When you hear speak of the deifying energy of God and theurgic(theourgia)grace
of the Spirit, do not busy yourself or seek to know why it is this or
that and not something else; for without it you cannot be united to God,
according to those Fathers who have spoken about it. Attend rather to
those works which will allow you to attain to it, for thus you will know
it according to your capacities; for, as St. Basil tells us, he alone
knows the energies of the Spirit who has learnt of them through
experience. As for the man who seeks knowledge before works, if he
trusts in those who have had the experience, he obtains a certain image
of truth. But if he tries to conceive of it by himself, he finds himself
deprived even of the image of truth. He then puffs himself up with
pride as if he discovered it, and breathes forth his anger against the
men of experience as if they were in error. Do not be overcurious
threrefore, but follow the men of experience in your works, or at least
in your words, remaining content in the exterior manifestations of
grace.
Deification is in fact beyond every name. This is why we, who have written much about hesychia
(sometimes at the urging of fathers, sometimes in response to the
questions of the brothers) have never dared hitherto to write about
deification. But now, since there is a necessity to speak, we will speak
words of piety (by the grace of the Lord), but words inadequate to
describe it. For even when spoken about, deification remains ineffable,
and (as the Fathers teach us) can be given a name only by those who have
received it. (The Triads E. The Uncreated Glory 32)
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