„Părăsirea de către Dumnezeu”, etapă normativă a vieții duhovnicești. Teologia ascetică a Sfântului Sofronie Athonitul
„Godforsakenness” as a normative stage in spiritual life. The ascetical theology of Saint Sophrony the Athonite

Summary/Abstract: Spiritual life, understood as a synergy between man and God toward achieving theosis, represents a long-term process in which, according to the ascetical experience of Saint Sophrony the Athonite (Archimandrite Sophrony Sakharov), three distinct stages can be identified, based on the model of Christ’s life. As a defining element of Orthodox asceticism, the “godforsakenness” (θεοεγκατάλειψης/παραχώρησης) constitutes the central component of the second “period of grace”; although it is mentioned in various forms in the writings of the Church Fathers, Saint Sophrony is the first to offer a structured and contextualized presentation of this ascetic phenomenon. The dynamics of grace are governed by divine providence, which works according to the hypostatic principle, differently with each person, yet always with the same goal – the actualization of the divine image in man, through the likeness of God. The suffering of “godforsakenness” is, therefore, an essential component in every person’s eternal becoming, being part of the path set by Christ, the God-man, in order to restore/heal fallen human nature.

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