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3.1 Asceticism and Theosis
Asceticism is the set of disciplines practiced to work out the believer's salvation, and further the believer's repentance. Ultimately, it is believed, salvation comes only by the grace of God, but God's grace and right belief are expected to produce changes in behavior. Changes in behavior can also influence beliefs. Asceticism can include anything from taking part in prayers with the church, fasting, almsgiving, or even working hard not to lose one's temper or similar acts of restraint and self-control. Corporate prayers are generally prayed as a "liturgy", which literally means a "work of the people." One prayer that is very widely used and is the subject of much discussion of spirituality is the Jesus Prayer.
Theosis, or divinization, is the process of becoming more like God and more united with God. It is the goal of the Christian life. It means becoming all that people were originally created to be. It is not something to wait for passively, but something to be taken by force, by hard work done in one's soul.
The chief activities of the believer are:
- The Mystery of Repentance (or confession)
- The Mystery of the Eucharist
- Prayer
- Fasting
- Obedience
- Almsgiving
- Selflessness
- The Acquisition of Virtues
3.1.1 Mystery of Repentance
In the earliest days of the Church, Christians confessed their sins to each other publicly, and publicly forgave each other, announcing God's forgiveness. This was possible in part because only believers were meeting together, and they were close-knit communities in which everyone trusted each other. As time went on, and more people came into the Church, some people attending were seekers or catechumens rather than faithful members, and believers began to feel uncomfortable confessing in public. Then the practice developed of members quietly confessing to God (typically in front of an icon of Jesus blessing the icon's beholder) in the presence of an elder or priest, who would offer counsel and confirm God's forgiveness. This would take place in the context of a series of prayers said by the priest and penitent together, often including Psalm 51 and other scriptures and prayers. However, it should be noted that anyone with sufficient experience and knowledge, if given a blessing from a Bishop, can hear confessions. Thus, a confessor might be a priest, monk, nun, man, woman, etc. It may make sense that married couples confess to a married person, or a woman confess to another, more experienced, woman. Such things are not unusual. However, Only a priest can read the prayers of forgiveness over the person in preparation for communion. Repentance is essential preparation for receiving the Eucharist. The Orthodox Church has never bothered with the concept of anonymity in confession the way the Roman Catholics have. Orthodox confession often takes the form of a discussion between the confessor and the penitent concerning his or her sins and the best course of action to take in overcoming them. Penitence is not handed out in the same way as the Catholics either. Usually all that is required is the attempt in overcoming the sin or making restitution with the person wronged. Sin is not viewed by the Orthodox as a stain on the soul that needs to be wiped out, but rather as a mistake that needs correction. Thus one should feel sorry for one's mistakes because one has failed to reach the goal. Because of this approach, guilt has never been a strong motivator with the Orthodox, nor has shame. The recognition that we are all human and occasionally make mistakes and that all we have to do is change our direction and correct the problem is more in line with the true meaning of Repentance - "To change ones mind"
3.1.2 Mystery of the Eucharist
The Eucharist is at the center of Orthodox Christianity. In practice, it is partaking of the bread and wine in the midst of the Divine Liturgy with the rest of the church. The bread and wine are believed to be the genuine Body and Blood of Christ Jesus. The Eastern Orthodox Church has never described exactly how this occurs, or gone into the detail that the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches have in the West. The doctrine of transubstantiation was formulated after the Great Schism took place, and the Orthodox churches have never formally affirmed or denied it, preferring to state simply that it is a mystery and sacrament. Long before the year 1054 it was the practice to in some way hide the mysterious process within the liturgy. In the Catholic Church of the Latin Rite, this was achieved through the use of Ecclesiastical Latin; in the Orthodox churches the altar area was surrounded by pillars with curtains in between. This structure called a templon represented the Temple and the Holy of Holies. Later, it became a solid wall covered with Icons and is in modern usage called an iconostasis (literally "icon stand").
Traditionally preparation for communion involves a strict fast, abstaining from animal products and sexual relations from Wednesday through Saturday, and the addition of a number of preparatory canons to ones evening prayers. Also, a complete fast (no food or drink) should be kept from sundown Saturday until after communing on Sunday. One should have ones confession heard and receive a blessing from the priest prior to receiving communion. This practice makes it impractical for the average layman to receive communion every Sunday so it is often the practice for them to commune only on special feast days during the year. Monastics, on the other hand, receive communion every day because they continually fast, have long prayers, and remain celibate. Because of the purity issue when considering preparation for communion, men, even monks, will abstain from communion if they have experienced a nocturnal emission, and women will abstain during their monthly cycle. (see below - Fasting) In modern practice, especially in the US, the seriousness of the experience of communion has been lost for the practice of many jurisdictions of communing every Sunday. It is the opinion of the Traditionalists that such practices are very dangerous spiritually, that this reflects a lack of piety in approaching the most significant of the Mysteries, and that this is damaging to the soul.
