THEOSISCyrill of Alexandria
Cyril reminds us that the Lord, not allowing our hearts to grow complacent, expertly guides us to remain unwavering in our faith and steadfast in our devotion. At times, through sound reasoning and the best teachings, He instructs us to forsake, or rather to entirely abandon, sacrificial practices and idol worship, recognizing that such actions lead to destruction and indicate a profound moral failing and severe impiety. Other times, by instilling within us a healthy fear of punishment—acting as a vigilant guardian—He encourages us in every way towards that which is pleasing to Him.
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As the revered Moses states in Deuteronomy, “These are the ordinances and laws which you shall endeavour to fulfil in the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you to possess, all the days that you shall dwell in that land. You shall destroy all the places where the peoples whom you shall possess serve their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills, and under every branching tree; and you shall destroy their altars, and crush their pillars, and burn their groves with fire, and smash the statues of their gods, and destroy their name from that place” (Deuteronomy 12:1-3).
Philosophers and renowned individuals from the Hellenic tradition, including poets, refer to certain spirits as nymphs, Oriads, or Amadriads. There were those who, in their efforts to honor their deities in elevated locales, constructed altars on mountains, engaged in the sacrifice of oxen, and surrounded themselves with beautiful trees, setting up statues and images of these spirits as they offered their sacrifices. However, it was imperative for those who worship the true and living God to destroy these idols of the misguided and to distance themselves from such practices. Therefore, it is further stated, “When the Lord thy God shall destroy from thy face the nations to which thou goest to take possession of them, and thou, having taken them, shalt dwell in their land; then beware lest thou fall into the net, following them, after their destruction from thy face, and seek their gods, saying: ‘As these nations have served their gods, so will I do’; thou shalt not do so to the Lord thy God: for all that the Lord abhorreth, that He hates, they do to their gods: they also burn their sons and their daughters with fire to their gods” (Deut. 12:29-31).
The Lawgiver rightly prohibits the imitation of the misguided and firmly commands a departure from the heinous practice of child sacrifice, condemning the bloodthirsty and deceitful deities as destroyers of humanity—entities that blatantly disregard even the fundamental laws of love. “He created all things for being, and everything in the world is salvific and...there is no kingdom of hell on earth...by the envy of the devil death has entered into the world” (Prem. 1:14:2:24). In contrast, while the Divine will dismantles death and eradicates corruption, opposing non-existence, “He created all things for being,” as it is written. Those ensnared by the deception of demons offer to Satan what they consider sweet—sacrifices and the finest incense, ultimately leading to the demise of that which was created for life. Through this, He intended to reveal that the actions of the Gentiles were laden with extreme guilt, that their nature was violated, and that the sacred laws of parental love were trampled upon. Consequently, He drew those who were noble-hearted and abhorred evil to embrace and uphold His desired truth and instruction. This divine law was established in antiquity to eradicate wickedness among them.