Last evening we picked up midway through Homily Six where St. Isaac takes up the topic of the vision of the divine in the Kingdom. Such vision and its nature is predicated on the individuals degree of perfection and its gifts. Yet, Isaac is quick to remind us that there is no division amongst us and the experience of God despite how this experience is perceived. There is no disunity or division in heaven and no comparison of gifts. Each delights in the experience and continues to be drawn into the fullness of God.
Following upon this, St. Isaac would have us understand that there exists only Gehenna and Heaven and no other state. It is foolhardy to propose an in-between state that is somehow greater than Gehenna but not yet the Kingdom. Such a notion speaks of an individual's hope that the one can live this life without a sense of urgency rooted in our ultimate end. Every moment is freighted with destiny because every moment is an opportunity to love - an opportunity embraced or set aside. To propose anything less is to foster false hope as well as mediocrity and lukewarmness.
A rather lengthy discussion ensued about the differences between Eastern and Western spirituality; in particular the use of discursive mediation and the use of imagination among Western writers and the avoidance of it among the Eastern ascetics. While largely a part of our spiritual patrimony those in the West have not been catechized in the Ascetical theology and practice of the East and the understanding of the active life as being rooted in the purification of the passions and the development of unceasing prayer. The understanding of the Church as a hospital and a place of healing and Christianity being an Ascetical religion has largely been neglected in recent generations as well as its impact on our understanding of liturgy, religious art and life as a whole.
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Twenty-one Part I
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Twenty Part II
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Twenty Part I
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Nineteen
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Seventeen Part III and Homily Eighteen
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Seventeen Part II
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Seventeen Part I
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Sixteen
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Fifteen Part III
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Fifteen Part II
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Thirteen, Homily Fourteen and Homily Fifteen Part I
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Eleven and Homily Twelve
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Ten
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Nine
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Eight
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Six Part V and Homily Seven
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Six Part IV
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Six Part II
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - End of Homily Five and Homily Six Part I
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