The Role of Orthodoxy in the Christian World of the 20th and 21st Centuries

Description

A Theological Contribution to the Formation of the World Council of Churches and the Ecumenical Dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church

Prologue

Despite the reactions of subjective voices, ecclesiastical history and modern studies have proven that the contribution of the Orthodox Church to the ecumenical movement is of great importance and its participation with significant results. Although there is still a long way to go towards the complete restoration of eucharistic communion among divided Christians, it is a fact that the Orthodox Church can never stop dialogue with other Christians. If we rely on the theological and ecclesiological declaration of the Holy and Great Council of Crete (2016), which emphasizes: “The Orthodox Church, as the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, in her profound ecclesiastical self-consciousness, believes unflinchingly that she occupies a central place in the matter of the promotion of Christian unity in the world today,” then we must admit that, if the Orthodox Church stops the dialogue, then it loses its pastoral care and its ecclesiastical and ecclesiological self-consciousness. Although other Christians are not in communion with the Orthodox Church, it does not cease to approach them with maternal love and care, which is not just a good desire and will, but a responsibility and obligation. With this spirit and conscience, I decided to choose the present topic to study and present the role and place of our Orthodox Church in theological dialogues. In the course of the selection, writing, and editing of this master’s thesis, a significant role was played by Fr. Nicolas Kazarian, Professor at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and the Ecumenical Officer and Director of the Department on Inter-Orthodox, Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. His advice was decisive for the final formulation of this thesis, for which I thank him warmly. In addition, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to His Grace, Bishop Saba of the Georgian Apostolic Orthodox Church in North America, and His Eminence Elpidophoros, Archbishop of America, who have both supported and helped me in my academic endeavors.

Fr. Ieronymos Katamadze

Endorsement

In The Role of Orthodoxy in the Christian World of the 20th and 21st Centuries, Rev. Ieronymos Katamadze delivers a meticulous and balanced study of Orthodox participation in modern inter-Christian dialogue. Grounded in official sources and synodal decisions, patriarchal encyclicals, as well as agreed international theological documents, Rev. Katamadze demonstrates that Orthodox ecumenical engagement is not a departure from tradition, but a direct reflection of the Church’s profound ecclesiological self-consciousness and spiritual care for the divided Christian world.

Rev. Nicolas Kazarian, Director, Department of Inter-Orthodox, Ecumenical & Interfaith Relations, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.