From christological anthropology to trinitarian dialectics: the concept of theosis in the religious philosophy of N. A. Berdyaev

Abstract

Introduction . The relevance of the article is determined by the fact that the concept of theosis in N. A. Berdyaev is considered not merely as a particular topic within Russian religious philosophy, but also as a key to understanding the human being amid the crisis of classical anthropological models. The article demonstrates that Berdyaev opposes naturalistic, rationalistic, and sociologizing interpretations of the human being with a Christological anthropology centered on personality, freedom, spirit, creativity, and the God-human vocation. This approach is especially significant for contemporary humanities, since it makes it possible to pose anew the question of personal dignity, the limits of the objectification of the human being, the relationship between freedom and grace, and the possibility of a religious understanding of creativity as a path toward the transfiguration of the world. Addressing the transition from Christological anthropology to Trinitarian dialectics makes the study important not only for discussing N. A. Berdyaev’s work, but also for a broader consideration of urgent issues in Orthodox anthropology, personalism, eschatology, and the concept of deification in Russian philosophy. Materials and methods. The methodological basis of the study includes the hermeneutic method, involving the author’s translation and interpretation of foreign-language texts; general scientific methods, including analysis, synthesis, and generalization; and specific scholarly methods, including the reconstruction of the philosophical views of Russian thinkers of the early twentieth century in combination with the comparative-historical method. Results . The article analyzes the concept of theosis in N. A. Berdyaev’s religious philosophy through the transition from Christological anthropology to dialectical triadology. It is shown that Berdyaev’s Christology of man is formed as an alternative to naturalistic, rationalistic, and sociologizing models of the human being and is based on an understanding of personality as a spiritually free and creative being correlated with the ideal of the God-Man. Particular attention is paid to the categories of God-humanity, freedom, spirit, creativity, and personality, through which Berdyaev reveals the human vocation to deification. The article examines the connection between anthropology and Christological dogma, as well as the expansion of this logic toward a triadological understanding of creation, sacrifice, freedom, and continuing creation. The article also identifies internal tensions in Berdyaev’s position, connected with the risk of anthropological maximalism, the inner mysterality of Christianity, and a distinctive reinterpretation of the relationship between grace and human creative activity. Discussion and conclusions. As a result of the study, the conclusion is substantiated that Berdyaev’s concept of theosis represents an original form of religious-philosophical personalism, in which deification is understood as the existential and creative realization of the God-human vocation of personality within the horizon of freedom and the eschatological transfiguration of the world.