Salvation

Work out your own salvation, knowing that God is working within you

So then, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence but even more in my absence, continue working out your salvation with awe and reverence, for the one bringing forth in you both the desire and the effort – for the sake of his good pleasure – is God. -- 2 Phillipians 2:12,13

Difference between Eastern and Western views of Salvation

• "The non-Orthodox churches have as their emphasis the forgiveness of sins in order that one might not go to hell, and go to heaven. Because of this, the understanding of what salvation is has become more of a juridical and a legal issue, where the goal of the Gospel, and the goal of everything is forgiveness of one's sins. In contrast, we Orthodox view the forgiveness of sins only as a first step in the process of salvation. Indeed, we are forgiven, but so that we may be purified and healed, so that we can be transfigured, so that we can become God-like. The goal is not for us to make it to heaven. The goal, really, is God himself. The goal is the mystical union, and communion with Him. This is theosis; divinization; deification; transfigurement; whatever we want to call it. It's a forever process of becoming by grace what God is by nature, without ever becoming God." - Fr. James Bernstein, The Illumined Heart Podcast, May 22, 2008 (see Theosis)

Who is saved?

• "It is our teaching that the only way to be in the Kingdom is to die and rise with Christ. But as St. Gregory the Theologian said in the fourth century, 'what is meant by baptism?' Because it is certainly a dogma of our Church, that you can be dunked in I don't know how many pails of water -- even the Pacific Ocean; you can have pounds of chrism on you; you can receive the body and blood of Christ every Sunday in the Liturgy; and go right to Hell. And the more you do it, the worse you get. St. Theophan the recluse, who was just canonized by the Russian Church said, 'Why is it that people who go to church alot, are very Christian, belong to churches, get worse instead of etter?' The answer is because they go through all the rites, all the motions, read the Bible, do everything; but they don't really love God or their neighbor."' - Fr. Thomas Hopko, On The Apocolypse, Great Tapes Series

• "St. Gregory the Theologian said, 'There are many who die for what is good, what is true, what is right, who never heard of Jesus Christ, but when he comes in glory they will recognize him, as the end of their longing, and will bow down and worship him.'" - Fr. Thomas Hopko, On The Apocalypse, Great Tapes Series

• "It is a dogma of our Church that anyone, anywhere who dies for righteousness and truth sake, if it is objectively right and true -- not what they think is right and true -- those people are automatically saved by the blood of Christ on the cross. Christ died for those people. Christ died on the cross so that no act of righteousness or justice done by anyone, anywhere, would be lost." - Fr. Thomas Hopko, On The Apocalypse, Great Tapes Series

• "St. Gregory the Theologian, on his homily on baptism said, "There is a baptism of fire, and a baptism of desire". The baptism of fire means people who actually die at the hands of the beast; who say "no" to the beast. They might not self-consciously be Christians, for whatever reason, but factually they are if they do not say "yes" to the beast. Then there is the baptism of desire. Those who really would want it, hunger and thirst for it, but humanly speaking, just don't have the possibility to have it. And I think we could even dare to say by our own observation that there are probably millions of such people. People who never heard the gospel. All the people who belong to the nations. All the people shut in places where the gospel hasn't been heard, or they heard the most stupid version of the gospel that it is to their credit that they did not believe it. So who is really there and who is not there, we cannot judge." - Fr. Thomas Hopko, On The Apocalypse, Great Tapes Series

Salvation must be pursued continually

• " We have to be very firm and to say [when asked] "'are you saved?' Yes, I am saved." In fact every idiot on earth is saved because Christ died for them. But whether I actualize and appropriate that salvation, that's another question. And that's why I pray every day, God be merciful to me, a sinner. I want to be saved, I pray to be saved, I struggle to be saved, and not by my own power, but by the spirit of God in me." - Fr. Thomas Hopko, On The Apocalypse, Great Tapes Series

• When St Sisoes lay upon his deathbed, the disciples surrounding the Elder saw that his face shone like the sun. They asked the dying man what he saw. Abba Sisoes replied that he saw St Anthony, the prophets, and the apostles. His face increased in brightness, and he spoke with someone. The monks asked, "With whom are you speaking, Father?" He said that angels had come for his soul, and he was entreating them to give him a little more time for repentance. The monks said, "You have no need for repentance, Father." St Sisoes said with great humility, "I do not think that I have even begun to repent." - Wisdom of the Desert Fathers

See Also

• Atonement