As has been particularly emphasised in Orthodox theology, the deification of the human person, through the union of the human person and the Trinity, is intrinsically connected to the transformation of the physical body. In this discussion, the central question at hand is necessarily related to the treatment of the decay and death of the human body, and 2) how this affects the representation of the person after death. Firstly, we can see the significance of this theology through the exhumation of the saint's remains and the veneration of these relics as a vessel of the transformative power of the Trinity. And secondly, the representation of the person can be seen crudely framed by the question of what the essence of the resurrected body would appear like in the afterlife. The fields of disability theology as well as iconography have contributed significantly to answering these questions. This article will therefore be divided into two parts. The first part will investigate the attitude towards the body in the context of funerary services and the related question of the veneration of relics and icons, bringing examples from contemporary Mount Athos. The second part will explore how the stylisation of the represented person captures the essence of the deified person through the novel The Sandcastle by Iris Murdoch and the reflections of the iconographer Sister Gabriella, Painting as Prayer: The Art of A. Sophrony Sakharov.