Desire and Divinization

“Among the catholic epistles, 2 Peter speaks of believers becoming ‘partakers of the divine nature’ (2 Pet 1:4). What might that mean both theologically and practically in the life of faith? Aaron Davis provides us with a Protestant perspective on sanctification that addresses this question, which he calls ‘Everyday Asceticism.’ Focused on the reorientation of desire via contemplative practice in daily life—to the end of participation in the life of God in divinization—this is a clear, accessible, and compelling work that will warm the heart while feeding the mind. I highly recommend it.”
—Oliver Crisp, Professor of Analytic Theology, St Mary’s College, University of St Andrews

“In this beautifully clear and deeply constructive work, Aaron Davis offers a compelling account of desire’s transformative role in the Christian life. With conceptual rigor and theological sensitivity, he shows how ascetic practice—as it is woven into the ordinariness of daily life—can reorient us toward fuller participation in the triune life of God. Desire and Divinization is a theologically imaginative and pastorally wise contribution to analytic theology.”
—Andrew Torrance, Professor of Theology, School of Divinity, University of St Andrews

“Aaron Davis analyses in this book, with great sensitivity and acumen, one of the most pressing issues of our age: What is the relation of ‘desire’—in all its historic and contemporary, sexualized, evocations—and our ultimate quest for transformation-in-God? Uniting scriptural, theological and analytic/philosophical insights, Davis provides both an accessible and a spiritually demanding answer which will be of great benefit to all readers, in both academy and church.”
—Sarah Coakley, Norris-Hulse Professor Emerita, University of Cambridge

“This succinct and lucid treatment of the doctrine of sanctification, construed as divinization through the reorientation of desire is a timely word for Christians in contemporary America. In a culture rife with Christian nationalism that seems to confuse human desires for mastery, control, and power with God’s will or design, this call for an ascetism that can be practiced by all, and the need for contemplation as a way of distinguishing our own desires from those God seeks to form in us is a needed intervention. The Christian life is not about the will to power, but rather is the pilgrimage through which we are gradually transformed to participate in the love that embraces the cosmos.”
—Dawn DeVries, Professor Emerita of Systematic Theology, Union Presbyterian Seminary