DOCSLIB.ORG

Theologia and Oikonomia: the Soteriological Ground of Gregory of Nazianzus's Trinitarian Theology

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Theologia and Oikonomia: the Soteriological Ground of Gregory of Nazianzus's Trinitarian Theology Durham E-Theses THEOLOGIA AND OIKONOMIA: THE SOTERIOLOGICAL GROUND OF GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS'S TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY. JASHI, ZURAB How to cite: JASHI, ZURAB (2010) THEOLOGIA AND OIKONOMIA: THE SOTERIOLOGICAL GROUND OF GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS'S TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY., Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/619/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 THEOLOGIA AND OIKONOMIA THE SOTERIOLOGICAL GROUND OF GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS’S TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY by ZURAB JASHI A thesis submitted for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Department of Theology and Religion University of Durham September, 2010 Abstract This dissertation explores the soteriological ground of the trinitarian theology of Gregory of Nazianzus and establishes a consistent link in his thought between the spheres of oikonomia and theologia . His writings are studied against the background of contemporary theological and philosophical trends thus demonstrating the context within which he elaborated his main theological concepts as well as their novelty. Although Gregory drew heavily on the heritage of his intellectual master Origen, he significantly changed his perspective from cosmological speculations to reflections on the historical embodiment of Christ’s salvific activity. This shift was to lead Gregory towards a positive view of the body and of bodily desire which he considered a vital force in human existence capable of union with God in the process of deification. Gregory thus fully identified Christ with humanity in its total manifestation, including the human mind with its fallen and rebellious desire, now assumed and redeemed in the incarnation. Hence Gregory placed the suffering image of Christ at the heart of his trinitarian theological construction. As this thesis argues, around this image evolves the whole dogmatic edifice of Gregory’s theology. Christ’s divine sovereignty is understood not in separation and independence from the passion on Cross. Rather, its full manifestation is only possible because of the cross, because of Christ’s free and willing acceptance of it. The whole set of interrelationships between the suffering Christ and the Father and the Holy Spirit are depicted according to the logic of coincidence of sovereignty and humiliation. It is precisely in this combination of theological themes – expressed with our new concept of “kenotic sovereignty” – that the focus of the present thesis is located. This innovative spiritual disposition shapes both Gregory’s theological epistemology and his hermeneutical strategy. Arguing for the possibility of knowing the divine in and through human bodily existence and corroborating this view with suitably interpreted Scriptural evidence, he opens the horizons for the human ascension to the realm of the divine trinitarian life. In this way Gregory envisages access to the transcendent theology of the Trinity which is understood by him in purely personal terms, insofar as it implies the intimate conversation of God with us “as friends” (Or. 38.7). This unique reworking of classical and Christian themes is possible because of Gregory’s insistence that divine sovereignty and transcendence become intelligible exclusively in the context of Easter. Thus the habitually neglected narrative of the cross and resurrection of Christ in the thought of the Theologian is the only key to unlock his understanding of the luminous mystery of the Trinity. Contents Introduction _________________________________________________________ 5 a) The scope of this study ____________________________________________________ 5 b) The contributions of this study _____________________________________________ 6 c) The methodology and structure of the dissertation _____________________________ 7 d) Literature Review: The complexity of the definition of Gregory of Nazianzus’s theology___________________________________________________________________ 7 Part One: The Interrelationship between the Son of God and Human Nature ___ 23 1.1. The Anthropological Foundations of the Interrelation between the Son of God and Human Nature. ___________________________________________________________ 24 1.1.1. Interrelation of Logos with the Human Soul. _________________________________________ 24 1.1.2. The Interrelation between Logos and the Human Body. ________________________________ 36 1.2. The Christological Foundations of the Interrelationship between the Son of God and Human nature. ____________________________________________________________ 45 1.2.1. The Unity of Christ._____________________________________________________________ 46 1.2.2. The Deification of the Humanity in Christ ___________________________________________ 49 1.3. Conclusion______________________________________________________ 57 Part Two: The Interrelationship between the Persons of the Trinity in the Economy ___________________________________________________________________ 58 2.1. The Interrelation between the Son and the Father ___________________________ 59 2.1.1. Mediatorship in the Creation______________________________________________________ 59 2.1.2. The Mediatorship in the Knowledge of God _________________________________________ 68 2.1.3. The Mediatorship of the Son in the Salvific Activity and Will ___________________________ 71 2.1.4. The Priesthood of the Son ________________________________________________________ 74 2.2. The Interrelationship between the Son and the Holy Spirit in the Economy ______ 80 2.2.1. The Spirit as a Gift of the Salvation ________________________________________________ 81 2.2.2. The Dwelling of the Spirit in the Son in Their Relationship with the Father ________________ 88 2.3. Conclusion ____________________________________________________________ 94 Part Three: The Knowledge of the Immanent Trinity _______________________ 96 3.1. The Theological Epistemology ______________________________________ 97 3.1.1. The Desire for the Substance of God _______________________________________________ 98 3.1.2. The Spirit of the History of Salvation______________________________________________ 109 3.2. Theology: The Ontology of Paradox ________________________________ 113 3.2.1. The Triune Light ______________________________________________________________ 114 3.2.2. The Triune Movement__________________________________________________________ 123 3.3. Conclusion_____________________________________________________ 133 General Conclusion _________________________________________________ 135 Bibliography_______________________________________________________ 141 Declaration of Authorship and Note on Copyright: The material presented in the thesis has not previously been submitted for a degree in this or any other university. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published in any format, including electronic and the Internet, without the author’s prior written consent. All information derived from this thesis must be acknowledged appropriately. Introduction This study aims to explore the ways of formation of the trinitarian theology on the basis of the divine economy in the thought of Gregory of Nazianzus. There is a story how Thales could not notice a pit and fell in it while observing the sky. So during the centuries and even now there prevails the tendency to conceive the doctrine of the Trinity as a sky of abstract intellectual speculations that deprives us from seeing the actual problems in our interrelationship with God and with our fellow human beings. The last century, however, has seen a revival in the study of the Trinity. Prominent theologians of various Christian confessions began exploring the vital importance of the Trinity for the life of the Church as well as for each human person. Their striving to respond to the challenges of contemporary life by way of returning to the wisdom of the Church tradition is a very valuable enterprise. Yet, sometimes one is obliged to acknowledge that what people are finding in the tradition is what they already know. Thus modern theories of the so called social trinitarianism have failed to justify their claim to be heirs of the Trinitarian theology of the Church Father and especially of the Cappadocian Fathers. This agenda in contemporary theology inspires the present study as well. The spiritual disposition of the theologians of that past which has motivated them to construct such a paradoxical vision of God represents great challenge for our minds today. Chief among the patristic thinkers who fall in this category is Gregory of Nazianzus. Perhaps more than anywhere else it is in his writings that we find an understanding of the Trinity which is at the same time an unreachable final mystery and an attainable “crown” of our saving confession. a) The scope of this study The research will be engaged with the elucidation
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Ways of Byzantine Philosophy
    The Ways of Byzantine Philosophy The Ways of Byzantine Philosophy Edited by Mikonja Knežević Sebastian Press Alhambra, California The ways of Byzantine philosophy / Mikonja Knežević, editor. — Alham- bra, California : Sebastian Press, Western American Diocese of the Ser- bian Orthodox Church, Faculty of Philosophy, Kosovska Mitrovica, 2015. 476 pages ; 23 cm. (Contemporary Christian thought series ; no. 32) ISBN: 978-1-936773-25-1 1. Philosophy—Byzantine Empire. 2. Philosophy, Ancient. 3. Philosophy, Medieval. 4. Christian philosophy. 5. Christianity—Philosophy. 6. Ortho- dox Eastern Church—Byzantine Empire—Doctrines—History. 7. Ortho- dox Eastern Church—Theology. 8. Philosophy and religion—Byzantine Empire. 9. Theologians—Byzantine Empire. 10. Christian saints—Byzan- tine Empire—Philosophy. 11. Byzantine empire—Church history. 12. Byzantine empire—Civilization. I. Knežević, Mikonja, 1978– II. Series. Contents Georgi Kapriev Philosophy in Byzantium and Byzantine Philosophy .....................1 Dušan Krcunović Hexaemeral Anthropology of St. Gregory of Nyssa: “Unarmed Man” (ἄοπλος ὁ ἄνθρωπος) ................................9 Torstein Theodor Tollefsen St. Gregory the Theologian on Divine Energeia in Trinitarian Generation ..........................................25 Ilaria L. E. Ramelli Proclus and Christian Neoplatonism: Two Case Studies . 37 Dmitry Birjukov Hierarchies of Beings in the Patristic Thought. Gregory of Nyssa and Dionysius the Areopagite ........................71 Johannes Zachhuber Christology after Chalcedon and the Transformation of the Philosophical Tradition: Reflections on a neglected topic . 89 José María Nieva Anthropology of Conversion in Dionysius the Areopagite . 111 Filip Ivanović Eros as a Divine Name in Dionysius the Areopagite . 123 Basil Lourié Leontius of Byzantium and His “Theory of Graphs” against John Philoponus ..........................................143 i Vladimir Cvetković The Transformation of Neoplatonic Philosophical Notions of Procession (proodos) and Conversion (epistrophe) in the Thought of St.
    [Show full text]
  • St Basil's Contribution to the Trinitarian Doctrine: A
    ST BASIL’S CONTRIBUTION TO THE TRINITARIAN DOCTRINE: A SYNTHESIS OF GREEK PAIDEIA AND THE SCRIPTURAL WORLDVIEW Philip Kariatlis Abstract: St Basil’s contribution to the formulation of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity has long been acknowledged in the Christian tradition. Indeed, he was responsible for articulating the ‘orthodox’ vision of God with theological and philosophical originality that truly laid the foundations upon which the way of pondering the Trinitarian mystery in the East was established. His achievement lay in his remarkable ability to ennoble the culture of the day with the Christian message without in any way compromising the latter. This paper explores the Trinitarian theology of St Basil with a view towards highlighting the harmonious synthesis of Greek paideia and the scriptural worldview. ndeniably, the Church’s teaching on the mystery of the Holy Trinity stands at the very heart of Christian belief. Indeed, Uit has rightly been recognised as Christianity’s differentia specifica, namely that specific teaching which clearly distinguishes the 1 Christian faith from all other forms of monotheism. Notwithstanding the importance of this teaching and the fact that it is firmly rooted in the Scriptures, it nevertheless took the early Church many years to acquire a clearly articulated theology of the Trinitarian mystery. The need for precise terminology particularly emerged when the Church had to define with accuracy in what way the one God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – namely, the Father almighty – was related to Jesus Christ – who was professed to be God’s only begotten Son, his eternal Word and Image – PHRONEMA, VOL.
    [Show full text]
  • An Approach to Religious Formation for Children, Integrating the Heart, Mind, and Hand by D
    Catechesis of the Good Shepherd: An Approach to Religious Formation for Children, Integrating the Heart, Mind, and Hand by Dr. Mary Ford St. Tikhon's Orthodox Seminary South Canaan, Pennsylvania USA The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) has been used effectively for over 50 years in over 30 different countries all around the world (from Chad in Africa, to Brazil, to Italy, and all over the US and Canada), in many varied cultures and with children from many different backgrounds. It has been officially blessed by Metropolitan Joseph (and Metr. Philip before him) of the Antiochian Archdiocese, and Bishop David of Alaska of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), who gives it his “highest recommendation and endorsement.” It is required (since last year going forward) of all students at St. Herman's Orthodox Seminary in Alaska, and it has been taught for years at Holy Cross Orthodox Seminary in Brookline, MA (Greek Orthodox Archdiocese), in the summers. This catechesis assumes that “to initiate the child into the Christian mystery is to initiate the child into the mystery of life,”1 for the Christian message “is rooted in the most profound depths of the human person and in the whole of reality. It nourishes the most irrepressible hunger of the human person [“to receive and return” the love of God2], and enlightens all that surrounds one.”3 CGS seeks to help meet that hunger, those vital spiritual needs of the child at their particular ages. Since children around the world have responded very positively in similar ways to this program, it is reasonable to assume that it does provide what truly meets the child's vital needs and what resonates with that age.
    [Show full text]
  • Prospects and Problems in Roman Catholic-Orthodox Dialogue
    A Universal Ministry of Unity: Prospects and Problems in Roman Catholic-Orthodox Dialogue Author Gooley, Anthony John Published 2012 Thesis Type Thesis (PhD Doctorate) School School of Humanities DOI https://doi.org/10.25904/1912/1796 Copyright Statement The author owns the copyright in this thesis, unless stated otherwise. Downloaded from http://hdl.handle.net/10072/367673 Griffith Research Online https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au A Universal Ministry of Unity: Prospects and Problems in Roman Catholic-Orthodox Dialogue. Anthony John Gooley B.A. (Psych), B.Th., B.A. Hons I (Theol), Grad Dip Ed School of Humanities Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Griffith University Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree Doctor of Philosophy January, 2010 Dedication I dedicate this doctoral thesis with love to my wife, Shylaja, and my two children, Meera and Liam, who form for me the koinonia of the domestic church in which my life is enriched daily. Acknowledgement I wish to acknowledge the guidance of my supervisor Rev. Dr David Pascoe, who commenced this journey with me a number of years ago and my co-supervisor Rev Dr. Don Saines. Synopsis This study commences with the invitation made by Pope John Paul II for Churches and theologians to engage with him in a patient and fraternal dialogue on the ministry of unity which he exercises within the new situation in which the Church lives. In particular the study considers the prospects and problems for the reception of a universal ministry of unity in the Roman Catholic-Orthodox theological dialogue. The study contends that uncovering the prospects and problems for the reception of a universal ministry of unity is essentially a hermeneutical task.
    [Show full text]
  • The Importance of Athanasius and the Views of His Character
    The Importance of Athanasius and the Views of His Character J. Steven Davis Submitted to Dr. Jerry Sutton School of Divinity Liberty University September 19, 2017 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter I: Research Proposal Abstract .............................................................................................................................11 Background ......................................................................................................................11 Limitations ........................................................................................................................18 Method of Research .........................................................................................................19 Thesis Statement ..............................................................................................................21 Outline ...............................................................................................................................21 Bibliography .....................................................................................................................27 Chapter II: Background of Athanasius An Influential Figure .......................................................................................................33 Early Life ..........................................................................................................................33 Arian Conflict ...................................................................................................................36
    [Show full text]
  • Tertullian's Text of the New Testament Outside the Gospels
    TERTULLIAN’S TEXT OF THE NEW TESTAMENT OUTSIDE THE GOSPELS by BENJAMIN DOUGLAS HAUPT A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY School of Philosophy, Theology, and Religion College of Arts and Law University of Birmingham January 2019 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. ABSTRACT This study examines Tertullian’s references to the New Testament outside the Gospels, in order to determine whether he was citing from a Greek or Latin copy of these writings. A new collection of these references was undertaken and is explained in the Appendix. The conclusion of the analysis is that Tertullian was quoting the New Testament writings using Greek exemplars and translating anew in most instances. Tertullian was one of the first Christians to have undertaken such translation work. It is proposed that Tertullian was participating in and influenced by a broad cultural-linguistic movement called the Second Sophistic. Latin writers like Cicero, Quintilian, Varro, and Apuleius were also participants, and their translation of Greek works into Latin likely formed Tertullian to become a literary translator.
    [Show full text]
  • The Teachings of St. Gregory Palamas on Knowing God by Experience
    The Teachings of St. Gregory Palamas on Knowing God by Experience by Fr. Symeon Kees St. Gregory Palamas masterfully explained how we can know God personally by experience and, at the same time, how God is completely beyond us, unreachable, and unknowable. To understand St. Gregory’s teachings, one should first realize that he emphasized the necessity of direct, personal knowledge (that is, the experience of God), not discursive knowledge acquired by means of reason, which offers only insufficient concepts of God.1 (In other words, there is a difference between knowing God personally and just knowing about God by reading books or philosophically thinking about God.) Mantzaridis wrote that “direct and personal knowledge of God is achieved through a mystical communion with Him. Man gains true knowledge of Him once he is visited by deifying grace and united through it with God. The more man accepts the divinizing transformation worked within him by the Holy Spirit, the more perfect and full is his knowledge of God”2 This direct knowledge is a fruit, not of reason or the process of learning external information, but knowledge acquired from within the person united to the One known through personal communion. St. Gregory Palamas said simply, “Contemplation…is the fruit of a healthy soul, outcome and a state which divinize man. It is through contemplation that a person is made divine, not by speculative analogies in the basis of skilful reasoning and observations…but under the guidance of stillness.”3 1 St. Gregory Palamas, The Triads, A.I.i – I.i.20, ed.
    [Show full text]
  • Address to Young Men on the Right Use of Greek Literature by Saint Basil: a Corpus Stylistic Approach
    Globe: A Journal of Language, Culture and Communication, 2: 108-123 (2015) Address to young men on the right use of Greek literature by Saint Basil: A corpus stylistic approach Georgios Alexandropoulos, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine the text Address to young men on the right use of Greek literature by Saint Basil using corpus stylistics. In this interdisciplinary study rhetorical analysis is combined with linguistic theories and corpus-linguistic tools. Via application of this methodological framework, we can extract secure and meaningful results as regards the style and the ideological intentionality of Saint Basil in this text. Keywords: Communicative and rhetorical goal, corpus stylistic approach, Saint Basil, style. 1. Introduction Saint Basil1 was born in 330 in Caesarea of Cappadocia. His family was well-off and his parents were well-educated. He studied close to the teacher of rhetoric Lebanius2 and subsequently went to Athens to study philosophy and rhetoric. He donated the greater part of his property to poor people and became the Bishop of Caesarea in 370. Our research is based on one text of Saint Basil Address to young men on the right use of Greek literature;3 in order for us to be able to apply corpus-linguistic analysis, the text (4,360 word tokens) was electronically typed and we relied on Migne (1857-1866) as regards its form (PG 31, 563-590). In this treatise, Saint Basil presents his view on the worth of the literature of Ancient Greece and conveys to the audience the criterion of usefulness in their lives.
    [Show full text]
  • The Religious Dimension in the National Language of the Greeks
    THE RELIGIOUS DIMENSION IN THE NATIONAL LANGUAGE OF THE GREEKS Archbishop Stylianos (Harkianakis) Abstract: This paper provides several indicative insights into the 'religious' dimension of the Greek language. It refers not only to the specific notion of the Divine, but also to the general disposition towards piety which is expressed in a people's language, even when speaking about the most mundane matters. Several Greek terms are analysed. For instance the term υπάρχω represents a higher order above each person, a higher being, to which one submits by definition; the very term therefore indicating a ruler second in order. The abstract nouns καθήκον (duty) and αλήθεια (truth), εξήγηση (explanation) vis-a-vis ερμηνεία (hermeneutics), and σώμα (body) vis-à-vis πνεύμα (spirit) are used as examples. While parallels have also been drawn from time to time between Christ and Dionysos as well as Christ and Apollo, a similar correlation between the Theotokos and Ariadne offers astonishing analogies and likenesses. Beyond the ontological and ethical levels there is also a gnosiological level at which significant Greek terms clearly indicated the direct reliance of the human being upon God. hen Isocrates asserted that it is right 'to call Greeks those who partake in our education, rather than common ancestry', Whe was formulating a cultural truth of universal value - the antithesis of every form of chauvinism or racism. This truth was repeated - and complemented to some extent - in more recent times by G. Tertsetis through his well-known aphorism that 'language is the custom of customs'. Isocrates is in fact complemented by Tertsetis for, while the former underlines the educational factor in general, as a collective condition of the unity and homogeneity of a people, the latter extols the instrument of language/?er se both as an indicator of the inner psyche and as a reflection of the particularity of a national entity.
    [Show full text]
  • Virginity Discourse and Ascetic Politics in the Writings of Ambrose of Milan
    Virginity Discourse and Ascetic Politics in the Writings of Ambrose of Milan by Ariel Bybee Laughton Department of Religion Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Dr. Elizabeth A. Clark, Supervisor ___________________________ Dr. Lucas Van Rompay ___________________________ Dr. J. Warren Smith ___________________________ Dr. J. Clare Woods ___________________________ Dr. Zlatko Pleše Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Religion in the Graduate School of Duke University 2010 ABSTRACT Virginity Discourse and Ascetic Politics in the Writings of Ambrose of Milan by Ariel Bybee Laughton Department of Religion Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Dr. Elizabeth A. Clark, Supervisor ___________________________ Dr. Lucas Van Rompay ___________________________ Dr. J. Warren Smith ___________________________ Dr. J. Clare Woods ___________________________ Dr. Zlatko Pleše An abstract of a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Religion in the Graduate School of Duke University 2010 Copyright by Ariel Bybee Laughton 2010 ABSTRACT Ambrose, bishop of Milan, was one of the most outspoken advocates of Christian female virginity in the fourth century C.E. This dissertation examines his writings on virginity in the interest of illuminating the historical and social contexts of his teachings. Considering Ambrose’s treatises on virginity as literary productions with social, political, and theological functions in Milanese society, I look at the various ways in which the bishop of Milan formulated ascetic discourse in response to the needs and expectations of his audience. Furthermore, I attend to the various discontinuities in Ambrose’s ascetic writings in the hope of illuminating what kinds of ideological work these texts were intended to perform by the bishop within Milanese society and beyond.
    [Show full text]
  • Sinai, Zion, and Eden in Byzantine Hymnographic Exegesis1
    Bogdan G. Bucur PiĴ sburgh, PA “THE MOUNTAIN OF THE LORD“: SINAI, ZION, AND EDEN IN BYZANTINE HYMNOGRAPHIC EXEGESIS1 Introduction In the manifesto of the “Theophaneia School,“ Alexander Go litzin ventures the following bold statement: Theophany permeates Orthodox Tradition throughout, informing its dogmatic theology and its liturgy. That Jesus, Mary’s son, is the very One who appeared to Moses and the prophets — this is the consistent witness of the ante-Nicene Fathers, and remains founda- tional throughout the fourth century Trinitarian controversies and the later christological disputes.2 In the pages to follow, I would like to show that, aside from the his- tory of creeds, councils, and condemnations, and accompanying the patristic works of Christology or trinitarian theology, the identifi cation of the Son of Mary with “the Lord of Glory whom Moses saw of old“ is also aĜ rmed by the hymnographic tradition of the Christian East. The witness of Byzantine hymnography is extremely relevant, as no single patristic work has been read so extensively and with such uncondi- tional acceptance throughout the ages. Nevertheless, as I will show, the exegetical dimension of Byzantine hymnography is diĜ cult to de- fi ne using the categories commonly used for early Christian exegesis (“allegory,“ “typology,“ etc); I submit that a more suitable category (1) Except where indicated, the English translation of the hymns is taken from The Festal Menaion (trans. Mother Mary and Kallistos Ware; London— Boston: Faber&Faber, 1969) and The Lenten Triodion (trans. Mother Mary and Kallistos Ware; London—Boston: Faber&Faber, 1977), modifi ed only to con- form to contemporary use of pronouns and verbs.
    [Show full text]
  • Download File
    1 Uncovering Desire: Explorations in Eros, Aggression and the Question of Theosis in Marriage Pia Chaudhari INTRODUCTION Over 1500 years ago, in Antioch, St. John Chrysostom gave advice to men seeking to pacify an upset wife. Speak lovingly to her, he instructed; tell her “that you love her more than your own life…and that your only hope is that the two of you pass through this life in such a way that in the world to come you will be united in perfect love.” Say to her “Our time here is brief, and fleeting, but if we are pleasing to God, we can exchange this life for the Kingdom to come. Then we will be perfectly one both with Christ and each other and our pleasure will know no bounds1.” This counsel is striking in the depth and weight he gives to the love, and pleasure in such love, between a husband and wife. Notably, this love does not end with death but transcends it, extending into the Kingdom of Heaven. Else- where he speaks warmly of the same bond, saying “the power of this love is truly stronger than any passion; other desires may be strong but this one alone never fades. This love (eros) is deeply planted within our inmost being.”2 We have here a strong and simple insight into the nature of love as eros. It is deeply implanted in our inmost beings, and it is stronger than death. How, then, does it relate to salvation? Does it provide a clue as to the link between our embodied lives now and the life to come? And what do we do with aggression that surfaces, or goes underground, to bedevil the best of our attempts at union? This paper is a brief exploration of the intertwining of eros and theosis in the sacramental union that is marriage, using depth psychological insights and Orthodox theology.
    [Show full text]