Genesis of Russian religious philosophy of the Slavophiles A. S. Khomyakov and I. V. Kireevsky

The article is devoted to the philosophical, religious and world views of A. S. Khomyakov and I. V. Kireevsky. Based on the analysis of the authors’ creative and epistolary heritage, the authors show the ambiguity of their judgment from the point of view of Orthodox theology. The hermeneutic method allowed the author to analyze the primary sources of A. S. Khomyakov and I. V. Kireevsky, their contemporaries and followers from the point of view of Orthodox theology to determine the degree of their compliance with Orthodox doctrine. The purpose of the work is to compare the creative heritage of the founders of the religious and philosophical movement of the Slavophiles A. S. Khomyakov and I. V. Kireevsky. This is a new look at the formation of the religious and philosophical worldviews of A. S. Khomyakov and I. V. Kireevsky. The strongest sides of A. S. Khomyakov are the following: he presents the Church as a single moral union of those who preach the teachings of Christ, based on love for their neighbor. Rationalism is not conducive to the establishment of faith, and everyone who is separated from the Church does not have love. I. V. Kireevsky, on the other hand, followed the path of knowledge of Roman philosophy and its influence on the formation of Western theology; analysis and conclusions in assessing the development of theology in Russia and Europe; negative effect of ritualism on the worldview of true Orthodoxy in Russia.

God’s Omnipotence: A Literary Investigation

The omnipotence of God can be defined as the perfect ability of God to do all things that are consistent with the divine character. Open theists see God as one who is influenced as God interacts with human beings in time and space (temporally). Thus, for Open Theists, God is affected and influenced by the world. This paper revisits the historical, biblical and theological grounds for the doctrine of omnipotence with the aim of re-establishing the relevance of divine omnipotence. Using a literary investigation this article traces the developments of the doctrine of God’s power from the Early Church Fathers to the Reformers to establish whether the articulation of God’s power within Open Theism resonates with Orthodox Theology and Evangelicalism.

Maksud Yesus dalam Peristiwa Baptisan: Sebuah Tanggapan Teologis terhadap Marcus J. Borg

Jesus’ baptism does not only refer to His divine role, but moreover to His divine identity. This is a theological declaration that He is God. However, Marcus J. Borg asserted that Jesus’ baptism was Jesus’ deep spiritual awareness toward spiritual world and the presence of God’s Spirit in His life. This does not indicate His divinity at all. Based on these two contradictory views, a problem remains to be solved: Is Borg’s assumption correct? What is actually Jesus’ true intention in His baptism? This was the focus of the research. This writing exerted to describe particularly Borg’s view on Jesus’ baptism, analyzed and responded to his view according to evangelical perspective. Despite the fact that Borg’s view on Jesus’ baptism has widely garnered support from modern theological readers, his theology is still far from orthodox theology because it was too socio-anthropological based analysis and ignored the Bible as God’s revelation.Abstrak. Baptisan Tuhan Yesus bukan hanya merujuk kepada fungsi jabatan-Nya, tapi lebih daripada itu, yaitu kepada identitas ilahi-Nya. Ini merupakan sebuah deklarasi teologis bahwa Ia adalah Allah. Tetapi Marcus J. Borg menyatakan bahwa baptisan Yesus sebagai sebuah kesadaran spiritual Yesus yang mendalam akan dunia roh dan kehadiran Roh Allah dalam hidup-Nya. Hal ini sama sekali tidak mengindikasikan keilahian-Nya. Mengaitkan kedua pandangan yang bertolakbelakang ini, muncul permasalahan: benarkah asumsi Borg di atas? Apakah sebenarnya yang menjadi intensi Yesus dalam peristiwa baptisan tersebut? Inilah yang menjadi fokus penelitian penulis. Tulisan ini berusaha untuk memaparkan secara khusus pandangan Borg dalam peristiwa baptisan Yesus dan menganalisis serta menanggapi pandangannya menurut perspektif injili. Terlepas dari pandangan Borg yang digemari di kalangan pembaca teologi modern tentang baptisan Yesus, pemikirannya masih jauh dari teologi ortodoks oleh karena terlalu berpijak pada analisis secara sosio-antropologis dan mengabaikan Alkitab sebagai wahyu dari Allah.

Review of: Science and the Christian Faith: A Guide for the Perplexed. New York: St Vladimir’s Seminary Press Yonkers, 2020 (Foundation Series). 232 p. ISBN-978-088141-671-8

Вопросы взаимоотношения науки и религии уже много лет находятся в центре внимания учёных, богословов и философов. Среди множества книг, посвящённых дискуссиям о взаимоотношении науки и веры, встречается не так много работ, написанных православными богословами. Книга британского православного священника и одного из ведущих учёных в области диалога православного богословия и науки Кристофера Найта «Наука и христианская вера: руководство для сомневающихся» представляет особый интерес, поскольку написана человеком, который, как и многие учёные в академической области «наука и религия» обладает естественнонаучным и богословским образованием. The relationship between science and religion has been the focus of scholars, theologians and philosophers for many years. Among the many books devoted to the debate on the relationship between science and faith, there are not many works written by Orthodox theologians. Christopher Knight, a British Orthodox priest and one of the leading scholars in the field of dialogue between Orthodox theology and science, Science and Christian Faith: A Guide for the Doubting, is of particular interest because it is written by someone who, like many scholars in the academic field of "science and religion", has a background in science and theology.

Liturgy and Apophaticism

The Orthodox liturgy is a religious phenomenon that can be analyzed phenomenologically and theologically alike, given the emphasis that both phenomenology and Orthodox theology place on experience. By proposing the Kingdom of God instead of the natural world without being able to annihilate the latter in the name of the former, the liturgy seeks divine-human communion. Through the dialogue of prayer, through symbolic and iconic openings, as well as through apophatic theology, the liturgy emphasizes the horizon of mystery as a horizon essential to the way man positions himself before God. The present text attempts to demonstrate that apophaticism, understood as an experience of the mysterious presence of God, is one of the crucial dimensions of the Orthodox liturgy; and that this apophatic presence of God reveals a way of thinking which does not become onto-theology, not even when using concepts borrowed from metaphysics. The overcoming of onto-theology is achieved here not by abandoning concepts such as “being” and “cause” but by placing the language game in the field of prayer and apophatic theology.