Holiness

The concept of "holiness" has its roots in Christianity in Judaism. Thus, the famous biblical New Testament verse: “Be holy, because I am holy” (1 Pet. 1:16), in turn, quotes a verse from Tanach (Old Testament) - from the Book of Leviticus: “Consecrate yourself and be holy because I The Lord your God is holy "(Lev. 20: 7).

In Christian usage, several partially overlapping meanings of the concepts of " holiness" and " sacred" can be distinguished.

• Holiness as an attribute of God is expressed in terms of the Holy Trinity , in the Trisagion prayer “Holy God ...”, it is repeatedly found in the Bible , for example: “and I will show My Greatness and My Holiness” ( Ezek. 38:23 ), “.. Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord Almighty ... ”( Rev. 4: 8 ). The naming of God by the Saints emphasizes His uniqueness and unknowability, as well as His Being separate from the world He created.
• Outgoing from God, sent or given by Him, somehow the Holy Spirit (one of the persons of the Holy Trinity), the holy guardian angel , also in the Bible: “.. The Holy One born will be called the Son of God.” ( Luke 1:35 ), “ ... the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, and righteous, and good. ”( Rom. 7:12 ).
• The Christian Church itself (the Holy Church ) is called Holy , as are some of its governing structures ( Holy Synod , Holy See ).
• Saints are often called the most important sacraments ( Holy Communion , Holy Baptism , Holy Wedding ) and also twelve holy holidays , for example: Holy Easter , Holy Resurrection .
• The holy places are marked by the presence of God : the Holy Mount Sinai , the Holy Land ( Palestine , more precisely, according to the Bible - Israel), the Holy places (Christian monuments and relics of Palestine), the Holy of Holies (the inside of the Temple of Solomon ), the holy temple . "Holy city" is called in the Bible Jerusalem . Holy Russia - Russia , conceivable as a God-chosen country with a special spiritual mission.
• A holy man is distinguished by spiritual perfection and closeness to God ( holy apostles , holy saints, Holy Fathers ). Saints are canonized by the Orthodox or Catholic Church (the Protestants have no such procedure). The holiness of man implies the possibility of salvation : “your fruit is holiness , and the end is eternal life.” ( Rom. 6:22 ). In the Old Testament, Nazareths are called saints: “..on all days of his Nazarene, he is holy to the Lord.” ( Num. 6: 8 ).
• Holy objects have unique beneficial properties: the Holy Cross , holy relics , holy water , holy icons . An item may acquire the property of holiness as a result of consecration . A holy object may also be called a " shrine . "

In Orthodox Christianity, holiness is an ontological characteristic, implying an internal transformation, restoration of the pristine incorruptible nature, for people also restoration of the Image of God, deification . The concept of holiness is related to the doctrine of salvation . The fallen world will be saved and transformed as a result of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ , however, certain objects and people can, with the help of Divine Grace , understood as God's uncreated energy, acquire the aspect of the transformed, glorified materiality of the future century already in the present era. “Holiness is purity of heart, acquiring grace” ^[2] . The sacred attribute in relation to objects partially overlaps with the sacred , but the latter expresses to a greater extent the functionality of objects and their religious purpose, while the holy concept emphasizes their special internal properties.

In the Western Christian tradition, the emphasis is not on the ontological, but on the moral character of holiness. Catholic theology is characterized by an understanding of the holiness of man as moral perfection, which manifests itself in heroic virtues. The presence of such virtues is required for canonization, that is, the church glorification of a Christian as a saint ^[3] . Catholic theology emphasizes the importance of the combined action of grace and the personal efforts of man to achieve holiness. The sanctity of objects is understood as their dedication to God, and therefore the line between the concepts of the holy and the sacred disappears for objects.

The understanding of holiness in Protestantism generally corresponds to the use of this term in the New Testament . Holiness refers mainly to people and is understood as a moral goal of a general nature ^[4] . A man seeks to imitate the moral perfection of God according to the Gospel ".. be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect." ( Matthew 5:48 ).

The modern meaning of the concept was largely predetermined by its use in translating the Bible into Slavic languages . In the Old Testament, the holy translates the Hebrew "Kadosh" (קדוש, qadoš) , which denoted the separation of the sphere of the Divine from this world. In the New Testament, the term " holy" corresponds to three ancient Greek adjectives: ἱερός (hieros), ἅγιος (agios) and οςιος (osios). ἅγιος denotes the holiness of God himself, and also destined for God, purified for this ; ἱερός means sacred, belonging to God and associated with the concepts of a temple ( ἱερόν ) and a priest ( Ιερέας ). Σιος is used as a moral characterization of people, means morally pure, faithful and is also translated as pious ^[4] . In Russian, the word holiness comes from the word light - a symbol of the Grace of God sanctifying everything.

In Buddhism, the concept of "saint" corresponds to "arhat" (lit. - "worthy", "saint", Skt., Pali). The personality of an arhat is described as the personality of a person who has overcome personal attachments and preferences, is friendly with all living beings, is seeing the Highest Truth - the Dharma.

• Hagiography
• Hierotopy
• Face of holiness
• Saint
• Sacred
• Sacred
• The Holy Inquisition
• Holy Bible
• Holy family
• Holy gifts
• Holy Mysteries
• Bible holy concept

• Lurie V.M. Introduction to critical hagiography . - SPb. : Axioma, 2009 .-- 238 p. - ISBN 978-5-90141-069-1 .
• Complete Church Slavonic Dictionary / Comp. Priest Magister Grigory Dyachenko. - S. 584.
• Key concepts of the Bible in the text of the New Testament. Glossary / Gelly G. .. - SPb. : Germeneut, 1996 .-- S. 127-130. - 192 p.
• Toporov V. N. Holiness and Saints in Russian Spiritual Culture. - M. , 1995. - T. 1. - S. 7-9, 441-442.
• Sveshnikov V.V. Essays on Christian Ethics / Archpriest Vladislav Sveshnikov . - M .: Lepta Book, 2010 .-- S. 379-380, 429, 627. - 780 p. - 5,000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-91173-210-3 .
• Melnik A. G. The most popular Russian saints in the XVI century. // Ancient Russia. Questions of Medieval Studies. - 2011. - Issue. 3 (45). - S. 83-84.
• Alexey Osipov "Does Man Need Holiness?" - M.: Publishing House of the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church - 2015 - 160 p.

• Etymology and semantics of the word 'holiness' in the encyclopedia of cultures Deja-vu
• Catholic Encyclopedia
• What is holiness