The Orthodox Tradition

Spirituality
Week 5
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 AGENDA
I. Introduction Ancient Tradition

2. Catholic
II. The Orthodox Tradition 3. Protestant
Byzantine Empire
4. Pentecostal/
Charismatic
III. Spirituality
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WEST EAST

Latin Greek
II. THE ORTHODOX TRADITION

“the longest history …

preserves the ancient ideas and practices … more fully”

500-1000 C.E.
The Age of the East

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II. THE ORTHODOX TRADITION
1. Collapse of the Western Empire 5th century

• Constantine split the empire

• West — Latin-speaking
• East — Greek-speaking
• 410 Rome sacked — 476 last West emperor
• Non-Christian tribal peoples
• Isolated the church in the west
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II. THE ORTHODOX TRADITION
2. Constantinople (330)
• Moving the capital a century earlier
• Major contributor to fall of the west
• Left the west weak and vulnerable
3. Byzantine Empire
• Continued social, political, economic, religious
• Continued the Ancient Tradition
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 Figure 6.1 The Great Division

The Ancient Tradition

Phase 1
The The Church of
The Miaphysite 500-600
Chalcedonian the East
Tradition
Tradition Tradition
1 2
Phase 2
600-1000
Catholic Orthodox
Tradition Tradition
3 4
 Four major traditions of 500-1000 period

Orthodox The
The
Christian
Catholic
WEST

' Church
Churchof the
of the EastEast

Miaphysite

Figure 6.2
II. SPIRITUALITY
A. The Chalcedonian Creed (451)
• Human/divine in Christ

• Jesus as “Son of God”

• Hypostatic union

• Church of the East (Nestorian) — humanity

• Miaphysites (Egypt) — divinity

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II. SPIRITUALITY
A. The Chalcedonian Creed (451)
• “The Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect in divinity and
also perfect in humanity; truly God and truly man,…;
of the same substance with the Father according to
divinity, and of the same substance with us according to
the humanity; in all things like unto us, without sin…”
• Relationship with humanity — shares life with creation
• Model for Christian life
• Relational & experiential
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II. SPIRITUALITY Relational

B. The Trinity
1. Model for
Humanity
Incarnation:
God became one of us
so that we might
become like God.

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II. SPIRITUALITY Experiential

B. The Trinity
2. Model for
the Church
“The Church as a whole
is an icon of God the
Trinity, reproducing on
earth the mystery of the
unity in diversity”
(M. Tataryn 193)

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II. SPIRITUALITY
C. Worship

Where what it is to be
Church is most clearly
seen and experienced.

Oculus & Pantokrator

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II. SPIRITUALITY
C. Worship

The many
layers of
relationship
are made
visible.

Iconostasis
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II. SPIRITUALITY
D. Icons

1. Living portals

“Living portals connecting the

earthly community with the
spiritual community of God
and the saints” (TWC 15).

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II. SPIRITUALITY
D. Icons

2. Works of
theology

“Icons can be seen as

the pictorial equivalent
to the Bible”.

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II. SPIRITUALITY
D. Icons

3. How
created?

“the deified nature

of the person”

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 https://
www.youtube.com/
watch?v=PwzR0NopFnE
II. SPIRITUALITY
E. Iconoclastic Controversy

1. Roots of the
conflict

2. Immediate
cause

3. The Triumph
of Orthodoxy
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Triumph of Orthodoxy
 https://
www.youtube.com/
watch?v=CR6hCtKpUBg
II. SPIRITUALITY
F. Theotokos

1. Council of Ephesus
(431)

2. Theotokos
(“bearer of God”)

3. Original sin?
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II. SPIRITUALITY
F. Theotokos

4. Co-Redemptrix?

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II. SPIRITUALITY
F. Theotokos

5. Her Role

“She is our role model: just as

she participated in bringing
Christ into the world, we are
called to also bring him into the
world.”

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 https://
www.youtube.com/
watch?
 Model for Humanity

Guide to God & Salvation Tender Mercy

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 Model for Humanity

Intercessor
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 Model for Humanity

All Merciful Praying

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II. SPIRITUALITY
G. Apophatic Theology

1. Definition

• “who God is not” (negative theology)

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II. SPIRITUALITY
H. Hesychasm

1. Definition

The Transfiguration
• “stillness, rest, quiet, silence”

• A mystical tradition of prayer

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II. SPIRITUALITY
H. Hesychasm

2. Symeon
the Theologian

The life-changing
presence of God

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II. SPIRITUALITY
H. Hesychasm
3. Hesychast
Controversy
Saint Palamas

Saint Barlaam
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II. SPIRITUALITY
H. Hesychasm

4. The Jesus Prayer

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II. SPIRITUALITY
I. Conclusion

• Centre of Orthodox spirituality —

mystery of the Incarnation

• God became one of us so that we might

become like God.

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END