Source: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
August 16, 2024
The Bible says, "Your spirit renews the face of the earth" (Ps. 104:30). Into what does God transform the world? How does He transform it? What is the nature of this transformation? What is its purpose? These questions and others go to the core of Christian theology, which calls for the salvation of humanity along with the universe and everything in it.
In order to approach this matter from an Orthodox perspective, we must talk a bit about the creation and fall of man, because the concept of fallenness is the point of departure in the theology of transformation—that is, "transfiguration."
To begin with, it must be noted that Orthodox theology prefers to use this term: "the transfiguration of the world." This action is derived from the Transfiguration event, "the Transfiguration of our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ on Mount Tabor." The transformation of the world by the Spirit of God means the restoration of the world to the deifying grace of God—the restoration of the world to its original life, which was lost through the Fall, when it lost the divine grace. Restoration of God's grace is the world's transformation into the fullness of divine light, just as happened with Christ on Mount Tabor: "And He was transfigured before them, and His clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them" (Mark 9:2-3).
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