Wednesday, June 21, 2017

What is the theme of the chapter "My Friend in God" from The Cloud of Unknowing?

This chapter centers around the theme that the Lord has made a special journey that each of us follows in order to grow closer to him.
This journey follows four phases of development, each deepening our relationship with the Lord. The author defines these stages as the Common, the Special, the Singular, and the Perfect.
In the Common phase, humans go about their everyday existence in the daily rituals that are common to all humans. His focus is more on the mortal world than on his own spirituality.
The Special phase involves God's awakening of desire in an individual. This desire leads a man to long for a closer relationship with God. This longing inevitably brings him more into contact with other seekers of God, and the interaction between these desires and individuals helps a person transform inwardly into a more devout follower of God.
The next phase, the Singular, involves a still-growing righteousness—one where an individual learns to trust most in the core of truths that God has worked to instill in him. He sees life and people more through the spiritual goals that he knows God has laid out for him and focuses less on the transitory aspects of life in the mortal world.
Finally, he ascends to the Perfect phase, where he is a perfect servant of God. This phase may start in the mortal world, but its perfection shall be carried on into the eternity that God promises his followers.

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