The Sky-Veil: Preface
On the Distinction Between the Goddesses and the Saints in Heaven
In the mythopoetic cosmology of The Sky-Veil, the figures of Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera are understood not as predicates—qualities or attributes assigned to a subject—nor as metaphysical entities with independent existence. Rather, they are thresholds of presence, veiled unveilings, and symbolic harbingers of divine attributes that transcend simple description.
They are not predicates, because they are more than concepts or qualities;
they are not metaphysical entities, because they are less than personal beings.
The goddesses serve as poetic mediators between the visible and the invisible, the temporal and the eternal. They do not exist as beings within the order of creation, nor do they dwell in the Communion of Saints. Instead, they function as archetypal resonances, memory-echoes of the divine, manifesting through beauty, wisdom, and majesty in the symbolic imagination. They are not worshipped, but contemplated. They do not intercede, but rather prepare the soul for encounter with that which is holy.
By contrast, the saints in Heaven are metaphysical persons—each a unique soul, fully alive in the beatific vision of God. They are subjects, not symbols; beings, not figures. Their glory is not allegorical, but real, rooted in their sanctified union with Christ. The saints are partakers of the Divine Life, radiant with grace, and active participants in the Communion of Saints. They are intercessors, companions, and heirs of the Kingdom.
Thus:
The goddesses are preparatory figures—liminal, poetic, and symbolic. They are expressions of Being encountered through the imagination, art, and myth, pointing toward the divine but not possessing it.
The saints are redeemed persons—ontologically real, spiritually glorified, and eternally alive in God. They no longer point toward the divine; they dwell within it.
In this cosmology, the goddesses are the veil; the saints are those who have passed beyond it. The goddesses announce; the saints fulfill. The goddesses stir longing; the saints behold the Beloved.
The epithets “grey-eyed,” “ox-eyed,” and “laughter-loving” are used throughout this work as mythopoetic titles expressing the contemplative radiance of Joan of Arc’s sanctity. Drawn from ancient invocations of Athena (grey-eyed), Hera (ox-eyed), and Aphrodite (laughter-loving), these names are not attributed to Joan in the mythological or metaphysical sense of identification with pagan deities. Rather, they are symbolic gestures that evoke the triune archetypal light of wisdom, majesty, and divine love—unfolded in ancient myth and transfigured in Joan’s being through her union with Christ.
In the Sky-Veil cosmology, these epithets represent hypostatic forms—thresholds of Being’s self-disclosure through symbol. They are not predicates or possessions, but poetic unveilings. The “grey-eyed Being” of Joan expresses her contemplative clarity and martial courage in the light of divine wisdom. The “ox-eyed” gaze signifies the majestic stillness and sovereign bearing that crowns her mission. The “laughter-loving” joy evokes the radiant charity and divine beauty suffused in her soul. Together, they mark Joan not as a mythic figure reborn, but as a saint in whom ancient longing is fulfilled, and through whom Being, once veiled in symbol, now shines forth in grace.