Unit:
Department of TheologyLibrary of the School of Theology
Dissertation committee:
Μητρ. Μεσσηνίας Χρυσόστομος-Γεώργιος Σαββάτος, Καθηγητής, τμήμα Θεολογίας, Θεολογική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Κωνσταντίνος Κορναράκης, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής, τμήμα Θεολογίας, Θεολογική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Μαρίνα Κολοβοπούλου, Επίκουρος Καθηγήτρια, τμήμα Θεολογίας, Θεολογική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Αθανάσιος Γλάρος, Επίκουρος Καθηγητής, τμήμα Κοινωνικής Θεολογίας και Θρησκειολογίας, Θεολογική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Σταύρος Γιαγκάζογλου, Επίκουρος Καθηγητής, τμήμα Θεολογίας, Θεολογική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
π. Αρίσταρχος Γκρέκας, Επίκουρος Καθηγητής, τμήμα Θεολογίας, Θεολογικής Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Γεώργιος Σταυρόπουλος -Γιουσπάσογλου , Επίκουρος Καθηγητής, τμήμα Θεολογίας, Θεολογική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Original Title:
Η Σχέση Ψυχής και Σώματος στην περί Σωτηρίας Διδασκαλία Συμεών του Νέου Θεολόγου
Translated title:
The Relation of the Soul and the Body in the Teaching About Salvation of Simeon the New Theologian
Summary:
In this thesis the relation of the soul and the body in the teaching of Simeon the New Theology is explored. In the historian and theological contest of the Simeon’s New Theologian time where a contrast emerged between tie philosophical approach of the theology and the empirical and apocalyptical way of theology, Simeon is featured to understand the orthodox anthropology in the light of the relation of the being and the inbuilt. His mentions of the soul and his body aim in pointing out the potential that has already been given to the human being using the «κατ’ εικόνα και καθ’ ομοίωσιν» belief to participate by grace with his soul and body to the divinity of the Holy Trinity. It is mentioned particularly that the Simeon’s teaching aims at reversing his contemporary’ s belief that they receive the awareness of God’s truth through the world’s wisdom showing off his experience according to the possibility of the exposure of God’s glory from the whole psychosomatic human unity, revealing that the body is participant to the become divine.
Also Simeon’s contribution to the development of the Christian anthropology is making known according to the emphasis on the psychosomatic unity of the human that the saint is giving and with the empirical exploration of the relations of the two human natures soul and body through the greatest event of his salvation by God’s grace. The way that God’s and humans combination cannot be understood by Simeon but only through the understanding of the way that they are united and clearly the visible and mental nature the body and the soul.
Simon’s teaching is presented as an answer to a general conservatism of this era that adopted a religious and ascetic morals, which were expressed by the external conformity to God’s commands, creating, with that way, a disguise of religious devoutly and clashing it upon. The empirical truth which Simeon brings as an answer is that in God’s grace the soul and the body participate at the same time because human is simultaneously soul and body. The body’ s participant from the present life is shown as a consequence that the psychosomatic orientation of the faithful person towards God and it is making known also the observance of the commands and the participation in the holy sacrament of the Church as the mean of its accomplishment.
Also, it is noted that the substratum of the whole Simeon’ s teaching about humans, God’ s grace seems to be built by a conscious effort to show the relationship between the material body and the mental soul. Through the soul, the body starts to spiritualize when it participates to God’s glory. So it is emphasized that the possibility of body’s imperishability in Simeon’s teaching isn’t a secondary teaching but a main theological statement. According to this he bases the capability of the union between the mortal human and the immortal and imperishable God. When the soul reaches purgation from the orientation of the psychosomatic union between human and God, he thinks that the light of the Holy Spirit’s glory and the minds brilliance is transmitted to the mortal body making it more spiritual. The body ‘’is dressed’’ with God’s garment, God’s glory and through the baptism and the Holy Communion sacraments, it is in a body with the holy body of Jesus Christ and participates in his divinity. Church’s sacraments in Simeon’s teaching officiate as a consequence, as an attraction of the psychosomatic human to the spirituality the souls and body’s spiritual life. Through this to the view and the usurpation of the Holy Spirit with the body which is in mortal condition allowing humans union with God and the faith theory from his present life.
The understanding of the body and soul union in Simeon’s teaching seems to be a presupposition for going deeper into his teaching for salvation and God’s grace to human. In Simeon’s thinking the mortal nature of human the body cannot hare a connection with the mental world even with the mental soul. So the blending of the body and soul that it isn’t mixed to human’s hypostasis makes the body a soul’s tool in order the mental soul to see the mortal foundation and God’s glory is carried through the body as brilliance. The loss of God’s play from the soul brings the loss of God’s glory from the body which is mortal and has needs that the soul must heal. The mortal body’s needs, the irrational derives and from the body’s weight confirm the malicious desires of the dead soul and together they create the flesh that is the substance of the body and soul. The flesh and the mortal view in Simeon’s teaching is the psychosomatic result of the soul’s removal from the goods and its attachment to the evil things. With this way Simeon finds the body not guilty and admits that the whole responsibility for the human tragedy is to the soul’s and mind’s attitude versus God. Moreover he is in favor of the body which doesn’t have its will and responsibility suffers and is blamed by the mortal belief. Because of this belief about the body as we can see in his writings Simeon could be «a very close person» (πλησίον) to the body.
In order to show Simeon’s teaching as far as the relation between the soul and the body and their role on the human salvation we chose to present and explore in four periods which are four discreet chapters of this piece of work: The human as Trinitarian God’s creation, The ‘’Naked’’ human by the God’s glory, The human towards the salvation, The soul and the body after the biological death. Intercalary in the chapters the reader can read four chapters which we consider to be necessary for the understanding of Simeon’s thought and teaching about the soul and the body and their relation. These are: Characteristics and functions of the psychosomatic human, The union of the human and divine nature on Christ’s face, The man during the Eight Day, The human’s salvation via the Church’s sacraments.
Main subject category:
Religion
Keywords:
body, soul, incorruptibility, salvation, deification, view of light, commands, repentance, mysteries, eighth day
Number of references:
429
