Paideia

The black habit does not save

“Do not be in a hurry to multiply the monks. The black habit does not save. The one who wears a white habit and has the spirit of obedience, humility, and purity, he is a true monk of interiorized monasticism.” -  St. Tikhon of Zadonsk

Fr. Alexander Golitzin: Liturgy and Mysticism

Fr Alexander is one of the best kept "secrets" of Modern Orthodox academics. He has done a ton of great work. These two pdfs are just more evidence of the penetrating mind of Fr Alexander. What I like best is the grappling with the Old Covenant, a topic not much discussed in contemporary Orthodox publications.

Liturgy and Mysticism: The Experience of God in Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Part I

Liturgy and Mysticism: The Experience of God in Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Part II

See more here at the Jewish Roots of Eastern Christian Mysticism seminar @ Marquette.

millinerd.com: Metaphysical Summer

Matt Millinerd writes an informative post.

Attempts to overcome metaphysics having been shown to be themselves irrepressibly metaphysical, metaphysics is again in the air.  Consider Dan Siedell's compelling review of Gabriel Bunge's The Rublev Trinity. Siedell quotes philosopher Jean-Luc Marion's Crossing the Visible, where he suggests that Nicaea II, the council that vindicated icons, "formulates above all and—perhaps the only—alternative to the contemporary disaster of the image." Siedell then takes the philosopher's insight into firm art historical terrain:  "The icon is the theological foundation of all painting, secular and religious."  We can hope any who missed this crucial insight from Sidell's God in the Gallery will get it this time around.

The fiercely brilliant (and if you doubt that adjectival combination, read the last paragraph of this review) art critic Maureen Mullarkey provides a remarkable testimony to just such an insight.  After years of hesitation, and despite extensive experience in New York both reviewing and creating contemporary art, Mullarkey has come around to seeing the wisdom of the Byzantine aesthetic.  Spend a considerable amount of time not just reading Patristics, but marinating in the Orthodox liturgy, and you'll likely agree.

What does this have to do with metaphysics?  Everything.  Interest in the icon is not just for those who like painting.  The wisdom of Byzantine art was not in its style but in the iconic, symbolic horizon to which that style successfully testified.  Fruitful as the icon may be for painters and art historians, it would be a mistake, one almost laughable in its small-mindedness, to limit the Byzantine iconic perspective to the realm of "art". Consider a not so familiar passage of John of Damascus:

We see images in creation which faintly reveal to us the reflections of God, as when, for instance we speak of the Holy and eternal Trinity imaged by the sun, or light, or a ray, or by a spurting fountain, or a gushing stream, or a river, or by the mind, or speech, or the spirit within us, or by a rose bush, or a flower, or a sweet fragrance (De imaginibus oratio I).

No narrow "art theory" there.  Icons are merely the fish that swim in that ocean.  (An ocean, incidentally, in which the Protestant Jonathan Edwards swims just as happily.)  The word for that ocean, following Aristotle, is "metaphysics." Like all words that have been around for a while, it's been abused and misused, but it's eminently recoverable.  Abusus non tollit usum.

The thing that Siedell is after, that Mullarkey intuitively grasps, and that Damascus and Edwards effortlessly understood, is a thick metaphysical horizon.  Make no mistake, the word is getting out on this.  In the latest Mars Hill Audio journal, Ken Meyers interviewed Stratford Caldecott, James Matthew Wilson and Thomas Hibbs to discuss the kind of realism that can sustain such metaphysical grit.  I highly recommend shelling out the few bucks to listen in, but the same idea is on offer, at considerable length, in one of Wilson's essays, entitled Saint Augustine and the Meaning of Art.  Even if symbolism and meaning have been systematically eviscerated thanks to a fashionable academic cyclone that has long since passed, there is nothing about such a turn of events that prevents the immediate recovery of the previous symbolic arrangement.  In Wilson's memorable words:

The meaning of the world that we usually describe as constituting culture, or a culture... does not depend primarily upon our social conventions. Rather, the signs of a culture are founded on natural signs, and, indeed, are themselves natural signs in whose fashioning our intellects cooperate, and for whose knowledge and joy they exist. Given how destructive the wars and social changes of the last century have been—above all the change in thought that has tried to reduce even the human person to a fungible fact for exploitation—we should take great comfort in that fact. The meaning of things, which our cultures may embrace and develop, nonetheless does not depend on us for their existence. And so, when we see a painting or some other work of art—the remnants, say, of some half-ruined memorial statue, in some empty square, at the edge of a red-light district in Brussels—we are seeing not the illegible signs of a lost culture. We are seeing a sign whose meaning has, for the moment, been lost to us, and whose intelligibility only awaits someone with reason, sense, and patience enough to uncover it.

Call them Neo-Byzantine, Edwardsian or Maritanian, there seem to be an increasing number of such someones.  But - and this is Wilson's point - it wouldn't even matter if there were not.

via www.millinerd.com

The recluse is humanity’s delegate to what is important.

-Nicolás Gómez Dávila

Escolios a un Texto Implícito: Selección, p. 226

THE LAST HOURS OF CASSIODORUS

God is laying his last slate to the roof,
The ceiling of my death is near complete,
The Vivarium now must live up to its name.

Fish in my stewponds circle silently,
Their free captivity is like the soul,
An endless round, then thrashing in a net.

Our state days pinioned in official letters,
The Variae of sound administration,
But Boethian birds still shun my volary.

Home to the South, to sad Scolacium,
From Civilisation and a Library,
The sea spray drying on acacia leaves.

After me what further barbarisms?
My pose is prayer, but yet my head is filled
With the terrifying dissonance of God.

I have lived well past my statutory days,
The mapping pen has fallen from my hand,
A hundred years or more of beating wings.

- Peter Porter

International Conference of the Volos Academy for Theological Studies

It seems that the Volos Conference has been underway and overviews of the specific papers have been provided via the website for the Volos Academy.

Here is a general outline:

Holy Metropolis of Demetrias

Volos Academy for Theological Studies

 

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

 

Neo-Patristic Synthesis or Post-Patristic Theology: Can Orthodox Theology be Contextual?

 

June 3-6, 2010, THESSALIA CONFERENCE CENTER,

(MELISSIATIKA), VOLOS

 

The conference is organized in collaboration with the Orthodox Christian Studies Program of Fordham University, the Chair of Orthodox Theology of Münster University, and the Romanian Institute for Inter-Orthodox, Inter–Confessional, and Inter-Religious Studies (INTER) Cluj-Napoca

 

 

                                                                                PROGRAMME

 

THURSDAY, JUNE 3rd 2010

 

18.00-18.30          Registration

 

18.30-19.00          Opening – Greetings

 

Session I

Moderator: Dr. Pantelis Kalaitzidis

Director of the Volos Academy for Theological Studies

 

19.00-19.30                          Rev. Dr. Vladan Pericic, Professor of Patrology, former Dean of the Theological Faculty, University of Belgrade, Serbia

Liturgical Theology as Contextual Theology in the Patristic Era and Today

19.30-20.00                          Dr. George Martzelos, Professor at the School of Theology, University of Thessaloniki, Greece

The Role of Contextual Theology in the Orthodox Tradition

 

20.00-30                                Discussion

20.30                                      Dinner

FRIDAY JUNE 4th 2010

 

Session II

Moderator: Dr. George Demacopoulos

Associate Professor of Theology, Co-Founding Director,

Orthodox Christian Studies Program of Fordham University

 

09.00-09.30                          Dr. Marcus Plested, Director of Studies, Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies, Cambridge, UK

The Emergence of the Neo-Patristic Synthesis: Content, Challenges and Limits

 

09.30-10.00                          Rev. Dr. Pavel L. Gavrilyuk, Associate Professor, University of St. Thomas, Minnesota, USA

Florovsky’s Christian Hellenism: A Critical Evaluation

 

10.00-10.30                          Rev. Dr. John Behr, Dean, St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, New York, USA

                                                Going Beyond Neo-Patristic Synthesis

 

10.30-11.30                          Discussion

11.30-12.00                          Coffee-break

 

Session III

Moderator: Dr. Bruce Beck,

Director, Pappas Patristic Institute, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology,

Brookline, Massachusetts

 

12.00-12.30                          Archbishop Dr. Hilarion Alfeyev of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations, Russia            

Orthodox Tradition and Contextual Theology

 

12.30-13.00                          Dr. Tamara Grdzelidze, Programme Executive, Faith and Order, WCC

Contextualisation of the Church Fathers in the Context of Ecumenism

 

13.00-13.30                          Discussion

13.30-15.00                          Lunch

 

Session IV

Moderator: Dr. Tamara Grdzelidze

Programme Executive, Faith and Order, WCC

 

15.00-15.30                          Dr. Daniel Ayuch, Associate Professor, St. John of Damascus Orthodox Theological Institute of University of Balamand, Lebanon

The Relationship between Biblical and Theological Disciplines

 

15.30-16.00                          Dr. John Fotopoulos, Associate Professor, Department of Religious Studies, Saint Mary's College at Notre Dame, USA

Orthodox Theology and the Historical-Critical Method

16.00-16.30                          Discussion

16.30-17.00                          Coffee-break

 

Session V

Moderator: V. Rev. Dr. Maxim of Western America

Serbian Orthodox Church,

Professor at the School of Theology, University of Belgrade

 

17.00-17.30                          Dr. George Demacopoulos, Associate Professor of Theology, Co-Founding Director, Orthodox Christian Studies Program of Fordham University, New York, USA

History, Post-Colonial Theory, and Some New Possibilities for Retrieving the Theological Past

 

17.30-18.00                          Alexei V. Nesteruk, Senior Lecturer, Department of Mathematics, University of Portsmouth, UK; Visiting Professor, St. Andrew’s Biblical Theological Institute, Moscow, Russia

Orthodoxy in the Scientific Age: From a Neo-Patristic Synthesis to Radical Theological Commitment

 

18.00-18.30                          Rev. Dr. Demetrios Bathrellos, Visiting Lecturer, Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies, Cambridge, UK;  Priest of the Aghia Sophia Greek Orthodox Church, Drafi, Attica, Greece

Systematic Theology as a New Form of Orthodox Theology

 

18.30-19.30                          Discussion

 

 

SATURDAY JUNE 5th 2009

 

Session VI

Moderator: Dr Demetrios Moschos

Lecturer at the Scholl of Theology, Athens University

 

09.00-09.30                          Dr. Assaad Elias Kattan, Director of the Center of Religious Studies and Chair of Orthodox Theology, University of Münster, Germany

Essentialism Reconsidered: The Myth of a Non-Hermeneutical Approach to Orthodox Tradition

 

09.30-10.00                          Rev. Dr. John Panteleimon Manoussakis, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, College of Holy Cross, Worcester, USA

God. Being and Event: The Intersection between Theology and Ontology

 

10.00-10.30                          Discussion

10.30-11.00                          Coffee-break

 

Session VII

Moderator: Dr. Aristotle Papanikolaou

Associate Professor of Theology, Co-Founding Director,

Orthodox Christian Studies Program of Fordham University

   

(Metropolitan John Zizioulas, Dr. Aristotle Papanikolaou, Fr Andrew Louth)

11.00-11.30                          Metropolitan John Zizioulas, Member of the Academy of Athens, Ecumenical Patriarchate

                                                Actuality and Temporality of the Neo-Patristic Synthesis

 

11.30-12.00                          Fr. Andrew Louth, Professor of Patrology, University of Durham, UK

The Authority of the Fathers in “post-patristic Orthodox theology”

 

12.00-12.30                          Discussion

12.30-14.00                          Lunch

   

Fr Gregory's remarks on his photo: Bishop Maxim with Metropolitan John, Pantelis Kalaitzidis (the director of the Volos Academy), Fr. John Behr of St. Vladimir's, and others at lunch on Saturday. Here, they were all asking Metropolitan John to recount stories about his experiences with Fr. Florovsky (he was a student of Florovsky at Harvard).

 

Session VIII

Moderator: Dr Vassilios Makrides

Professor of Sociology of Orthodox Christianity at Erfurt University (Germany)

 

14.00-14.30                          Dr. Michail Neamtu, Senior Fellow of CADI/ Eleutheria, Romania

Ethno-theology as a Particular Case of Contextual Theology

 

14.30-15.00                          Dr. Radu Preda, Associate Professor of Social Theology, Babes-Bolai-University, Cluj-Napoca, Director of the Romanian Institute for Inter-Orthodox, Inter-confessional, Inter-Religious Studies-INTER, Romania

Orthodox Social Theology as Contextual Theology

 

15.00-15.30                          Dr. Aristotle Papanikolaou, Associate Professor of Theology, Co-Founding Director, Orthodox Christian Studies Program of Fordham University, New York, USA

                                                Orthodox Liberalism: Political Theology after the Empires

               

15.30-16.30                          Discussion

16.30-17.00                          Coffee-break

 

Session IX

Moderator: Dr. Radu Preda

Associate Professor, Babes-Bolai-University, Cluj-Napoca,

Director of the INTER (Romania)

 

17.00-17.30                          Dr. Peter Bouteneff, Associate Professor, St Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, New York, USA

Liberation Theologies: Challenges for Contemporary Orthodoxy from Contextual Theologies

 

17.30-18.00                          Dr. Eleni Kasselouri, Teaching at the Hellenic Open University, Member of the Academic Team of Volos Academy for Theological Studies, Greece

Feminist Theology and its Contextuality: A Challenge or an Opportunity for Orthodox Theology?

 

18.00-18.30                          Discussion

 

 

SUNDAY JUNE 6th 2010

 

Divine Service at the Christ’s Ascension Church, Volos

Departure of the buses for Thessalia Conference Center, Melissatika: 10.45

 

Session X

Moderator: Dr. Assaad Elias Kattan

Director of the Centre of Religious Studies

and Chair of Orthodox Theology, University of Münster

 

11.30-12.00                          Rev. Dr.  Emmanuel Clapsis, Professor of Dogmatics, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, Brookline, USA

                                                Gospel and Cultures:  Toward a Theology of Religions

 

12.00-12.30                          Dr. Athanasios N. Papathanasiou, Editor in Chief of the Theological Journal Synaxis, Greece

Mission as a Challenge for Orthodox Contextual Theology

 

12.30-13.00                          Dr. Pantelis Kalaitzidis, Director of the Volos Academy for Theological Studies, Greece

Toward a Post-Patristic Theology?

 

13.00-14.00                          Discussion

14.00                                      End of the Conference-Lunch

There are press releases in English that provide over views of each day:

Press Release 1

Press Release 2

Press Release 3

Press Release 4

A blogger I have followed for some time. Fr. Gregory Edwards, has posted pictures and his impressions here 

There is also a Greek website that covered the conference in great detail, here.

Athos pictures from Kostas Argyris

Beautiful pictures from Mt. Athos. H/T Athos Agion Oros

Athos Agion Oros : Trip to Athos: Mylopotamos library day

I enjoy the consistently beautiful pictures posted on the Athos Agion Oros blog. ESPECIALLY ones focused around the books/libraries found on Mt. Athos!

"To end day one I will show the pictures of the library of Mylopotamos. First of all I have to thank father Ioachim for taking the time to show us this special place and secondly our thanks go to Giannis, who used his influence to make this possible.

The library of Mylopotamos, Father Ioachim and pilgrim Bas

For me this visit to the library brought back memories to that special day in 1986, when my friend Pieter and I visited the library of Docheiariou, accompanied by a Greek professor from Thessaloniki, who explained us everything about the very old books we were allowed to hold in our hands and look though it. Most of the parchment books were eaten by bookworms and had holes in it........ The professor put the books on microfilm."

book: Akolouthia 1901

(notice the dolphin and anchor- this is the symbol of the Aldine Press, a famous Renaissance printer. Erasmus, yes the Erasmus, even lived with them for a time)

Check the link below for more beautiful pictures!

via athos.web-log.nl

Gospel as Absurdity

Those who objected to the Christian gospel ridiculed it, mocking it because of its absurdity. For there is nothing more ridiculous than the word of someone who preaches that the Son of God was born and brought up by Jews, who rejects neither the cross nor death, who says moreover not only that Christ rose from the dead but that he ascended to heaven as Lord of all, that he will raise everyone else from the dead, and other things the apostles preached. The pagans mocked these things and ridiculed them, thinking that they would make the apostles shut up. Therefore Saint Paul, feeling obliged to reply to this opinion of the apostles, began his teaching thus: I am not ashamed of the gospel (Romans 1:16).

-Gennadius of Constantinople (458 – 471), Sermons

h/t fr gregory jensen