Infinite, triune God; known through apophatic and cataphatic theology
Eastern Catholics affirm the classical Christian understanding of God as infinite, eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, all-good, and the creator of all things. Eastern theological tradition, however, places particular emphasis on apophatic (negative) theology—the recognition that God's essence transcends all human concepts and language. Theologians such as St. Gregory of Nyssa and St. Dionysius the Areopagite shaped this tradition of approaching God through what cannot be said of him.
Eastern theology also distinguishes between God's unknowable essence (ousia) and his divine energies (energeiai)—the uncreated ways in which God truly communicates himself to creation and through which theosis becomes possible. This theological framework, associated with St. Gregory Palamas, is part of the heritage that Eastern Catholics bring to Catholic communion.
Key Distinctions
- Theism type:
- classical monotheism — one God, infinite, eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent
- Primary divine attribute:
- love and holiness (biblical); divine simplicity affirmed (God is what he has)
Scripture References
Sources
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, §§198–231
- St. John of Damascus, Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, Book I
- St. Gregory Palamas, Triads in Defence of the Holy Hesychasts