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Abstract
This article examines humility as a fundamental structuring principle of theosis within the patristic tradition, employing a historical-theological methodology. It analyzes the dynamic interplay of descent (kenosis) and elevation (anábasis) in both Greek and Latin patristic sources, arguing that the divine synkatábasis—the condescension of the Word—reveals God's glory precisely through the act of self-giving. The study contends that human humility is not simply an ethical virtue but constitutes a genuine ontological participation in the kenotic mode of God's own being, which in turn makes possible the creature's ascent. The investigation concludes that divine glory is manifest in abasement, and such abasement becomes the very locus of glorification, thereby proposing "glorified humility" as the horizon for a Christian anthropology that redefines true greatness as servitude.
References
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