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A Comparison of Neoplatonic and Christian Theology: Henosis vs. Theosis

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Henosis, (ἕνωσις)

-A word meaning "unity" or "oneness"

-A transformation or elevation of the soul back to its prime source, the One (Τὸ Ἕν)

-Achieved through means of spiritual contemplation combined with theurgic rituals

-Requires an emptying and purifying of the self to achieve (katharsis)

-A full, unfiltered unity with the essence of the One, not just with its energies

Theosis, (θέωσις)

-A word meaning "deification" or "divinization"

-A restoration of human nature to a "pre-fall" state-- a sinless, semi-divine state.

-Achieved through a combination of spiritual purification (katharsis) and engaging with the energies of God through the sacraments.

-Not a "full" union with the essence of God, merely his energies.

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In Neoplatonism, henosis is more of an ascent, or a return of the soul to its original source, a full realization of our inner divinity. Theosis, in Christian belief, is a restoration of the human person, (body and soul) to a state of divine sinlessness, as it existed in the Garden of Eden. It is not a direct unity with God's essence but rather his energies, as his essence is ultimately unknowable to us. It is, in a sense, limited.

The similarities between henosis and theosis make for interesting theological discussions about human nature and the soul. Several Christian writers were influenced by Neoplatonist ideas in late antiquity, and many Christian beliefs borrow heavily from Platonism in general.

#hellenic polytheism #hellenic pagan #greek polytheism #paganblr #paganism #religion #hellenic paganism #theoi #helpol #history #theology #theological posting #neoplatonism #christianity #theosis #henosis #theology rambling

“On the subject of that which is beyond Intellect, many statements are made on the basis of intellection, but it is contemplated (θεωρεῖται) by a non-intellection (ἀνοησία) superior to intellection; even as concerning sleep many statements may be made in a waking state, but only through sleeping can one gain knowledge and comprehension (γνῶσις καὶ κατάληψις); for like is known by like, because all knowledge consists of assimilation to the object of knowledge.”

— Porphyry of Tyre, Sententiae XXV

#platonism #neoplatonism #henosis #mysticism #unification #mystic union #theoria #classical philosophy #philosophy #platonic #theosis #plotinus #porphyry #iamblichus #proclus

Hi! I read your short story Henosis for an English class I'm taking, and I just wanted to say that it's really been lingering in my mind for a while--we wound up talking about myths centered around storytelling and legacies w/Scheherazade and Achilles, and it was generally a great time.

I often have a hard time really getting into short stories in class, especially when the semester goes by so quick, but I've been chewing on that story for a bit now and I wanted to say thank you for writing it!

Thank you! I was playing with perspective there -- an artist's perception of his own success, a reader's perception of what constitutes honoring an artist, society's perception of an artist's value before vs after they die, etc. So it sounds entirely appropriate to compare against Scheherazade's tales and the song of Achilles -- both are stories that shift wildly depending on what storyteller gets centered. Hope it was a fun discussion!Glad to know that one's got some fans!

#answered asks #short stories #henosis

I was on the down with cis bus

#pania #oc #henosis #down with cis #trans pride #nb character

Plotinus — God-like and lifting himself often, by the ways of meditation and by the methods Plato teaches in the Banquet [Symposium], to the first and all-transcendent God — that God appeared, the God who has neither shape nor form but sits enthroned above the Intellectual-Principle and all the Intellectual-Sphere. There was shown to Plotinus the Term [i.e., goal] ever near: for the Term, the one end, of his life was to become Uniate [i.e., united with God], to approach to the God over all: and four times, during the period I passed with him, he achieved this Term, by no mere latent fitness but by the ineffable Act. To this God, I also declare, I Porphyry, that in my sixty-eighth year I too was once admitted and entered into Union.

Porphyry of Tyre, On the Life of Plotinus and the Arrangement of his Work

#god #philosophy #theology #mysticism #neoplatonism #platonism #plotinus #porphyry #iamblichus #proclus #plato #religion #hellenism #henosis #the enneads #the symposium #late antiquity #3rd century

At the beginning of my path of occult study, I, like many of my peers removing the shackles of the constantipolitan creed shunned anything which I deemed religious. However, maturity has informed me that religion, in it’s truest since, deserves the utmost respect. The distortion of the meaning of religion has come in large from New Age material. Contrary to misinformation, it does not intrinsically entail dogmatism, moralism, or superstition, though the misinterpretation of many religious doctrines has led to such. I’ve found that the so called occultists who shun religion are more often than not unprincipled in character, and non-committed in practice. They study tarot, practice astrology, and even cast spells, but these activities alone do not lift the soul from fragmented to whole. For that, a genuine spiritual discipline is needed. The modern connotation of religion gives the impression that the believer is basically an idiot. But if that was true, so many brilliant sciences too many to mention would not have been uncovered and improved, for example, by the Moslems during the Islamic golden era. In fact, Islam encourages moslems to develop intelligence by study of the arts and sciences. Originally, religion meant, “a strict adherence to a set of principles and practices”, with an implied purpose of experiencing both material and spiritual benefit. Jupiter is present by encouraging maturity through assimilation of wisdom, as is Saturn by setting boundaries to prevent distraction. Essentially, religion is an organization of metaphysical ideas with corresponding practices that one is wholeheartedly committed to. As you can see, this is no different than any number of esoteric paths. Actually, “path” is merely an esoteric replacement word for religion. When you study broadly, you begin to notice that some esoteric doctrines have dogmas just as narrow and superstitious as those of exoteric religion. Crowleys A.A. system has an appropriate motto: “The method of science, the aim of religion”, which means that one sticks to that which produces results. So, it would serve many to become acquainted with a more rational, rather than emotional interpretation of language:::

#hermeticism #hermetics #esoteric religion #occultism #witchcraft #magic #mysticism #henosis #theurgy

"Likeness to God as Far as Possible": Deification Doctrine in Iamblichus and Three Eastern Christian Fathers by Edward Moore, S.T.L., Ph.D. in Theandros: An Online Journal of Orthodox Theology and Philosophy, Volume 3, number 1, Fall 2005.

Nota Bene: Theandros appears to be defunct, its website has been taken over by an Asian soft-porn websquatter, and its content now only accessible via The Internet Archive's Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20080611065643/http://www.theandros.com/iamblichus.html

From the article:

Deification of the soul is a concept shared by the Hellenic pagan philosophical tradition and Orthodox Christianity. In the ancient Greek language, the concept is denoted by two separate terms. For the pagan Neoplatonists, such as Iamblichus, the deification of the human being was described as henōsis, or unity with God. For Christian theologians of the Greek tradition, the term was theōsis, meaning a divine mode of existence. The difference resides in the ontological and metaphysical presuppositions informing these two philosophical and theological approaches.