Conotaţiile sfinţeniei şi ale fericirii în scrierile neotestamentare (evanghelie şi epistolele pauline)
The attributes of holiness and happiness according to the new testamentary writings (gospels and St. Paul`s epistles)

Summary/Abstract: In the New Testament, man's holiness is God's character inborn into his nature by the infilling presence of the Spirit of God. The birth of the Spirit makes a person a new creature. His old life is buried and the power of sin in the flesh is destroyed. Whereas in the Old Testament ,,Holiness to the Lord” is written across the priest's mitre, in the New Testament it is written on the heart of the ,,new creature”. The baptism of the Spirit makes God's love a blessed reality to the soul, out of which come hope and peace and joy and all other foretastes of heaven. His coming into the heart brings such disclosures of the divine nature, such revelations of mercy and grace, and such exhibitions of infinite affections that the heart feels itself surrounded and bathed in the love of God. We become increasingly holy as we continue to devote ourselves to God. This new state of our increasing holiness is well depicted by the Beatitudes which are a map of life helping us on our journey back to the Kingdom of God. They are simply stated, but profound in meaning. The command to be holy implies that we should live in accordance with the fact that we belong to God. The Beatitudes are the marks of a true disciple of Jesus. They are the standards by which we measure holiness. The Apostle Paul emphasizes that at the basis of human holiness lies the risen Christ through whom we reached the eternal life. The Holy Spirit is the one who guides us by its spiritual gifts on our way to Heavenly Kingdom. This life we live now is not our ultimate destiny. Our goal is to reach paradise.

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