66. Teske, " 'Homo Spiritualis' in the Confessions," 73; my emphasis.
The Holy Spirit's Indwelling 163 be fed alongside others; willing to follow the same scriptures, the same law, the same teachings; and humble enough to be included in the same mystical body throughout the world.
Such meekness allows for the second characteristic of the spiritual person as one who understands and judges reality in terms of Christ the Word through whom all things are made and to whom all things tend. Without the first condition, Augustine would be able to call most Neoplatonic philosophers homines spirituales, but this he refuses to do, as they do not yet know Jesus Christ, and those who do are too proud to be identified with the Son and Spirit. From correctly understanding the nature of evil to right understanding of the divine nature, a homo spiritualis must be able to conceive of a spiritual reality, a level of being void of all circumscription and corporeality. This is not however an epistemological condition only. There is also an ethical component, summed up well by Teske when he writes that, "the spiritual is judged by no one, that is, no [human] person, because the spiritual has by this knowledge become identified with the Law, Christ, in accord with which things are judged. But having become Christ as far as possible, and thus being with God (the Father), each loves what is known with whole charity [tota charitate (sic)]—an odd expression, but surely one that refers to the Holy Spirit."66 Once again we see how the love who is the Holy Spirit unites the Christian with Christ.
As mentioned, "becoming one spirit" with and in Christ effects a paradox: God's activity in the human will is what actually enables the true freedom of that will. Grace is what achieves the union for which all human operations were created in the first place:
Therefore, the Lord makes those whom he wishes devout so that they have recourse to the Lord and desire to be ruled by him and
66. Teske, " 'Homo Spiritualis' in the Confessions," 73; my emphasis.