Beyond Prayer

9 1 . Because the glory o f his nature, not the essence o f his nature, appears to
those w ho love him, it is said that G od was never seen by man. St John o f D al­
yatha, Homily on the Grandeur o f Spiritual Beings, in “Spiritual E lder”)

92. T h u s he appeared to each o f the holy fathers, exacdy as he wished and as

it seemed helpful to them. In one manner he appeared to Abraham , in another
to Isaac, in another to Jacob, in another to N oah, Daniel, D avid, Solomon, Isa­
iah, and to each o f the holy prophets. Still in another way to Elias and again
differently to Moses . . . T o each o f the saints, likewise, G od appeared as he
wished so as to refresh them, to save and lead them into a knowledge o f God.
(St Macarius the Great, Homilies 4.13, in Maloney, Intoxicated with God: The
Fifty Spiritual Homilies o f Macarius)

U N IO N W ITH GOD

©eioc I vojcjk;

“Even as thou, Father, art in me, and I

in thee, that they also may be in us.”
(Jn 17-21)
“But he who is united to the Lord
becomes one spirit with him.”
(1 Cor 6.17)

n io n w it h god , or theia henosis (0doc evwaiq), is a concise theological

U term describing a state that Christ petitioned the Father to grant on

our behalf: “that they also may be [one] in us” (Jn 17.21). T h is petition has been
answered for us in the death and resurrection o f Christ. W e have thus become,
according to the aposde Peter, “partakers o f the divine nature” (2 Pet 1.4).
T h e Church sets this aim before its children the moment they enter the
baptismal font. A ccording to St Irenaeus, “Through the H oly Spirit, w e are
raised up to Christ, and through Christ, w e are raised up to the F ath er”
(Against Heresies 5.36.2, A N F 1.567). U nion here is manifested at three lev­
els— Father, Son, and H oly Spirit. A ccording to St Athanasius, “W e w ere
 ORTHODOX PRAYER LIFE

made sons in H im ” (Discourses 2.76, N P N F , 2nd series, 4.389). A n d union here

signifies a firm establishment in an immortal and eternal sonship to God.
T h e writings o f the great church fathers throw into sharp relief the new
potentials that human nature as a whole has gained through the incarnation
o f Christ. T here has occurred a change, which the Fathers term as deification,
through the mediation o f Christ. H um an nature has undergone a heavenly
re-creation from water and from the Spirit. It has achieved a state o f union
w ith G od through grace: “F or the Son o f G o d became man that w e may
become G o d ” {On the Incarnation 54, N P N F , 2nd series, 4.65).
O w in g to the importance o f this theological doctrine, w hich claims the
possibility o f m an’s deification, w e refer briefly to some o f the places where it
is met with in the early Fathers:
1. St Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 124 (PG 6.765, A N F 1.262): “ A ll men are
deemed worthy o f becoming “gods,” and o f having power to become sons o f
the H ighest.”
2. Irenaeus, Against Heresies 5.1.1 (A N F 1.526).
3. Clem ent o f Alexandria, The Protreptique 9.88; 11.114 (A N F 2.203).
4. St Athanasius, On the Incarnation 54.3 (N PN F, 2nd series, 4.65): “For he
was made man that w e m ight be made G od.”
5. St Basil the Great, On the Holy Spirit 9.23 (PG 32.109BC): “highest o f all
[gifts], the being m ade G o d ” (N PN F, 2nd series, 8.16).
6. St Gregory o f Nyssa, Catechetical Discourses 37 (PG 45.93—97): “T h e God
w ho was manifested infused him self into perishable humanity for this pur­
pose, viz. that by this communion with D eity m ankind m ight at the same time
be deified.” (N PN F, 2nd scries, 5. 506).
T h e fo llo w in g are some theological excerpts from the Fathers that deal
w ith this m ajor O rth o d o x doctrine:

9 3 - 1 pray for a union both o f the flesh and spirit o f Jesus Christ, the
constant source o f our life, and o f faith and love, to which nothing is to
be preferred, but especially o f Jesus and the Father. (St Ignatius o f A n ti­
och, Letter to the Magnesians 1.2, A N F 1.59)

9 4 . F o r in no other w ay cou ld w e have learned the things o f G o d ,

unless our M aster, existin g as the W o rd , had becom e m an. F o r no
other being had the pow er o f revealing to us the things o f the Father,
except his o w n proper W ord. W h a t other person “k n e w the m ind o f
Beyond Prayer 10

the L ord,” or w ho else “ has become his counselor” (Rom 1 1 .34) ? A gain,
we could have learned in no other way than by seeing our Teacher and
hearing his voice w ith our own ears, that, having become imitators o f
his works as well as doers o f his words, we may have com munion with
him, receiving increase from the perfect one . . . who, redeeming us by
his ow n blood in a m anner consonant to reason, gave h im self as a
redemption for those who had been led into captivity . . . and redeemed
them as his ow n property . . . giving his soul for our souls, and his flesh
for our flesh. [Our Lord] has also poured out the Spirit o f the Father
for the union and com munion o f G od and man, im parting indeed God
to m en by means o f the Spirit, and, on the other hand, attaching man
to G od by his own incarnation, and bestowing upon us at his com ing
immortality, durably and truly, by means o f com munion with God. (St
Irenaeus, Against Heresies 5.1.1, A N F 1.526)

95. H ail, O light! For in us, buried in darkness, shut up in the shadow
o f death, light has shone forth from heaven, purer than the sun, sweeter
than life here below. T h at light is eternal life, and whatever partakes o f
it lives, for this is the m eaning o f the new creation.. . . H e has changed
sunset into sunrise, and through the cross brought death to life; and
having wrenched man from destruction, he has raised him to the skies,
. . . having bestowed on us the truly great, divine, and inalienable inher­
itance o f the Father, deifying man by heavenly teaching, putting his
laws into our minds, and w riting them on our hearts. (St Clem ent o f
Alexandria, Exhortation to the Heathen 11.114, A N F 2.203)

96. F or he was made man that w e m ight be m ade God; and he mani­
fested him self by a body that w e m ight receive the idea o f the unseen
Father; and he endured the insolence o f men that w e m ight inherit
immortality. (St Athanasius o f Alexandria, On the Incarnation 54.3,
N P N F , 2nd series, 4.65)

9 7 - For by partaking o f him, we partake o f the Father; because that the

W ord is the Father’s own. W hence, if he was him self too from parti­
cipation, and not from the Father his essential Godhead and Image,
he w ould not deify, being deified himself. F or it is not possible that
he, who merely possesses from participation, should im part o f that
o6 ORTHODOX PRAYER LIFE

partak in g to others, since w h a t he has is n ot his o w n , bu t the G iv e r s.

(St A than asius o f A lexan d ria, D e Synodis 5 1, N P N F , 2nd series, 4.477)

98. F or man would have not been deified i f joined to a creature, or

i f the Son w ere not very God; nor w ould m an have been brought
into the Father’s presence, i f he had not been his natural and true
W ord w ho had put on the body . . . so also man would not have been
deified i f the W ord who became flesh had not been by nature from
the Father and true and proper to him. F or therefore the union was o f
this kind, that he m ight unite w hat is man by nature to him w ho is in
the nature o f the godhead, and that his salvation and deification m ight
be sure. (St Athanasius o f Alexandria, Discourse I I Against the Arians 70,
N P N F , 2nd scries, 4.386)

99. Therefore he was not man, and then became G od, but he was God,
and then became man, and that to deify us . . .
. . . all that are called sons and gods, whether in earth or in heaven,
w ere adopted and deified through the W ord. (St Athanasius o f A lexan­
dria, Discourse I Against the Arians 39, N P N F , 2nd series, 4.329)

10 0 . W h o w ill not admire this? O r who w ill not agree that such a thing
is truly divine? For i f the works o f the W ord’s godhead had not taken
place through the body, man w ould not have been deified; and again,
i f the properties o f the flesh (like death, for example) had not been
ascribed to the W ord, m an would not have been thoroughly delivered
from them. (St Athanasius o f Alexandria, Discourse H I Against the
Arians 33, N P N F , 2nd series, 4.411)

1 0 1 . F or as the Lord, putting on the body, became man, so w e men are

deified by the W ord as being taken to him through his flesh, and hence­
forw ard inherit life everlasting. (St Athanasius o f Alexandria, D is­
course III Against the Arians 34, N P N F , 2nd series, 4.413)

10 2 . For he has become man, that he m ight deify us in himself, and he

has been born o f a wom an, and begotten o f a virgin, in order to trans­
fer to him self our erring generation and in order that we may become
henceforth a holy race, and “ partakers o f the divine nature,” as blessed
Beyond Prayer

Peter wrote. (St Athanasius o f Alexandria, Letter to Adelphos 4, N P N F ,

2nd series, 4.576)

10 3 . A n d w e are deified not by partaking o f the body o f some man, but

by receiving the body o f the W ord himself. (St Athanasius o f Alexan­
dria, Letter 61 to Maximus 2, N P N F , 2nd series, 4.578-79)

W e find that o f all the church fathers, St Athanasius o f Alexandria is the one
who uses this theological term “deification” most frequendy. H e explains and
highlights at every occasion the essential link between the incarnation o f G od
and the deification o f man.
But the deification (8eo7ioir]m<;) that the Fathers had in m ind does not
mean the change o f the human nature into a divine one. Rather, it means qual­
ifying human nature for life with G od in a communion o f love. T h is is accom­
plished by lifting the serious barrier that severs the life o f man from that o f
G od— namely, sin. T h is takes place through our ablution and sanctification by
the blood o f Christ and our partaking o f his Body. For this reason, deifica­
tion— or union in its perfcct sense as a life with G od— cannot be fulfilled
cxcept at the resurrection from the dead. But we have been granted means o f
grace, com m andm ents, and a divine pow er by w hich to conquer sin, the
world, and the life o f this age. W e have thus a new door opened before us.
Throu gh this door we can have— here and now— a foretaste o f the union with
G od in communion o f love and in obedience.
Therefore, the union o f man with God, or deification, is a legitimate aim
to seek. T h is is due to the preexisting union between divinity and humanity in
the incarnation. It is Christ, then, w ho has set it before us as an aim. U nion here
includes all the gratuitous means o f grace— baptism, H oly Com m union, and
perpetual repentance. U nion also includes struggles such as fasting, chastity,
bridling o f tongue and mind. It involves constant prayer as well as acts o f love
and humility. It certainly includes as well G o d ’s invisible succor to those who
strive to reach him.
It is true that union w ith G od is an ultimate aim that cannot be perfected
except in the resurrection from the dead. But it is also the outcome o f faith and
works that must be completed here in this life.
In brief, union w ith G od in the context o f this life means a perpetual
change from a life according to the flesh into a life according to the Spirit. This
change w e undergo every day and every hour in faith, effort, and tears. W e
io 8 ORTHODOX PRAYER LIFE

have to conform to the w ill o f God. W e have to fulfill the demands o f his king­
dom as declared by the gospel.
W hat w e have to bear always in mind about the potentiality o f union with
G od is the person o f Jesus Christ himself. It is through obedience and love to
Christ that union with G od is perfected. It is he who has first completed the
union o f divinity and humanity in him self to deliver it to us in a mystery o f
transcendent love.
In Christianity, union is a practical reality that we experience in our w or­
ship and love for Christ but cannot understand or grasp w ith our minds.
A ccording to human logic it is inconceivable. But according to the mystery o f
the incarnation and the experience o f love and faith, it is the truth and a pal­
pable reality.
Union with G od is not a subsidiary issue in faith or doctrine. It is the basis
o f all faith and doctrine. It is the ultimate aim o f G od for sending his only Son
to the world to become man; “For he has made know n to us in all wisdom and
insight the mystery o f his w ill, according to his purpose which he set forth in
Christ as a plan for the fulness o f time, to unite all things in Christ, things in
heaven and things on earth” (Eph 1.9 10).
So the mystery o f union between m ankind and Christ is the ultimate aim
o f the incarnation, the crucifixion, the resurrection— nay, o f creation in full.
L et us read what St Macarius the Great says in this respect:

104* Indeed, a great and divine w ork and wonderful is the so u l. .. A nd

in one word he created it such as to be his bride and enter into union
with him so that he may inter-penetrate it and be “one spirit” with it.
(St Macarius the Great, Homilies 46.5—6, in Maloney, Intoxicated with
God: The Fifty Spiritual Homilies o f Macarius)

W e can thus see that union with G od is the foundation o f the Church and the
mystery o f the gospel. T h e w ork o f the Church or the aim o f the gospel is but
calling m ankind to faith in the person o f the Lord Jesus. T h e action o f faith in
Christ and its ultimate aim are union o f humankind in the mystical body o f
Christ. T h is union aims at manifesting the kingdom o f Christ. It also aims at
revealing the kingdom o f saints. T h e kingdom o f saints w ill reign in Christ,
and Christ w ill reign in it. About this m utual reign or mutual inheritance,
which expresses most strongly the union with God, St Macarius the Great says:
Beyond Prayer

10 5 . T h is also is what God, the lover o f m ankind, does to the person

w ho comes to him and ardently desires him. But there is even much
more. Impelled by love, he himself, by the goodness which is inherent
in him and is all his own, enters w ith that person “ into one spirit” (1 C or
6.17), according to the apostolic saying.
W hen a person clings to the Lord and the Lord has pity and loves
him in his com ing and clinging to him, and when a person has the
intention thereafter to remain constantly in the grace o f the Lord, they
become one spirit and one temperament and one m ind, the person and
the Lord. A n d though his body is prostrate on the earth, his mind has
its complete conversation with the heavenly Jerusalem, rising up to the
third [spiritual] heaven and clinging to the Lord and serving him there.
A nd he, while sitting on the throne o f majesty in the heights, in the
heavenly city, is totally turned toward him in his bodily existence. H e
has indeed placed his image above in Jerusalem, the heavenly city o f the
saints and he has placed his ow n image o f the ineffable light o f his
godhead in his body. H e ministers to such a person in the city o f his
body, while he serves him in the heavenly city.
H e has inherited him in heaven and he has inherited him on earth.
T h e Lord becomes his inheritance and he becomes the inheritance o f
the Lord. (St Macarius the Great, Homilies 46.3 4, in Spiritual Homilies)

From our Church heritage, w e can infer that all the facts o f theology revealed
to the great theologian fathers, who were filled w ith the H oly Spirit, were
actually proved by the simple ascetic fathers. This took place at the level o f
daily life, conduct, and personal experience in a most vivid and articulatc m an­
ner. T h ro u g h the exam ple o f these ascetic fathers, w e are encouraged to
believe and to trust that the H oly Spirit invites us as well to share in this holy
and blessed com munion with the Father, the Son, and the H oly Spirit.

./-Tv
'ct/1 TT? 'C T?1
110 ORTHODOX PRAYER LIFE

SAYIN GS OF TH E FATHERS ON U N IO N W IT H GOD

St Macarius described this spiritual union w ith G od as the holy matrimony o f

the soul and God: the soul as the bride and Christ as the heavenly Bridegroom.
But this is not merely a simile. It is a real sacrament, which takes place between
the devout soul and G od, m aking them one spirit. H ere are his w ords in
this respect:

1 06. H e is wounded with love for the heavenly Spirit, and through the grace
that dwells within him, he burns with desire for the H eavenly Bridegroom.
This stirs him to the perfect longing, the longing to be deemed worthy to enter
into the mystical and awe-filled communion with him, in the sanctification o f
the Spirit.
T h e facc o f the soul is unveiled, its eyes fix upon the Heavenly Bridegroom:
face to face in that ineffable light. Clasping him with full certitude o f faith, he
becomes conform ed to his death. H e yearns alw ays to die for Christ. (St
Macarius the Great, Homilies 10.4, in Spiritual Homilies)

.
1 0 7 T h e soul whom Christ, the H eavenly Spouse, has asked to be his bride
in a mystical and divine fellowship has tasted the riches o f heaven. T h is soul
ought to strive diligently, sincerely to please the Bridegroom , Christ . . . it
should display the screnest modesty and love toward him, should behave
becomingly in the house o f the H eavenly K ing. (St Macarius the Great, Hom ­
ilies 15.2, in Spiritual Homilies)

10 8 . D o you not understand that heaven and earth w ill pass away, but
you have been called to immortality, to sonship; a brother and a spouse o f
the King?
In the life around us, all that belongs to the spouse, belongs to the bride as
well, and so it is with all things that belong to the Lord, no matter how m uch
they be, H e entrusts to you. (St Macarius the Great, Homilies 16.13, ' n Spiritual
Homilies)

In these words, St Macarius tells o f the highest gift a Christian may receive.
H e w ho is sanctified by truth is counted worthy for this wonderful mystical
union with Christ, a holy matrimony in the Spirit. T h e blessed communion
with the Bridegroom and the heritage reserved in Christ’s glory are both his.
Beyond Prayer h i

H ere are some other meditations on this union by another saint:

10 9 . O ut o f the mist o f that light, where the Lord is said to dwell, the beams
o f mercy dazzle onto the mind deserving. T h e soul beholds the face o f its Lord.
It is delighted at the taste o f his sweetness. It inhales his pure savor . . . It enters
in and clasps him, not know ing how to depart except he thrust it away from
union with him.
T h is is an imprisonment in a mountain o f light, an engulfing in light. T h is
is what the assumption w ill be, which is described as the vision o f G o d ’s glory.
(St John o f Dalyatha, Homily on the Visitations o f the Spirit 3, “ T h e degree o f
perfection,” in “Spiritual Elder”)

1 1 0 . T h e union w ith your eternity is like the union o f the members o f the
body with their head. But it is the grace o f union with your glory and not
with your eternal person or essence. It is for the sake o f our joy, for w e yearn
to be changed into a glory such as yours. (St John o f Dalyatha, Homily on the
Mystery o f the New World, in “Spiritual E lder”)

1 1 1 . “Even as thou Father art in me and I in thee, that they also m ay be in us”
(Jn 17 .21). Blessed is he who has tasted this beatitude . . . Blessed is he whose
soul, flesh and bones com m ingle w ith this delight. (St John o f D alyatha,
Homily on the Warm Pleasure which Commingles with Those Who Love God
when They See His Glory, in “Spiritual Elder")

1 1 2 . Each one beholds you inwardly and rejoices at your beauty and marvels
and thinks that you dwell in him alone. But in fact, in your perfection, you
dwell in everyone. . . Each beholds you in his mind as perfectly present therein,
while you are perfectly dw elling in all. (St John o f Dalyatha, Homily on the
Revelations o f Christ, in “Spiritual E lder”)

1 1 3 . A t that time they w ill become not clothed in light but they themselves
w ill turn into light: “T h en the righteous w ill shine like the sun in the king­
dom o f their Father” (Mt. 13.43). T h ere they will no longer see the likeness
o f G od, but the glory o f his Godhead. (St John o f Dalyatha, Hom/fy on the Love
o f God, in “Spiritual E lder”)

1 1 4 . T h eir union w ith G od is like the union o f fire and iron. T h e iron retains
its properties but it turns into fire, its nature becomes like that o f fire. So do
112 ORTHODOX PRAYER LIFE

the righteous become like G od in their nature. T his is no lie: I truly assert, by
reason o f m y intimacy w ith G od, that oftentimes those w ho have attained a
love for G od see greater and m ore excellent things. (St John o f Dalyatha,
Homily on the Love o f God, in “Spiritual Elder”)

1 1 5 . Once divine light dawns upon the soul, once it unites with it, the soul
mentally traverses the whole [physical] creation, in heaven or on earth, be
they mountains or oceans or people or solid bodies. It beholds them as they
really are. It becomes one with them in mental vision . . . From this theoria it
ascends to the theoria o f spiritual beings [which have no material substance],
and then rises to the sphere o f the H oly L igh t and this vision swallows up
the soul. Everything other than that L ight then disappears from its sight as
if it never existed. T h e soul then forgets itself in its union with the glory o f
that Light. (St John o f Dalyatha, Homily on the Theoria which Severs the Mind
from the World, in “ Spiritual Elder”)

1 1 6 . W ho can understand the mystery o f union between the mind and God?
T h e mind becomes confined within G od, it shares the likeness o f its Creator.
It unites with his presence, the divine presence which, pervading all, is greater
than all, is beyond all comprehension. W hat words can ever explain the m an­
ner o f such union w hich engulfs the mind and so rids it o f all thoughts o f dis­
traction, all earthly motion. (St John o f Dalyatha, Homily on the Theoria which
Severs the Mindfrom the World, in “Spiritual E lder”)

U nion with G od is the aim o f the life o f prayer and worship. It is a fore­
taste o f the glory Christians w ill enjoy in the age to come. T h is St Macarius
describes as “ the mystical com m union between the soul and the heavenly
Bridegroom ” and St John o f Dalyatha describes as “the strong union which
fastens the mind to G od .” A ll these expressions articulate the powerful union
o f the soul and G od into one spirit. T his is the kingdom o f G od into which the
gospel guides us. It is within us. O nce w e reach this state w e w ill kn ow what
the m eaning o f perfect love is— love o f God with all the heart, soul, and mind
and love o f neighbor as ourselves.
By union with G od we transcend the limits o f matter and reach beyond
this visible world. T h is is what the Lord Jesus meant in his prayer to the Father
when he said: “I am not praying for the world . . . I am no more in the world
. . . I am not o f the w orld . . . I do not pray that thou shouldst take them out o f
Beyond Prayer ” 3

the world . . . H oly Father, keep them in thy name which thou hast given me
. . . that they may be one even as we are one . . . even as thou, Father, art in me
and I in thee” (Jn 17).
Prayer is the journey to the kingdom : the arrival is union with God. T h e
kingdom is not far from us, but is within us. T h e union with God that the
saindy fathers experienced is the end o f all endeavors: corporal acts o f mercy,
the labor o f the soul, or perseverance in spiritual contemplation. “I have fought
the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. H enceforth there
is laid for me the crown o f righteousness” (2 T im 4.7).
Those who are redeemed by the blood o f the heavenly Bridegroom have
an essential right o f their own: the right to strive to reach a vital intimacy with
God— an intimacy that transcends the present world.
Spiritual gifts are dispensed to us. W hat is needed is all our strength, will,
and mind: the struggle to gain such gifts. Grace, always present with and
within us, aids us in this struggle: “ M ake love your aim, and earnestly desire
the spiritual g ifts . . . So with yourselves; since you are eager for manifestations
o f the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church” (1 C o r 14.1,12).
A spiritual gift is not to perform signs and wonders. It is to live for the
Spirit and experience and taste his fruits. It is called a “gift” because it tran­
scends the present world. But it does not transcend the afterlife; it is the very
nature o f the age to come. I f then w e are truly not o f this world, as Christ
wishes us to be, our conduct has to be identical with the life o f the age to come.
W e should be bent on proceeding according to the standards o f the Spirit and
not those o f this world. O ur longing should always be for reaching God, for
unity with him.

H is divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and
godliness, through the knowledge o f him w ho called us to his own
glory and excellcncc, by which he has granted to us his precious and
very great promises, that through these you m ay escape from the cor­
ruption that is in the world because o f passion, and become partakers
o f the divine nature. For this very reason m ake every effort to supple­
ment your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and know l­
ed ge w ith self-co n trol, and self-co n tro l w ith steadfastness, and
steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection,
and brotherly affection w ith love. F or if these things are yours and
abound, they keep you from being ineffective or u nfru itful in the
ii 4 ORTHODOX PRAYER LIFE

knowledge o f our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these things is
blind and shortsighted and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his
old sins. Therefore, brethren, be the more zealous to confirm your call
and election, for i f you do this you w ill never fall; so there w ill be richly
provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom o f our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ (2 Pet 3—11).

T h is partaking o f the divine nature to which the apostle Peter invites us

is the same mystery that the apostle John unveils to us as the “m arriage o f
the L am b” : “ ‘L et us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the m arriage
o f the Lam b has come, and his Bride has m ade herself ready; it was granted
her to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure’— for the fine linen is the
righteous deeds o f the saints” (Rev 19.7—8). W h at is the marriage? W h o is the
bride clothed w ith fine linen bright and pure? ‘“ Com e, I w ill show you the
Bride, the wife o f the Lam b.’ A nd in the Spirit he carried me away . . . and
showed me the holy city Jerusalem . . . having the glory o f G o d ” (Rev 21.9,
10,11).
W hat is Jerusalem which has “the glory o f G od ” but the Church? W h at is
the Church but the congregation o f saints? W hat is the glory which surrounds
them but the power o f their union with Christ? It is thus that the Christian
church adopted in its earliest period this tradition describing the mystical rela­
tionship that binds the chaste soul to Christ: the soul is the redeemed bride
adorned with sanctity. T h e Bridegroom is the Lam b slain for the souls he has
betrothed for himself: “I w ill betroth you for me forever” (Hos 2.19); “For I
betrothed you to Christ to present you as a pure bride to her one husband”
(2 C or 11.2). A s for the marriage, it is the union that exists between the soul
and Christ.

1 1 7 . H e w ho truly loves G od and Christ, though he may perform a thousand

good works, considers him self as one who has done nothing because o f his
insatiable longing for the Lord. L et him tear dow n the body with fasts and vig­
ils: in his ow n eyes he has never even yet begun to develop virtues. L et the var­
ious gifts o f the Spirit, let even revelations and heavenly mysteries be given to
him: he believes that he has acquired nothing because o f his immense and insa­
tiable love for the Lord.
H ungry, thirsty for faith and love, he daily perseveres in prayer. H e has an
insatiable desire for the m ysteries o f grace and for every virtue. H e is
Beyond Prayer

w ounded w ith love for the heavenly Spirit, and through the grace which
dwells within him he burns w ith desire for the H eavenly Bridegroom . T h is
stirs him to the perfect longing, the longing to be deemed worthy to enter
into the mystical and awe-filled com munion with him, in the sanctification
o f the Spirit.
T h e face o f the soul is unveiled, its eyes fix upon the Heavenly Bridegroom:
face to face in that ineffable light. Clasping him with full certitude o f faith, he
becomes conformed to his death. H e yearns always to die for Christ. H e cer­
tainly and completely believes that he w ill obtain liberation from his sins and
his dark passions through the Spirit— so that, soul and body purified by the
Spirit, he m ay become a pure vessel to receive the heavenly unction and
become a worthy habitation for Christ, the noble heavenly K ing. (St Macarius
the Great, Homilies 10.4, in Spiritual Homilies)

.
1 1 8 A maiden, espoused to a wealthy man, may receive any number o f gifts
before the consummation: ornaments, clothing, or precious vessels. But she is
not satisfied until the time o f the marriage comes and she arrives at full com ­
munion. So also the soul, betrothed to the H eavenly Bridegroom , receives as
pledge from the Spirit gifts o f healing or o f knowledge or o f revelation. But it
is not satisfied w ith these until it reaches the perfect communion, that is, o f love
unchangeable and unfailing. It frees from passion and agitation those who
have desired it.
So also, an infant m ight be decked out with pearls and cosdy clothing.
W hen it is hungry, it thinks nothing o f the things it wears, it cares only for the
breast o f its nurse— how it may receive m ilk. So also consider it to be with the
spiritual gifts o f G od to w hom be glory forever. Am en. (St Macarius the Great,
Homilies 45.7, in Spiritual Homilies)

Behold the Bridegroom is coming,

See, O my soul, that you sleep n o t . . .
But watch that you may meet the Lord Christ with the oil o f fatness
and that he may grant thee the true w edding o f his divine glory.
(Midnight O ffice, First W atch, Coptic Canonical Hours)