Deification by Еnergy and/or by Hypostasis: St Nicholas Cabasilas’ Christological Solution

Authors:

Pages: 124-161
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54664/OUAN4361

Abstract:

Contemporary Orthodox Christian theology places the theme of man’s deification at the centre of soteriology and anthropology. The last decades, however, saw the tendency for this theme to be exclusively articulated within the discourse of the theology of uncreated energies, without referring to the fundamental hypostatological dimension of anthropology. This tendency stems from two main presuppositions: the establishing of a peculiar economy of energies which relegates the divine Hypostases to the background, and the irrelevance of Christology in the context of this economy. This is the reason why the present study sets out to look for the synthesis of the energological and hypostatological discourses in the anthropology of deification, in particular searching for St Nicholas Cabasilas’ Christological solution. In his mystagogical discourse he assimilates the patristic theology of uncreated energies, seeing them, however, as God’s personal dialogical suggestions offered to the creation in the event of Christ. As Christology confirms the truth about the enhypostatization of uncreated energies, the key premises patristic theologizing is based on are Christological energism and the paradigm of perichoresis. This is the perspective in which St Nicholas Kabasilas develops his radical Christologization of deification exclusively understanding it as an all-embracing Christifying of human existence and life. Within the framework of his Christological conception, St Nicholas Kabasilas understands deification as the charismatic acquisition of new being and existence (= hypostasis) κατὰ Χριστόν – or, in other words, as a charismatic participation in the new hypostatic mode of existence of man in Christ. This radical Christologization of deification is developed within the sacramental ontology of the life in Christ, that is, within an experiential sacramental ecclesiology. Deification is the event of Eucharistic Christifying, which is the charismatic fruit of the Eucharistic ‘continuation’ of the Christological perichoresis of divine and human energical characteristics and powers. This is the very birth of the authentic human person as a new spiritual hypostasis in Christ. In this way, the Christologization of deification within the framework and context of sacramental ecclesiology leads to the synthesis of the energological and hypostatological dimensions of the event of deification and hence of the whole Orthodox anthropology.

Keywords:

Download

NA / Australia / Bulgaria / China / Europe / France / Germany / Portugal / Russian Federation / Sweden / Ukraine / United Kingdom / United States