377:: "The true Deist has but one Deity, and his religion consists in contemplating the power, wisdom, and benignity of the Deity in his works, and in endeavoring to imitate him in everything moral, scientifically, and mechanical." He also explains that the works of the Deity are strictly found in "the Creation we behold" where "God speaketh universally to man." Paine gives an example when he condemns the doctrine of loving the enemy, in which he states, "We imitate the moral character of the Creator by forbearing with each other, for he forbears with all."
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of God. Nevertheless, Eastern
Orthodox theology does not usually understand this tri-partite ascent as an attempt to become like God, but as a way to unite with the one God. For most Orthodox theologians, imitatio Dei is not the way to salvation if it is understood as an individual, personal attempt
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Rodd has been particularly adamant in arguing that the imitation of God is not important in the ethics of the Bible. According to him, very few passages in the biblical text speak about the imitation of God, and thus claims about the importance of this idea in biblical ethics are
132:. Jews are exhorted to perform acts of kindness similar to the ones ascribed to God. Examples are burying the dead (as God buried Moses), visiting the sick (as God visited Abraham) and some very similar
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is subdivided between illumination and full mystical union. This three-step scheme is also found in the
Eastern categories of prayer; ordinary prayer, prayer with mind and heart, and unceasing prayer.
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Rodd is undoubtedly correct in his analysis of the predominant use of the metaphor, but I think he too rigidly rules out the concept of the imitation of God from the expression.
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The LORD will establish you as His holy people, as He swore to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways.
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in Greek. This doctrine derives from the biblical mandate to be holy as God is Holy (Lev 20.26). It can be achieved by purification (
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to "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children". The believer is also advised to follow the ways of
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The general understanding is that a person can become more similar to God over time, a process called
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This exhortation to emulate God's ways was later to become part of the basis of rabbinic
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Some scholars, such as Cyril Rodd, argue that the concept is not important in the ethics of the
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The peace and violence of
Judaism: from the Bible to modern Zionism'
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states: "As He is merciful, so should you be merciful".
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The
Imitation of God is one of the core principles in
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317:katharsis
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184:Matthew
134:mitzvot
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269:) and
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153:Plato
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