Resurrection And Transformation

Ἓν μὲν δὴ τοῦτο διὰ τῶν προοιμίων ἡμᾶς παιδευσάτω ὁ λόγος, τὸ μηκέτι ἀνθρώπους εἶναι τοὺς ἐπὶ τὰ ἄδυτα τῶν τοῦ βιβλίου τούτου μυστηρίων εἰσαγομένους ἀλλὰ μεταποιηθῆναι τῇ φύσει διὰ τῆς τοῦ Kυρίου μαθητείας πρὸς τὸ θειότερον, καθὼς μαρτυρεῖ τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ μαθηταῖς ὁ λόγος, ὅτι κρείττους ἦσαν ἢ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον, οὓς διέκρινεν ἀπὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ γενομένη πρὸς αὐτοὺς παρὰ τοῦ Kυρίου διαστολή, ὅτε φησί· Τίνα με λέγουσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι εἶναι; Ὑμεῖς δὲ τίνα με λέγετε εἶναι; ἀληθῶς γὰρ ὁ διὰτῶν τοιούτων ῥημάτων, ὧν ἡ πρόχειρος ἔμφασις τὰς σαρκώδεις ἡδυπαθείαςἐνδείκνυται, μὴ κατολισθαίνων εἰς τὴν ῥυπῶσαν διάνοιαν ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὴντῶν θείων φιλοσοφίαν, ἐπὶ τὰς καθαρὰς ἐννοίας διὰ τῶν ῥημάτων τούτωνχειραγωγούμενος δείκνυσι τὸ μηκέτι ἄνθρωπος εἶναι μηδὲ σαρκὶ καὶ αἵματισυμμεμιγμένην τὴν φύσιν ἔχειν,ἀλλὰ τὴν ἐλπιζομένην ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει τῶν ἁγίων ζωὴν ἐπιδείκνυται ἰσάγγελος διὰ τῆς ἀπαθείας γενόμενος, ὡς γὰρ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν τὸ μὲν σῶμα μεταστοιχειωθὲν πρὸς τὸ ἄφθαρτον τῇ ψυχῇ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου συμπλέκεται, τὰ δὲ νῦν διὰ σαρκὸς ἡμῖν ἐνοχλοῦντα πάθη τοῖς σώμασιν ἐκείνοις οὐ συνανίσταται ἀλλά τις εἰρηνικὴ κατάστασις τὴν ζωὴν ἡμῶν διαδέξεται, μηκέτι τοῦ φρονήματος τῆς σαρκὸς πρὸς τὴν ψυχὴν στασιάζοντος μηδὲ διὰ τοῦ ἐμφυλίου πολέμου τῶν ἐμπαθῶν κινημάτων ἀντιστρατευομένου τῷ νόμῳ τοῦ νοὸς καὶ ὥσπερ αἰχμάλωτόν τινα τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ προσάγοντος τὴν ἡττηθεῖσαν ψυχήν, ἀλλὰ πάντων τῶν τοιούτων καθαρεύσει τότε ἡ φύσις καὶ ἓν δι' ἀμφοτέρων ἔσται τὸ φρόνημα, τῆς σαρκός φημι καὶ τοῦ πνεύματος, πάσης σωματικῆς διαθέσεως ἐξαφανισθείσης ἀπὸ τῆς φύσεως, οὕτω παρακελεύεται καὶ διὰ τοῦ βιβλίου τούτου ὁ λόγος τοῖς ἐπαΐουσι, κἂν ἐν σαρκὶ ζῶμεν, μηδ' ἐν τοῖς νοήμασι πρὸς αὐτὴν ἐπιστρέφεσθαι, ἀλλὰ πρὸς μόνην τὴν ψυχὴν βλέπειν καὶ τὰς ἀγαπητικὰς τῶν ῥημάτων ἐμφάσεις καθαράς τε καὶ ἀμολύντους ἀνατιθέναι τῷ ὑπερέχοντι πάντα νοῦν ἀγαθῷ, ὃ μόνον ἐστὶν ὡς ἀληθῶς γλυκύ τε καὶ ἐπιθυμητὸν καὶ ἐράσμιον. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Ἐξηγησις Του Αἰσματος Των Ἀσμάτων Ὁμιλία Α´ Source: Migne PG 44.776d-777b

By these introductory remarks let the Word teach us this one thing, that it is no longer men who are being led to the shrine of the mysteries of the Song of Songs, but by the teaching of the Lord they have been changed in nature into something more Divine, just as the Word bears witness to the disciples that they were superior to the condition of men, they who were judged to be different from men by the Lord's distinction when He said, 'Who do men say I am? And who do you say I am?' 1 For truly he who is not led by such words whose overt meaning refers to corporeal pleasures to slip down into a vile sense but rather to the philosophy of divine things and to pure thoughts, he shows that he is no longer a man and that his nature is no longer mingled with flesh and blood, 2 but by impassibility having become equal to the angels, he shows the life to be hoped for in the resurrection of the holy, for as after the resurrection the body which is transformed into incorruption is joined to the soul of man, so the things which now trouble us through the flesh do not rise up with those bodies, but our lives will exhibit a certain peaceful state, because the thought of the flesh will no longer exert itself treacherously against the soul, nor will it attack the law of the mind with civil war by the movements of the passions and lead away the defeated soul as a captive of sin, but then in every way our nature shall be purified, and both parts shall be of one mind, the flesh, I mean, and the spirit, by the removal of every corporeal inclination from our nature. So with this book the Word exhorts those who attend, that even if we live in the flesh, we should not turn our thoughts toward it, but we should look to the soul alone and dedicate the meaning of the words in purity and cleanliness to the good, to Him who passes all understanding, 3 who alone is truly sweet and desirable and loveable. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Commentary on The Song of Songs, from Homily 1 1 Mt 16.13–15 2 Mt 16.7 3 cf Phil 4.7