THEORIA (VISION OF GOD)

My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God, and Savior,

CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

THEORIA (THE VISION OF GOD)

"In the West according to Mesaiona, they speak of theory and practice, the latter meaning mission, action, while the former is intellectual occupation with God and the truths of the Church. In the Orthodox Tradition, however, action is chiefly PURIFICATION OF THE HEART, and THEORIA IS NOETIC PRAYER AND THE VISION OF THE UNCREATED LIGHT, THE DEIFICATION (Theosis).

According to Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos, Greece, "A result of the false distinction of neptic and social theology is that we usually make a distinction between PRAXIS (ACTION) AND THEORIA (VISION), as well as between practical and theoretical people."

" Likewise, in the Orthodox Church we say that ACTION and THEORIA are NOT opposites, but one follows the other. Ilias the Presbyter says that the courageous man is like a woman who keeps two lamps burning, "mastering both action and Theoria". Saint Maximos the Confessor says THAT THERE IS NO SAFE ACTION WITHOUT THEORIA, NOR TRUE THEORIA WITHOUT ACTION. "For action needs to be learned and THEORIA PUT INTO PRACTICE." And he points out that in some the Theoria is preceded by action and in others action is preceded by Theoria, but finally BOTH HAVE TO END IN ONE THING."

"NOUS, a term from ancient Greek, simply means "mind." When Saint Paul says we have THE MIND OF CHRIST, that’s the word NOUS. He doesn’t mean in terms of deductive reasoning. In fact, the Orthodox Church believes you cannot come to know God by operation of the human mind, but by the NOUS. The NOUS is distinct from and beyond the rational mind. You can rationally learn about God and learn about Scripture and still be far from God. With the rational mind you can only understand CONCEPTS ABOUT GOD in terms of your mental constructs.

The NOUS for the early Church Fathers is that part of the human person which God gave us to have a relationship with Him and THE PART OF THE SOUL THAT IS CAPABLE OF DIRECT COMMUNION WITH GOD. IT IS THE HIGHEST PART OF THE SOUL, THE SEAT OF SPIRITUAL PERCEPTION, INTUITION, AND MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE. IT IS THROUGH THE NOUS THAT WE CASN EXPERIENCE THE UNCREATED ENERGIES OF GOD, WHICH IS GOD HIMSELF WORKING IN US.

How do we have a relationship with God, if
not by learning things about Him?

We do it by doing things that please the Lord. Through our PRAYER, ACTS OF HUMILITY, ACTS OF KINDNESS FOR OTHERS, REDUCING DISTRACTIONS, PAYING ATTENTION TO YOURSELF, ATTENDING TO YOUR SINS, ATTENDING TO YOUR HEART, AND ATTENDING TO GOD. All these images of attention are there to reduce our distraction from the chaos of the world and move our focus to a spark of Light that is THE NOUS. The Orthodox Church does NOT believe in total depravity. The early Church believed that the Nous was darkened by the fall of man and that we need to be ILLUMINED by the Light of Christ. Thus Baptism in the early Church was called Holy ILLUMINATION because it was the beginning of our process of ENLIGHTENMENT. So, we come to know God not primarily through the rational mind, BUT THROUGH ILLUMINATION OF THE SOUL, THE PURIFICATION OF THE NOUS, THE SPIRITUAL MIND. The more we behave in a manner that contributes to that, the more the nous becomes illumined or receptive to Divine insight. Ultimately, the goal of the spiritual life in Orthodoxy is TO ACHIVE THEORIA (VISION OF GOD).

What exactly is THEORIA?
IN ORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY, the term THEORIA refers to the CONTEMPLATIVE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD that can be attained through THE PURIFIED AND ILLUMINED NOUS. THEORIA is not simply an intellectual understanding of God, but A DIRECT, EXPERIENTIAL KNOWLEDGE OF GOD THAT IS ATTAINED THROUGH SPIRITUAL PRACTICE AND DIVINE GRACE.

The goal of the spiritual life in Orthodox Christianity is to ATTAIN THEORIA AND TO PARTICIPATE IN THE UNCREATED ENERGIES OF GOD. THEORIA involves the TRANSFORMATION OF THE ENTIRE PERSON, not just the mind, through participation in the Mysteries (Sacraments) and through ASCETIC PRACTICES such as PRAYE, FASTING, AND CONTEMPLATION.

FURTHERMORE, Theoria is closely connected to the concept OF THEOSIS (DEIFICATION), which is the idea that human beings can become like God through their participation in the Divine energies This is what Sainit Athanasius meant when he said that "GOD BECAME MAN SO THAT MAN MIGHT BECOME god." Therefore, Theoria is seen as A NECESSARY PART OF THE PROCESS OF THEOSIS (DEIFICATION), as it allows the human person TO EXPERIENCE THE DIVINE ENERGIES DIRECTLY AND TO BE TRANSFORMED BY THEM.

Overall, my goal is not to say that we should not learn about God with our rational mind, we should, but my hope is to emphasize that knowing God is more than reading about Him or trying to define Him with mental constructs. The ULTIMATE GOAL of the spiritual life in Orthodox Christianity IS THE ATTAINMENT OF THEORIA AND PARTICIPATION IN THE UNCREATED ENERGIES OF GOD THROUGH THE PURIFIED AND ILLUMINED NOUS. [Source: The Saint Constantine School]

____________
"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
– Saint John Chrysostomos
+ + +
With sincere agape in His Divine and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George

GLOSSARY: THEORIA (Gk, "Theos" = God "oro" = to view). The perception of vision of the NOUS, through which one attains spiritual knowledge. Depending on the level of spiritual growth, THEORIA has two main stages: it may be either of the INNER ESSENCES or PRINCIPLES OF CREATED BEINGS or, AT A HIGHER STAGE, of God Himself. Sometimes translated as "CONTEMPLATION": Contemplation is a matter, not of verbal statement but of LIVING EXPERIENCE. In pure prayer the Father, Son and Spirit are seen in their consubstantial unity ‘[from Archimandrite Sophrony: His life is Mine translated by Rosemary Edmonds, Sainit. Vladimir's Seminary Press, Oxford, 1977].

THEOSIS:
The deification of man. According to the Orthodox Tradition, MAN’S PURPOSE IN LIFE is to achieve UNION WITH GOD, and to become god by grace. Self-realization. The ACQUISITION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.

NOUS, noetic:
Often translated as "MIND" or "MIND OF THE HEART." The highest faculty of man, through which, upon PURIFICATION, he can contemplate God, and the INNER ESSENCES OF CREATED THINGS, by means of direct apprehension or SPIRITUAL PERCEPTION. NOETIC understanding IS NOT INTELLECTUAL, but it comes from IMMEDIATE SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE.

NEPSIS, neptic:
Nepsis is vigilance of the nous and WATCHFULNESS AT THE GATES OF THE HEART, so that every thought that moves in it can be controlled. Neptic is an adjective pertaining to the method used for nepsis.

METANOIA:
Often translated as repentance. Radical CHANGE OF HEART AND MIND, ACCOMPLISHED BY
MEEKNESS/HUMILITY.

ASKESIS:
The effort or spiritual training by Christians to keep the Commandments, to purify the heart
from PASSIONSs and to practice THE VIRTUES, together with prayer and related activities, so
as to bring harmony between the body, soul and God.

APATHIA:
Dispassion. Passionlessness. The unrooting of the passions. Alternatively, A STATE IN WHICH
THE PASSIONS ARE EXERCISED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THEIR ORIGINAL PURITY AND
WITHOUT COMMITTING A SIN.