Editorial RES 1/2021

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<title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>
In the 20th century, both in the East, but mostly in the West, a genuine movement of patristic and liturgical renewal took shape, aiming to establish as to what degree the theological discourse and the liturgical life of the Church today corresponds to the spirit and the practice of the Church of the first centuries. In this spirit, the question was often asked if the generalization of infant baptism in the West (5th century), but also in the East (6th century), was influenced by the theory of “original sin” and the Augustinian “bogeyman” concerning the inevitable condemnation to hell of all who die unbaptized. In his book “Of Water and the Spirit”, Father Alexander Schmemann briefly touches, but does not fully develop the subject, and fails to reach any clear conclusions. In the current study we tried, as much as was possible, to follow the roots and dogmatical consequences of this theory, and also to discern its ensuing consequences on baptismal rites and texts, as well as other practical and canonical implications, like the importance of baptismal immersion.
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The Doctrine of Original Sin and its Influence on the Theology and Practice of Baptism

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> This article aims to compare and analyse two different perspectives of pneumatology: within the Pentecostal and the Evangelical perspective. In spite of many doctrinal tangents with the Evangelical theology, the Pentecostal has its own spirituality and theological accent, especially in the field of pneumatology. The two differences centre on baptism in the Spirit and the gift of prophecy. From a Pentecostal practical perspective, the spiritual gifts continue to play an important role for the contemporary church. Although there are differences in their theological approaches, the Pentecostals and the Evangelicals found the common ground in forming the Evangelical Alliance of Romania and working together for about a quarter of Century.</abstract>

Two distinct perspectives on pneumatology – similarities and differences between The Romanian Pentecostal and Evangelical theology

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>This essay illustrates situations in actual parish life in the diaspora, between juridical presumptions and everyday practice. Juridical grounds are based on canonical law of the Orthodox Church as well as on the Constitution and Acts of the Serbian Orthodox Church, which were formed between the World Wars and in the post-war period, thus being prepared for the multicultural surroundings of Yugoslavia. Multiculturalism is particularly accented in the diaspora. The text describes the juridical procedure and its consequences in parish life and gives a statistical overview of a parish in the diaspora.</abstract>

Interconfessional Marriage and Serbian Orthodox Church – A Parish Life Perspective from Diaspora

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<title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>
The change in the status of Orthodox iconographers from Transylvania brought forward a change in their art during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. During this period the condition of Orthodox painters changes from that of mere craftsmen to artists. Based on the work of several Transylvanian painters active during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, an analysis of the signatures of the artists, visitation records and contracts between the artists and the patrons of the church, this article wishes to explore the changes in the status of these individuals who evolved from craftsmen to artists during their lives.
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The Mobility of Iconographers and their Quest for Social Status Art and Signatures of Transylvanian Pre-Modern Greek-Orthodox Iconographers

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>The early patristic authors dealt with the idea of deification in varying circumstances, in relation to different questions, and in more than one language. This article examines Syriac and Greek discourses and vocabularies related to deification in Early Christian and Post-Chalcedonian sources, concentrating on the Syriac tradition, which is less studied. The comparison illustrates certain similarities and differences. The most striking difference is, perhaps surprisingly, that in the Syriac tradition, the idea of deification is prevalent but specific terms to indicate it are almost never used. The incommensurability of the discourses exemplifies the conceptual difficulties at the emergence of the schisms between the Greek and Syriac speaking parts of Christendom.</abstract>

The Concept of Deification in Greek and Syriac

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<title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>
This article deals with the ways evil was conceptualized in the works of Cornelius Agrippa, the most important German representative of the Renaissance humanist current often labelled as Hermetic Neoplatonism. In a heterodox fashion of blending various Christian and non-Christian concepts developed by Marsilio Ficino, Agrippa attempted to further Christianize some aspects of Hermetic and Neoplatonic theology, cosmology and anthropology. This entailed a new interpretation of pagan deities and demons, which Renaissance Neoplatonists in general sought to disconnect from the exclusive domain of evil. A significant aspect of Agrippa’s syncretistic attempt was his interpretation of the origin and locus of evil, which, as I argue, reveals a tense coexistence of the classical Thomist concept of <italic>privatio boni</italic> and anthropological dualism of possibly Gnostic provenance.
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<italic>Daemones Boni et Mali</italic>: The Locus of Evil in Renaissance Hermetic Neoplatonism

The Problem of Evil and Fr. Zosima’s Responsibility Before All

Geert Roskam, Joseph Verheyden, eds., <italic>Light on Creation. Ancient Commentators in Dialogue and Debate on the Origin of the World</italic>, Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2017, 314 p., ISBN 978-3-16-154314-2.*

Oliver Jens Schmitt, <italic>Biserica de stat sau biserica în stat? O istorie a Bisericii Ortodoxe Române. 1918-2023</italic>, București: Humanitas, 2023, 458 p., ISBN: 978-973-50-7919-2.

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Due to its domineering Western and Christian influence, philosophy of religion, as a discipline, is hesitant or reluctant to entertain arguments on similar subjects from non-Western and non-Christian traditions even when these traditions may have answers to problems or issues in the discipline. Of these problems, the present research will limit its scope to theodicy. Whereas the problem continues to encounter endless debates and attempts to reconciling a loving, powerful and knowledgeable Deity with the existence of natural and moral evils in the world, the lack of coherence in that tradition of thought cannot be said for “Yorùbá theology”. Through the method of philosophical and hermeneutical analyses, the effort of this research is to unpack the process underpinning of “Yorùbá theology” which helps in formulating a coherent understanding of the reality of evil in the presence of a good, loving and wise “Olódùmaré” that is void of Satan/Devil. On this note, this research submits, having used Yorùbá process theology as paradigm, that the debate over the problem of evil in mainstream tradition of philosophy of religion may be resolved if non-Western and non-Christian traditions are invited into the discourse.
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The Coherence of the Belief in the Existence of Evil in Traditional <italic>Yorùbá</italic> Theology: A Process-Relational Analysis

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<title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>
The eye is a complex anthropological term in the Old Testament theology. The eye represents insight, mindfulness, but also it is an entrance for malefic influences. This article will scrutinize the magical function of the eye in the Hebrew Bible, as well as the connection of the eye with evil. The Hebrew terms of the Masoretic Text will be compared to the Greek translation of the Septuagint and the Hellenistic mindset in order to perceive similarities and differences between both cultures.
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Viewing the Evil Eye in the Scripture: Reclaiming the Magical Thinking in Modern Times

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Father André Scrima emphasized in his works the unanimous and universal duty of discovering the necessity of otherness or alterity as the exigency of our own path to God. He often spoke of the encounter and “askesis of the dialogue” that consists of the effort to open completely and without reserve to the other. From this point of view, we could consider André Scrima the visionary who intermediates the unveiling and the Revelation that, regardless of confession and religion, every human being has the chance to develop an authentic relationship with the divinity. Also, he advocates an indispensable condition or the most basic ethical argument required to get closer to God, namely recognizing the universal quality of all humankind as equally capable to be vessels of God’s grace, and hence they should be appreciated as such.</abstract>

Epiphany and Otherness in the Vision of Father André Scrima

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> The study focuses on the historical dogmatical analysis of the three waves of spiritual renewal which started in the early twentieth century and affected most Christian denominations by focusing on the manifestation of the spiritual gifts. The author will identify the major historical dogmatical influences of the Pentecostal-Charismatic movement, the characteristics and the leaders of the movement, as well as the directions of development on the personal and on the community level.</abstract>

The Three Waves of Spiritual Renewal of the Pentecostal-Charismatic Movement

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>This study aims to capture the dynamics of the recent biblical studies in the Orthodox and Western, especially Protestant, theological areas. Both the Orthodox biblical theology and the Western biblical theology are streamlined by research, which can be inspired by each other´s experience. Thus, the Orthodox biblical studies are recently shaped in receiving and developing an exegetical method, and in this sense may appeal to the Western experience, especially the historical-critical method. On the other hand, the Western biblical scholars are concerned with bringing into the present the meaning of biblical texts or their update, in a direction close to the Orthodox biblical experience. The solution to these concerns can be rediscovered in the mutual completion with ecumenical connotations.</abstract>

The Historical-Critical Method and the Holy Fathers

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>This study is a synthesis of the author’s long-term pursuits which were completed by a doctoral thesis. He has a twofold objective: on the one hand, the first part of the study he will offer a brief review of the main names (respectively works) related to the renewal of Orthodox theology in the 20th century; on the other hand, for a better understanding of the sources of this direction of theological revival, in the second part he will analyse the idea of Sacred Tradition as ecclesial way of life. In the end, he will describe the contributions, in various theological chapters, by Orthodox neo-patristic theologians; he will also signal a series of adverse aspects.</abstract>

The Orthodox Neo-patristic Movements as Renewal of Contemporary Orthodox Theology: An Overview

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Rather than lamenting a crisis of the Ecumenical movement the author suggests that the reader look at promising paradigms that become apparent within the present changes and challenges of World Christianity. He identifies six promising trends, as Christians of different traditions recognize partners in common witness beyond their own church traditions (1), evangelical and Pentecostal churches rise in significance (2), ecumenism becomes increasingly shaped by biographical experience and personal encounter (3), a spiritual ecumenism for the witness in the world emerges (4), the reality of martyrdom deepens the sense of Christian unity (5) and the search for the truth of the Gospel is not given up (6). In their overlapping and sometimes contradictory evidence these paradigms prove Ecumenism to be alive and, therefore, changing its face.</abstract>

Unity to the Greater Glory of God. Promising Paradigms in Current Ecumenism

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>In debates over the Christological doctrine proclaimed at the Council of Chalcedon, two different Christological stances took shape that in fact carried not only significant theological consequences, but also profound philosophical ones. In the present paper, I shall reflect upon the philosophical premises and arguments employed by both the defenders of Chalcedon and their adversaries. As I shall seek to show, both sides differed, among other things, in regard to their understanding of the individual entity as such. The Miaphysite adversaries of the Chalcedonian Horos adopted what was, from a philosophical point of view, a quite traditional elucidation of individual entities in terms of particular essence. On the other hand, the Neo-Chalcedonian defenders of the Horos developed an original interpretation of the individual entity as explicable in terms of its existence.</abstract>

The Miaphysite and Neo-Chalcedonian Approaches to Understanding the Nature of the Individual Entity: Particular Essence vs. En-Hypostasized Essence

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Review of Ecumenical Studies

edited by "Lucian Blaga" University of Sibiu and the University of Eastern Finland in Joensuu

 Publishing House and Owner: Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania  The Ecumenical Journal Sibiu (RES) is the academic journal of the Ecumenical...

MNiSW

 Publishing House and Owner: Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania  The Ecumenical Journal Sibiu (RES) is...

Review of Ecumenical Studies

edited by "Lucian Blaga" University of Sibiu and the University of Eastern Finland in Joensuu

Daemones Boni et Mali: The Locus of Evil in Renaissance Hermetic Neoplatonism

The Problem of Evil and Fr. Zosima’s Responsibility Before All

Geert Roskam, Joseph Verheyden, eds., Light on Creation. Ancient Commentators in Dialogue and Debate on the Origin of the World, Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2017, 314 p., ISBN 978-3-16-154314-2.*

Oliver Jens Schmitt, Biserica de stat sau biserica în stat? O istorie a Bisericii Ortodoxe Române. 1918-2023, București: Humanitas, 2023, 458 p., ISBN: 978-973-50-7919-2.

The Coherence of the Belief in the Existence of Evil in Traditional Yorùbá Theology: A Process-Relational Analysis

Viewing the Evil Eye in the Scripture: Reclaiming the Magical Thinking in Modern Times