Orthodox Spirituality
At the core of Orthodox Christianity is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or as it is called in Greek, the Evangelion—meaning "the good news." The good news of the Orthodox Church is the joyful proclamation of God's immense and sacrificial love for humanity. It is a message of hope, revealing the true destiny of each person. Reflecting on this, Saint Gregory of Nyssa, a great fourth-century Church Father, wrote, "The good news is that man is no longer an outcast nor expelled from God's Kingdom; he is again a son, again God's subject."
In Orthodox thought, God's greatest desire is to share His own life with us. From the beginning, our faith begins with the belief that God has acted in history to invite us into His Kingdom, to participate in His love, and to become citizens of His eternal reign. This truth is beautifully expressed in the prayer of the Divine Liturgy: "You have not ceased to do all things until You brought us to heaven and granted us the Kingdom to come."
The Heart of the Gospel: The Incarnation of Christ
The Gospel is centered on Jesus Christ, who embodies God's ultimate act of love. Through the Incarnation, God became fully human in the Person of Jesus Christ, not to simply observe humanity from afar, but to restore us to fellowship with God. The purpose of Christ's coming was to bring us back to the Father. As the early Church Fathers taught, God became what we are, so that we might become what He is—divine by grace.
Christ is exalted as the Light of the world and the Life of all. His perfect unity of divinity and humanity offers us both a model for authentic human life and the means by which we can be freed from all forces that separate us from God. Through His Resurrection, we are liberated from sin, death, and the powers of darkness, and we are invited to live as children of God in the Kingdom.
Theosis: Becoming One with God
The ultimate goal of Orthodox spirituality is theosis—or deification—which means becoming one with God's divine life. From the moment we are baptized, we begin a journey toward God. This path of spiritual transformation, known as theosis, is not a static event but a dynamic process that begins here and continues into eternity.
Theosis means that we are becoming ever more like God in holiness, love, and purity. It's not about blending into God’s essence, but rather sharing in His energies—His divine activity and life—while still retaining our unique personhood. Saint Peter put it this way: we are called "to become partakers of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4). Saint Basil the Great also taught that human beings are creatures who have received the divine calling to become gods by grace.
This is a bold and mysterious truth, but it’s important to understand that theosis is not about becoming identical to God; it’s about union with Him. In this union, God transforms us, drawing us closer to His likeness without losing our individuality. This is the ultimate purpose of the Christian life.
The Role of the Holy Spirit
Theosis is not a magical or automatic process. It requires the active cooperation of each believer with the Holy Spirit, the agent of deification. While Christ’s victory over sin and death has already been won, we must personally appropriate this victory by working with the Holy Spirit. Through the Spirit, we are incorporated into the life of the Holy Trinity—the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit works within us, drawing us into deeper communion with God. He does this through the Church, which is the community where we encounter God and are transformed. As Saint Irenaeus, an early Church Father, said, “Where the Church is, there is the Spirit; and where the Spirit is, there is the Church.” The Holy Spirit is active in the life of the Church, empowering us through the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist (Holy Communion), daily prayer, and fasting, all of which help us live more Christ-like lives.
Saint Paul described the fruits of the Holy Spirit as the virtues that mark the life of a Christian: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). These virtues are signs of the transformative power of God’s love in us, and they are the natural outgrowth of a life lived in communion with God.
The Individual and the Church
Orthodox spirituality presents a positive view of the human person. We are not seen as totally depraved, but as created in the image of God, even though that image may be distorted by sin. Through the life of the Church, this image is progressively restored as we grow in our relationship with God.
In Orthodoxy, every person is unique and valuable, and each individual is called to become the person God intended them to be. The Sacraments are always offered to the individual by name, emphasizing the importance and dignity of each person. But while the individual is crucial, Orthodoxy does not see Christianity as a solitary faith.
We believe that you cannot be a Christian in isolation. To be truly united with God, you must also be united with the Church, the community of believers. The process of theosis happens within the body of Christ, which is the Church. The Church is the place where God’s grace is poured out, where we encounter the Holy Spirit, and where we are formed into the image of Christ.
God's Love: Transforming, Not Destroying
Being united with God does not mean we lose our individuality. It’s not about being absorbed into some impersonal force. Rather, God’s love respects our unique personhood. His love does not erase who we are but reveals and perfects us. As we enter into deeper communion with God, we become more fully who we were always meant to be.
Orthodoxy teaches that, through theosis, God’s love elevates and transforms us, helping us become the complete and authentic persons we were created to be. This divine love does not destroy; it perfects.
Conclusion
Orthodox spirituality is about an ever-deepening relationship with God through the work of the Holy Spirit, in the context of the Church, and leading toward the ultimate goal of theosis. It is an invitation to become one with God, not by losing ourselves, but by becoming more fully ourselves—the persons we were meant to be, living in union with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
In this journey, we are not alone. The Church is the community where we support one another, where we grow together, and where we experience God’s love in its fullness. Through the Church, the Sacraments, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we are transformed into the image of Christ, called to live out His love in the world.
