Soteriological problematic in the letters to the Laity of reverend Ambrose of Optina

Abstract

This article attempts to reconstruct the soteriological concept of reverend Ambrose of Optina based on his epistolary heritage. Considering the difference in the eldership guidance of the laity and the monastics, in this article we analyze only letters to the laity. Therefore, this concept is constructed by us through the prism of the teachings of the reverend Ambrose to his spiritual lay children. The article uses asystematic and source-based analysis, which allows us to discover that the ideas about the path of salvation of the reverend Ambrose have their own system. As a result, we come to the conclusion that the starting point of Christian salvation is being in the Orthodox Church, according to the Optina elder. Being in the Church, the path to union with God begins with the “external”, which is characterized by bodily feats, sorrows and illnesses. But it becomes more significant to strive for the “internal”, which is characterized by the following: fulfillment of the gospel commandments, participation in the sacraments of the Church, consciousness of one’s sinfulness and submission to the will of God. However, even in attaining the Gospel way of life, the Christian believer, from the point of view of Elder Ambrose, must recognize his powerlessness in the matter of salvation and rely on the Redemptive Feat accomplished by Jesus Christ. Thus, we present the soteriological model of the Optina elder in the form of a triad: “external”, “internal” and “transcendental”.

Keywords:

Reverend Ambrose of Optina, starets, eldership of Optina Pustyn, soteriology, theology, Church history, patrology