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Deleted Catholicism-promoting paragraph, added a couple links and sentences to the Mormon deification section
{{spirituality}}
'''''Theosis''''', meaning '''''deification''''' or '''''divinization''''', is the process of man becoming [[holy]] and being united with God, beginning in this life and later consummated in the [[resurrection]]. ''Theosis'' is the understanding that humans are made to share in the life of the [[Trinity ]] from the beginning. Therefore, we are saved '''from''' sin '''for''' participation in the life of the Trinity, which is life-giving and therefore eternal.
''Alternative spellings: Theiosis, Theopoiesis''
The statement by [[Saint|St.]] [[Athanasius of Alexandria]], "The Son of God became man, that we might become God", indicates the concept beautifully. II Peter 1:4 says that we have become " . . . partakers of divine nature." Athanasius amplifies the meaning of this verse when he says theosis is "becoming by grace what God is by nature" (''De Incarnatione'', I). What would otherwise seem absurd, that fallen, sinful man may become holy as God is holy, has been made possible through [[Jesus]] [[Christ]], who is God incarnate. Naturally, the crucial Christian assertion, that God is One, sets an absolute limit on the meaning of ''theosis'' - it is not possible for any created being to become, [[ontology|ontologically]], God or even another god.
Through ''[[theoria]]'', the knowledge of God in Jesus Christ, human beings come to know and experience what it means to be fully human (the created image of God); through their communion with Jesus Christ God shares Himself with the human race, in order to conform them to all that God is in knowledge, righteousness and holiness. ''Theosis'' also asserts the complete restoration of all people (and of the entire creation), in principle. This is built upon the understanding of the [[atonement]] put forward by [[Irenaeus]], called "recapitulation.".
For many fathers, ''theosis'' goes beyond simply restoring people to their state before the Fall of [[Adam and Eve]], teaching that because Christ united the human and divine natures in his person, it is now possible for someone to experience closer fellowship with God than Adam and Eve initially experienced in the Garden of Eden, and that people can become more like God than Adam and Eve were at that time. Some Orthodox theologians go so far as to say that Jesus would have become [[Incarnation|incarnate]] for this reason alone, even if Adam and Eve had never sinned.
Some Western writers refer to theosis using the same implications given above (e.g., [http://ic.net/~erasmus/RAZ184.HTM], [http://www.kensmen.com/catholic/purgatory.html]). It is common to find western writings that suggest that eastern spirituality manifests ''theosis'' and that by implication the West is lacking in this regard, but this is a case of rhetoric obscuring fact: under different terminology the western spiritual traditions, which also reach to the origins of Christianity (in the East), share the objective of sharing in the life of God. It is also necessary to recall that in the west there is a problematic form of ''[[ecumenism]]'' in vogue, in which people are quick to deny their own truths in order to appear to exalt the ''other''. Some Catholic writers consider it lamentable that the term ''theosis'' is not used more extensively in western theology. [http://www.kensmen.com/catholic/solafide.html]
===Protestant use of the term "theosis"===
The Protestant conceptions of [[praxis]], [[phronema]], [[ascetical theology]], and [[sacrament]]s are quite different from Catholic and Orthodox understandings, but the use of the term ''theosis'' may <!-- only "may" because the conception of perfection may reflect a radical difference, depending upon the theological tract being compared-->illustrate a commonality of objective or hope.
===Deification in [[Mormonism]]===The doctrine of theosis or deification in [[Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day SaintsMormonism|The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] differs significantly from the '''theosis''' of Orthodox Christianity. In Mormonism it is usually referred to as ''[[exaltation]]'' or ''eternal life''. While the primary focus of Mormonism is on the [[atonement]] of Jesus Christ, the reason for the [[atonement]] is exaltation which goes beyond mere [[salvation]]. All men will be saved from [[sin]] and [[death]], but only those who are sufficiently [[obedient]] and accept the atonement of Jesus Christ before the [[judgment]] will be exalted. One popular Mormon quote, coined by the early Mormon "disciple" Lorenzo Snow in 1837, is "as man now is, God once was. As God now is, man may become."[http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/1992/9207fea2.asp] Essentially, God the Father began as a normal man who became so deified that he was given his own planet to rule over.
In [[the Mormon Book of Moses|Moses]] 1:39 God tells [[Moses]], "this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.". In that chapter God shows Moses a vision depicting some of God's vast creations including a vast number of worlds created for other people—a sampling of what God created in the past and what he will continue to do forever. Each world was prepared and peopled by God for the purpose of bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of humankind. By immortality is meant personal [[resurrection]] so that each individual can continue to enjoy a perfect, physical body forever. By eternal life is meant becoming like God both in terms of holiness or godliness and in glory. It is commonly believed by members of the Church that, like God, an exalted human being is empowered with the privilege to create worlds and people in an endless process of exalting humankind.
Of all the Mormon doctrines including [[Plural Marriage (Mormonism)|polygamy]], critics generally deem this doctrine the most offensive or even blasphemous. Some Mormons argue that even assuming mainstream Christianity's definition of God's [[omnipotence]] and [[omnibenevolence]], not only can God exalt mortal man, but God must do so. The argument is that if God is all-powerful, then God is capable of exalting man, and if God is all-good, then God should or must exalt man. They also point to comments by Christ and Psalmists among others that refer to the Divine nature and potential of humans as children of God. Some Mormons also suggest that discussions of theosis by early [[Church fathers Fathers]] show an early belief in the Mormon concept of deification, although they disagree with much of the other theology of the same Church fathers, most notably the doctrine of the Trinity.
The Mormons' belief has absolutely nothing in common with the Orthodox belief in deification. Deification always acknowledges a timeless Creator versus a finite creature who has been glorified by the grace of God. The Mormons are clear promoters of polytheism , and the Church Fathers have absolutely no commonality with their view.
==See also==