Quote:
Originally Posted by Sons to Glory!
The theosis topic. There have been pages and pages of replies and counter-replies that have been hard (at least for me) to follow. Hoping to get something concise I can grasp more easily. Thanks.
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sons to Glory!
So Evengelical - can you summarize your particular perspective of this topic in a short to medium paragraph?
|
On the Orthodoxy of the Doctrine:
Theosis is an orthodox doctrine, being found in the early writings of the church such as Athanasius and others, and evolving from the Bible itself, as Protestant historians and theologians can confirm.
On the Scriptural support for the Doctrine:
The historians and theologians can help us understand the early church perspective and they say that the interpretation of Psalm 82 was that it is God's will for humanity to become divinized. People who say it "is not in the bible" say that because they are reading the bible with a modern perspective.
On the acceptance of the doctrine in Christianity:
As I have shown by referencing his article, theologians like Piper do not deny the doctrine or declare the early church father Athanasius to have heretical views, rather, they praise him and equate the doctrine with their evangelical understanding of "glorification". Athanasius is a beloved figure in all major branches of Christianity. To declare him a heretic would also be to declare his views about the Trinity as being heretical, when he was a key figure in the defense of the Trinity.
In actuality, Protestantism has no clear doctrine of theosis like found in the Orthodox church or in the recovery. It was a doctrine that was believed by Luther and Calvin to a degree, but then lost or ignored by later adherents, until today when some of the most diluted salvation messages are about getting past the pearly gates of heaven. Over time, the salvation message became about justification, rather than theosis, and so the original goal of salvation was lost. Despite the claims of many, John 3:16 is not the goal of salvation, but the means to that goal. The EOC I believe still retain the original meaning and goal of salvation in their ideas about theosis, whereas the Catholic church and its protestant daughters lost it.
What is heretical and what is orthodox:
There are only two possible ways that this doctrine could be heretical:
1) if it confuses human and Divine natures by stating they become a third human-divine nature.
2) if it states that humanity becomes divinity in the sense of becoming part of the Trinity/Godhead, God's own Person.
Was Lee's doctrine heretical or othodox?:
Given these two conditions for orthodoxy, it can easily be proven that Lee's thinking was orthodox:
Lee believed that we "become God in life and nature but not in the Godhead".
Lee wrote "“Nevertheless, we must know that we do not share God's Person and cannot be worshipped".
What real heretics say about it
Mormons believe that man becomes gods in themselves, and ruling their own planets, without any qualification of what that means or meeting the two conditions for orthodoxy I mentioned before. Their doctrine is truly a heresy because they believe in some third and distinct human-divine nature.