Called to be the Children of God Edited by Carl Olson and David Vincent Meconi SJ, Ignatius, £18
There is an ancient belief that Christians can become partakers in the divine life of the Trinitarian God. It goes by many names, but is often referred to as “deification”, or becoming like God.
Certainly for any devout adherent to a monotheistic faith, the idea of us becoming gods is abhorrent. Deification refers simply to the eternal receiving of divine attributes through the merits of Jesus Christ, as children of God. This new book, subtitled The Catholic Theology of Human Deification, aims to bring a deeper understanding of this ancient belief.
What, precisely, is this deification? If we truly believe that there is but one God, and He is in Three Divine Persons, how can we possibly become like God?
First and foremost we must remember that it is not by our own abilities or merits. What is important to recall here is that, as children of God, we are called to participate in the divine life of the Trinity.
As the editors write in the introduction: “While it is commonplace for all Christians to stress God’s becoming human – what theologians have named the ‘Incarnation’ – this book wants to show what happens when such love is returned, when we humans become God – what is referred to as ‘deification’, ‘divinisation’, or the Greek term theosis.” The editors go on to articulate this ancient Christian teaching as the belief that “in Christ God becomes human so we humans can become divine”.
The editors are Carl Olson, editor of Catholic World Report and Fr David Vincent Meconi SJ, editor of Homiletic & Pastoral Review. Brilliant, articulate writers in their own right, the two of them collaborated on the first chapter, a survey of the roots of the Christian theology of deification as found in Sacred Scripture, and each contributed a chapter of his own – Meconi on St Augustine’s theology “on becoming divine” and Olson on deification in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Other contributors of note include Fr Andrew Hofer OP, writing on deification in the Dominican tradition; the University of Notre Dame’s David Fagerberg, who closes the volume with a chapter on liturgy and divinisation; and Timothy Kelly, a native of Britain and professor of dogmatic theology at the International Theological Institute in Vienna, who contributed a chapter on the theology of deification in the writings of Matthias Scheeben.
If there is one thing the reader should take from this review, it is that this book is not purely for the theologically experienced. The subject may seem daunting but each of the contributors has an eloquent and simple style that makes this ancient Christian belief approachable and understandable.
The premise of the book may even seem questionable at first glance. But the contributors make abundantly clear that this idea of deification is eminently biblical and is an ancient teaching perfectly in accordance with Catholic faith. Careful attention was clearly given to the selection of topics for each chapter. Each successive essay illuminates yet another facet of this belief, opening up insights which build on all that came before.
The essays delve into all corners of the theological pursuit, from patristics to dogmatic theology, from liturgical studies to spirituality, and many others. This thorough analysis and examination of the topic at hand provides greater insight, and deeper understanding – and, one hopes, true appreciation of the gift God offers.
The deification which God our Heavenly Father offers us “is the new life promised by the ancient faith, the new life to be preached in the new evangelisation – life in Christ”.
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