A therapeuták himnuszéneklése Philón De vita contemplativa című munkája alapján

Author(s): Zoltán Adorjáni / Language(s): Hungarian Issue: 2/2007

The Therapeutae’s ascetic devotion is characterized not only by searching the scriptures, meditation and prayer but also by singing of hymns and psalms. Hymns were composed by the principals of the community, they were those who taught the community members to sing them and they continually enriched the hymnal with new ones. The Essenes’ and Therapeutae’s psalm-singing indicates first of all the common Old Testament origin. However these religious communities had different self-identity from that of the normative Jews and this identity required for a special psalm-poetry to be accomplished. The Therapeutae’s psalms remind us of the church psalm-tradition characterized, just like the Essene hymns, by responsive singing and refrains. This singing of hymns developed outside the church is due not only to the distance from the Sanctuary or to the estrangement from the priesthood, but also to the prophetical preaching criticizing sacrifice. The Essenes considered their community to be like a spiritual temple and this spiritual worship is very striking in the case of the Therapeutae as well.

The Anthropodaimons with Golden Masks from the Upper Stream of Tonzos

Author(s): Valeria Fol / Language(s): English Issue: 18/2009

Гръцки епиграфски свидетелства от църквата „Успение Богородично“ (1845 г.) в Пловдив

Author(s): Aleksandra Trifonova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 1/2018

In this paper 20 Greek inscriptions, preserved on a mural painting, icons and grave plaques, which originate from the church of Dormition of Virgin (1845) in Plovdiv (Philippopolis) are presented. They date back from the last quarter of the 17th to the third quarter of the 19th cc. and give valuable information about persons from the ecclesiastical and social circles of Plovdiv (Philippopolis). The mentioned in the inscriptions persons from the ecclesiastical circles refer to a Metropolitan of Philippopolis, Neophytos (last quarter of the 17th c. – 1711), during whose archbishopric the old church of the Virgin was build, in the place of which nowadays the church of Dormition of Virgin (1845) is erected. The other one is the rhetor of the same Metropolis, Andronikos (last quarter of the 17th c.), who gave the money for the mural painting of the above mentioned church of the Virgin. The persons from the social circle, mentioned in the inscriptions, refer to Greeks and Bulgarians donnor’s and all of them were in a direct or indirect relation with the powerful Čalukov (Čaloglou or Čalukoglou) family in Plovdiv (Philippopolis). These persons sponsored the execution of different icons for the church, as Dimitris Tsaharlis – st Demetrios on a horseback (1812), Lucia and her children – st Menas (1846), Salčo Ioannou (Čomakov), together with his wife and children – st Stylianos (1846), Iakov Kendindenoglou – st Jacob (1846), Georgi Stoianovič (Čalukoglou) – st George (1846), Ioannis Dimitriou Sitsianis – st John the Forerunner (1846), Dimitrakis Kyriakou Mitsouras – st Demetrios (1846), Eustathios Ioannou Tsironis – st Spyridon enthroned (1846), Iskro Iskrov Kesak (Kesiakov) – st Nicholas enthroned (1846) and Teodor Vulko Čaloglou – Dormition of the Virgin (1848). The provided from the inscriptions information about persons from the artistic circle refers to the painter Nicholaos, who could be identified as Nicholaos Adrinaoupolitis, the author of the above mentioned icons. The inscriptions give also information about the desceeded persons in Plovdiv (Philippoplis) from the second to the third quarter of the 19th century, mostely Greeks, among which are Panagiotis Dimitriadis (†1838), Eleni (Politoglou) Čalukova (†1848), Anastasia Konstantinou Noutsi (†1852), Konstantinos Andreou Garginos (†1854), Teodoraki Stoian Teodorou (†1856), Ioanis Dimitriou Sitsianis (†1857) and S. Tsikerdekis (†1865).

Damian Guzek (2019). Mediatizing Secular State: Media Religion and Politics in Contemporary Poland. Berlin: Peter Lang pp. 333 ISBN: 978-3-631-77535-6.

Author(s): Rafał Leśniczak / Language(s): English Issue: 25/2020

Dialogical and Mediatory Potential of an Integral Ecology

Author(s): Stanisław Jaromi / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2020

The encyclical Laudato si’ is a Catholic document synthesizing the reflection on the main issues related to ecology as well as to nature and climate protection. It provides a new perspective for ecological activity in the light of integral ecology principles. In many countries, this encyclical has become a point of reference for Catholics in the context of the ecological crisis, especially by the fact of its highlighting the religious and spiritual perspective and giving concrete examples of both ecological and Christian lifestyles. Chapter 5 of the encyclical outlines, moreover, the concept of dialogue that brings hope for abandoning the spiral of self-destruction in which humanity is now sinking. The concept of communicative humanism and its mechanisms i.e. actions restoring values and creating a community have been proposed to establish the platform for this dialogue. The program is based on personalism and Christian hermeneutics, and its goal is a Church interested in the world and its problems, a one which on a par with others wants to say STOP to the destruction of the earth and its irresponsible exploitation.

Encyclical Laudato si’ on the Question of Progress

Author(s): Witold Kania / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2020

Progress is one of the most recognizable characteristics of modern times. The present paper addresses the question of progress as the underlying theme of the encyclical Laudato si’. Progress has both good and bad sides. The latter are expressed in terms that have a fundamental significance to the encyclical, such as, “irrational faith in progress” and “the myth of unlimited material progress”. In order to gain a clearer understanding of those terms, the author begins with outlining the history of the idea of progress and the philosophical criterion for its assessment. Then, he provides a critical analysis of the technocratic paradigm embodying the false face of progress. Within this framework, progress is presented as imperative and unlimited. However, by placing man in the centre and reducing his purpose in life to a relativistic principle “use and throw away”, it leads to a global ecological, spiritual and cultural crisis. The following part of the paper is devoted to a new model of progress proposed by Pope Francis. This type of progress has both a vertical and horizontal dimension. Embedded in the Holy Trinity, it reaches its peak in Jesus Christ and it promotes human life and protects the work of creation. Its fruit is to be individual concern for the poor and greater justice between nations. It cannot be achieved without changing the mentality (conversion) and specific individual and political decisions. The last part of the article answers the question about the novelty of the model of progress proposed by Pope Francis.

Book reviews

Author(s): Emanuel Casvean,Iuliu-Marius Morariu,Mihai-Octavian Groza ,Dorin Ioan Salvan,Mircea-Gheorghe Abrudan,George Niculescu / Language(s): English,Romanian Issue: 15/2020

This section contains the book reviews published in the number.

Drepturile Omului Reflectate în Documentul Bisericii Ortodoxe Ruse din 2008

Author(s): Anton-Viorel Pop / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 15/2020

The present study aims to highlight the attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church and implicitly of Orthodoxy everywhere towards one of the greatest projects of humanity,namely the human rights system. Thus, this paper debates the content of a document approved by theSynod of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2008 which reveals its position on the essential pointscontained in all human rights. First, the author makes an introduction about the general debate thatinvolves the voice of the Orthodox on the one hand and the proposal of human rights on the other.Following is a presentation of the content of the Russian document, as well as references regarding itsreception in the European Christian environment. The strengths and weaknesses of such a documentare presented and include the Church in the contemporary debate, including responding to the mostdelicate challenges related to the beginning of the right to life, freedom of expression, abuses of thestate or public morality

Katolickie księgi metrykalne diecezji koszalińsko-kołobrzeskiej

Author(s): Tadeusz Ceynowa / Language(s): Polish Issue: 113/2020

In recent years, record books have been the subject of research not only for scientists but also for unprofessional genealogists. The Archive of the Koszalin-Kolobrzeg (Kołobrzeg) Diocese was established in 2003. The task of the staff was to take over from the parish archives the documentation created before 1945. The collection of 215 items of Catholic record books was extracted from the archives. They come from 39 Catholic parishes. After proper protection and development, they are now available in digital form to interested researchers. The catalog presented in the article contains the state of preservation and the enormous cognitive value of Catholic record books collected in the Koszalin archive.

Okrucieństwo wiary. Obrazy Boga w zbiorze Wiersze (1957) Aleksandra Wata

Author(s): Martyna Milewska / Language(s): Polish Issue: 33/2019

The text presents the most important elements that make up the religious imagination of the author of Dziennik bez samogłosek – Aleksander Wat. The work is an analysis and interpretation of selected pieces of work from the first published volume of poems from 1957. Wat’s thought combines the tradition of Judaism and Christianity and includes the motives from both religions in his texts. References to Judaism include describing characters from the Old Testament and the understanding of faith as an event of God’s meeting with man. From Christianity, on the other hand, the author derives the depiction of God’s cruelty within the theme of Calvary, manifested in three areas: pain, received hope for posthumous relief and nothingness, and God’s indifference to the suffering of his creation. The reinterpretation of biblical threads and bold, maybe even the blasphemous rejection of the idea of the Resurrection reveal the apocryphal nature of Wat’s work. The non-canonical nature of the texts is also illustrated by the “non-canonical nature of faith”, which constantly balances on the border between trust and doubt. Questioning, rejecting faith, and suffering related to experiencing a relationship with God is caused by experiencing the cruelty of God, who in Christ is compassionate love, but in the Father - the executioner.

„Świętość jest straszna”. Poszukiwanie transcendencji w Mieście Heroda Marii Kuncewiczowej

Author(s): Barbara Szymczak-Maciejczyk / Language(s): Polish Issue: 33/2019

The article written by Barbara Szymczak-Maciejczyk delivers an analysis of Maria Kuncewicz’s book The City of Herod: Palestinian Notes. The Polish writer describes her trip, and pilgrimage at the same time, to the Holy Land where she was invited by the PEN Club in 1936. The text addresses several issues. There is a fascination with traveling to a foreign country with a different culture, which Kuncewicz writes down as colorful and interesting; there is also a need to experience transcendence, referring to the writer’s religiousness and the desire of her ancestors to visit the Holy Land. The author of the article examines the sacrum of Jerusalem and surrounding places related to the Biblical events and the need to meet God. There is also the question of how the penetration of three cultures affects Kuncewicz’s experience of transcendence.

LOKALNE INTERPRETACJE PIELGRZYMEK CHASYDZKICH DO POLSKI I NA UKRAINĘ (LELÓW, LEŻAJSK, HUMAŃ)

Author(s): Magdalena Zatorska / Language(s): Polish Issue: 1/2016

Hasidic pilgrimages from Israel, the United States, and other countries of the world to the graves of tzaddikim in Poland and Ukraine have been growing since the 1980s and 1990s. The rapid development of pilgrimages after the fall of the former Eastern bloc not only changed the landscape of the researched areas, but also influenced memory and identity as well as the economic and political strategies of their inhabitants. In the article, based on ethnographic fieldwork in Lelov and Lizhensk in Poland, and in Uman, in Ukraine, I describe three initiatives, which have resulted from the boost in the pilgrimages, and which shape various local reactions. These are: the festival “Ciulim-Cholent Day” in Lelov; the activity of a local blogger from Lizhensk, who popularises the knowledge on Hasidism and Jewish pre-war inhabitants of the town; and protests against Hasidim organised by the Council of Civic Organizations in Uman. Two interpretations of the pilgrims’ “rights” to the visited sites emerge from the analysed material. One of them is organised around the concept of “return”, which embodies the myth of the shtetl. According to this perspective Hasidic pilgrims are seen as Jews visiting the graves of their ancestors and restoring the world which was destroyed with the Holocaust. The second perspective is based on the idea of foreign “invasion”, which calls for local resistance.

Udział bernardynów w powstaniu listopadowym i popowstaniowe losy ich klasztorów

Author(s): Aleksander Krzysztof Sitnik / Language(s): Polish Issue: 4/2020

According to historians, the participation of the Order of Friars Minor in the November Uprising was significant. As historical sources show, a beautiful chapter in the history of national uprisings was written by the Franciscan Observants (known as Bernardines in Poland) in the Congress Kingdom and in the territories directly incorporated into the Russian Empire, where national oppression was high and where the bloody November Uprising broke out in 1830. The Bernardine community turned out to be sensitive to calls for freedom, which is why many monks participated in independence movements, though we need to bear in mind that the Holy See forbade the religious to take part in revolutions. Many Bernardines volunteered as chaplains of insurgent units or joined Colonel Józef Zaliwski’s partisan forces. Those who distinguished themselves in particular were Poncjan Brzeziński OFM and the preacher Benwenuty Mańkowski. An important role was played by Bernardine monasteries, which became transfer points for the insurgents, providing them with both spiritual and material support. The available information suggests that except for Brzeziński and Mańkowski, no Bernardine friar was arrested or exiled after the Uprising. However, fragmented pieces of information allow us to conclude that the role of these monastics during the Uprising was by no means insignificant. „The future generations”, as Charles Montalambert wrote, “will tell stories about this magnificent concord between the clergy and the people [...], about those Bernardines and village priests arriving on horseback with sabres in their hand to die leading their sheep”.

Skrzatusz w mojej pamięci – lata 1940–1944. Relacja Haliny Mikołajczuk

Author(s): Marek Fijałkowski / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2020

The account of the then young girl Halina Martenka (1932–2019) deported with her family from Kaczory to Skrzatusz in the spring of 1940. In the years 1940–1944 the Martenków worked as forced labourers on the estate of Gustaw Brüsch.

Kalendarium sanktuarium w Skrzatuszu 2019 r.

Author(s): Tadeusz Ceynowa / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2020

„Gwiazda świecąca, poranna” (Ap 22,16). O witrażach w koszalińskiej katedrze

Author(s): Henryk Romanik / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2020

Writing about the cathedral Church requires combining reliable historical and conservation knowledge with the spiritual tradition of Christianity. Restoration works in the Koszalin cathedral, which have been ongoing for many years, also provide for the installation correction of stained glass windows in the Episcopal chancel of the Episcopal temple, make conversation about the presence, history and significance of these over a century-old elements of artistic and liturgical decor. The article gathers basic information related to the origin of stained glass and reflects on the historical and current context of stained glass, and also gave some suggestions for the iconographic program of the cathedral’s presbytery.

Chrześcijańscy kapelani w więzieniach II Rzeczypospolitej w świetle dokumentów archiwalnych (na przykładzie więzienia w Równem)

Author(s): Oleh Razyhrayev / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2020

The article is devoted to the legal foundations of pastoral work of chaplains in the Second Polish Republic on the example of the prison in Rowne (Równe). Namely, in the text is published contract of employment that was concluded in the second half of the 1930s between the prison head and chaplains: Roman Catholic – canon priest Ludwik Syrewicz and Orthodox – father mitrat Michał Jakowlew (Mychajło Jakowlew). Both pastors were employees and worked on the basis of separate contracts that actually did not differ much (except for the amount of salary). It was established that, in accordance with published contracts, chaplains were required to perform services in prison, deliver the sermon on Sundays and holidays, visit prisoners in cells, teach religious education in prison school, etc. All this undoubtedly had a positive educational, spiritual and cultural and educational impact on prisoners.

XXXVII Tydzień Kultury Chrześcijańskiej w Trzciance

Author(s): Edwin Klessa / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2020

Sprawozdanie z działalności Stowarzyszenia Rodzin Katolickich przy parafii pw. św. Mikołaja w Wałczu w latach 2018–2019

Author(s): Alicja Kuczkowska / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2020

Aneks 4 – Dekret przyznania tytułu bazyliki mniejszej kościołowi w Skrzatuszu

Author(s): Robert Sarah,Artur Roche / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2020