I took T. G. as teaching that our being, our "I" ought to be done away with, so that we possess no will whatsoever. If not, if we remain distinct from God as creature from Creator, ...
Right. He quotes and agrees with Saint Dionysius Epistle to Timothy (which is packed with
gnosticism, dualism, and
platonism. Contrary to the historic Hebrew view as a united practical people under the Mosaic covenant/umbrella.)
Theologica Germanica said:
For the beholding of the hidden things of God shalt thou forsake since for the things of the flesh and all of the senses can apprehend and all that reason of her own powers can bring forth that all things created an uncreated that reason is able to comprehend and know. And shall take thy stand upon utter abandonment of thyself and of knowing none of the aforesaid things enter into union into him who is an who is above all existence and all knowledge. Now if he did not hold this to be possible at his present time, why did he teach it and enjoin it on us in this present time. But it behooveth you to know that a master has said on this passage of saint dyonisis that it is possible and may happen to a man often that he may be accustom to look into eternity whenever he will. For when a thing is at first very hard for a man and strange and seemingly quite impossible, if he put all his strength and energy into it and persevere therein it will afterward grow quite light and easy which he at first thought quit out of reach…
There's many things wrong with this quote. "Utter abandonment of self" is not the Scriptural view that teaches
alignment of self with God, not
annihilation of self: "A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps." (Pro 16:9)
"Reverent submission" (εὐλάβεια),
is an important concept most fail to notice. It's this aspect that links to monasticism/asceticism/mysticism and to catholic or orthodox rigour. e.g. set times for prayer. The Desert Fathers took this the furthest, believing in mysticism, asceticism, that the "world" or "material things" as we'd say are inherently evil. And they struggled with isolation, introspection, self-reflection, fell into delusion, hallucination, and starvation. Hurting their bodies and minds irreparably. Verged into insanity. Having acted on presumption. And the heart being "desperately wicked" (Jer 17:9)
But God's way is "Good News", salvation from enslavement/oppression, a wellspring of life. Scripture and the Hebrew view is living according God's commandments, done with reason not superstitiously. God has already appointed times and a system, in which Christ (and every proto-Christ figure e.g. Adam, Noah, Joseph, David) is central. Grasping God's system (grasping Christ) is knowledge of God. All things make sense from there.
εὐλάβεια: 1) caution, circumspection, discretion, ...avoidance, ...a reasonable shunning. 2) reverence, veneration ...reverence toward God, godly fear".
G2124 - eulabeia - Strong's Greek Lexicon (kjv)
The argument to become "Godlike" and "Christlike" in mimicking him
has a limit. For example, Christ's priestly and prophetic duty was "sent by God" out of love, with his will. It's not self-will or a man-made idea. Acting in accord with God's will is hugely different to "
I will annihilate my will in order to be closer to God". It's not one's will but "
Thy will be done". "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but
the will of him that sent me." (Jn 6:38)
Christ's alignment of "self will" with "God's will". "No man taketh it from me, but
I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.
This commandment have I received of my Father." (Jn 10:18)
"Every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit." (Mt 7:17) The driving force from God and a person's will ("obedience"): "If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me." (Jn 8:42)
Ability to "keep God's commandments" is proof of spiritual life and growth. "If ye love me, keep my commandments." (Jn 14:15) This then is knowledge of God and a practical outworking is evident in how one loves God and their neighbours. "Laying one's life down" for others.
... then I have no problem speaking about the will (defined as my wants and my desires) being annihilated and absorbed into God's will. That's the essence of faith. So long as I keep something for myself in contradistinction from my movement toward God, even if that something is good, I have lost God.
We're likely on the same page re personal application, but to be clear, "God's will" is expressed (written and oral) and enormous. Beyond a narrow personal application. His will is simple enough for a child to understand and yet overwhelming in both a daunting and optimistic/hopeful way.
BIBLE VERSES ABOUT WILL OF GOD
About "loss of God" or forfeit of salvation: "And we know that
all things work together for good
to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." (Rom 8:28) "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." (Rom 5:3-5)
To love God and not to underestimate: "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared
for them that love him." (1 Cor 2:9)
Ime, sin brings about an awareness of my limitation, in myself and my environment. The insufficiency of family and institutions. That even though I am "saved", truly I need salvation, a complete and fully realised salvation, that is Christ.
God wants man to participate in his creation and will, in a parental/filial union of Father and son/daughter, less "Creator" and "creation" (which I posted in another thread, maybe deleted by Mods, that "Creator" is an assumed and honorary title/name/pronoun that God himself didn't use when introducing himself in any of the time he introduces himself, albeit his many titles). That is, there's
intimacy in his will. He condescends himself to a lowly estate "Walking amongst his people". Expressly saying: "And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people." (Lev 26:12) -- There may be a nuanced debate about created vs
pro-created beings but the point remains...
Active involvement/participation
. Human independence, will-power.
"And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man ... And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam
to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof." (Gen 2:15-16, 19)
Luther himself said (I suppose repeating T. G. ) that we should be willing to go to hell if God wants us there. That is radical, true love and faith in the goodness of God. Christ possessed it, in that he took the curse of Adam upon himself.
Except he doesn't. Important to discern. -- Double-predestination and predestined reprobation aside. God
loves all his creation, yet simultaneously is perfect justice. "For the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all
they that wait for him." (Isa 30:18) Patience implying the sin of "presumption": "Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me" (Ps 19:13) An ongoing theme in Scripture, where the impatient/presumptuous group ends up dead, miserable, or in urgent need of repentance.
TG has some interesting quotes (I'll listen to more later), but there's
a lot going on there that's extra-biblical. More along the lines of commentary or philosophy than Scripture. And much of it echoes debates surrounding European/Germanic existentialism. TG being a precursor to that era: Germanic theology, Germanic/Euro existentialism. Ime is a supposed high theology eclipses elementary concepts already laid out in Scripture, and so is altogether contrary to Scripture and the will of God.
According to Existentialism: (1) Existence is always particular and individual-- always
my existence,
your existence,
his existence. (Kierkegaard)
Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:
Now a person whose sense of doing God’s will is what gives her life meaning will be intelligible just to the extent that her action conforms to the universal dictates of ethics. But what if, as in case of Abraham’s sacrifice of his son, the action contradicts what ethics demands? Kierkegaard[
5] believes
both that Abraham’s life is supremely meaningful (it is not simply a matter of some immediate desire or meaningless tic that overcomes Abraham’s ethical consciousness; on the contrary, doing the moral thing is
itself in this case his tempting inclination)
and that philosophy cannot understand it, thus condemning it in the name of ethics. God’s command here cannot be seen as a law that would pertain to all; it addresses Abraham in his singularity. If Abraham’s life is meaningful, it represents, from a philosophical point of view, the “paradox” that through faith
the “single individual is higher than the universal.” Existence as a philosophical problem appears at this point: if there is a dimension to my being that is both meaningful and yet not governed by the rational standard of morality, by what standard
is it governed? For unless there is some standard, it is idle to speak of “meaning.”
Existentialism (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
IEP:
Anxiety and Authenticity: ...Many existentialists tended to stress the significance of emotions or feelings, in so far as they were presumed to have a less culturally or intellectually mediated relation to one’s
individual and separate existence. This idea is found in Kierkegaard, as we mentioned above, and in Heidegger’s discussion of ‘mood’; it is also one reason why existentialism had an influence on psychology. ...Related to anxiety is the concept of
authenticity, which is let us say the existentialist spin on the Greek notion of ‘the good life’ ...sometimes seen as connected to
individualism. ...if authenticity involves ‘
being on one’s own’, then there would seem to be some kind of value in celebrating and sustaining one’s difference and independence from others.
Existentialism | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Again, I refer back to my parsing of Galatians 2:16, that "we have believed"
episteusamen (ἐπιστεύσαμεν) is in 1st Person
Plural. So while it's true we're "individuals" we're not "separated" from the God as creator, not at all. Instead we're within a collective "flock", under Christ the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-18). Under grace.