Perhaps the greatest contribution the Eastern Fathers of the Church have made to Christianity is found in two different areas: (1) the dogma of the Church (the thinking of the Eastern Fathers is the basis for the formulation of the dogmas set forth in the first seven Councils) and (2) in the formation of a truly exceptional spirituality that is so positive and enhancing of the basic goodness of humankind. For example, the profound intellectual output of Byzantium’s Maximus the Confessor presents an unparalleled balance of theology and philosophy, with faith as the moving force of all reflection. The Confessor’s spiritual experience leads him to extraordinary heights of mystical knowledge, which is the guiding life for all his intellectual endeavors. This mysticism is brought to prominence in his doctrine of divinization or deification. As I hope more of my readers already know, Theosis or Divinization is the approach to human spirituality in the East which is so very liberating of our human spirit and sense of goodness.

For Maximus, the essential conditions for fulfilling the divinizing process are the magnanimous divine initiative and willing human cooperation.  He unceasingly  glorifies divine love expressed through grace, which “out of human beings makes us gods….Nothing is more truly Godlike than divine love, nothing more mysterious, nothing more apt to raise up human beings to deification.” The greatest testament to love of God for humankind is the incarnation, whereby

 … the Creator of nature  himself… has clothed himself with our nature, without change uniting it hypostatically to himself, in order to check what has been borne away, and gather it to himself, so that, gathered to himself, our nature may no longer have any difference from him in its inclination In this way he clearly established the all glorious way of love, which is truly divine and deifying and leads to God.

I would truly encourage my readers to think about this quote from Maximus. Ask yourself whether you sense the difference between the Eastern Church’s understanding of the spiritual life and the Western Church’s understanding. I find in the Eastern Church’s approach a much different understanding of the human condition and human nature. The Confessor rejoices in the incarnation of God as the opening up of previously hidden ways by which humans may arrive at the fullness of God. Maximus was acutely aware of the reciprocal responsibility on the part of humans. He avers with confidence that “our salvation is contingent upon our will,” and “the mystery of salvation belongs to those who desire it”.                      (Think about it)