the contribution of saint gregory palamas to hesychasm Epilogue
Epilogue

Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4

EPILOGUE

From what has been written above it should be clear that the charismatic theosis of the faithful is essentially equated with his (holy)-spiritual life, and furthermore that the theological pre-conditions of this life is theophany—through the effulgence of the deifying Grace—and theoptia (vision of God). Inasmuch , the gift of the vision of God and the charismatic abidance in the life of the Holy Spirit are pre-determined from specific anthropological presuppositions as well. Lucifer and our forefathers had the gift of Vision of God. In both circumstances, however, the loss of this charismatic gift took place after their known fall. The cause of their fall was the same. Lucifer and our forefathers desired and pursued their equality with God, blatantly ignoring their existential specifications as created beings. They proudly and egotistically projected their will ; they dodged God and His will for them ; and they ventured for the spiritual elevation of their position with their personal choices as the sole criteria. Thus, they tragically missed the mark. Consequently, if the faithful pursues theosis or the charismatic life of the Spirit and makes it the purpose of his life, he is in danger of succumbing to the same temptation of his forefathers with the analogous consequences. Theosis, as charismatic life of the Holy Spirit, cannot become man’s purpose because man cannot realize a purpose found much beyond and above his created natural capabilities. As Saint Maximos says very pointedly, “we feel it as being above nature according to Grace but we don’t work out our theosis. Nor do we have natural capability to receive the power of theosis.” Theosis consists of God’s purpose for man and the uncreated gift to him. Through this however, things change radically, along with the entire process for the realization of this propose. More specifically, the theosis of the faithful which was essentially expressed in the archieratical prayer of Christ—for the faithful to become one with the Triune God and to behold continually His uncreated glory has as its basic presupposition the Keeping of the Commandments, since this leads to the manifestation of Christ and God the Father to the heart of the faithful in the Spirit. The Keeping of the Commandments, however, pragmatically means the resignation of the faithful from his own will, regardless of how good it may appear to be. It means the subjection of his will to the will of God. But for the faithful to abandon his own will, he needs to previously come to the knowledge of his inner man by Divine Grace and to see the tragic result of the wandering of his nous in the dead end roads of his self-will. Then, he will feel disgust for his self-will, he will renounce it, and by this he will practically deny himself. Thus, he will enable himself from this point on to become a true disciple of Christ. Only then will he steadily redirect his will to the will of God and consider the Keeping of the Commandments as the only way to please God, without another single alternative solution.

The faithful, abandoning his will in disgust, humbles himself truly and pragmatically, causing himself to be endowed richly with the Grace of God. The Grace of God gives him the ability to be responsive to the will of God for the keeping of his commandments, because according to the assurance of Christ, “without me you cannot do anything.”

In this context, however, the charismatic theosis of the faithful, which comes forth from the keeping of the Commandments, is offered as uncreated deifying energy and a gift from God, and under no circumstances consists of an accomplishment or an achievement of the faithful. Under these anthropological presuppositions, the continuous progress of the faithful in the charismatic life of the Holy Spirit is realistically ensured, and the danger of ever falling according to the ancestral paradigm is nullified.

Beginning


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