"The passions represent the lowest level to which human nature can fall..."

Dumitru Staniloae was the leading Romanian Orthodox theologian of the twentieth century. Fr Stephen at Glory to God for All Things has excerpted from his book Orthodox Spirituality a short passage on the passions of the soul which is well worth reading.

It’s a subject which tends to receive more attention in Orthodox theology than in Catholic, though St Thomas Aquinas has a lot to say on the subject, which is fundamental to a proper understanding of his teaching on justification, redemption, etc. My guess is that Aquinas would pretty much agree with Staniloae on this subject. Orthodox theologians are frequently highly critical of Aquinas, but it usually emerges that what they’re actually criticizing is a caricature of the Angelic Doctor, not the authentic Thomas.

The passions represent the lowest level to which human nature can fall. Both their Greek name, pathi, as well as the Latin, passiones, show that man is brought by them to a state of passivity, of slavery. In fact, they overcome the will, so that the man of the passions is no longer a man of will; we say that he is a man ruled, enslaved, carried along by the passions... Click here to read entire extract