THEOSISCyrill of Alexandria
Cyril teaches us that God, desiring us not to have a complacent heart, skillfully guides us towards a firm commitment to faith and unwavering devotion. At times, through sound reasoning and by offering the best instruction, He urges us to abandon or wholly reject idol worship and sacrifices, deeming these as sources of destruction, and demonstrating that such grievous errors are steeped in profound guilt and impiety. Additionally, by instilling in us the fear of punishment, He acts as a vigilant guardian, directing us continuously toward what brings Him joy.
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In Deuteronomy, we hear the wise words of Moses: "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).
The sages of Hellenism, particularly poets, referred to some of the nymphs and spirits as Oriads and Amadriads. In their attempts to honor their deities atop mountains, they constructed altars and engaged in the sacrifice of livestock, creating images and effigies of false gods amidst lovely trees. However, it was essential that those who followed the one true God took action against these misguided idols and distanced 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).
It is with good reason that the Lawgiver prohibits adopting the practices of the misguided and explicitly commands the renunciation of the cruel sacrifice of children. He condemns the bloodthirsty and false deities as agents of destruction, who willfully 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).
The Divine will, which overcomes death and eradicates corruption, detests the existence of nothingness; He "created all things for being," as written. Conversely, those ensnared by the illusions of demonic gain offer sweet sacrifices to Satan, bringing forth the destruction of what was intended for life and the death of that which was meant "for being." Thus, God intended to clearly demonstrate that the deeds of the Gentiles are filled with profound guilt, that their nature is offended, and that the principles of honorable child-love are trampled. He inspires those with a noble spirit, who despise evil, to honor and earnestly embrace His will and teachings. Such divine law was established in ancient times to eradicate wickedness among the people.