GOD ‘S LOVE AND HUMAN COOPERATION

Synergetic – God’s and human activity
The Son of God descended from heaven; the Fathers say, just because
so that we may ascend to heaven. According to the old definition of the goal, prayer, religion itself is the ascent (Greek anabasis) of the soul to God. Ascent means effort and work. And what if it’s a job in vain? Although closer to the light, who performs on the top is almost as far from the sun as the one who remained below. It is no wonder that Christian doctors have shown a fundamental distrust of human endeavor. We will not save me by deed, but only by faith. Faith is then a gift, not merit. It is a well-known sentence that became a slogan at the time of the Reformation. No, we men ascend to heaven, but God came down to us to save us.

In ascetic theology, they pose the same problem in form questions: What is the function, the importance of human forces there, where is it about God’s life in us, about gaining grace? If the human effort calls me “asceticism” and the connection with God “mythical,” then the authors ask: What is the measure between them? We know very well that monasticism became the main revival movement in both the Eastern and Western Churches. Catholic, even non-Catholic church historians, are united when they consider as one of the main pillars of religious life a firm belief that there is unity between asceticism and mysticism. Progress in the spiritual life corresponds to the dream of a person who works with grace. The Greek term for God’s grace and human cooperation is often referred to as synergetic, the joint action of human forces and the Holy Spirit. “But then grace is no longer grace, voluntary and the gift of God! ” objected to the opponents. He responds to the objection with a simple and nice comparison in the 4th-century Pseudo-Makarios. Human effort is like work farmers. Everyone knows that it is not enough to plow and sow.
The harvest depends on the sun, rain, weather. It happens that they come year} ‘, when little is gained with great effort, or vice versa. And yet it is normal: the better the field is cultivated, the better the yield. The same is true «Normal law of grace.» Here, too, it is true: “Man, do it, and God will help you! ” But grace is a free, voluntary gift from God. God gives life, activity, and animates the whole man, his heart, mind, and strength (cf. Mt 22:37). God’s love must meet human love here.