Metaphysics in the Reformation

Because the magisterial reformers largely rejected metaphysical discourses, is often assumed that the Protestant Reformation had no metaphysics. However, if metaphysics is understood as the ontological relationship between God and the world, how could any theological work not be at least implicitly metaphysical? This book argues that the avowedly anti-metaphysical stance of many reformers is itself a metaphysical position, and that teasing out the implicit metaphysics in their worldviews is both possible and worthwhile despite – or even because of – their insistent denials that they have any such thing. Metaphysics in the Reformation proposes a novel methodology for studying the implied metaphysics of the Reformation, focussing on implied structures of being and causality. It then applies this methodology to the under-researched work of Peter Martyr Vermigli (1499–1562). Analysing four main areas of Vermigli’s theology – his anthropology, his soteriology, his doctrine of the Eucharist, and his political theology – the book argues that in his theology, Vermigli simultaneously inhabits two different metaphysical models of the relationship between God and the world. The book contends that by extension, this holds true of Reformation theology more generally.

Andrei Platonov’s writing method: selected key characteristics and linguostylistic means

Andrei Platonov’s writing method in its ideological and theoretical basis is considered by us as the ontological relationship of his personality and creative perspective with spiritual values, attitudes and philosophical views which he professes. This writing method is realized in Platonov’s prose through the artistic interaction of author’s philosophical concepts and linguistic means which form his idiostyle. The main and broader goal of our research is a systematized and classifying description of the key language models and techniques most typical of Platonov’s writing method. The scientific results of our comprehensive analysis of Platonov’s idiostyle testify to our assertion that most of the elements and features of Platonov’s “deformed” and “coded” language are artistically modeled and are an example of the author’s successful stylization. Due to the peculiarities of the author’s language and style, Platonov’s literary text is distinguished by rich semantic ambivalence and implicativity. The volume of our work does not allow us to present a more detailed presentation of the provisions of Andrei Platonov’s creative method and an all-encompassing analysis of the most important linguostylistic means which make up it. In this we, we set our specific task within the framework of a brief analytical review of the individual charac-teristics of Platonov’s writing method and a selective linguostylistic analysis of the key and most effective means and techniques of linguistic expressiveness which form this unique author’s me-thod, to clearly demonstrate some of its fundamental principles and approaches.

The Quest for Authenticity and Self-discovery in Education with Special Attention Paid to Language Education

The purpose of the article is to contribute to the discussion about the relevance of existential issues in contemporary education. The analyses presented in the paper are related to the problems of self-reflection, self-questioning and the process of spiritual and moral development of human beings. Firstly, the author begins by depicting the meaning of human existence in the light of philosophy. What is at issue here is a question of being oneself, recognizing personal truth and finding one’s own voice as opposed to being inauthentic or fleeing from oneself. Special attention is paid to the language as an essential, constitutive element of being. Secondly, the article attempts to consider some educational implications resulting from the deep ontological relationship between human beings and language. Describing them, the author indicates that ignoring vital questions in language education contributes to spiritual vacuity in the lives of young people and reduces educational thinking merely to instrumental, pragmatic problems concerned with qualification and transfer of communicative skills.

Russian Philosophy of the Name and John of Kronstadt: Name – Icon– God

The article examines the ideological connection of the name glory and Russian philosophy of the name with the theology of father John of Kronstadt, which allows us to speak of him as one of the main precursors of this direction in Russian thought. The article offers the analysis of the most revealing references to father John by the name praisers - first of all, Hilarion (Domrachev), Anthony (Bulatovich) and metropolitan Veniamin (Fedchenkov), who justified the name praising using the views of father John and demonstrated his succession to the traditional patristic heritage. Also the author investigates the most illustrative references of the imyabortsy to father John’s ideas - first of all, the synodal theologians Nikon (Rozhdestvensky) and Sergey Troitsky, for whom the onomatodoxy statements of father John were the problem that required analysis and different interpretation. The ideological relationship between the teachings of John of Kronstadt with the Russian philosophy of the the name - Florensky, Losev and Bulgakov is examined using the example of two topics that reveal their main substantive coincidence and difference. This is the theme that was identically understood by them, the theme of the relationship between the Name and the God - the ontological connection expressed in the main onomatodox formula of father John: “the Name of God is God Himself”, accepted and expanded by each of the representatives of the philosophy of the name. And also the theme of the relationship between the name and the icon that they understand differently - the ontological relationship between the divine name and the icon. From the point of view of father John of Kronstadt, these categories, like all religious symbols, are in essence equal places of the divine presence; while from the point of view of the philosophers of the name, the category of the name, as the divine energy or the place of its residence, ontologically exceeds the icon, as the material phenomenon that receives sanctification and relationship with God through the name.

Religion, Church, and Public Space

The present text is divided into three chapters and deals with the intrinsic religious dimension of man as being of communion from an ontological viewpoint and in relation with God, her Creator and Supporter in this mundane existence. This existence is open to eternity as a real personal and communitarian communion in the dynamics of spiritual growth. For Christians, the Church is the path of genuine and redeeming communion with God the Trinity as shown in the foundational biblical metanarrative, typologically interpreted by Christian theology, and spiritually experienced by practicing believers. Sacramentally, this happens through prayer, through the reading of the holy text, and the liturgical and Eucharistic gathering that celebrates the real sacrament of God's presence for us. The relation between the Church with the State in modern and postmodern times testifies to the change in mindset that has occurred by means of the ideological absolutisation of the state and the theoretical marginalization or atomization of religion. On the one hand, this shows the inconsistency of the project and on the other hand, the impossibility to fight with the religious soul of humanity, the religious dimension inherently and intrinsically structured in the ontological relationship between human and divine, in any mundane historical context.

The Trinitarian Pattern of Redemption in Richard Sibbes (1577–1635)

This essay offers an extended treatment of the trinitarian principles in the theology of the seventeenth-century English conformist Richard Sibbes (1577–1635). Sibbes established an asymmetrical ontological relationship between the eternal triune processions and the economic missions, wherein God’s immanent life of Father, Son, and Spirit constitutes God’s outward acts. The ad intra ordering—from the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit—governs the economic missions of the Son and Holy Spirit. This trinitarian taxis, moreover, funds Sibbes’s creative pneumatology. The Holy Spirit’s eternal procession from the Father and the Son uniquely shapes the Spirit’s ad extra operations in unition, sanctification, and assurance. The Spirit eternally indwells the breast of the Father and Son and, as such, is supremely fit to witness to their eternal love among the saints. In Sibbes’s affectionate theology, God’s triune life serves as an anchor and repository for soteriological reflection.

Damaging Environments

This article theorizes why Indigenous peoples’ security claims fail to be accepted by government authorities or incorporated into the security policies and practices of settler states. By engaging the concepts of securitization and ontological security, I explain how Indigenous peoples are unable to successfully “speak” security to the state. I argue that nondominant societal groups are unable to gain authoritative acceptance for security issues that challenge the dominant national identity. In effect, indigeneity acts an inhibiting condition for successful securitization because, by identifying the state and dominant society as the source of their insecurity, Indigenous peoples’ security claims challenge the ontological security of settler societies. Given the incommensurability of Indigenous and settler claims to authority over land, and the ontological relationship to land that underpins Indigenous identities and worldviews, the inhibiting condition is especially relevant with respect to security claims based on damage to the natural environment.

Programming Sex, Gender, and Sexuality: Infrastructural Failures in ‘Feminist’ Dating App Bumble

Background Bumble is a self-declared “feminist” dating app that gives women control over initiating conversations with potential matches. Analysis Through a material-semiotic analysis of Bumble’s software and online media about the app, this article critically investigates how gender, sex, and sexuality are produced and given meaning by Bumble’s programmed infrastructure.Conclusions and implications Since the epistemological underpinnings of Bumble’s design centre gender as the solitary axis of oppression, the authors argue that the app’s infrastructure generates an ontological relationship between gender, sex, and sexuality that narrows the capacity to achieve its creators’ stated social justice objectives. Several infrastructural failures are detailed to demonstrate how control and safety are 1) optimized for straight cisgender women, and 2) contingent on the inscription of an aggressive form of masculinity onto straight male bodies.RÉSUMÉ Contexte Bumble est une application de rencontres prétendument « féministe » qui donne aux femmes le pouvoir d’initier des conversations avec des compagnons potentiels.Analyse Cet article effectue une analyse sémiotique matérielle de Bumble et de commentaires en ligne sur cette application dans le but d’examiner comment l’infrastructure programmée de Bumble produit le genre, le sexe et la sexualité et leur donne du sens.Conclusions et implications Bumble a une perspective épistémologique selon laquelle le genre est la seule source d’oppression. Or, d’après les auteurs, ce point de vue encourage un rapport ontologique entre genre, sexe et sexualité qui entrave la capacité des créateurs à atteindre leurs objectifs de justice sociale. Cet article recense plusieurs échecs infrastructurels de l’application afin de montrer comment le contrôle et la sécurité 1) conviennent principalement aux femmes cisgenres hétérosexuelles et 2) supposent une masculinité agressive inscrite sur des corps mâles hétérosexuels.

Mothers of Corn: Wixárika women, verbal performances, and ontology

Wixáritari (pl.) from Western Mexico perform a series of ceremonies through the cultivation and harvesting of Corn. In communities outside Wixárika land, families align their ceremonies to the academic calendar and working calendar to ensure the families’ participation. This article discusses the active role of Maize within ceremony from cultivation to harvesting, emphasizing the role of women in preparing Corn-based substances for ceremonial offerings. Through storytelling and embodied practices such as gastronomic representations, women are active agents in transmitting the relationships between Corn and community members. Drawing from my ongoing ethnographic fieldwork among Wixárika families in Tepic, Mexico, the article analyzes the ontological relationship between Wixárika and Corn. Utilizing verbal performances such as storytelling, this article highlights the importance of Maize for purposes of continuing the community’s connection to geographies, identity and the significance of women in enabling inter-species relations.

The Intersection of Social Media and Customer Retention in the Luxury Beauty Industry

Debates regarding the ontological relationship between Social Media and customer retention have attracted considerable attention, particularly in the luxury beauty industry. The use of Social Media in the luxury beauty industry has caused many heated debates as it is seen as a form of interference in the exclusivity of luxury brands by limiting the physical and sensual contact between brand and customer. The purpose of this chapter is to provide some insights into how social media impacts on the cosmetics industry. Further, we provide evidence that the effective application of social media in the luxury beauty industry could lead to wider market share, and customer retention. The chapter concludes with some strategies that practitioners and researchers can adopt to develop effective marketing communication strategies, using social media platforms.