God and the World

Fr Andria Saria

Today we will not talk about dance, music, games, or William Shakespeare's

works. I will try to make the topic a little more complex, more philosophical, and

speak about God and the world.

Before, we spoke about the first part of the Creed, about God as the Creator.

I try to make the lecture organized, but at the same time not only like a lecture or

instruction. I want us to understand Orthodox teaching more deeply.

In the Creed, two different terms are used in different contexts. It says that

Jesus was “born,” but the world was “created.” This also means that the cosmos is

not one single being. In ancient philosophy, the cosmos was often seen as one

unity, even like a divine being. But in the biblical understanding, the cosmos is

created. The world is not God.

This is a very difficult idea, especially for a pagan way of thinking. It is hard

to understand. One of the most popular and even mystical ideas found in many

books is pantheism.

There are reasons why it is difficult for a Christian mind to accept

pantheism, because it does not contain the full truth. What is pantheism? It challenges

the Christian idea and asks: You Christians say that God is infinite? Yes. You say

that God has no limits? Yes. Then, if God is infinite, is He also infinite inside the

world? If God is in the world and gives it life, then it seems He cannot be separate

from it. And if God is in everything, then nothing can be destroyed. So they say:

God and the world are the same. God and the world are one.

This logic is pantheistic. But it is not fully correct, and I will explain why.

First, we must see what is true in this idea. Christianity accepts part of this

logic, but only in what it says about God. God is not something that can be fully

understood by a human being. He is not limited like a person we can fully know.

God is an endless source, always giving, and never finished.

Orthodoxy can agree with pantheism only in one small part: that God is

uncreated and beyond full human understanding. But it does not agree that God

and the world are the same.

In Orthodox theology, especially in the understanding of the Holy Trinity,

the Father gives birth to the Son in a natural and eternal way, not by choice or

creation. It is not like human birth. There is no beginning, no decision, no act of

will like in creation. It is eternal and natural. Christianity clearly rejects any human

way of thinking about this divine birth. The Son is born without will. This is an

eternal birth. The Son is born from the Father, and the Holy Spirit proceeds from

the Father. This is not a created mechanism or process, and there is no will

involved. It has always been like this, and because of this, it does not change.

The fullness that is in the Father is also in the Son, and the same fullness is

in the Holy Spirit. All are fully complete and equal. There is no more or less. This

is the logic of the Holy Trinity in Orthodox teaching.

Orthodoxy does not accept emanation as a real teaching, but we may

sometimes use similar language only to explain ideas. We can also agree with

pantheism in one point: that God is everywhere and in everything. But here we

must be very careful and think deeply.

Orthodoxy makes a difference between God’s essence and God’s energies.

Of course, God is present in the material world. Without divine support, the world

cannot exist.

This idea is even shown in icons. For example, the story of Jacob wrestling

with God, painted by Andrei Rublev from the Old Testament. In this icon, God

appears like an angel and wrestles with a man.

There is an interesting detail: Jacob has a young and clean face, without

wrinkles. But usually, fighting against God or rejecting God is not a sign of a pure

soul. Also, Jacob’s body is strong, like an athlete. The angel, however, is calm and

peaceful, without strong emotions. The angel holds Jacob with both hands.

It shows that even fighting with God is not possible without God’s help. God

Himself helps the one who struggles, even when that person struggles against Him.

You may fight with God, but you are still a living person who needs help and

spiritual support.

This understanding can change many things in our life.

Every Orthodox Christian reads the prayer “O Heavenly King” in the

morning. In this prayer, there is a phrase that may sound a little like pantheism (in

a symbolic way): “who is everywhere present and fills all things.” This means the

Holy Spirit is everywhere and fills everything.

A pantheist says that God must be everywhere by nature. But we, as

Christians, say this is a miracle. God gives Himself to the world as a gift.

The history and existence of the cosmos begin with humility. This is the

foundation of creation. God, who is eternal being, empties Himself (this is called

“kenosis”) to create the world from nothing. In Judaism, a similar idea is called

“tzimtzum.”

God created the world and gave it freedom to exist. He does not leave it, but

He allows everything in it to freely call Him. God becomes like a guest in our life,

so that we may have unity with Him through cooperation (synergy).

God limits Himself for the sake of human will and human freedom. He

leaves us free, so that when we need Him, we can call Him and invite Him into our

life.

The desire to call God must come from this world. It is like a grown child

who leaves home because he is now independent. Later, if he needs his family, he

will call them. He will remember them with love and support, especially when he

needs them. But the parent will say: I will not force myself into your life every

moment.

Because of this, much depends on us. There is a kind of “level” in how we

call God and how God is present in our life. God works in different ways in human

life: in the life of a holy person, a non-believer, a believer, a struggling person,

during the Divine Liturgy, and during personal prayer. All of this has meaning and

explanation. Our life is directly connected with God.

God acts, but not in a way that He works alone and independently like a

separate substance. His action also depends on us—on how much we call Him,

how much we invite His divine energy into our life. He comes to transform us, to

change our attitude, our thoughts, our ideas, and our understanding by His divine

gift.

This is a miracle, but not an automatic miracle, because we also take part in

this decision.

Another idea: in pantheism, God shows Himself through emanation. But in

Christianity, no matter how much God gives, He is never exhausted. Because of

this, everything comes from God—except evil. Everything exists in God, but not

everything is God.

The world is created by God and exists through God, but the world itself is

not God.

John of Damascus gives a good example. The sun shines on everything:

garbage, the sea, buildings, and even construction materials. But the sun does not

lose anything. Its light does not change depending on where it shines. If the light

falls on garbage, it may rot faster; if it falls on a flower, the flower blooms. But the

sun itself stays the same.

It is also important that both Christianity and pantheism agree that the world

is created in a beautiful and harmonious way. In pantheism, this is called *anima

mundi* (the soul of the world). This idea can also be seen in some Christian

writers, for example in the letters of Theophan the Recluse. He writes that when

God created light, He also created something like the “soul of the world,” which

gives life, but this too is created.

In Christianity, there is also the idea of the Logos, the divine Word. The

world is not only matter. This idea is shared both in pantheism and in Christian

theism.

Christianity also teaches eschatology (about the end and future) and

teleology (about purpose and goal).

Now, let us explain the difference between Christianity and occultism.In

Christianity, ideas, goals, thoughts, and dreams are something we are moving

toward. But in occultism, all these things are presented as already real, already

completed, here and now.

One of the most popular quotes used by modern pagan ideas comes from the

Bible, from the words of Christ: “I said, you are gods” (John 10:34, from the

Psalms). Pagans say: you see, even Christ says that you are gods.

But it is important to understand that Christ is repeating a quotation. He is

quoting the Scripture. In these words, both in the Psalm and in Christ’s use of it,

we see God’s “dream” or intention for humanity, that a person may become like

God. God wants to see us like this. This is His plan. We are His children.

But in real life, we are far from this state, unfortunately.

Christian ascetic life is different from other types of asceticism, like in

Buddhism. A Christian does not choose this path because he is bad, but because he

wants to become better. It is a movement toward a higher goal. Our body is the

temple of God, and a person struggles to make this real in life. To protect this inner

life and not lose the sense of closeness to God, a Christian chooses the ascetic way.

Christian theology calls a person to deification (becoming like God). Basil

the Great says something strong: a human being is a creature who has received a

blessing to become God.

Because of this, occultism and pantheism can be spiritually dangerous. They

say: you have already reached the goal, you do not need to do anything. They tell a

person: you are already God. Maybe you forget it sometimes, but still—you are

God.

In some occult meditation practices, people may say: you are God, even if

you suffer or feel pain. In some Hindu-style meditations, a person may feel

something growing inside, but it is not real growth toward God.

There is also an old manuscript from the 11th century, connected with Moses

the Ethiopian, which speaks about the path from being a servant to becoming a

child of God, and even more, toward a deep unity with Him, like becoming a

“brother” in Christ.

To say it simply: our goal is to become like Christ. We cannot become Him,

but we can become like Him. What God is by nature, we may become by grace.

Christ says: “Be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect.” No one can

reach this fully in a literal way, but we must try to move closer to it.

Another important point: pantheism sees God’s action in the world as

something normal and automatic, but Christianity sees it as a miracle.

There are poetic words by one author: “In every tree, God is crucified; in

every ear of grain, the body of Christ; and a holy prayer heals the sick body.”

God gives Himself and is present in the Divine Liturgy for the healing and

salvation of people.

We will speak more about this when we talk about the sacrament of

Communion. Water is not just water, we have holy water. Bread is not just bread, it

becomes the Body of Christ, and we receive it, and it heals us. The same is true for

wine, oil, and other things.

When we speak about understanding God, in some ways we can agree even

with Muslims. They also say that God is one, we say the same. They say God is the

Creator, we also say this. But the difference begins when we speak about the Son,

about Jesus Christ.

For Christians, the main question is: how close can a person come to God?

For example, in Islamic teaching, after Muhammad, this way is considered

closed. No one after him can open it again. He opened the way, but also closed it.

But in Christianity, Jesus Christ opens a new way, and He does not close it.

Instead, He says: now you must continue. You must follow and expand this way.

The path that Christ walked must also become our path. A Christian must continue

Christ’s experience in his own life.

Medieval ascetic teaching says: Christ may be born many times in

Bethlehem, but this will not help you if Christ is not born inside you.

In Islam, there is little focus on this kind of inner mystical experience. In the

Qur’an or Hadiths, you do not clearly find the idea that you must discover God

inside your heart.

Symeon the New Theologian, a 10th-century theologian, says very strong

words: a person calls himself a Christian in vain if he does not feel divine grace in

his heart. In his mystical language, every person must become like the Virgin Mary

and spiritually give birth to Christ within himself.

These are very powerful images.

There was also mysticism in Islam, especially among the Sufis. But the main

theological schools of Islam often looked at Sufis with suspicion, sometimes even

close to heresy. Some people say that Islam can look like a structured system,

focused more on external order than on inner spiritual life.

Another difference is this: in Islam, there is a special night connected with

the giving of the Qur’an. It is believed that God comes down very close to the

lowest heaven. On that night, if a faithful Muslim prays, God hears the prayer,

through the Archangel Gabriel, and may answer it in the coming year.Here, as a

Christian, I have a question: who can limit God, and how can anyone say how far

He can come down to speak with a human being? If God is free, no one can put

limits on Him. No one can say: you can come here, but not further. God is free. He

created everything, and He can go wherever He wants.

In Christian teaching, God loved the world so much that He became a

human being. He appeared to people in human form and carried the Cross to save

them. And not only people on earth, the Apostle Peter says that He even went down

to the lower places, to hell, and preached there.

So, we can speak about God with people who have different beliefs, but this

does not mean that we believe the same things. In the Qur’an, the crucifixion and

resurrection of Christ are denied.

Of course, there are many differences. But a person who has studied

theology, especially in a seminary, knows that there is systematic theology and also

revealed theology. Natural theology is what we can learn from the world. Revealed

theology is what we understand through life and experience.

When you look at the world and creation, you begin to see this revealed theology.

One example from intellectual life is from Isaac Newton. He was a believer.

One day, his friends came to visit him, and one unbelieving guest started to argue

that God is not needed, that science explains everything, and that the world does

not need God.

After some time, Newton invited them into his laboratory and showed them

a model of the solar system. The unbelieving friend asked: who made this? Newton

said: it made itself, the parts just came together. The friend said: that is impossible,

such a complex system cannot come by itself.

Then Newton answered: a moment ago, you were saying that not only this

model, but the real sun and the whole system came by itself. And now you cannot

believe even this small model came by itself. This shows the weakness and

contradiction in human logic.

Another example comes from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and his book

“Citadel”. There is a story: a scientist comes to the king and says they made a great

discovery, they created a new chicken. The king says: what is special? Chickens

already exist. The scientist answers: yes, but we made a new kind.

The king tells him to go and receive a reward. After that, a financial advisor

who stayed with the king begins to laugh. The king asks: " Why are you laughing?

He answers: they think they created a chicken, and now they try to prove

that the world does not need intelligence or mind. This shows the problem in

human thinking. I will tell you two names: Anthony of Sourozh and Vladimir

Lossky. One day, they were drinking tea, and Lossky said something strict: people

outside the Church do not really understand anything.

Metropolitan Anthony did not argue with a professor of theology. One week

later, when they met again, he said: “Vladimir Nikolaevich, I have a request. When

I was a student and began my church life, I wrote many quotes from the Church

Fathers. But I did not write where they are from, no author, no page, no book. Can

you help me understand them? You are a specialist, so you will quickly know who

wrote them.”

Lossky agreed. Anthony began to read the quotes aloud. Lossky said: “This

is Gregory of Nazianzus, this is Symeon the New Theologian, this is Gregory

Palamas,” and so on.

At the end, Anthony surprised him and said: “In fact, these quotes are from

the Upanishads.”

What does this mean? In literature, we can find good and intelligent ideas.

This does not always mean they are spiritual truth, but they can still be helpful and

show a human search for God.

There is also a rule of logic: falsehood can follow everything. This means

that even someone who follows wrong ideas may still reach truth in the end.

From classical science, we can remember Johannes Kepler. He sometimes

used strange or incorrect methods, but in the end, he reached truth about planetary

movement. The way he argued was not always scientific, but the result was true.

So, even a person who uses wrong ideas may still find truth.

Now, if we return to pantheism: it says that the world is one and divine, but

human thinking cannot understand it fully, so we see it only in parts.

Here a question appears: is my understanding independent, or does God

make me think this way? If God makes me think this way, then God makes

mistakes. But if it is not from God, then there is something in the world where God

is not present. In that case, pantheism is not correct.

So pantheism leads to a dead end. It becomes like a trap, from which it

cannot escape. This question was also asked in Indian philosophy by those who did

not accept pantheism and believed that God is personal.

At the beginning, we spoke about the Holy Spirit, who fills everything. This

is a Christian theological idea, and we must think carefully about it.

In Christian theology, we use three terms about God: hypostasis, nature, and

energy.

What do these mean? “Hypostasis” is used especially about Jesus Christ as a

person. God’s nature belongs only to God and cannot become part of a human

being. But “energy” can be shared. This is what we mean when we speak about

prayer, the Church, holy water, Communion, and other spiritual realities.

We do not know how people spoke about Christ one hundred years ago. They

would say that Christ saved us from original sin, but for us this sounds like a

mystery, and we cannot really explain it. From what did Christ save us?

Leo Tolstoy received questions from people and answered them. He said:

It is strange teaching: first they tell me that Adam sinned instead of me, and God

judges me because of Adam’s sin. Then they tell me that this is not dangerous

because Christ gave His blood to remove this sin and paid the price. But if this was

done without me, then what is left for me here?

But today we can say something different. First of all, thank God that many

of us do not really know from what Christ saved us.

Let us say it this way: we also call soldiers our saviors. Thank God that after

a war we do not know exactly what we were saved from. We were not burned in

villages or cities, we were not choked or shot. We thank God that, from our own

experience, we do not know what our ancestors saved us from.

In the same way, we should thank God that we do not fully know from what

Christ saved us through His crucifixion. Many people do not know, but

unfortunately many already do.