Articles

DR. HARALAMBOS ANSTALL

THE DIVINE ÉROS:
AN EXPLORATION OF THE LOVE OF GOD
IN THE ORTHODOX TRADITION

I. PREAMBLE

"He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.1
...God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him." 2

We begin with the above quotations from the first Epistle of St. John the Theologian, for these words, more than any others, clearly define the point of departure for our consideration of the love of God or, more particularly, God as love. In saying this, St. John is not indulging himself in some airy, poetic personification. Nor is he stating metaphor. Rather, his characterization is offered as perfect truth, the most fundamental and awe-pervading truth that exists and one upon which the entirety of the universe ultimately depends.
In the tradition of the Fathers, humanity is faced with two possible ultimate destinies: the negative one in which the human person, by voluntary rejection, places itself out of contact with God, preferring instead a fatal illusion of self-love and so-called self-sufficiency. This woeful negative choice leads inevitably to eternal frustration and misery. Conversely, the positive choice of mankind leads through synérgeia whose driving energy is love to a symbiotic relationship between the divine Creator and the human=2 0being. Synérgeia creates an enduring, constantly increasing communion of love between the two natures.
In the first instance, there is a voluntary rejection of God by man through which the person, by choosing to oppose the eternal and loving Truth, is forever cut off from the realization of that Truth. In the second instance, however, a state of blessedness is initiated which in turn establishes a loving communion that forever proceeds from Glory to Glory.
The intensity, the ardour and the intimacy with which this love is pursued between Creator and creature, between God and His human icon, fashioned in His own image and proceeding in love toward His likeness, surpasses all possibility of description or representation in human parlance. The realization of the truth of Divine love, which encompasses within it purity and persistence and a progressive yet eternal character, transcends the power of the human mind to comprehend and thus define it in a way adequate and sufficient enough to convey its perceived intensity, tenderness and ferocity.3 As we attempt to speak of God's love in intelligible terms, we feel helpless and inadequate. Thus we are forced to relay our impressions imperfectly while still trying to convey our desire and heart-felt longing for the sublime eternal experience.
In human terminology, "love" is variously described perhaps most perfectly in the Greek language as being manifest in three forms: philía, agápe, and éros. In popular understanding, particularly in the West, these are seen as categories with fairly well-defined delimitations and qualitative differences that clearly separate them, one from another.
Philía is seen as friendship an intense, sincere fondness between persons, implying something rather more than acquaintanceship but generally less than intimacy. Agápe and its derivative verb, agapaô, can be variously expressed in English as love in a familial sense, the love of a parent for a child or between siblings; charity; support and loving obligation. The early heretical teachings of Augustine of Hippo and Anselm of Canterbury perceived éros as an imperfect condition and one to be avoided whenever possible in favour of extended virginity. Therefore, they characterized human sexuality as intrinsically evil, carrying with it grave consequences for guilt. In essence, an erotic relationship between male and female was seen primarily as self-indulgent gratification. Thus, in the West, the human expression of éros in relation to the Holy Mystery of Marriage has often been obliquely referred to as something intrinsically impure a necessary evil deplored by the truly virtuou s!
For the Eastern fathers of the Orthodox Church to speak of the Divine éros in a positive and legitimate sense came as a shocking surprise and one totally incomprehensible to the Western ecclesiological mind. The condemnations of éros by Augustine and Anselm, neither of whom could associate éros with God in any meaningful or positive way, have created a centuries-old suggestion of distortion or blasphemy against the doctrines of Christianity, yet nothing could be further from the truth.
In the tradition of the Holy Orthodox Church, the fathers speak both of human love for God and Divine love of God for mankind in erotic terms. On the one hand, the creature loving his Creator is seen as burning with an insatiable desire for loving conjunction and eternal union with that Being (the Divine life) and voluntarily submerging his created human nature with that of Divinity. In so doing, man acquires that likeness to God which transfigures his creaturely condition into a god-like one. Thus, by God's love (His éros perceived as Divine energy) the human creature acquires by grace that which Christ possesses by nature. And, in the same way, the Divine love of the Creator for His creature is perceived with peculiar intensity, like the yearnin g of the Bridegroom for His beloved, a desire for the consummation of an eternal and loving communion.4
The notion of intimate and eternal union between creature and Creator raises the concept of erotic love to an infinitude of ineffable sanctity, thereby defining for us (albeit inadequately) the process of théosis, in which the human being in synérgeia with God fulfils his innate potential for acquiring a Divine likeness (omoíosis). Here, patristic writings employ the term synousía (a union of substance) to indicate a true interaction of the creature with Divinity's uncreated energies. This human-Divine union results in a full and total rapprochement in which the human creature freely enters into loving conformity with the totality of Divine will. As we shall see later, this operation of God's Divine grace manifests itself ecstatically in both human and Divine beings. While the creature is drawn out of his human nature to reveal himself to God as completely loving, bonded and united in full adoration, God also reaches forth to His beloved creation through His uncreated energies, quite outside of His own ineffable and unknowable nature. In this union, human and Divine energies invoke in each other a reciprocal response, manifest in the indescribable love of the Creator for His cre ature, and in that of the creature for his Lord.
Thus, inherently, the Eastern fathers of the Church see éros from a wholly different perspective than that defined by the Western followers of Anselm or Augustine. Human éros, limited though it may be, its power of expression infinitely less than that of Divine éros, is seen by the fathers of the Orthodox Church, not so much as a carnal limitation and a confining passion but, in the appropriate place, more as a counterpoint to the Divine éros under the sanctification of bonded love and devotion. Éros between male and female in the Holy Mystery of Marriage is a blessed and Divinely sanctioned act both in its spiritual and carnal manifestations. In this context, rather than considering human éros as essentially evil, in that it may be thought to divert the attention of a human being from the true object of its love(that is to say, God alone), we may rejoice in the prospect of this éros as a Divine charisma, a blessed gift of God reflecting both spiritual and somatic aspects of humanity. Indeed, we are psychosomatic beings! In this context, we have only to consider the Divine commandment given to our first forefathers, the one which was further sanctified by the necessary accompaniment of erotic love: namely, to be fruitful, multiply and populate the earth,5 an operation impossible to achieve without procreative union. It is worthy of note that this commandment was issued before "the Fall" to as-yet unfallen human beings, who were clearly intended to obey it in their original unfallen state. In like manner, we behold Christ blessing the wedding feast at Cana, which was the scene of His first-accounted miracle.6 Again, we especially note Christ's teaching on marriage wherein a man shall leave his mother and father and cleave to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.7
Today, we dwell in a particularly sad and turbulent society, one characterized by gratuitous violence, lust, chicanery and deceit, greed and covetousness, in which the teachings of the Saviour and the commandments of God are woefully and wantonly disregarded and, in many instances, altogether abandoned. The Holy éros of sanctified marriage is frequently lost when, in the pursuit of primitive carnal passion, it manifests itself merely as selfish, sensual gratification, resulting in a loveless form of sex. The proliferation of perverted practices, the almost unrestrained spread of vile and vulgar pornography, and the scandalous perpetration of foul sexual practices upon innocent children (even by their own relatives and parents), are further manifestations of a world gone mad...a world in the process of altogether denying the existence, power and infinitude of God. That such acts can occur in this so-called "post-Christian" period in which we dwell while even appearing commonplace in their commitment is in no small measure perhaps a reaction of frustration and anger against the inappropriate and repressiv e theological current of opinion falsely described as "Christian." Sadly, such long-held and invasive theological pronouncements have continued to misrepresent human éros (since the time of Augustine and Anselm) as somehow reprehensible and undesirable, to be spoken of (if at all) in hushed tones and elaborate euphemisms specifically intended to categorize the whole subject as unworthy of decent conversation! Indeed, we have paid dearly and are continuing to pay for unfortunate moral aberrations and Pharisaical posturing which have created and continue to perpetuate the miseries inherent in trying to survive a lifetime of double standards and hypocrisy.
The fathers of the Church speak of the Divine éros as an "Uncreated Energy" which, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and in synérgeia with God, is the physical-emotional impulse responsible for that transfiguration we call théosis. Such a concept sanctifies éros, thereby raising human sexual love from the common, vulgar notion of selfish and reprehensible carnality comprehended by the popular mind to a dynamic of ineffable splendour. The result of théosis is the deification of mankind. We will explore this Energy in all of its varying aspects, insofar as we can, in the context of Divine Éros as a manifestation of Uncreated Energy, revealed to us by God Himself.
In particular, we shall have much to say concerning an apparent paradox that at once presents itself. In the human concept of éros, the coexistence and coincidence of passion (páthos) seems inevitable. The fathers speak much about the attainment of dispassion (apátheia) as an essential prerequisite to théosis. The resolution of this paradox, variously addressed by the fathers, will be an important feature of this essay.
If one had the power to read clearly the secrets and hidden places of human hearts and minds, one might discover in many cases that most desires selfish, lustful and acquisitive though they may be might possibly represent an expression of a misdirected yearning for God. In our present chaotic world, which in fact is behaving exactly as Christ predicted, humanity in its advanced state of debasement has become largely separated from God. Yet, the true and convinced atheist (the cardiac atheist, so to speak) is a rare bird even in our society! Although the vast number of atheists lead lives of minimal religious experience and seldom encounter God in any shape or form, deep within themselves in the innermost secret places of their beings they nevertheless sense an urge to reach for something beyond themselves. However obscure and indirect their perceptions may be, the human need for Divine love an d God's communion with mankind makes its presence felt. The human response may be inappropriate when the true underlying nature of such yearning is not apparent. It may become appropriate, however, when the nature of God's love is revealed through sacred Scripture. When properly interpreted through the living witness of the Messiah and the teachings and traditions of the Church, the vast gulf which lies between inappropriate carnal lust and Divine Éros becomes indelibly apparent.
In this same context, theologians must be cautioned to insure that certain depressive doctrines concerning human love will be thoroughly questioned and generally discarded, most importantly those which see in that love something sinful or reprehensible! There is a direct analogy between human éros and the love of God. Since, in its appropriate context (within the sanctified environment of the Holy Mystery of Marriage), human physical éros has a distinctly redemptive value. We should be consciously aware of the sacred, charismatic nature of wedded union by which the complete wholeness of human nature, created as male and female, is truly accomplished. The Holy union of married partners, brought about between formerly separate human beings in an appropriate atmosphere of spiritual and physical love, blessed by God, draws near in a small way to the relationship which is meant to develop between humanity and Divinity. This process, with God's assistance, leads humanity toward its salvation.

II. GOD AS LOVE

We began our discussion with two important quotations from the First Epistle of St. John the Theologian.1,2 Let us examine these a little further in the general context of St. John's definitions:8

"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of anti-Christ which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are of the world. Therefore, they speak as of the world,20and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God."9

Thus St. John the Theologian aptly instructs us in the virtue of discernment. If one encounters a spirit (and anyone whom such a spirit may have inspired) which confesses the Faith namely of the truth of the Incarnation and that Christ is come in the flesh out of love for us all we may hear Him. Implicit in these statements is the presence of Divine agápe: the immeasurable and indescribable dimension of Divine love which, on the one hand, inspired the creation of the Universe and all that is within it and, on the other hand, granted His own great gift of co-suffering love. God's omniscience, after all, foretold human vulnerability to temptation as well as human propensity to yield to it.
Chris t, the second Person of the Holy Trinity, puts on human flesh like a garment and enters the world as a poor and humble man, thereby recapitulating the human experience in totality. But, in this ultimate co-suffering act, He does so correctly and without error or sin. In His incarnation, He shows us forever (unto ages of ages) how to live and how we were intended to live by our Creator. At the same time, of His own free will, He takes upon Himself the same risks, privations, and human liability to insult and injury, ridicule and condemnation, even unto death. The whole of His life is lived for others. The insults, privations and ignominious death upon the Cross are all an emptying-out (kénosis), a co-endurance of the ills which all humans endure as a consequence of their fallen state.
In this kénosis, the Innocent voluntarily bears the hardships and sufferings of the fallen without being fallen, for Christ in His humanity is unfallen, as the Transfiguration reveals to us. He takes upon Himself the appearance of fallen man in order that our condition may be recapitulated, cleansed and corrected. The incarnate Christ suffers for all humanity, from our very first ancestors to 20 the end of time. He bears within His being the collective anguish of countless ages. Voluntarily, He gives His life in wretchedness, humiliation and agony, not as an "atonement" of collective penance for the sins of the world (a false perception of "Western" pseudo-Christianity), but rather, so that sin and death finally may be overcome through His Resurrection, Ascension, and Seating at the Right Hand of Glory. Through these events, Christ carries His co-sufferance to its ultimate end, triumphs forever over death, and restores to human nature its original possibility for redemption (thus overcoming the effects of The Fall), to be raised thereafter to Eternal life and Glory.10
In the above-referenced passage, the Saviour Himself is speaking. One statement in particular should be quoted:

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

Here, the concern of the Creator for His creation is magnificent and scarcely conceivable! That He who is Being (YHVH) the ineffable, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, uncir cumscribable Lord should love His creation so dearly and so obviously adore His handiwork, and so dote upon that creature which He had so specially endowed with His own image and likeness, that He would descend into His creation, share his creature's fleshly order; and furthermore, that He would take upon Himself in love and mercy the "re-creation" of mankind, all through His co-suffering love, challenges the extremes of human comprehension. Redemption, in the proper sense of that word, calls for synérgeia: working together with God while having implicit trust in Him and a full, undiluted, unreserved exchange of love with Him to the best of human ability. It is at this point that agápe becomes éros!
In fact, as we have noted, the Creation of all things may be attributed to Divine agápe: the angelic order, the material universe, all the creatures within that universe and humanity the iconic reflection of Divinity! All these creative acts of the Holy Trinity, in which each Divine hypostasis plays an appropriate part, are manifestations of the infinite immensity of God, who is love. And the sustenance and continuation of this Created order, of material things, =2 0 of humanity, and of the angelic order, depend entirely upon that love. Therefore, we cannot speak of God and love as separate entities. If God is love, then love in all of its manifestations is immediately derivative from Him. Thus philia, agápe and éros may be seen as different aspects of the same ultimate Reality which is God. After all, God is everywhere. So, for those who would receive it and reciprocate it, God's love is omnipresent. Damnation must therefore consist in the voluntary rejection of God's love, which is offered constantly and eternally while salvation consists in our free acceptance of that love and our unequivocal reciprocation. God and man man and God fulfil the accomplishment of a Holy, mystical union, one beyond agápe and described only inadequately by the term "Divine éros." Given such a possibility for the dynamic establishment of mystical union, ultimate condemnation is possible only through voluntary human rejection of God's love. We have seen that God is love. This being the case, God is entirely incapable of malevolence toward his creatures. In fact, "punishment" is possible only as a self-inflicted human disorder the inevitable consequence of our willful rejection of the Di vine love proffered to humanity. The fires of hell are the flames of Divine love rejected, inverted! God will not force Himself upon anyone who voluntarily rejects Him; nonetheless, He will provide every opportunity for human love to be kindled and offered to Him in return for His own Divine love, which He offers to humanity perpetually.

"Praise the Lord, all ye nations, praise Him all ye people.
For His mercy is confirmed upon us, and the truth of the Lord remaineth forever."11

We see here that Divine agápe, which created and sustains the Universe and all that is therein (including the invisible world,12 and finally mankind itself), gives place to the expression of éros. We may conceive of Divine éros as an intensely personal and transfiguring relationship between God, who is love, and each separate human hypostasis. We will speak more of this later. To experience such love from God calls for a reciprocity, the act of loving God in return, and therefore a positive and sublime commitment of each human hypostasis to the Creator.
If, then, we add together those who love God or, as the theologian says,10 those who have committed themselves to Jesus Christ as Savi our, we perceive an image of His Church. We then see in its particular and unique situation the Church as the bride of Christ, who is in turn the bridegroom (nymphíos). An immeasurably intimate relationship is thus established between God and man, an intimacy which goes far beyond agápe. Though collective in the sense that the bride of Christ is made up of all humans who comprise the Church, this intimacy is nevertheless personal with respect to each of these hypostases. Little wonder, then, that we see prophetically in the Song of Songs something of the nature of this relationship between Christ and His Church the unquestionably intense character of which is made clear.13-15 It is the Divine typos for sanctified human marriage, the union that transcends every human union and makes possible for each hypostasis the realization of sanctifying transfiguration and salvation. The following words which define mankind's best attempt to articulate the intensity of this union also expressly manifest the love of Christ for His Church as bridegroom for bride:

"Behold, you are fair, my beloved!
Behold, you are fair!
You have dove's eyes behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats,
Going down from Mt. G ilead.
Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep.
Which have come up from the washing;
Every one of which bears twins,
And none is barren among them coming out of thee."13

Again:

"Your neck is like the tower of David,
Built for an armoury,
On which hang a thousand bucklers,
and shields of mighty men."14

And yet again:

"Your two breasts are like two fawns,
Twins of a gazelle,
Which feed among the lilies.
Until the day breaks
And the shadows flee away,
I will go my way to the
Mountain of myrrh
And to the hill of frankincense.
You are all fair, my love,
And there is no spot in you."15

The analogy of "bride" and "bridegroom" is most appropriate to describe in human terms the loving=2 0union between Christ and His Church, between the King and His Royal Nation. The intent is clear in these passages, where we actually see agápe transcended. Upon receiving and reciprocating Divine éros at the pinnacle of creation, mankind once admitted into the Holy Nation may then be transfigured and enter into an eternally satisfying and sanctifying union, wherein the tenderness and lovingness between God and man can only increase. Perfection, however, is never quite attained by man simply because, being infinite, God's totality...His utter completeness...cannot be replicated. Thus the fullness of the Beloved is never quite achieved. There is always something beyond the grasp of man, forever sought but forever elusive. Because of this, one may forever pass on from Glory to Glory. This progression is limitless since God, in fact, is limitless.

III. DIVINE ÉROS AND PASSION

The Greek word "páthos" (for passion) is rich in meaning. When used in the general context of éros it is almost interchangeable with the popular notion of that word's general meaning. Éros is seen , then, as something base, untoward and lustful, to be avoided and condemned at all times if what is generally described by society as "decency" is to be preserved. "Passion," frequently seen in the same popularized context as éros, is thought to manifest itself as lustfulness, unseemly desire and self-gratification. Thus erotic love is most often perceived by our guilt-ridden society as a sexual union which, by its very nature, saps one's moral strength while cheapening and debasing the individuals so involved, inevitably leading both partners away from God and toward some carnal pit of shame and potential destruction. Attitudes characterized by anger, gluttony and greed can also be described as "passions," particularly when they become powerful emotional and psychological forces compelling a behavioral pattern capable of diminishing the human person and thereby alienating him from God.
All of the above assessments often ring true. Anger, avarice, gluttony, greed and lust, for instance when carried to passionate excess in inappropriate circumstances can and usually do become destructive forces! Carnal lust, as distinct from Divinely sanctified éros, is profitless unless the object of love is pursued under Divine guidance wherein, as part of a sacred union under the blessing of God, it completes the fullness of human nature. The sexual experience between male and female, when pursued in fulfillment of a loving communion, engendered of God and blessed by Him as a sanctified union, becomes sacred and praiseworthy. Here, the two become one flesh. As androgyno (man-woman), this sanctified union totally completes the fullness of human nature. Moreover, out of this human union with God other human hypostases may be born. Under such conditions the man or woman produced is truly a child of God rather than an accident of carnal self-love and irresponsible copulation. Similarly, greed and covetousness of whatever type becomes inappropriate since the desire for necessities, already guaranteed by God, becomes an end in itself. To eat is desirable and necessary, whereas to gorge and gormandize merely to gratify a fleshly desire for one's own sake is not. Modest eating is good; gluttony, on the other hand, is an unseemly passion. While anger can be righteous when aimed at correction, it becomes destructive when control and the corrective imperative are lost in the human condition. Passions are curbed through synérgeia with God, which in time leads to dispassion (apátheia) and will shortly be the focus of our attention.
Éros is an intensely personal relationship, whether between human and human or between human and God. As we have seen, human éros under the appropriate sanctifying circumstances=0 A can be a Divine charisma, wholly commendable, desirable and entirely separate from self-centred carnality. Two people who deeply love one another come together in a union which is at once corporeal (sarkiké) and spiritual (pneumatiké). Where such a union is inspired and blessed by God, the partners partake of a holy synousía (a merging or blending of substance). Synousía represents, in fact, both a physical and spiritual amalgamation and one which, while accompanied by tenderness and joy even by ecstasy, also stands forth, as it were, from his or her being to reveal himself or herself one to the other as utterly loving and united. In such circumstances the union accomplished by éros reveals to each participant so much true knowledge concerning the inner being of the other, ideally in the sense of both spiritual and physical intimacy, that the innermost being of each is exposed and intensely revealed to the other. In this sanctified union lies the purpose of human éros, conducted as a Divine Mystery.
What shall we say, then, of Divine éros? Furthermore, can we properly speak here of any analogy between Divine and human éros, the blessed and sanctified human éros which operates within the Mystery of Marriage? For a partial answer to this important question, let us turn to the patristi c writings of St. John Climakos, the great ascetic of Sinai, who describes the many and varied ways in the life of an ascetic, in particular that of "passion" (páthos). As we shall soon discover, "dispassion" (apátheia) is yet another contrary sentiment one forming an apparent paradox. In his Ladder of Divine Ascent, Climakos frequently finds it impossible to give vent to his feelings for humanity, or his burning awareness of them. Nonetheless, he expresses these feelings brilliantly through the imagery of erotic passion, the very language of love!
"You have ravished my soul! I cannot contain Your flame! I will go forward praising Thee!"16,17

In fact, Climakos returns frequently to his passionate allusion to Divine éros, often relating it to flame, fire, light all representative of the warmth of God's love. He makes a number of interesting assertions: the consciousness of God Himself permeates the Created being and energizes him; the light of this conflagration illumines mankind; and the cleansing and purifying power, resulting inevitably from this Divine fire, purges and consumes base human passions in the process. In essence, according to Climakos, we are continually seared by the flame of yearning (póthos) and thirst (thipsa) for Divine love ..18
There is always an element of suffering, as well as splendid exaltation, inherent in the experience of Divine éros, for it is never completely fulfilled. After all, God is infinite and His Energies are therefore infinite as well. Man, on the other hand, is finite and the human hypostasis created by God is thus limited by the very dimension of its Created being. A loving encounter with the Divine is of a magnitude which, because of the inherent symbiosis existing between God and humanity, cannot be fully encompassed or adequately expressed by human verbiage. No merely human experience, however genuine, loving and committed, can ever approach that of the Divine Energies. Yet, it is through Divine éros that God establishes communion with mankind. Likewise, through the reciprocal extension of human éros to God, man returns God's love by tendering to Him human love to the extent it is possible for man to do so. Although of a different and Created order, human éros bears a distinct resemblance to that of God. Human éros and Divine éros, the truly Uncreated Energy of God, are brought together by the action of the Holy Spirit and thus a formal, loving communion is established. The result is that "blessed madness" (makária manía) in which mankind finds itself enveloped, blinded and aflame with an 09adoration which, while not bearing description, does cause mankind to reach forth to God in ekstasis. Such expression is bilateral, however, since God manifests Himself outside of His unknowable Essence through the infinite splendour of His Uncreated Energy, while the human person is drawn out of itself. Through human éros, man is revealed to God as totally loving consumed by an insatiable desire for mystical union. However, as we have inferred, in man's union with God there is an intrinsic and subtle degree of suffering involved, for the infinitude of God will never allow of humanity complete satisfaction. Therefore, the limited human desire for God will always remain insatiable.
Through voluntary loving communion, the human hypostasis is able to reach out in confidence to a loving God and, by so doing, can achieve a truly reciprocal relationship with his Creator. Human and Divine Energies invoke responses that are mutually reinforcing, resulting ultimately in dialogue and communion with the Divine Energies. Mankind, transfigured through Divine éros by God's grace, gradually assumes by that grace properties which the Divine Son has by nature. In this way, the human being may become god-like just as God, through Trinitarian action, became man at the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
&n bsp; As noted earlier, human life is transfigured through continued ascetic experience. Much of this experience is passionate in nature due to the inability of mankind, in its finitude, to accommodate the full and unlimited power of Divine éros. The inevitable result of this association is some degree of suffering. Yet, together with páthos, we nevertheless wend our way mysteriously but necessarily toward a state of dispassion (apátheia) wherein we find relief from the tribulations which have their origin in earthly existence. Through this process we are able to find a degree of peace, and eventually the state described by the Psalmist is achieved:
"He who does these things shall never be moved."19

IV. DIVINE ÉROS AND APÁTHEIA

Thus, having examined the revealed manifestations of Divine éros with the superficiality of which we are capable, we are faced with an obvious problem and a paradoxical situation that we must attempt to resolve. This is imperative if we are to render our present perusal of théosis, both sensibly and coherently. On the one hand, we have testified that we behold the Divine éros to be operating greatly to our benefit in a seemingly passionate mode, like a spreading and consu ming fire, while conversely we are reminded that the fathers repeatedly foretold that the end result of the transforming and transfiguring power of Divine éros would be apátheia, the state of dispassion in which (Psalm 14 tells us) we shall never be moved. Apátheia implies a state of calmness and peace where suffering is absent, a circumstance in which the subject person is no longer vulnerable to the assault of worldly tribulation and ordinary human desire. Instead, that person develops a state of detachment in which common emotional challenges and externally imposed stresses which no longer have their wonted effect, and thus he is left undisturbed and unmoved in ways one would anticipate as customary. In other words, apátheia is antithetical to the burning fires of passion in human nature.
Yet, how can this be? How can passion lead to dispassion, and the fires of éros be assuaged, to be replaced by the apparent coolness of dispassion? The answer, we believe, lies between the nature of Divine éros and that of apátheia, a neutral zone in which one must seek a relationship somewhere between these two realities. In so doing, one must show how one nature is indispensable without the other, and that a true equilibrium the natural balance can really be attained. In considering Divine éros there can be no passion which does not automatically lead to dispassion, and neither can there be dispassion without the correspondence of appropriate passion. As the obverse and reverse of a coin have an undisputed relationship one to the other, so also, in the context of Divine éros, passion and dispassion have a correspondingly close connection. We look into the workings of Divine éros in the process of salvation and we find these two realities, páthos and apátheia, as a reconciled pair of opposites both necessary both complimentary to each other and both absolutely essential to the accomplishment of théosis. In passion we are cooled by dispassion; in dispassion we are warmed by Sacred passion.
Some theological textbooks, especially the more recently "Westernized" ones, do not even seriously attempt to reconcile these apparent differences as a necessary paradox within the human condition. Rather, the passionate aspect of Divine éros is muted and hastily glossed over, while the usual descriptions of dispassion (apátheia) connote a human condition more closely resembling semi-coma than any more desirable one! In such descriptions, apátheia is presented as a state of insensible inertia in which the person is apparently transformed into a semi-vegetated condition, incapable of being mentally or sensually approached to any measurable degree. May God preserve us from interpretations such as these!
On the contrary, Divine éros, in its passionate aspect,20,21 clearly informs us concerning the nature of "sinful" or "undesirable" passions.22,23 They cannot be suppressed by sheer strength of will or=2 0by human resolve, however determined. To attempt to settle the question of worldly or aberrant desire by such means generally leads to increasing unwholesomeness and distortions in personal relations with others: repeated sin, consuming guilt, and eventually all manner of psychological aberrations and disturbances. Each of these has, in fact, a negative and destructive impact upon mankind, and the thoughts and desires they engender are not simply thrust aside in refusal. Rather, these human passions are only overcome by the passionate aspect of Divine éros, intervening on behalf of humanity. Through the intimacy of prayer and a correspondingly positive movement toward God they are moulded, modulated, re-educated or, in some cases, violently overcome by the consuming fire of éros. Seared by that flame of God, they are expunged and replaced by the balm of that gentle yet insistent desire for God, which is not only persuasive but irresistible. Otherwise, these human passions threatening and fearsome as they are might otherwise be transcended and rendered irrelevant by the attainment of victory over much greater Divine intrusions (passions even). These, in the synérgeia of prayerful communion, are happily yielded up as gifts by God in the presence of which mundane and earthly passions weaken and fade away.24 In this same context, St. John Climakos asserts:

"For I have seen Hesychast s who repeatedly nourished their burning desire for God through (the practice of) stillness (esychía) forming fire by fire, éros by éros, desire by desire."25

We find similar vivid confirmations of experience in the writings of St. Gregory of Nyssa26 and St. Gregory Palamas.27
But it is in this very context, in its stillness and our use of it to gain undivided access to the personal love of God, that we may become absorbed into Him and have Him and His Divine presence enter into our innermost self, that we must understand dispassion. For the Divine éros generates a passion nourished by stillness, concentrated prayer and adoration, and this passion compels Divine possession of one's innermost being. In turn, this possession overwhelms and progressively transmutes every vestige of human passions, resulting in the person's separation from their influence; in turn, guided and driven by human éros, that individual may then arise and unite with Divine éros. In such a state, human nature is freed from the intrusion of worldly passions and desires and those things are no longer able to exert their former baneful influence. Hence human will and desire may then be uniquely channelled in the beckoning direction of God, eager for His Divine embrace. In return, human éros is freely offered to God.
In apátheia, the entire focus is God, who fills every horizon with th e vault of heaven, the expanses of space beside us, and the ground under our feet. God and man equilibrate; man reposes harmoniously with God, as St. Paul reminds us in Philippians 4:7, in "that peace which passeth all understanding." Where Creator and creature are one, a firm and energetic bond of Divine Energy forms the basis for this union. Abetted by the infinite strength and cohesion of Divine éros, one's finite human éros responds and the God-man relationship gains slowly in strength. The fullness of apátheia, however, is seldom achieved in man's earthly existence.
However, among the Saints, we may observe varying degrees of transformation in this direction, attained through the constant practice of synérgeia with God. Théosis may ultimately be achieved in many of these human hypostases through the operation of Divine éros and the corresponding voluntary exercise of human éros. In observing this unifying process, one may expect to see early in its development much apparent emotional turmoil and seemingly stressful behaviour. In these ecstatic states of personal isolation, uncontrollable realizations of joy and peace, and above all, the gift of tears, will frequently be observed. In fact, St Simeon regards the gift of tears as an indispensable mark of repentance and not merely as the expression of sorrow for personal misdeeds. Such tears attend an overwhelming realization that the consequences of one's personal separation from God may possibly be permanent. At the same time, these tears may reveal the awareness of a magnificent joy one so great that no human emotion may fully do it justice. Such is the joy of paradise regained, the realization of the fullness of one's reunion with God.28
These things are displayed openly and uncontrollably early in the evolution of théosis. As the union between God and man progresses, the experience of the fathers indicates the development of a more staid, balanced condition, reflective of the passing potent or passionate fluctuations (typical of an earlier phase) and eventually, attainment of apátheia by the re-education of human passion and its supersession by alternatives of truly Divine origin.
However, since we must always walk on...that is not the end of the story. Despite even the achievement of mystical union through the operation of Divine éros, and its reciprocation by human éros, inevitably there remains yet another challenge provided by the infinitude of God. With each new fulfillment ever expanding the dimensions of human expectation, anticipation grows. Beyond each satisfaction lies one more fulfillment to be savoured.
Thus we come to realize the abundance of éros, expressed by the love we, as human beings, have for Him, finite and limited though it may be, and by the inexhaustible love God makes available to us by His Divine charísmata. The reciprocal exchange of éros between God and mankind is truly of the greatest importance since , through His gifts to us, man's deification is ultimately accomplished.
In particular, our response to God's erotic love for us is itself called forth by His alluring grace.29,30 In our relationship with God we are both the victims and the blessed recipients of a divine dart, a cupid's arrow, which far from inflicting a fatal effect on us permanently initiates, then accomplishes, a true transfiguration.31 This analogy is also articulated by the fathers, who in one place speak of "wounding by the passionate affection of the Divine Spirit."32 One must always remember that it is God Himself who initiates all of this love. St. John Chrysostom says of Him: "... He is more affectionate than a father, more caring than a mother, more erotic than a bride and groom."33 Likewise, David and St. Paul, quoted by St. John Climakos, speak of our love for God as a reflection, an image of His love, His ravishment for us. We are for Him a longed-for dwelling place34-36 while, for us, loving union with Him fulfils our eternal destiny and provides our permanent home.

V. THE ECONOMY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Our Faith rests firmly upon a dual foundation an economy established at the behest of the Father. As we have seen, a new reality came into the=2 0world at the Incarnation when the only-Begotten Son of the Father arrayed Himself in humanity, both in body and soul, manifesting Himself as the Son of God and the Son of Man. As God-Man (théanthropos), He completed His salvific mission, even to the point of dying for us in co-suffering love upon the Cross. In dying for all mankind, He restored to us the possibility of blessed immortality, indubitably confirmed at His Resurrection, wherein the recapitulation (anakephalaíosis) of humanity was accomplished.
However, ten days following His Ascension, an existential reality also came into the world, one more perfect than the world namely that of His Church. The Feast of Pentecost is called the "Birthday of the Church," for it was on this day that the Holy Spirit descended upon the full assembly of the nascent priestly community (disciples and followers of the Faith alike) in Jerusalem and established its fullness its catholicity. The Trinitarian formation of the New Israel was, in fact, accomplished in this event.
Out of Divine agápe the Son became incarnate, potentially freeing all generations of man from the consequences of The Fall, which the Father had foreseen from all ages. By the entry into the world of the Holy Spirit, the new priestly community of the Church was energized, sanctified and given the fullness of salvific understanding. On the occasion of Pentecost the entire body of the primordial Church received Him in His fullness.37 Acts 2:1-420confirms this:

"Now when the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all of one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages as the Spirit gave them utterance."

The Church was fulfilled, the Holy Spirit having entered it through all of its members. For to each man and woman on that day was given the gift of the Spirit, who illumined them, teaching them all things. For Christ had constrained these first members of the Church to remain in Jerusalem that they might receive the promise of the Father namely, the Holy Spirit.38
As at Pentecost, so at the administration of the Holy Mystery of Chrismation. Here, immediately following Baptism, the neophyte receives the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit: what was given collectively to the entire living nation of the Church is hereby given personally to the communicant. However, the intention of the gift and its potential effect is precisely the same: the illumination of the person by the Spirit of Truth!
We observe that every Divine action involves all three Persons of the Holy Trinity: the Father, Source of Godhead, "First among Equals" in the Divine community that is the Holy Trinity, eternally begets the Son. Through the medium of the Holy Spirit, the Son accomplishes His incarnation at the appropriate moment in time so that The Fall may be corrected and the opportunity for eternal salvation restored.39 Likewise, Christ tells His disciples that the Father will send the Holy Spirit into the world at His request, specifically and personally as the Divine Hypostases, one as God-Man, the other as Spirit. This is the same Spirit who, in carrying out the uniform will of the Holy Trinity, guides and directs the energy of Divine éros to fulfil the totality and completeness of that great love between Creator and creature (a union already described), and Who in turn receives and channels the human erotic response.40,41 In accordance with the common will of the Holy Trinity, Divine and human éros are brought into contact through the direct action of the Spirit.41 The reciprocal conveyance of éros establishes a true but asymmetrical communion between God and every human hypostasis personally involved. The asymmetry of this communion reflects the natural asymmetry between the infinite nature of God and the circumscribed, finite nature of mankind. Such reciprocal conveyance of éros leads to true transfiguration and théosis!
With specific regard to the Holy Spirit, the Orthodox fathers have continua lly drawn attention to the qualitative differences in the relationship of the Divine Persons within the Holy Trinity: we perceive the Father as the Source of Godhead, the Hierarch, the First among Equals. And, in relation to Him, we perceive the Son as bearing a "filial" relationship to the Father, as a child to a parent, but in this instance a Divine Son "begotten of the Father before all ages."42 Here is the Hypostasis, the filial icon of the Father, the Executor of Creation "Who for us humans and for our salvation came down from the heavens and is incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and is made man."43 Of the Spirit we perceive a different relationship, namely a non-filial one; the Person succinctly described by the Symbol of Faith as "...the Lord, the Giver of life, Who proceeds from the Father (ekporevómenon), Who with the Father and the Son is co-worshipped and co-glorified, Who spoke by the prophets."44 This relationship is one of eternal procession. The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father alone.45
Here we see that the relationship of the Spirit to the Father is likewise distinct. It is one of Procession, as distinct from Sonship, which describes the qualitative difference between the relationships of the Spirit and of the Son to the Father within the Holy Trinity. The introduction of the filioque clause within the Symbol of Faith by the Roman Catholic tradition precipitated events in 1054 which led to the departure of the Western Church from Orthodoxy. Therea fter, Roman Catholicism established the filioque as a separate and independent religious entity, one which was to develop a whole new outlook on Christianity in its entirety, leading thereafter to heretical developments in the West which evolved into rejection of the Orthodox Faith. From this time forward, formation of a radically different world view resulted, bearing only a superficial resemblance to the Faith of Christ and the Apostles. With the notion of "double procession" that the insertion of the filioque conveyed, the Holy Spirit was perceived in the West as proceeding from both the Father and the Son. Thus the position of the Son in the Holy Trinity was elevated to one of hierarchical equivalence with the Father while, at the same time, the position of the Holy Spirit was reduced to a kind of energetic, loving bond, somehow coupling Father and Son. The result appeared to be a co-equivalent duality of Father and Son, with reduction of the personhood of the Spirit to something less than either and at the direction of both!
It is thus apparent that, not only was an Ecumenical Council of the Church consciously and deliberately violated, a whole new theology was created which re-shaped the Holy Trinity into something other than that taught by Holy Tradition. The resultant "Western" concept of the role of the Holy Spirit is clearly heretical and totally at variance with the Orthodox Faith of the fathers. In spite of everything, including the recent semantic chicanery of the Wes tern Church, the filioque remains in full effect to this day in the corpus of Roman Catholic doctrine. We must wholly and uncompromisingly reject such heretical doctrines.46
It is clearly manifest that the Holy Spirit fulfils all things which have been prepared by Christ. In a very real sense the economy of the Son is preparatory to the fulfilling work of the Spirit. Christ completes His earthly mission: after His Resurrection when He has finally triumphed over death and thus made everlasting life a possibility for all mankind He returns to the Father so that the Holy Spirit may descend. We are reminded by the Apostles John and Luke of His words:

"Nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come, but if I do depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness because I go to my Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged."47,48

St. Gregory of Nyssa observes: "One does not think of the Father without the Son, neither does one conceive of the Son without the Holy Spirit. For it is impossible to attain to the Father without being raised by the Son, and equally impossible to c all Jesus Lord except in the Holy Spirit."49 In the same way, we are reminded by St. John of Damascus that we may think of the Son as the icon of the Father, and the Holy Spirit as the image of the Son.50 The Holy Spirit does not manifest His hypostasis but remains, revealing Himself through Uncreated Energies, such as the "mighty rushing wind," "the cloven tongues of fire" and the Divine, Uncreated Light which radiated forth from the transfigured Saviour.51,52 Pulsating with this Mystery, St. Simeon the New Theologian recognizes in this context the Divine éros, the power and intimacy of God's personal, Divine love: "Come, True Light; come, Eternal Life; come, Concealed Mystery; come, Nameless Treasure; come, Thou Unutterable Thing; come, Unknowable Person; come, Incessant Joy; come, Light Unfading;...come, O Resurrection of the Dead; come, O Powerful One who fulfils, transforms and changes all things by Thy Will alone; come, Invisible One, intangible and impalpable. Come, Thou who remains forever immovable and Who, at all times, moves for Thyself and approaches us, who lie in Hades. Thou standest higher than the heavens. Thy name is so greatly desired and so continually proclaimed, yet none is able to say what It is!...Come, O Garland that never fades; come, O Thou whom my wretched soul has adored and Whom it adores! Come alone to me alone! Come, Thou who hast separated me from all and made me lonely in this world and Who art Thyself become desire in me, Who hast willed that I should desi re Thee, Thou, absolutely inaccessible! Come, Thou breath and my own life, Thou consolation of my lowly heart."53
Those words of St. Simeon the New Theologian describe the intensely personal nature of the human relationship with the Holy Spirit in vividly clear language, and the yearning and longing for the Conveyor of Divine éros is apparent: the impassioned plea to "come alone to me alone," with the sincere implication that the person will be illumined beyond previous illumination. In that Uncreated illumination is to be found the tender intimacy of God's personal love. It is requisite that this Energy this Éros is as one with the Uncreated Life and that it is to be conveyed by the Holy Spirit. Once again, a seeming paradox arises through intimate personal conveyance of Divine éros, the Spirit personally in His "impersonality." The Hypostasis at no time is manifest as such, yet the intensely personal love of God for the single human person is revealed in the Uncreated Energies that God conveys through the Spirit. The knowledge of the Spirit remains mysterious, cryptic and partially concealed.
St. Gregory the Theologian says, "The Old Testament revealed the Father plainly, and the Son obscurely. The New Testament revealed the Son and suggested the divinity of the Holy Spirit. Now, the Spirit dwells among us and makes Himself clearly known. For it was not safe, when the Godhead of the Father was not yet acknowledged, plainly to proclaim the Son ; nor when that of the Son was not yet received to burden us further (if I may use so bold an expression) with the Holy Spirit. Rather, that by gradual additions (as David says), by advances and progressions from Glory to Glory, the light of the Trinity might shine upon the more illuminated. You perceive lights breaking upon us gradually; and in the order of Theology, which it is better for us to keep, neither proclaiming things too suddenly, nor keeping them hidden to the end. For the former course would be unreasonable; the latter impious; and the former would be calculated to startle outsiders, the latter to alienate our own people...Our Saviour had some things which, He said, could not be borne at that time by His disciples, and again He said that all things should be taught us by the Holy Spirit when He should come to dwell among us. Of these things one, I take it, was the Divinity of the Holy Spirit Himself, made clear later on when such knowledge may be opportune, and capable of being received after our Saviour's restoration, when the knowledge of His own Divinity should be established."54
As we have seen, as the Divinity of the Son is proclaimed by the Church throughout the entire Created order, so is the Divinity of the Holy Spirit in an eternal communion, the perichoretic union with that of the Father and of the Son. Yet, the hypostasis of the Spirit reveals to us these truths, illuminating us most intimately, thereby personally making gods of human persons w hile He Himself remains hidden, concealed by the very Divinity which He makes known to us.
In the traditions of the West, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are frequently classified and categorized, a tendency which appears to be followed in all branches of theology. In the Orthodox tradition, however, this is not the case. Gifts of the Holy Spirit embrace all aspects of what may be termed "sanctifying" or "deifying" grace. This may be taken to mean the total abundance of the Divine nature as it is communicated to human beings, implying those aspects of Divinity which function outside and beyond the unknowable Essence; that is, the Divine and Uncreated Energies. These, and all that they confer upon Created beings, are the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is therefore the source of every infinite gift that can be attributed to God's grace. At the same time, He receives all the titles that reflect the nature of His actions and are likewise derived from His grace. Thus He is the Spirit of Truth, the Mind of Christ, the Heavenly King, the Helper, the Comforter, the Lord, the Spirit of Adoption, the Creator-Spirit, the Spirit of Liberty, the Treasury of all Good Things, the Giver of Life, the Good One, and others. Many of these are reflected in the Church's only liturgical prayer to the Holy Spirit, which is solitary because it embraces all the potential of the Spirit, reflecting His diverse actions in the conveyance of grace and, in particular, the Divine E nergy of éros which, as we have seen, forms to an extent the fundamentals of théosis:

"Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, Who art everywhere present and fillest all things; the Treasury of all Good Things and the Giver of Life: Come, Thou, and dwell within us and cleanse us from every blemish, and save our souls, O good One. Amen."55

We must distinguish clearly the hypostasis of the Holy Spirit from the Uncreated grace which He conveys to Created beings. Grace is Divinity ineffably distinct from the Essence, the modality (or energy in a collective sense) which confers itself upon Created beings, transfiguring and sanctifying them. Grace is no longer manifest as an "effect" produced in the soul by an action of the Divine will. Rather, it is an expression of the Divine Life which opens and blooms like a flower within us, directed by the Holy Spirit, the One who mysteriously identifies Himself with the human person through the Energies wherein Divine éros is exceedingly prominent. Thus the Holy Spirit obscures Himself before those Created beings to whom He conveys Divine grace. Insofar as our human will remains in accordance with the Divine will, the Holy Spirit confers God's grace upon us from within, rather than coming to us as a Divine external influence. This "synérgeia," this active cooperation with God, is thereby personalized in the indwelling Spirit, and forms the basis of a progressive internal transformation. Finally, the Holy Spirit is the ultimate expression of our humanity, proceeding from the Father and resting in Christ, the only-Begotten Son.

ENDNOTES:

1. 1Jn.4:8
2. 1 Jn.4:16
3. Song of Songs, Ch.3
4. St. John Chrysostom, Hom.7
5. Gen.1:28
6. Jn.2 (entire ch.)
7. Mk.10:6-8
8. 1Jn.4:41-47
9. 1Cor.2:12-16
10. Jn.3:13-18
11. Ps.116:1-2
12. Symbol of Faith, Art.1
13. Song of Songs 4:1-2
14. Ibid.4:4
15. Ibid.4:5-7
16. St. John Climakos, Ladder of Divine Ascent, 30, 18
17. Ibid.PG 47:406
18. Ibid.25
19. Ps.14:4,5
20. Wisdom of Solomon 8:2
21. Dan.9:23
22. Is.5:4
23. Jer.2:21
24. Prov.4:27
25. St. John Climakos, Ladder of Divine Ascent, 27, 14
26. St. Gregory of Nyssa, PG 46:2884
27. St. Gregory Palamas, The Triads II, 210
28. St. Simeon the New Theologian quoted by Archbishop Basil Krivochine in: St Simeon The New Theologian: Spirituality and Doctrine, St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, Crestwood, NY, 1986, p 69.
29. 1Thess.4:9
30. Jer.31:3
31. Song of Songs, Ch.5
32. The Macarian Homilies 4:16
33. St. John Chrysostom, PG 52:493
34. St. John Climakos, Ladder of Divine Ascent, 15, 52
35. Heb.3:6
36. Ps.45:11
37. Acts 2:1-4
38. Acts 1 (entire ch.)
39. Lossky, Vladimir, The Mystical Théosis of the Eastern Church, St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, Crestwood, NY, 1976, p 157.
40. St. Basil the Great, PG 32:157 AB
41. Anstall, Haralambos, Aspects of Théosis: The Purification and Sanctification of the Human Intellect, Synaxis Press, Dewdney, B.C., 1995, p 224.
42. Symbol of Faith, Art.2
43. Ibid., Art.5
44. Ibid., Art.10
45. Jn.15:26
46. Kucharak, C., The Byzantine-Slav Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, Alleluia Press, Allendale, NJ, 1971, p 546 ff.
47. Jn.16:7-11
48. Acts 1:8
49. St. Gregory of Nyssa, PG 45:1316
50. St. John of Damascus, PG 84:356
51. Mt.17:1-6
52. Mk.9:2-5
53. St. Simeon the New Theologian, PG 120:507-9
54. St. Gregory the Theologian, PG 36:161-164 55. Liturgical Prayer to the Holy Spirit

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