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[Alexandr Korol]

So, it says in Wikipedia that “angel-man is Matthew, and its meaning is the human nature of Christ, His incarnation. The lion is Mark, representing the activity of the Lord and the kingly power of Christ, His resurrection from the dead. The ox is the priestly dignity of Christ, His crucifixion sacrifice. And the eagle is John,” so you see, the ox is Luke. “The eagle, John — the gift of the Holy Spirit hovering over the Church, as well as the Ascension of the Lord.” And now, how can I, at this moment, suppose which element, which elements, or which seasons this corresponds to? I think that still the Eagle, if it is the Holy Spirit, means Death, although before I called it differently. But now I see that I would call the Eagle the Spirit, that is Death, that is winter, that is night — the fourth element. The Ox is still the evening, autumn, the underworld, Baphomet, and here you see, the sacrifice. The Lion — resurrection from the dead, so that means morning. After the world of the dead, after night, after winter, you resurrect, that is morning, so it means spring, the Lion. And the Man, it’s written “human nature,” incarnation, flesh, embodiment, material world — that means summer, that means day. And here they are, please, the four elements, four elements: God of the sky, God of the earth, God of the underworld, God of the afterlife. This is just a quick sketch. I’m just... What I see now? I haven’t checked the archives precisely right now. Maybe I’ll read more in Wikipedia and change my opinion later.

So, what does Wikipedia say next? “First version: For the first time in the 2nd century, Irenaeus of Lyons, interpreting the Apocalypse, proposed a connection between the evangelists and the creatures from John the Divine’s vision: the lion according to Irenaeus symbolizes John the Divine, the ox symbolizes Luke, the man symbolizes Matthew, and the eagle symbolizes Mark. The same view was held by Anastasius Sinaita, Arethas of Caesarea, Theophylact of Bulgaria, and some other theologians. This tradition was preserved in the Christian East in the churches of Asia Minor. Irenaeus explains what each of the creatures symbolizes and concludes that it is just that Jesus Christ sits upon them.