Hesychasm emphasized the importance of not being distracted by worldly thoughts; positively, it emphasized the importance of the “Jesus Prayer” – “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner” – as a means of concentrating the mind and unlocking the heart.
Write a 300 word response Hesychasm as a eastern Orthodox, or Byzantine critique of rationalistic Scholasticism. Describe the primary theologians and the basic premises of Hesychasm.
- Give a brief review or summary of Byzantine Hesychasm from chapter 2, p. 115.
- Give you own reaction to the points raised by Symeon the New Theologian in his critique of Scholasticism. Do you agree with him? Disagree?
- What are some examples of how eastern Hesychasm might be compared to western mysticism?
- Do you think that the filoque controversy of 1054 over the Holy Spirit’s place in the creeds might symbolize an overly rational approach to the experience of God in the West? Do you think that the eastern church gave greater prominence to the role of the Spirit?