Angels in the Teaching of Fr. John Romanides

- The time of the angels is in the ages without end, as angels are not restricted by matter. Thus angels move in intervals of time that do not resemble our own.

- Man has a slight conception of what time is, but he understands almost nothing about the ages, unless he reaches glorification and has spiritual insight, and sees an angel himself. Then he has experience of an angel.

- There is an interpretive rule that St. Basil the Great expresses very clearly: Wherever the Angel in the Old Testament is called God - because there are different kinds of angels, there are created angels as well - wherever the Angel who appears to the Prophets is called God, He is Christ.

Corpus Areopagiticum (Fr. George Florovsky)

 

 

 Corpus Areopagiticum

 

By Fr. George Florovsky

 

The Nature of the Corpus

The body of works collected under the name of Dionysius the Areopagite is one of the most enigmatic literary efforts of Christian antiquity. There is no reason to doubt its pseudo-epigraphic character, and there is no way one should see as its author "Dionysius the Areopagite" who was converted by the apostle Paul's sermon in Acts 17:34, and who, according to ancient tradition, became the first bishop of Athens (see Eusebius, IV, 23, 4). Testifying against this is not only the total lack of any mention of Dionysius' works before the sixth century, but also the very nature of the text or corpus, which is too far removed from the artless simplicity of the earliest Christian epoch both in terms of language and way of thinking. This was self-evident even before the Areopagiticum's dependence — both ideologically and literary — on the Neo-Platonic teacher Proclus (410-485) had been unquestionably established. Moreover, the unknown author evidently wanted to create the impression of a man of the apostolic epoch — a disciple of St. Paul, a witness to the eclipse which occurred on the day of the Savior's death, a witness to the Holy Virgin's Assumption, and an associate of the holy apostles. The claim to authentic antiquity is perfectly obvious, and the question of a premeditated "forgery" arises.

The Basis of Theology According to St. Dionysius the Areopagite

 

 

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos

 

In the teaching of Saint Dionysius the Areopagite we observe six basic points.

The first is the Thearchy, which is the beginning of theosis. 

 

The second point is that from the participation in the powers of God we have the Theonyms, and the most basic Theonyms are that God is Good and Beautiful. Good means progress, light that comes to us, and Beautiful means that it ignites the desire for Him.

The third point is the participation in the Theonyms, that is, the Hierarchy, which means the beginning of holiness. Participation in the Theonyms, is the sharing of the theonyms and this is the sacred order, the sacred science, the sacred energy. Thus we have the heavenly hierarchy, the ecclesiastical hierarchy, and the hierarchy in the mind of man.

Did Gregory the Theologian Refer to the Writings of Dionysius the Areopagite?

In his Oration on the Theophany of Christ, Gregory the Theologian writes in section 6:

"But when I say God, I mean Father, Son, and Holy Spirit... This then is the Holy of Holies, which is hidden even from the Seraphim, and is glorified with the thrice-repeated Holy, meeting in one ascription of the title Lord and God, as one of our predecessors has most beautifully and loftily pointed out."

The question is: Who is the "predecessor" Gregory is referring to? Some believe Gregory is referring to Athanasius the Great, while others believe he is referring to Dionysius the Areopagite.

Dionysius the Areopagite and the Apse Mosaic of the Transfiguration in Sinai

By Hieromonk Alexander (Golitzin)

Let me conclude this essay by turning to an artifact constructed within two or three decades of the first public mention of the Dionysian corpus. In the mid-sixth century, the same emperor who convoked the colloquium of 532, Justinian I, built a fortress monastery in the Sinai at the foot of Jebel Musa, the by-then traditional site associated with the theophanies of Exodus and, in consequence, already a longtime haunt of Christian ascetics. In the monastery church, imperial artisans assembled several mosaics, including one depicting the Transfiguration. The latter is located in the apse, directly above the altar. Here already, as Jas Elsner has pointed out in a remarkably perceptive essay in his recent book, Art and the Roman Viewer, we find the assemblage in a single glance of the major Dionysian themes: the God-man Christ in light, the altar of the eucharist, the Sinai of Moses' ascent, the Tabor of the Transfiguration, and the suggestions at once of mystical vision in this life open to the monks (and pilgrims) who form the worshipping body, and of the eschaton.

Kontakion and Oikos to Saint Dionysios the Areopagite

Kontakion.

Tone pl. 4. You the invincible champion.

In spirit, you passed through heavens gates, instructed, by the Apostle who attained, that which is beyond the three heavens, O Dionysios, you were enriched with all knowledge that is unspeakable, and you enlightened those who slumbered in the darkness of ignorance, wherefore we cry out: Rejoice, universal Father.

St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite on the Authenticity of the Authorship of Dionysius the Areopagite

By St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite

I am greatly astonished, as well as greatly saddened, to see this author of the Ekatonaetiridon hiss forth - woe is me! - that the writings of the great Dionysius are supposititious and were made at a later date. If he does not reverence Maximus, Sophronios, Andrew, the Damascene, Soudas, Syncellus, Pope Agathon, and many other Fathers who accepted the writings of the divine Dionysius to be authentic, the blessed one should at least reverence the two Ecumenical Synods, namely the Sixth, where he is mentioned in its sixth act, and the Seventh, where Saint Dionysius is referred to in its second and fourth canons, and calls Dionysius "Great". A local Synod of Rome which gathered under Martin against the Monothelites also mentions him. The Ecumenical Synods were born in truth, and cannot err. All men as individuals are born in falsehood, with the ability to err, while numerous are called wise and lovers of wisdom.

On the Dormition of the Theotokos (St. Dionysius the Areopagite)

By St. Dionysius the Areopagite

(On the Divine Names, Ch. 3, Sect. 2)

Perhaps also, this is worthy of apology, that whilst our illustrious leader, Hierotheos, is compiling his Theological Elements, in a manner above natural capacity, we, as if those were not sufficient, have composed others, and this present theological treatise. And yet, if that man had deigned to treat systematically all the theological treatises, and had gone through the sum of all theology, by detailed expositions, we should not have gone to such a height of folly, or stupidity, as to have attempted alone theological questions, either more lucidly or divinely than he, or to indulge in vain talk by saying superfluously the same things twice over, and in addition to do injustice to one, both teacher and friend, and that we, who have been instructed from his discourses, after Paul the Divine, should filch for our own glorification his most illustrious contemplation and elucidation. But, since in fact, he, whilst teaching things divine, in a manner suitable to presbyters, set forth comprehensive definitions, and such as embraced many things in one, as were suitable to us, and to as many as with us were teachers of the newly-initiated souls, commanding us to unfold and disentangle, by language commensurate with our ability, the comprehensive and uniform compositions of the most intellectual capacity of that illustrious man; and you, yourself, have oftentimes urged us to this, and sent back the very book, as being of transcendent value; for this reason, then, we too distinguish him as a teacher of perfect and presbyterial conceptions for those who are above the common people, even as certain second Oracles, and next to the Anointed of God. But for people, such as we are, we will transmit things Divine, according to our capacity. For, if strong meat belongs to the perfect, how great perfection is required that the same should feed others. Correctly, then, we have affirmed this, that the self-perceptive vision of the intelligible Oracles, and their comprehensive teaching, needs presbyterial power; but the science and the thorough teaching of the reasons which lead to this, fittingly belong to those purified and hallowed persons placed in a subordinate position. And yet, we have insisted upon this with the utmost care, that, as regards the things that have been thoroughly investigated by him, our divine leader, with an accurate elucidation, we should not, in any way, handle the same tautologically, for the same elucidation of the Divine text expounded by him. For, amongst our inspired hierarchs (when both we, as you know, and yourself, and many of our holy brethren, were gathered together to the depositing of the Life-springing and God-receptive body, and when there were present also James, the brother of God, and Peter, the foremost and most honored pinnacle of the Theologians, when it was determined after the depositing, that every one of the hierarchs should celebrate, as each was capable, the Omnipotent Goodness of the supremely Divine Weakness), he, after the Theologians, surpassed, as you know, all the other divine instructors, being wholly entranced, wholly raised from himself, and experiencing the pain of his fellowship with the things celebrated, and was regarded as an inspired and divine Psalmist by all, by whom he was heard and seen and known, and not known. And why should I say anything to thee concerning the things there divinely spoken? For, if I do not forget myself, many a time do I remember to have heard from thee certain portions of those inspired songs of praise; such was thy zeal, not cursorily, to pursue things Divine.

On Reading the Works of St. Dionysius the Areopagite (St. Peter of Damascus)

By St. Peter of Damascus

(A Treasury of Divine Knowledge, Bk. 1)

For should anyone preach anything contrary to God’s intention or contrary to the nature of things, then even if he is an angel St Paul’s words, ‘Let him be accursed’ (Gal. 1:8), will apply to him. This is what St Dionysius the Areopagite, St Anthony and St Maximus the Confessor affirm. For this reason St John Chrysostom says: ‘It was not the Greeks but the Holy Scriptures that transmitted these things to us. There is no contradiction when Scripture says about a certain person both that he did not see Babylon as a captive and, elsewhere, that they took him to Babylon with the rest. For one who reads attentively will find it said about this same man in another part of Scripture that they blinded him and in dm condition took him off as a captive (cf. 2 Kgs. 25:7; Jer. 52:11): Thus he went to Babylon, as the one writer says, but did not see it, as the other says.

Theodore the Presbyter's "On the Genuineness of the Works of Dionysius the Areopagite" (St. Photios the Great)

By St. Photios the Great

(Bibliotheca, Cod. 1)

1. [Theodore the Presbyter, On the Genuineness of the Works of Dionysius the Areopagite]*

Read the treatise of Theodore the Presbyter, in which he undertakes to prove the genuineness of the works of St. Dionysius. The following arguments against it are refuted: (1) If they are genuine, how is it that none of the later Fathers cites them or quotes any passages from them? (2) How is it that Eusebius Pamphilius, in his list of the writings of the Holy Fathers, does not mention them? (3) How is it that these treatises describe in detail rites and customs which only became established in the Church gradually and after a long time?

The Areopagite in 20th Century Orthodoxy

By Fr. Felix Culpa

On Wednesday, March 10, 1982, Fr Alexander Schmemann made the following entry into his diary:

Yesterday I read the Church Hierarchy of Psuedo-Dionysius the Areopagite. What can it mean in our contemporary world? What could it have meant in a world where it was written? What does the success of this corpus mean in Byzantium? If one would apply the Gospel's basic principle, "for the tree is known by its fruit" (Matthew 12:33), to the history of the Church, one would see that what happened was the reduction of the Church to a mysterious piety, the dying of its eschatological essence and mission, and, finally, the de-Christianization of this world and its secularization. But, it seems that there is an impulse precisely to return to this very legacy. (1)

This is a very harsh judgment, yet one that is by no means unrepresentative of Dionysius' reception by Orthodox scholars in the twentieth century. The goal of this essay is to analyze the basis for such a reading of the Dionysian corpus. I will attempt to realize this goal by analyzing the work of one of Dionysius' harshest critic's, Fr John Meyendorff, and then reviewing the work of two other Orthodox scholars who have responded to him, the late Fr John Romanides and Hieromonk Alexander (Golitzin). Following a summary consideration of the conversation among these three outstanding scholars, I will offer my own critique of the work of each and conclude with a consideration of the nature of patristic scholarship within the contemporary Orthodox Church and Dionysius' place within it.

Holy Apostle Carpos of the Seventy

St. Carpos the Apostle of the Seventy (Feast Day - May 26)

Verses

The Lord received the fruits you produced O Carpos,
Which you brought every hour till the end as a harvest.
On the twenty-sixth Carpos flew away from the earth to a distant place.

Saint Carpos was among the Seventy Apostles of the Lord, who ministered to the Apostle Paul in the preaching of the gospel, and delivered his epistles. He taught many pagans to revere Christ. Some sources say he was Bishop of Varna in Thrace, while others say he was Bishop of Berroia in Macedonia. As a shining star he illumined the universe with his teachings. Daily he worked great miracles and banished evil spirits from the possessed.

Saint Denis, First Bishop of Paris

St. Denis of Paris (Feast Day - October 9)

Verses

Your head is cut off from the rest, and as one who is great,

Dionysius, you run to her who prays.

On the third you were beheaded, and ran with your head in your hands, Dionysius.*

According to Gregory of Tours (History of the Franks 1.30): "Under the emperor Decius many persecutions arose against the name of Christ, and there was such a slaughter of believers that they could not be numbered. Babylas, bishop of Antioch, with his three little sons, Urban, Prilidan and Epolon, and Sixtus, bishop of Rome, Laurence, an archdeacon, and Hippolytus, were made perfect by martyrdom because they confessed the name of the Lord. Valentinian and Novatian were then the chief heretics and were active against our faith, the enemy urging them on. At this time seven men were ordained as bishops and sent into the Gauls to preach, as the history of the martyrdom of the holy martyr Saturninus relates. For it says: 'In the consulship of Decius and Gratus, as faithful memory recalls, the city of Toulouse received the holy Saturninus as its first and greatest bishop.' These bishops were sent: Bishop Gatianus to Tours (Dec. 18); Bishop Trophimus to Arles (Dec. 29); Bishop Paul to Narbonne (Mar. 22); Bishop Saturninus to Toulouse (Nov. 29); Bishop Dionysius to Paris; Bishop Stremonius to Clermont (Nov. 1), Bishop Martial to Limoges (June 30). And of these the blessed Dionysius, bishop of Paris, after suffering diverse pains in Christ's name, ended the present life by the threatening sword."

Saint Dionysius the Areopagite Resource Page

St. Dionysius the Areopagite (Feast Day - October 3)

Verses

You were inflamed with eros for your Master,

And in the flames departed to Him in a well-pleasing manner.

On the third of October Dionysius died.

 

Synaxarion of Saint Dionysius the Areopagite  

 

Hieromartyr Dionysius the Areopagite, Bishop of Athens 

 

Kontakion and Oikos to Saint Dionysios the Areopagite

 

Corpus Areopagiticum (Fr. George Florovsky)

 

SAINT DIONYSIOS THE AREOPAGITE: The all-wise hierarch and patron saint of Athens who died in Athens by fire

 

October: Day 3: Teaching 1: Holy Martyr Dionysius the Areopagite

 

Theodore the Presbyter's "On the Genuineness of the Works of Dionysius the Areopagite" (St. Photios the Great) 

The Authenticity of Dionysius the Areopagite's Writings

 

Are the Writings of Dionysius the Areopagite Genuine?

 

The Dionysian Authorship of the "Corpus Areopagiticum" According to Fr. Dumitru Staniloae

 

On Reading the Works of St. Dionysius the Areopagite (St. Peter of Damascus)

 

St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite on the Authenticity of the Authorship of Dionysius the Areopagite

 

Did Gregory the Theologian Refer to the Writings of Dionysius the Areopagite?

 

Was St. Dionysios the Areopagite a Neoplatonist?

 

Dionysius the Areopagite and the Apse Mosaic of the Transfiguration in Sinai

 

The Areopagite in 20th Century Orthodoxy

 

The Great Dionysios (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

 

The Basis of Theology According to St. Dionysius the Areopagite  

 

Divine Justice According to Saint Dionysius the Areopagite

 

The "Ecclesiastical Hierarchy" on the Metro 

 

On the Dormition of the Theotokos (St. Dionysius the Areopagite) 

 

The Vision of the Apostle Carpos of the Seventy

Apophatic (Negative) and Cataphatic (Positive) Theology

"Mystical" Theology or "Secret" Theology

Last Supper, Mystical Supper or Secret Supper?

 

Angels in the Teaching of Fr. John Romanides

 
Synaxis of the Heavenly Bodiless Angelic Powers

St. Dionysius the Areopagite on the Relationship Between Demons and Evil

Saint Denis, First Bishop of Paris

Synaxis of All Saints of Athens

 

The Experience of the Transfiguration in the Life of the Athonite Monk (4 of 5)

...continued from part three.

THE BRIGHT CLOUD

At sunset, after having finished his diakonia, accomplished his daily tasks, and retired to his cell, the monk does not cease to continue living the Transfiguration under the two forms that the Disciples experience in an exemplary manner on the summit of Tabor. While during the liturgical assembly he sees Christ in the light of His glory, and shares with the community and the visible world in the light of the Kingdom of Heaven, when he closes the door of his cell behind him - like the stone rolled up against the entrance of the Lord's tomb (Mk. 15:46) - then, in the depths of the night, he is covered by the cloud. At that moment, alone with God, he truly lives as a "monk," monachos [i.e., solitary]. Every vain glimmering of this world is extinguished - all sensual delights, preoccupations, ideas. The consolation of the brother's presence and the reflected glory of the New Jerusalem in the liturgy have withdrawn from him, and he must confront his own inner depths, the darkness of his passions, his unwavering, the scattering of his nous, and the hardness of his heart. He descends thus into his own inner hell in order to triumph there together with Christ, the conqueror of death.

Synaxarion of Saint Dionysius the Areopagite

Synaxarion

On the third day of this month, we commemorate the Holy Hieromartyr Dionysius the Areopagite.

Verses

To Dionysius.

Your head is cut off from the rest, and as one who is great,

Dionysius, you run to her who prays.

On the third you were beheaded, and ran with your head in your hands, Dionysius.

+ + +

You were inflamed with eros for your Master,

And in the flames you departed to Him in a well-pleasing manner.

On the third of October Dionysius died.

To Rusticus and Eleutherios.

By the sword Eleutherios and Rusticus,
Were liberated by beheading, from the earth and earthly things.

Saint Hierotheos as a Model for our Lives

St. Hierotheos of Athens (Feast Day - October 4)

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

In the chorus of saints there are saints who have the gift to cure illnesses, namely physical illnesses, and the people run to them. Parishes and Monasteries that have such a reputation are flooded with people. Of course, no one will criticize this, since it is natural for a sick person to run to a hospital and it is gratifying that people are resorting to the Church, which is an Infirmary for souls and bodies. I wanted to stress a few points related to this issue, but also about the spiritual life in general.

First: Indeed there are saints who have the gift of healing physical illnesses. And today, as in olden times, miracles take place, since Christ is always the same and works wonders through His saints. "Wondrous is God in His Saints."

Second: Physical healing is not the greatest gift nor the greatest miracle, nor is it the primary issue of life. The saints do not seek out miracles in their lives, but they try to live "in repentance". The purpose of our lives is theosis, which is communion with God, and is obtained by repentance and the application of God's commandments.

Third: The greater, more "superior" gifts are love, repentance and theology.

"Zealously desire the superior gifts, and I will show you the most excellent way. If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal." (Apostle Paul)

"He who has been made worthy to see himself and understand his spiritual poverty (through the grace of God and deep repentance we acquire self-knowledge), is greater than he who has been made worthy to raise the dead and see angels." (Saint Isaac the Syrian)

Theology in the life and teaching of the Orthodox Church is identified with the vision of God. A theologian is one who has seen God, can speak about Him, and knows how to truly pray. "If you are a theologian you know how to truly pray, and if you know how to truly pray you are a theologian" (Saint Nilus the Ascetic). A theologian is one who has discernment, and who is in a position to discern between the created and the uncreated, the divine and the demonic, and can heal the soul. Besides, spiritual health, which is what matters, is directly related to physical health, since many physical illnesses have their source in abnormalities of the soul. For example, if you don't like someone and your stomach hurts (most of the time, after all, it hurts not because of what we ate, but of who is eating us), or you have thoughts and suspicions against someone and you suffer from headaches.

Orthodox theology has nothing to do with rational processes and contemplations, but it is related, first and foremost, with the heart, the spiritual heart, which is the space in which God reveals Himself. True theologians are those who experience God and have defeated and exceeded the limits of death in their personal lives. One such Saint, Theologian and Father of our Church was Saint Hierotheos, the Bishop of Athens, disciple of the Apostle Paul and teacher of Saint Dionysios the Areopagite. He is, as is stressed in his Apolytikion, a student of exact theology, that is, a great theologian and interpreter of theology, as well as a great hymnographer, since at the Dormition of the Theotokos he was present and singing hymns to the Panagia. "He was a conductor after the Apostles of the divine hymnists...all who saw and heard him, and had previously known him or did not know him, considered him divinely inspired and a divine hymnographer" (Saint Nikodemos the Hagiorite).

A true disciple of the Apostle to the Nations, he suffered and learned divine things. Having renounced the idols, he experienced repentance and true love and achieved the vision of God, which is identified with theology, and it is why his words were vibrant and relevant, truly mystagogical. "A true student of theology, you were a mystagogue, Father, of higher things." That which the world has need of today, having become tired of empty words, are not contemplations and ossified reasonings of the brain, but living theological words, which offer true supplication, because it does not cause but it supplicates, it comforts the heart. This is because they are not empty words, but new words that recreate, regenerate and enliven. It offers a meaning to life, a love for true life, and not simply for our biological existence, for life is one thing and biological existence is another, life is one thing and true life and citizenship is another, that is, a life "in God".

The Apostle Paul encourages us to seek to acquire the "superior" gifts, which are love, repentance and theology. The student of exact theology, Saint Hierotheos, was a mystagogue and initate of these superior things. The continuous preoccupation only with minor things, perhaps does it reveal our spiritual poverty and shallowness?

Source: Ekklesiastiki Paremvasi, "Ο ΥΠΟΦΗΤΗΣ ΤΗΣ ΑΚΡΙΒΟΥΣ ΘΕΟΛΟΓΙΑΣ: ΑΓΙΟΣ ΙΕΡΟΘΕΟΣ", October 1997. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

The "Ecclesiastical Hierarchy" on the Metro

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos
of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

After the first day of the meeting with the Hierarchy, where several things were heard and done, I went home with the Metro. There I came upon a surprise I wanted to comment on.

In the seat opposite me sat a middle-aged lady with contemporary clothing. Immediately she opened her bag and pulled out a green bound book of the series Philokalia of the Sacred Neptics and began to read. She was reading the translation and sometimes looking at the original text, and she would here and there seem pleased by the look on her face. This made an impression on me. I also noticed she was reading "On the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy" of Saint Dionysios the Areopagite.

Those who have a relationship with patristic texts know that it is an important text that shows what is the theological structure of the Church, what is the person and work of the Deacon, the Presbyter and the Bishop, and how does one achieve these ecclesiastical positions. Finally he presents the theological position that the constitution of the Church is hierarchical, that the three degrees of the Priesthood (Deacon-Presbyter-Bishop) are associated with the three Mysteries (Baptism-Chrismation-Divine Eucharist) as well as the three degrees of the spiritual life (Purification-Illumination-Perfection). The commentaries (scholia) made by Saint Maximus the Confessor on these texts are important together with the serious theological views that were passed down up to Saint Nikodemos the Hagiorite and contemporary theologians. They are important texts.

I got the courage and asked her if she liked the book she was reading. She replied in the affirmative. She then asked how much these texts express the views of Neoplatonism. I replied that in some places there are Neoplatonic terms, but these terms have a very different meaning and significance from the teachings of Neoplatonism. As an example I referred to the text where Saint Dionysios the Areopagite suggests that "theologians... at one time call Him (God) Eros and Love, and other times Lover and Beloved... by the one He is moved and by the other He moves" ("On the Divine Names"). This clearly differs from the views on love and God expressed by Plato and Aristotle.

Our conversation was interrupted because the train reached the station and we had to get off. I expressed my pleasure in meeting her without asking her name, and of course she didn't know or learn who she was conversing with.

But this event occupied me all day long. That night in the media I saw all the central news bulletins discussing about the illness of the Archbishop and of possible developments regarding his successor, etc., but on my mind was this scene of the encounter at the Metro. That is, I was thinking how many laypeople would like an ecclesiastical Hierarchy in accordance with patristic-ecclesiastical conditions, and also how many who hold pastoral positions in the Church unfortunately do not have the sensitivities that we encounter in the "spirit" of the content within "On the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy" of Saint Dionysios the Areopagite. Many laypeople want Clergy who are therapists that ease the pain inside and replenish the existential void.

These are the basic problems of contemporary ecclesiastical life, and not the scheming for "key" positions.

Source: Ekklesiastiki Paremvasi, "Η «Εκκλησιαστική Ιεραρχία» στο «Μετρό»", October 2007. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

Was St. Dionysios the Areopagite a Neoplatonist?

By Protopresbyter Fr. John Romanides

Aristotle speaks about an unmoved mover. He claims that there are about forty-nine unmoved entities that are in a state of pure actuality. Although they themselves do not move, they do not cause motion in others. Like a magnet, they move other beings by attraction. The presence of entelechy, the self-actualizing fulfillment of a thing's distinctive nature, is what drives motion to completion. Through entelechy, something in a potential state achieves its active or actual state. For example, a seed from a tree is a potential tree. When it falls to the ground and finds conditions appropriate for growth, it sprouts and becomes an actual tree. While it is still a potential tree it has not yet been perfected, because its inherent entelechy has not completed the course of its development. For a seed, perfection is attained when it becomes a tree.

But according to Aristotle, there are also unmoved movers that do not possess this inherent potential, but are in a state of pure actuality or are completely active by nature. He maintains that they were always in existence, that they will always exist, and that they move all things by attraction. Whatever undergoes this transformation from a potential state to an actualized state progresses towards its perfection, and the attractive force that guides it towards this perfection originates in the unmoved movers. That is Aristotle's teaching in a few words.

Now we encounter the same ideas on this topic in the Neoplatonists that we encounter in Aristotle. Plato, on the other hand, did not deal with this subject as far as we know. But when we turn to the Church Fathers, we encounter a certain St. Dionysios the Areopagite who is accused of Platonizing and Neoplatonizing, even though he clearly tells us that God is not solely an unmoved mover. He is also moved. There is in God an aspect that is capable of suffering or undergoing change. Naturally, St. Dionysios is writing this in opposition to Aristotle and the Neoplatonists. But it is also irrefutable proof that St. Dionysios the Areopagite was by no means in league with Neoplatonists, even though he used their language.

The suggestion that God is not only an unmoved mover, but also moved, is heresy to Neoplatonists and Aristotelians. It is an idea that does not withstand the test of reason and that consequently indicates that the Fathers did not practice philosophy. When the Fathers say that God is both an unmoved mover and also moved, they show us that we cannot apply any human categories to God. If we do try to apply them, then we will run into logical contradictions at every turn. This truth about God, however, is not derived from philosophy, but from the experience of theosis. By experience, the Fathers know that our concepts about God lose all value when we gaze directly at God Himself and behold that reality, which is none other than God Himself.

From Patristic Theology: The University Lectures of Fr. John Romanides, pp. 71-73.