ZUPINA Miroslav - Acta Patristica, volume 9, issue 19/2018
DEIFICATION OF MAN BY THE SAINT SYMEON THE NEW THEOLOGIAN
/ZBOŽŠTENIE ČLOVEKA PODĽA SVÄTÉHO SYMEONA NOVÉHO TEOLÓGA/
Miroslav ZUPINA
lecturer, Faculty of Orthodox Theology, University of Presov in Presov, Masarykova 15, 080 01 Presov, Slovakia, miroslav.zupina@unipo.sk, 00421517724729
Abstract
This study provides a theological view of the question of the devotion of man according to the teaching of Saint Symeon the New Theologian. It is the theme of the devotion of man that presents Symeon with one of the central ideas of his theological and mystical thinking. The process of devotion is borne out by the very diffusion of the image of God and the prosperity of the person. His teachings show that the state of devotion concerns the entire psychosomatic being of man, that is, it includes not only his soul but also the body. Adoration of man understands not only in an eschato-tologic context as a state of future glory, but also as a real state of man during his earthly life. In the end, Saint Symeon The New Theologian understands the piety as the synergic outcome of the co-operation between God and man.
Keywords
Deification, Holy Spirit, God's grace, soul, body, experience, uncreated light
SUMMARY
From the teachings of Saint Symeon the New Theologian, a few conclusions follow. First of all, he begins to speak of devotion when he contemplates the primal state of man in his creation on God's image and God's form. The image of God is like a certain advance given at the moment of creation, by which man is gradually to be upgraded to the state of God's form - the devotion. Secondly, participation in God's life, communion with God, and association with Him can not be an exclusive matter of just one particular part of human nature, therefore it places a strong accent on the worship of the whole person. Thirdly, Saint Symeon's devotion to man during his earthly life does not grasp in absolute meaning, but as a state of enjoyment, while the fullness of devotion combines with the perspective of eternal life in the Kingdom of God. Symeon's specific contribution is his mystical experience, in which he describes the personal visions of God as light, which merely underlines the reality of the realm of human deification.
(Language: slovak)