Unity of the Church in the image of the Holy Trinity (continued)

This article constitutes the third installment of a study by Archimandrite Sophrony devoted to the unity of the Church considered in the light of the Trinitarian mystery. The author develops a theological reflection on the deification of man, drawing primarily on Saint Maximus the Confessor, Saint Symeon the New Theologian, and Saint Gregory Palamas. The central idea is that Christ's consubstantiality with humanity establishes the possibility, for every human being, of attaining the fullness of deification. The article examines the tension between two patristic conceptions of eternal life: the infinite ascent toward God and eschatological "rest" as accomplished perfection. The theological contribution lies in the articulation between praxis and theoria, the figure of Melchizedek as a type of the deified man, and the distinction between participation in the divine act and confusion with the divine Essence.