This second volume of Adrienne von Speyr’s Posthumous Works presents an interpretation of the biblical number 153 (the quantity of fish caught by Peter in Jn 21:11) in relation to holiness in the Church. The plenitude of ecclesial sanctity is represented by 153, whereas each of the great saints contained in this fullness has a different prime number. When related or combined in various ways, these primes all yield 153, just as their missions complement each other as manifestations of the fullness of the Church’s sanctity.

Further Reading

• Hans Urs von Balthasar. “General Introduction to the Posthumous Works.” The Book of All Saints: Part One, Ignatius Press, 2008, pp. 1–24
• Hans Urs von Balthasar. First Glance at Adrienne von Speyr.