Archimandrite Peter

Following the tradition of the Holy Fathers, St Sophrony declares that theology bears an experiential character, being the fruit and expression of man’s communion with Christ, the source of all theology. Thus, the journey towards experiential theology is the way of ascetic perfection, where asceticism becomes the method of experiential theological knowledge. It is this ‘ascetic method’ that primarily distinguishes the theological path of St Sophrony. He understood theology as a state of man’s spirit, as the narration of his encounter with Christ during his vision of Divine Light. Love for enemies constitutes the summit of theology: it is the pledge that guarantees genuine communion with God, the infallible criterion that verifies the authenticity of experiential theology and validates the word of a true theologian.