Paul Clement H. How (Philippines)
Abstract:
Since Vatican II, the Church has called on the faithful to practice a “fully conscious, and active participation” in the liturgy. Throughout Church history as well, there has been an understanding of the concept of participation in the divine that developed primarily during the Early Byzantine era (4th-9th Century).
This paper explores the connection and overlap between the two differing senses of the word ‘participation,’ with the thought of St. Maximus the Confessor (580-662) best exemplifying Byzantine participation (methexis), whose emphasis on divine activity (energeia) explains how human beings become more like God or divinized while still preserving their human nature. Maximus also defended the doctrine of Christ’s divine and human wills, a theory that not only affirms Jesus’ human will, but takes his surrender to the Father’s divine will as an example for all humans.
Contemporary liturgical participation, on the other hand, emphasizes a deepened understanding of the paschal mystery, as well as the laity’s role in Christ’s Mystical Body and the specific cultures engaged in worship.
By studying fully conscious and active liturgical participation in light of Maximus’ teachings on participation and the will, it is found that Maximus’ theology is tied to his ascetic practice, with his writings on this instructive as to the necessary internal disposition of the faithful when celebrating the liturgy. One’s willed self-offering is the means by which humans participate in God and are ultimately divinized. Each individual offers something different and unique to Christ’s Body, with Maximus’ ecclesiology affirming the union of each in a way that transcends differences, through Christ as Logos or ordering principle of the world.
Final Defense:
Board of Examiners:
- Fr. Emmanuel Marfori, S.Th.D. (Adviser)
- Fr. Oliver Dy, S.J., S.T.D., Ph.D. (Second Reader/Principal Examiner)
- Fr. Arnel Aquino, S.J., S.T.D.
- Fr. Peter Knox, S.J., S.T.L., Ph.D.
Proposal Defense:
Board of Examiners:
1. Fr. Emmanuel Marfori, S.Th.D. (Adviser)
2. Fr. Oliver Dy, S.J., S.T.D., Ph.D.
3. Fr. Arnel Aquino, S.J., S.T.D.
Proposal Title: Maximus the Confessor’s Eucharistic Theology