Этика в православии

It goes without saying that Orthodoxy does not know autonomous ethics, which represents the primary area and unique spiritual gift of Protestantism. Ethics for Orthodoxy is religious, it is an image of the salvation of the soul, indicated in a religious-ascetic way. The religious and ethical maximum is achieved here, therefore, in the monastic ideal, as perfect following of Christ in bearing one’s cross and self-denial. The highest virtues for monasticism are humility achieved through cutting off one’s will and maintaining purity of heart. The vows of celibacy and non-covetousness are only a means to this end, although not obligatory for everyone, as the end itself is obligatory. Orthodoxy does not have different scales of morality, but uses the same scale when applied to different situations in life. It does not know different moralities, secular and monastic; the difference exists only in degree, in quantity, and not in quality. One can see in this straightforward maximalism of the monastic ideal the lifelessness and renunciation of the world of Orthodox morality, which turns out to be unresponsive to the questions of practical life in its diversity. Therefore it would seem that the advantage here is on the side of the flexible and practical Catholicism with its two moralities, for the perfect and the imperfect (commandments and counsels), as well as Protestantism with its worldly ethic of everyday honesty. It cannot be denied that any maximalism is more difficult than minimalism, and in its failures and distortions it can lead to worse consequences. However, truth itself is inflexible and maximalistic, which tolerates incompleteness of its implementation, but does not tolerate belittlement and half-truths. The Christian path is a narrow path, and it cannot be expanded. Therefore, there can be no bargaining or concessions towards accommodation in the fundamental principles. However, the reproach that Orthodoxy is world-denying must be set aside. It can be applied, at most, to only one of the historical faces of Orthodoxy, which was determined under the one-sided and excessive influence of Eastern monasticism with dualistic and pseudo-eschatological pessimism in relation to the world. But it absolutely cannot be applied to all of Orthodoxy, which is full of the light of the Transfiguration and Resurrection. Orthodoxy can be defined from an ethical point of view as mental health and balance, for which, with all the tragic seriousness inherent in the “kingdom not of this world,” there is still room for an optimistic, cheerful attitude towards life within the limits of earthly existence. Monasticism is not the only and, in any case, not always the most difficult way of doing the commandments of Christ, and this becomes obvious if we pay attention to the composition of the saints glorified by the Church: here we have, along with the heroes of monastic asceticism, and worldly figures - pious warriors, kings and princes, pious wives and mothers, and this is direct evidence of a certain equivalence of different paths. Everyone should be a monk or an ascetic in his heart. And if we can talk about monasticism as necessary for every Christian, then this refers only to internal self-denial for the sake of Christ, whom one must love more than anything else in the world and more than one’s own life. This rejects pagan immersion in the world, undivided and boundless, and establishes the need for ascetic confrontation with it, in which those who have must be, according to the word of the apostle. Paul, as the poor. This is walking before God, walking your path of life with the thought of God, with responsibility before Him, in constant verification of your conscience. Work on the inner man is sometimes called “spiritual art” in Orthodox asceticism, i.e. equals art. Love for Christ is the inner sun of life, towards which it turns in all its manifestations. And this establishes a special image of ascetic acceptance of this world and its life, ascetic work and creativity in it. No areas of life are condemned or abolished, as such: “everyone must remain in the rank in which he is called” (1 Cor. 7:20), taught the apostle. Paul, and yet be a Christian in everything. Through this internal spiritual activity, a world of Christian values ​​is created in the state, in the economy, in culture, and what is called the spirit of life arises. Orthodoxy demonstrated its strength in the education of the peoples of the East - Byzantium, Russia, the Slavic peoples with their unique history, and it, of course, has not exhausted these strengths and now faces new tasks (as discussed below). Based on the above, the historical relativism of tasks and means, in general methods of Orthodox morality, is established with the unity and absoluteness of the goal, with its Christocentrism. Man lives in the world and in its history, he is subject to the compulsory necessity of this world, but he does not belong to it and is capable of rising above it. Through this confrontation between the forces of the world and spiritual aspirations, the historical diagonal along which life moves in a given era is established in man. A peculiar difficulty in Orthodox ethics is the already indicated feature that Orthodoxy has a basic ideal that is not so much ethical as religious-aesthetic: a vision of “smart beauty”, which requires special “smart art” and creative inspiration to be approached. The latter remains the lot of the few, and the majority are content with morality, which in itself has no spiritual taste, does not inspire, but only disciplines. Orthodoxy, indeed, is not characterized by that moralism that received its apotheosis in the rigoristic and autonomous ethics of Kant, the philosopher of Protestantism, as well as that practical probabilism that often constitutes the vital nerve of Catholicism. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that the specified spiritual aestheticism of Orthodoxy is historically sometimes expressed in indifference to the requirements of practicality and, in particular, to the methodological education of the religious will, which sadly manifests itself in times of historical crises. Here the rule must be valid that whoever is faithful in little must be faithful in much, and the presence of high inspirations should not detract from the importance of everyday life. But when comparing between Orthodoxy (at least Russian) and non-Orthodox Christianity, that special sincerity and cordiality usually appears that most corresponds to the character of the first. The character of the Orthodox is defined as the main features of humility and love. Hence that benevolent modesty, sincerity and simplicity, which is so incompatible with the spirit of proselytism and authority (compelle intrare) characteristic of Roman Catholicism. Orthodoxy does not convince or entice, it captivates and attracts, this is its way of acting in the world. It bears the stamp of Johannine Christianity: “children, love one another!” And this love for everyone, even without differences in their faith, is a feature that unites Orthodox elders and ascetics and secular writers, in their consciousness even moving away from Orthodoxy, such as: L. Tolstoy, Leskov, etc.). Orthodoxy educates first of all the heart, and this is its main difference, the source of both its superiority and its weakness, perhaps most manifested in the education of the religious will. Christian ethics, as it develops in different Christian confessions, although it reflects their doctrinal differences, is, at the same time, imprinted by the special character of different peoples, as well as their historical destinies. Practical morality, Christian philanthropy is the area in which the division of the Christian world is least felt, and on this basis it is most easily united (the Stockholm “Life and Work” movement of our days). And it seems that in mutual communication, different Christian peoples belonging to different confessions can now mutually learn from each other. In particular, the West can compensate for its dryness with the inspiration of Orthodoxy, while the Orthodox East can learn a lot in the field of religious regulation of everyday life from the Christian West. For although Martha and Mary were different from each other, they were both loved by the Lord.