The aim of this paper is to offer an overview of the long-lasting friendship between Georges Florovsky and St. Justin Popović, as well as their common project to build an Orthodox theological synthesis on the basis of the patristic tradition. The paper focuses on three periods from Florovsky’s and Popović’s lives, from late 1910 to early 1920, from the late 1920s to late 1930s, and finally into the 1940s. I argue that in the first period both authors developed their theological (...) visions relying on Solovyov and Florensky, on the one hand, and in opposition to the ecclesial nationalism of the Slavophiles and conservative Orthodox hierarchs, on the other hand. Further, I investigate how during the late 1920s and 1930s both authors searched for an Orthodox synthesis mostly in dialogue with their Orthodox predecessors, especially Solovyov, Florensky, and Bulgakov, as well as the modern western philosophical tradition. The focus will shift then to the 1940s, which was characterized by frequent meetings between Florovsky and Popović in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. I argue that in this period the Church Fathers became for both authors the golden standard for Orthodox theology, and the idea of the Neopatristic synthesis developed in full scale. (shrink)

U vremenu novog definisanja srpskog nacionalnog identiteta od odlucujuceg je znacaja uspostavljanje kopce izmedju kriticki vrednovane tradicije s jedne i zahteva vremena globalizacije, s druge strane. Produktivnu vezu izmedju starog i novog mogu ce je ostvariti ukoliko Srbija izgradi demokratske i nekompromitovane i nekorumpirane drzavne institucije preko kojih bi se obrazovala racionalna svest o vlastitoj posebnosti, kao i vrednostima spoljnog sveta. Glavna odgovornost u tom osetljivom procesu samo definisanja je na politickim elitama i ideoloskim projektima koje oni otvoreno ili prikriveno (...) proteziraju, a koji se na najprozirniji nacin ogledaju u medijima (javnom mnjenju) i institucijama obrazovanja. (shrink)

The paper aims to analyze the early ecumenical views of Amfilohije Radović with reference to the influence exerted on him by his spiritual father Justin Popović. This investigation is important because Radović’s ecumenical engagement is often a matter of controversy, which results in conflicting views. Sources for studying Radović’s early ecumenical views are: his correspondence with Justin Popović on ecumenism, his engagement in editing and publishing Popović’s book _Orthodox Church and Ecumenism_, and finally, his article written as a report from (...) an inter-Orthodox conference held in September 1972 in Thessalonica. In addition to Radović’s similarity with Popović's views, the paper also aims to show their differences, i.e. their different interpretations of the same phenomena. (shrink)

Focusing on three historical examples of a different understanding of Christian identity, the paper seeks to address the role of contemporary concepts of sex and gender in the creation of Christian identity. In the first case study, focused on the literary representations of the Christian martyrdom from the second and third centuries, special emphasis is placed on the demand for the?manly? or?masculine? way of witnessing faith. The second historical example relates to the creation of a wider ascetic movement in the (...) fourth-century Asia Minor, and its specific focus is on Macrina the Younger. In her Vita, Gregory of Nyssa distinguishes between Macrina?s gender identity based on her virginity on the one hand, and her social role as a widow, and?mother? and?father? of her monastic community on the other. Finally, the focus is shifted towards Dionysius the Areopagite and Maximus the Confessor, whose teachings about ecstasy, as a way to transcend oneself in the movement towards the loved one, provide the basis for establishing a theology of marriage and creating a Christian identity based not on sexual or gender roles, but on the uniqueness of human nature. (shrink)

Rad nastoji da predstavi filozofsku argumentaciju u prilog hriscanskoj ideji stvaranja sveta izlozenu u delu autora iz VII veka Maksima Ispovednika. Maksim Ispovednik je svoje ucenje o stvaranju razvio prativsi filozofske argumente svojih hriscanskih prethodnika, pre svih Grigorija Niskog, Nemesija Emeskog i Dionisija Areopagita. Srz Maksimove argumentcije slicna je ucenju o stvaranju sveta aleksandrijskog filozofa Jovana Filopona, ali njegovo ucenje obogaceno je i idejama pomenutih hriscanskih autora koje on dodatno razvija. Neke od ideja koje cine strukturu Maksimove filozofije stvaranja jesu: (...) petostruka podela bica, koja se vrhuni u podeli na stvorenu i nestvorenu prirodu, zatim pokret stvorenih bica prema Bogu koji je jedini istinski cilj njihovog kretanja, predvecno postojanje sveta u logosima kao izrazima Bozanske volje, Bozje promisljanje ne samo opstih nacela vec i individualnih bica i obozenje celokupne tvorevine kao prvenstvene svrhe stvaranja. Maksim svoje ideje vesto oblikuje koristeci se podjednako aristotelovskim, stoickim i neoplatonistickim filozofskim vokabularom. (shrink)