We have learned to understand the teaching about Theosis as a true representation of the Inner Tradition as taught to this day by the Hesychasts of the Church in places like Mount Athos; Hesychasm is a particular form of the Christian method of spiritual growth that was made possible by Christ, has since been proven over something like two thousand years, and is still quietly producing results to this day: for the individual, those results are a period of inner illumination leading in time to Theosis. Traditionally this is taught as a form of ortho docis or true doctrine, but it must be understood what this means. Ortho-docis means a teaching that must not be changed, because it is the true teaching that is known to bring us to the glory of illumination. But to avoid this attitude turning into pure bigotry, we need to know what must not be changed, and why it must not be changed. The reason is because it contains: + Knowledge that originates from outside space and time as we know them: from outside our normal purely human thoughts and ideas. + Knowledge proven to lead to practical results + An understanding of the meaning of that knowledge gained through practice that leads to those results. |
It is true, then, that in its narrowest sense, this tradition must never be changed, because it is not only a statement of fact. It is also a formula, like a recipe or a medical prescription: if the instructions are changed, the results they produce will almost certainly change. So not only should nobody plan on following only a part of the instructions, nor should anybody who is using this method change a single word in the instructions. At the same time, other truths which are not directly related to and proven by the method, nor are necessary to the understanding of that method, should not be regarded as final and complete in the same way. One can develop and refine one’s understanding of these things progressively. Discoveries made by individuals can be used, refined, or developed by anyone who understands them clearly. Theosis is the term given to certain charismatic illuminations because they satisfy the deepest need in the human psyche; this is not a physical need, nor truly a need of the psyche, but when it is not met at its own level, in creates a need for psychological or physical satisfactions. Theosis satisfies the human heart in a way entirely different from our ordinary satisfactions, and discovering it gives us true purpose. In fact, the human heart cannot be satisfied by anything less than God. With this charismatic Theosis, man’s constant search for happiness – which is nothing more than an attempt to fill the void left by the lack of this divine satisfaction – comes to rest in stillness, love and joy. | "Externally, man seems to be simply a biological creature, like the other living creatures, the animals. Of course, he is an animal, but an animal ... whose species and specialisation is theosis. The human is the one animal which reaches up to become divine; to become a spiritual being. "The human proceeds towards Theosis in its gravitation towards God", says St. Gregory the Theologian. God is the one being that is distinct from everything else in creation, the only one which can become a god. To say that a human is created “in His image" refers to the gifts which God gave only to man as an icon of God - and in that way distinct from all His other creatures,” "The divinised human serves as an icon of God. "These gifts are: nous with logos;
conscience;
independent initiative,
creativity,
the eros and a yearning for the absolute and for God,
personal self-awareness,
and anything else which puts man above all other living beings in creation, and makes him a human individual.
"Being born “in His image”, man is called upon to become “His likeness” – i.e. to acquire Theosis. The Creator, God in His nature, calls man to become a god by Grace. "The charismata which form “His image” were given to man by God in order that he may reach a very high level, so that through them he may achieve a likeness to his God and Maker, not only an external, moral relation, but a personal union with his Creator. "Perhaps it is audacious for us even to think and speak of our life's objective as to become gods by Grace. However, the fact remains that neither the Bible nor the Church Fathers have hidden this from us." (From 'Theosis' by Archimandrite George of the Mount Athos monastery of Gregoriou, soon to be available from Praxis) |
