audience
"follows," (96.21 -25 ) on ly when they a ll ow them se lves to be "taught"
by him (96.30- 31). The kn owledge of the revea ler will indeed provide
the key to the capacity to suffer a nd not to expe rience suffering. AII thisl
happens w hen one has co me into harmo ny with the revea ler through th ~
rh ythm of the dance.
{ .A
The movement of the hyll1n is constantly weaving together three '3>".;e
spheres of reference: the speakerlrevealer, th e chorus of d a ncers, and the
realm "on high. " So far, section 3 has ev idenced only the twofold
dimension a nd alternation between the re vea ler and th ose in th e ou ter
cirele. A third dimension is also present here . Line 96.12 stress es th a t the
"1" speak ing was sent by th e Fa th er "as Logos." Agai n, at line 96 .32 th e
same "1" affirms that he is di vi ne: 8c<; d ~l 00U, a elaim w hich a lludes
again to what we hea rd in lin e 95.26 a bout the realm aboye (a.vw). At
this point, the threefo ld dim ension o f the hymn has s uddenl y collapsed
to two and we lea m th a t the Icader in o ur midst is rcally th e o ne from o n high. This secti on a lso undersco res the dance l110tif an d its importa nce as
an interpretive sign : line 96.1 reminds those in the dance cirele " ... if
you follow my dance, see yo ufse lf in Me. " . ," line 96 .5 "you who
dance" will be led to understand the mystery of suffering. Th e dance
itse lf is not incidental to this h ymn, thc refore, but an essc ntial part of th e
experience of those who beco me one with rhe dancer. Li ne 96 .34'- \
introduces th e term eD\.w o ne fina l time: "1 wi ll th a r ho ly so ul s be made
in harmo ny with me." Jo inin g one's own will ro rhe will of the OIle
speaking is again the mea ns of transforl11ation that ha ppens through the I
dance m ovement. In lin es 96.44 and 46, respectively, th e verbs Enat~a-J
("to play like a child, to dance") an d ECl<:p11Wa (" to spring, lea p,
bo und ") re inforce o ne fin al time the emphatic conn ection between leader
and dance rs in the transfo rming rhythm of th e dance.
lnterpreters have differed in th_~j_u_dgmen uLlliLllt the end ing verses of _
J,his-i)LlUlhlS Bonnet's text coneludes with th e single-line doxo logy-t.Sa "/
001 ncX1cp. 'A~lv. Others, nota bl y Pallas and T hi erry, have proposed a
transpositi on of lin es 96 .39-41 hom th eir e pl ace mcn t after 96.38 in

28. See especial ly rh c Icngt hy clisC llssion of these ve rses in JlIn ocl/Kaestli, Acta },

653-56 .

i'. .

100

]OURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

..

:"

1;

order ro creare a more majesric doxology as rhe conclusion ro rhe hymn.

While, theoreticaIly, both sequences are possible, in my judgment, the

reading (Bonnet's and junod/Kaestli's reading) is preferable since there

seems to be no obvious reason that requires transposition . Moreover, if
Pallas is correct, one then has to supply a final "Amen" which otherwise
does not occur in the texto
Reading with Bonnet and Junod/Kaestli, therefore, the concluding line
(96.36-37) of section 3 implores: "Understand the word of wisdom" .- /
("(ov A"{ov YVW8l \C; GO<pl<xC;). The final hymnic conclusion would then
comprise a threefold doxology (lines 39-41), a concluding se/f-predication
by the "1" who is speaking (lines 42-48), and a final exhortation to
"know the Al!." Coming to this knowledge, then one can truly say L-.s,a GOl rr:n:p. 'AI.dv. In form, this concluding section joins the three modes
of speech of the preceding sections; it combines narrative, se/f-proclamation, and exhoration. It also reiterates the threefold dimensions, or
spheres of reference, the divine realm, the "1" of the dance leader/
revealer, and the "you" of the chorus. The opening line of the concluding
verses reads: rr:Alv ..LOl A"{E' L-.s,a GOl rr:u:p, ... A"{E, .. . rrVEU..L<X. Can
we understand this imperative to be spoken by the leader? And if so, has
he then completely become one with the Father-Logos-Spirit to whom
glory is given? "Agai n say to me-Glory to you Father . .. . "
CONCLUSION
The movement of th.e~no in fQ.Q.TI and content progresses from
praise of rhe Father ajJove ro affirmation of union wirh rhe_ ~eaderl
~revealer in his ;?aradoxical active/passive starements. In thi s union of will
one learns to understand that suffering is reany "not-suffering," and having understood, one can then praise the Father anew throughlin the
revealer in the circle dance itse/f. Ibe act of praise and dance then
becomes an act of union and communion. Those in the outer circle 'beco me a single entity whom the leader addresses in the singular (rr:Alv'
..LOl A"{E). Their participation in the dance with its antiphonal refrain in
turn fuses them with the leader, as an image is reflected in a mirror and ' /
so becomes one with the mirror. In the final movement of the hymn, one
learns that an even more c~nplete union ~as been effected with th e one
"on high."
The hymn, therefore, can rightly be understood as a celebration of the
mystery of the union between the Lo rd as revealer, rhe Godhead, and
those who dance their way into this mysterious divine presence. In form
and content the hymn celebrates the saving and transforming union

BOWEIDANCING INTO THE DIVINE

101

between the Lo rd and th e community which acclaims him . The dance

morif, specifying as ir does a circular form ar wirh hands joined and he (the Lord) in the middl e, is at o nce an enactment and a celebration of the
mystery. As Marsha ll McLuhan would say, "The mediul11 is th e message." The deliberate alternations of subj ect/o bject, in voca tion/responseand the sudden shifts in person I-you-we, singular and plura ls all seemdesigned to co nfuse ... or, better, to (use the participanrs in the dance in an ever do ser union with the Lord and with the divine realm where he
now abides. As the hymn prog resses, the o uter cirele a nd the ccntra lfigure can no longer be e1ear ly di stinguish ed. Moreover, th e Lord and the
Godhead (Father-Word -Spirit) seem also ro becom e o ne in th e final doxology which acelaims th e transformatio n rhar ha s indeed happenedJ
in rhe course of rhe danceY
Ir is nor inco nceivable thar such a liturgical ce leb rario n as rhi s hymn
describes might have raken pl ace. To my knowledge, however, w e have-no evidence that it did. N evertheless, thi s hym nic dance from AJ provides
a wllq.u ex ression of communion lU as it may have been undersrood by
29. A suggestive and intriguing parallel tu sume aspects uf the " Hymn uf the
Dance " in AJ is the ancient ~n..of th e whirling dan ce whose urigins da te ro . ~
" the timeless shadows of Central Asian spirituality" (Ka bi r Helminski, "The Cate uf Y
Secrets," http://www.sufi sm.org/society/sema2.html ). Its formal ritual, the Sema
ceremony and Sultan Veled Wa lk, was shaped by Mevla na Jala lu ddin Rumi (1207- J
1273) in the Western Asia Minor city of Konya but many belie ve its o ri gi ns ro be
mu ch earlier. Contem porary observers of thi s dance ritual have st ressed its im por
tance as an "act of surrender ro the divine" and have described its power: "And so the
Islam ic ceremony of Sema . . . dem and s .1 shift in aesth etic sensibil ity. Twirling 20 ro
30 times a minute, with the right hand t urned heavenwa rd to receive Cad's grace and
th e left turncd down ro canvey th at grace ro Earth, ... after a timc th eir movcm cnts
a lsa seemed to melt inta one another" (David O'Reill y, Philadelphia Jnquirer,
February 5, 1997). "The dancers are not see kin g ecsta sy. Instead, they en ter a
hyperconsci a us state and atte mpt ro maintain their physica l ax is whi le contemplating
the shaikh si tting in the center of a cirel e of dancers. The shaikh represents their link
to Rumi and their lave of Cod" (Miriam Seidel, Philadelphia JI/quira, February 2,
1997). "Through the whirl ing they seek ro achieve a uni on with Cad" (Sa rah
Ka ufm an, The Washington Post, February 4, 1997). Whether t here is even a remote
connection, stretching across centuri es, betwee n these two dance rituals, 1 cannot sayo
The configur a tion and hermeneutic of both, however, is a circular dance w ith leader
in the center a nd participanrs dancing in an o uter cirel e, clesigned to achieve a
mysterious unio n wi th eac h other and with Cod.
30. Kaestli ("Response to Arthur Dewey," 87) judges the hymn to be "sacramenta l" in that it presents an a lterna tive ritual, set in the contex t of the supper, that
replaces the canonical Eucharistic ins tituti onal narra ti ve: "The text of AJn 94- 96
quite c1ea rly has th e qu a lity of an institution a l narra ti ve: i. c., in a crucial momenr in
Christ's destiny, a rite is found ed which tak es the place uf the euc haristi c mea l
instituted in th e Synoptic Gospels. "

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102

JOURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

the community of

Al- And these Johannine Christian Gnostics might ""'"

welI have continued to use this hymnic dance for sorne time into the

.,.~
.~

future in their hapes of finally "dancing into the divine."

APPENDIX A: ACTS OF JOHN 94-96

iI

94.1
TIptV bE aUAATJq>ElTjvat a-il1:ov -Uno 'CWV av.tlv Kat 1mo av.tou Oq>Ele;
VO.tOElETOU.tVlV '!oubalv auvayaywv nv'Cae; f.te; Eq>TJ' TIpv .tE EJ,;:EvOte;
napaboElTjvat -U.tvlal.tEv 'Cov na'Cpa Kat OU'Cle; ESA8l.tEV Ent 'Co npoKE.tEVOV.
KEAEaae; o-&v iWlV yupov l1:otTjaat, anOKpmonlV '((xe; aAAlAlv XEpae;, EV
.taq> bE a-il1:0e; YEV.tEVOe; EAEYEV' To a.tfv naKoET .tOl.
94.7 "Hpsaw o-&v .tVElV Kat AyElV'
Llsa aot lt'CEp.
Kat f.tEe; KUKAEonEe; nTJKOo.tEV a-il1:ip 'Co a.tlv.
.10
Llsa aot AYE,
8sa aot Xpte;. 'A.tlv.
Llsa aot 'Co nvElJ.ta,
bsa aOt ay tE,
8sa aou 'CTi 8sn 'A/llv .
A lVOU/lEV aE n'CEp,
. 15
Euxaptawu.tv aot q>we;
EV <!> aK'COe; OUK OlKEl. 'A.tlv.
95.1
'Eq>' <!> bE Euxaptawu.tEv Ayl'
LlElTjvat ElAl
Ka! awaat 8Al. 'A.tlv.
Au8Tjvat 8Al
.5
Kat A-uaat 8Al. 'Afliv.
T plElTjvm ElAl
Kat 'Cpwam ElAl. 'A .tl V.
rEvvaa8<Xl 8Al
Kat yEvvav 8Al. 'A.tlv .
. 10
cI>aYEtV ElAl
Ka! pplElTjvm ElAl. 'A .tl V.
'AKOEtV ElAl
Kat aKoEa8at 8Al. 'A.tlv.
NOTJ8Tjvat 8Al
. 15
voue; WV OAOe;. 'A.tlv.
Aoaaa8at ElAl
Ka! AOElV ElAl. 'A.tlv.
'H xpte; XOpEEl.
AUATjaat ElAl,
.20
oPXlaaaElE nnEe;. 'A.tlv.
8PTJvTjaat ElAl,
K1ltaaElE ltV'CEe;. 'A.tlv.
'Oyboae; .ta
WlV GU.tljlUEt. 'A.tl1v.

1
I

.~

BOWEIDANCING INTO THE DIVINE

' O 8l8Ka1:Os PlSllOs

.25

iivw XOPEEl. AJ.l~v.

Ti.> oi:: OA.<>
avl XOPEElV 'mpXEl. 'Il~V.
'O ).l~ XOPEWV
TO rLVJlEVOV urvo 'AJlr,v .
Cl>uyElV 8A.l
Kat lVElV 8A.l. 'All~V.
KOO'll ElV 8/\.l
Ka! KOO'JlEl0'8al S/\.l. 'llr,V.
'Evl8fval 8A.l
Ka! vwO'at 8Al. 'Ap1V .
OlKOV OUK fxl
Ka! OlKOUe; EXl. J..llv.
Trrov OUK EXl
Kal TrrOUe; EXl. Allv .
Naov OUK EXl
Kal vaoue; EXl. 'Jllv.
Axvoe; dll 0'01
Ti?> BlcrrOVT J.lL 'J.ll v.
"EO'orrTpv ElJ.l 0'01
Ti?> voo'0VT J.lL 'AJ.llv.
epa d lll 0'01
(Ti? KpOOVTl JlE. J.llv .
'OMe; dJ.ll 0'01
(Ti? rrapoOlTD ('AJ.lr,V.)

.30

.35

.40

.45

.50

Section Tln'ee:
96.1

' YrraKolv D pOU Tn xopd~

'8E O'WUTOV EV EJ.lO! AalcO'0VTl
Kal i8wv rrpO'O'l
Ta J.lUO'T1pl J.lOU O'ra .
XOPElV VEl
ltpO'O'l OTl O'V EO'Tl v
1:O'0TO TO o:v8pwrrou rr80e;
J.lAA.lltO'XElV.
OU rap E8vou OA.le;
O'uvl8v ltO'xEle;.
d J.ll 0'01 "-yoe;
'lrro rraTpOe; EO'TlcTlV.
i8wv lt pO'O'l
m<; rrO'xovTa El8E s
Kal i8wv OUK (O'T11<;
UA.A.' EKl vl8Tl<; oAo<;.
KlVTlSd<; O'O<plSElV
O'TPlJ.lvlv llE ExEII;
Errav<XltTl8 J.l01.

.5

. 10

.15

103

104
.20

.25

.30

.35

jOURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

-ri; Elll EYO:, yvwcrn ,
01:aV li1tO.8J.
o VUV pW.tCXl
1:01J1:0 O-oK El.tl
(o Etlt) OIjlEt
hay cru EA8n;.
El -;o 1tcrXEtv TOEl;,
-;o .ti na8v av dXE;'
-;o 1taEkiv crYYVJ8l
Kal-;o Jli 1ta8v EI;El; .
ocru .ti oloa<;
au-;; crE olOl;J.
8E; ElJll crou,
ou 1:OU 1tp001:01J.
{)1J8Jllsecr8at 8AJ o/1Jxa; ayla;
E1t' EJl.
-;ov Ayov yvi8l
Tl; cro<pla;.

Doxological Ending:

t
t

040

~,

!
l

!
i.

.45

1tA.lV EJlO l AYE'

~l;a crOl 1t-;Ep.
Ol;a crOl AyE,
Ol;a crOl (-;o) 1tVEU.ta [ayLOv j.
-;O OE EJlOV
El 8AEl; UJliv yvival,
AY<fl anal; E1tall;a 1tv-;a
leal OK EnncrXv811v OA(.\J(;.
EYro EcrKlp-;llcra,
cru oE VEl -;o 1tav,
Kal vojcra;, AYE'
~l;a crOl n-;Ep. 'AJllv.

Barbara E. Bowe is Associate Professor of Biblical Studies at the

Catholic Theological Union in Chicago