Hesychia and Theology: The Context of Man's Healing in the Orthodox Chuch

by Hierotheos Vlachos

Hesychia means inner stillness, the peace of the heart. In the Orthodox Church, hesychia is a complete science for healing thoughts, the heart and the senses. Theology means speaking about God based on knowledge and experience of Him. Hesychia is the way in which we acquire this spiritual knowledge of God. We live in an age of constant activity, gratification of the senses, uncontrolled imagination and speculations that wear people out. They are searching for inner stillness - hesychia - from the world of the senses and imagination, but also for theology - knowledge of God - to give their lives meaning.

452 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

His Eminence Hierotheos, Metropolitan of Nafpaktos and Agios Vlassios in Greece, is regarded as one of the foremost authorities on the Orthodox spiritual life. A prolific writer, he has authored more than fifteen books, many of which have been translated into English. His Eminence’s theological vision may be summed up in the following quotation, taken from his The Science of Spiritual Medicine: “The whole therapeutic method of the Orthodox Church is not aimed simply at making human beings morally and socially balanced, but at re-establishing their relationship with God and one another. This comes about through the healing of the soul's wounds and the cure of the passions through the Sacraments and the Church's ascetic practice.”