Page 68 - Orthodoxy Zizioulas

O r t h o d o x y
not a feeling, but an ontological reality—the act of allowing
the other to be, in their otherness. In this sense, being itself is
ecstatic: it goes out of itself toward the other.
Causation is as primary ontologically as the “how” of be-
ing. There is no such thing as the “unmoving mover” of Aris-
totle. For the Greek Fathers, God is unmovable in his sub-
stance but constantly and eternally moving in himself as per-
son: in relation to himself as Trinity, and outside himself to-
ward creation in his relation to the world. This leads the Greek
Fathers to use the term eros to describe divine being both in
itself and in its relation with creation. Relational ontology is
erotic ontology.
Person and Individual
This vision of God has direct consequences for human ex-
istence. The Church offers the possibility of moving from in-
dividuality to personhood.
An individual is defined by separation. It is what it is by
being different from others. It is an isolated unit, enclosed
within itself. In this sense, individuality is a negative reality—
it is marked by division, self-enclosure, and ultimately by
death.
For death both isolates and destroys the individual. Each
person dies alone, and individuality is dissolved in non-being.
At its root, individuality is governed by the fear of death, by
the attempt to preserve oneself against others.
This is why the Fathers saw self-love—not love in its true
sense, but self-centeredness—as the root of all pathology.
Even the body, which is good, can become the fortress of
individuality, the place where separation is most strongly ex-
pressed and where death ultimately strikes.
The healing of this condition begins with relationship. To
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