The Holy Spirit and the Christian Life in the Neoevangelical Preaching

Author(s): Łukasz Krauze / Language(s): English / Issue: 12/2019

The neoevangelical theology, embedded in the culture of the United States, is a kind of compromise between fundamental and liberal thought, in the Protestant world. Thus, it seems the closest in its assumptions to the theology of Catholic Church. Therefore, it is reasonable to examine what it says about the role of the Holy Spirit in shaping of a Christian life. This article, based on the preaching of Billy Graham, presents four activities of the Holy Spirit in the Christian life, distinguished by neoevangelical theology: he convicts about sin, he gives a new life, he helps to choose God, he lets people understand the Bible. Every activity was commented from the perspective of Catholic theology.

The Holy Spirit Inspiring all Catechesis

Author(s): Piotr Tomasz Goliszek / Language(s): English / Issue: 11/2018

Since its birth on Pentecost, the Church has received the ability to evangelize and catechize as a gift from the Holy Spirit. He is the principal author of the entire work of catechesis and the Inner Teacher of both those who teach catechism and those who are taught. Catechesis, therefore, which is growth in faith and a Christian life that matures to its fullness, is consequently the work of the Holy Spirit, a work that He incessantly awakens and sustains in the Church. Through the word of God, the Holy Spirit dwells in the human person as if in a temple and enlightens him from within and helps him to live according to the Gospel. This dwelling of the Holy Spirit in man consecrates the entire person. It is a consecration sanctifying the whole person. It is also the personalization of man: the new man (Ephesians 4:24), the new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) is the work of the Holy Spirit present in man. The Holy Spirit as the subject of catechesis is also the source of the new catechesis, which is not a new doctrine, but above all a new methodology of catechesis. The newness of catechesis lies in a new attitude and style, a new effort and program, new enthusiasm, new methods and means of influencing those taught catechism to enable them to meet anew or for the first time with Christ. It is a new awakening of the heart “by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” (Romans 5:5). Through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Pentecost, the Spirit of Truth present in the Church leads everyone to all truth (cf. Jn 16:13).

The Homiletic Profile of Father Sofian Boghiu (1912-2002)– commemorating 15 years since his repose in the Lord

Author(s): Nicuşor Beldiman / Language(s): English / Issue: 07/2018

A remarkable spiritual personality, unanimously acknowledged, the archimandritefather Sofian was known and appreciated especially for three qualities or giftsthat God had bestowed upon him: as a worthy church painter, preacher andchanter with a divine calling. His rare kindness, his modesty, his composure, hisendless patience and his theological culture are features that make up his spiritualportrait. The homiletic activity conducted by the archimandrite father produced avolume entitled Collected Speeches. Sermons and Meditations, which includestogether many of the sermons and meditations through which Father Sofianfervently preached the Savior’s Gospel and its embodiments in the lives ofChristians. His sermons have a regular form, and consist of three parts – theintroduction, usually very short, intended to present the topic to the audience,followed by the body of the sermon which covers several pages, and theconclusion, which often includes an exhortation based on teachings extractedfrom the respective sermon. The three composing parts are not separatedformally, but rather they derive naturally from one another

The Human Person Dignity and Compassion

Author(s): Pavol Dancák / Language(s): English / Issue: 3/2017

The subject of human value was not, in many cases, thoroughly discussed in the history of Western culture, and thus it needs further examination. Even today, there is a need to open the debate again, given the divergent views and conflicting opinions on the subject. These days, under the influence of cultural and economic globalization, the development of new technologies and science bring new possibilities, but at the same time poses questions about new ways of understanding the value and dignity of the human person, which sometimes clash with traditional philosophical and theological interpretations. It turns out that the current trend, which emphasizes the new achievements of science and the constant economic growth, also affects the very understanding of the human value. From the perspective of science, it is possible to see a revival of the reductionist approach to the understanding of man and the economy of transforming the man’s value into a human resource. The consequences of these tendencies are manifested above all in the ethical dimension of human life. Human dignity, compassion, and good relationships with others are complementary facts that lead to the development of humanity, create good for future generations, clarify the parameters of current rapid changes, and set boundaries that allow man to remain human.

The Humanity of God in Karl Barth’s Christological Interpretations

Author(s): Grzegorz Barth / Language(s): English / Issue: 2EV/2016

The article shows the key aspects of the Christological approach to Karl Barth’s teaching about “the humanity of God”. The author argues that in the mirror of Jesus Christ’s humanity the humanity of God included in Jesus’s divine nature is revealed. It is in Jesus Christ that kenosis and gloria, humanum and divinum meet in an amazing way; and in the negotiating space which is constituted by His Person they explain each other, speaking more sonorously with their own voice. Hence the point of departure for a reflection on the problem that is posed here, is looking closely at the formal basis of Barth’s theology. Jesus Christ’s central place – with respect to the contents, form and method – is considered to be one of its most important attributes. The author of Die Kirchliche Dogmatik starts his argument by discussing Jesus Christ’s pre-existence with the help of the doctrine of “the gracious election” that is a modified conception of his earlier Trinitarian theology. It says that God “from the beginning” is directed to man, suggesting a pro-human character of God’s being and acting. In the light of Barth’s doctrine Jesus Christ, as the second Person of the Trinity, is not only the object of election”, but He is also the electing subject. As the One Who Wants to complete the Father’s salutary work, he is the justification and guarantee of our salvation. Barth categorically pronounces himself in favor of the Christological paradigm of the Revelation saying that around history and the dialogue, in which God and a man meet and are together – around a mutually made and kept relation – there is the most complete opening and exchange. It happens in the Person, since Jesus Christ is in the only and in the highest degree: a true God's man (Gott des Menschen) and a true Divine Man (Mensch Gottes). The phrase about the “humanity of God” – is Emmanuel, to whom we pass from the Christological centre, taking into consideration the theological and anthropological consequences following this movement.

THE HYPOTHESIS OF “DIMINISHED MAN” UNDERSTANDING HUMAN EXPERIENCE. THE SOCIO-ANTHROPOLOGICAL APPROACH OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE1

Author(s): Ilie Bădescu / Language(s): English / Issue: 2/2017

Human distinguishes himself from other beings by its nucleic duality. He is also body and soul, “faulty breather” and “gifted being”. As such, he is threatened by his own identity concomitantly by a spiritual falling (a top-down dynamism) and a spiritual raising (a bottom-up dynamism). This type of analysis involves revisiting the issue of man’s identity itself and consequently requests a new theoretical system. Noological Sociology gives us the adequate categories for such a purpose. The present paper focuses on these issues and proposes a comprehensive paradigm for the upward becoming of human being within the postmodern society. This paradigm gives intelligence also for a new approach of Socio-Bioethics.

The idea of Santa Claus in terms of Cognitive Sciences. Cultural persistence and interference with the Christian Religion

Author(s): Paul SCARLAT / Language(s): English / Issue: 05/2017

The idea of Santa Claus is a universal one, which has been carried on forgenerations despite many obstacles. Although related to fantasy and imagination, hebelongs to all cultures and for children he maintains a real presence. CognitiveScience examines the idea of this mysterious individual and brings clarification tohis existence in society. Because this “superhero” plays a part in society, he needs amental structure that can be imagined, a particular and specific cognitive structure.The study identifies the cognitive mechanisms by which the idea of Santa Claus isgenerated. The history of Santa has interfered with religion since ancient times. Heis sometimes confused with religious figures. Cognitive Sciences as applied toreligion seem to confirm the universality of religious beliefs and a certain similaritybetween the idea of Santa Claus and that of holy persons, such as St. Nicholas.However, there are opinions within this field of research that differentiate betweenthe two areas: fantastic and religious

The Identity of a Christian Leader

Author(s): Timotei Rusu / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 0

he subject of leadership has seen a rising growth in the last twenty years. A proliferation of material is available on and off-line on leadership along with thousands of seminars, webinars, and monthly conferences. All of these training efforts attempt to define and redefine leadership, and offer tips on how to be a successful leader. Prototypes for leadership are taken from religion, sport, and the corporate world. The question needs to be asked, “What is unique to Christian Leadership”? What are the marks that set aside Christian leadership from secular leadership? The answer is found in the uniqueness of Jesus Christ, the One who started Christianity. This article presents the identity of a Christian leader as a starting point in this uniqueness. A Christian leader’s identity is based on his relationship with Jesus Christ and it gives him worth, value, resources and a right mentality for transitions.

The Identity of Local and Particular Catholic Churches. Methodological Outline

Author(s): Krzysztof Kaucha / Language(s): English / Issue: 9/2017

According to the Catholic faith the Church established by Jesus Christ subsistit in the Catholic Church as the Universal Church (Ecclesia universalis, Catholica). This Church is also communio Ecclesiarum and subsistit in local and particular Churches, and in community among them. Joseph Ratzinger, following the teaching of the Catholic Church, reminds that a local Church (Ecclesia localis) means a patriarchy or a `specific community of traditions and rites' and a particular Church (Ecclesia particularis) means a community of believers subjected to one bishop (a diocese).Post-conciliar Catholic ecclesiology has been mostly focused on the Universal Church. Such `universal' ecclesiology earned mature methodologies. But meantime, the Universal Church has also been present in local and particular Churches which are making their own history and identity day by day. For example, in 2016 the Catholic Church in Poland celebrated 1050th Jubilee which itself offered an opportunity to describe its main dimensions and identity. So-called young Churches are on their way to establish their identity. By no means, in our times and eyes the `identity' becomes one of the key-words in theological refection on the Church. The more secular the modern world and culture become, the more clearly one can see the difference between them and the Church.This paper offers a methodological outline of the identity of local and particular Catholic Churches. Its purpose is to name and shortly describe main kinds of such identity (theological, historical, ethical-moral, cultural) and their components. But first, making some remarks as introduction is very much required.

THE IDENTITY OF THE MODERN TURKISH NATION-STATE: SEVERAL POLITICAL & SOCIOLOGICAL REFERENCES

Author(s): Slavejko Sasajkovski,Ljubica Micanovska / Language(s): English / Issue: 01/2019

The modern Turkish state is a typical nation-state, as it is originally defined by the Westphalian international political and legal order. This essential feature of the modern Turkish nation-state is the product of the theoretical concept and the fundamental political and ideological principles and postulates of Kemalism (Kemal Ataturk), that is, the paradigm of the modern Turkish constitutionality and the modern Turkish determination of its national identity. This national identity is the identity of a nation-state, that is, the identity of a nation as a political nation, as a citizens of the modern Turkish state (nation-state). The modern Turkish national identity in this sense does not have its own classical ethnogenesis, that identity is not an ethno-national identity, but it is identity of a true nation-state that includes in itself all the special ethno-national identities, united as a Turkish national identity of a nation-state. The ethno-national identity for the paradigm of the modern Turkish national identity is exclusively only private and personal determination of individuals citizens of the modern Turkish nation-state, which does not recognize, accept or admits the constitutional-legal order of the modern Turkish state. More over, these ethno-national identities have treatment of a factor of essentially jeopardizing the integrity and cohesion of the modern Turkish nation-state.

THE IDEOLOGICAL BASE OF RADICALISATION OF YOUNG MUSLIMS

Author(s): Aleksander Głogowski / Language(s): English / Issue: 5/2017

A radical Salafist ideology is attractive to people, especially young people, looking for simple solutions to solve the serious socioeconomic problems with which they cannot cope. Salafism is characterized by a Manichean division of the world on what is good, because it comes from God and what is bad. This in turn implies providing simple answers to complex questions. Actually, the simplest answer to the questions: why the people on Earth live badly? It is the statement "because mankind rejects the law of God revealed in the Qur'an and Sunnah." Therefore, the restoration of these foundations is the only one and the simplest way to solve all problems of mankind. The road to this seems to be simple: total war against "infidels and apostates". The Salafi mullahs as the custodians of “true Faith” have only right to decide who is “infidel of apostate”... Young people undergo indoctrination via the Internet, or in different "Islamic Centres" using freedom of religion (which is something fundamental for the West), are deprived of the ability to take a critical look at the content transmitted. Other are radicalized in prisons. Such circumstances stimulate reflection on the current life of their own, but also may lead to religious radicalism. The question arises: how much we still have to deal with religion as such or if it is a totalitarian political ideology? Of course, Salafism is the offshoot of Islam, but goes far than relations between men and Absolut. From the above reasons can be deduced its totalitarian character. Comparing the proposed by Zbigniew Brzezinski and Carl Friedrich definition of totalitarianism, we can substantiate such thesis. Guiding ideology is here Salafi interpretation of the Quran and Sunnah. Mass party is Salafi movement, which can take the form of a movement or the classic political parties such as the Muslim Brotherhood. The Islamic State tries to have a monopoly on weapons as much as possible, militarizing male part of the population. The Islamic State monopolizes the mass media, reaching new media as a means of attracting new adepts, and where the Salafists tend to power, contests existing media as "godless" encouraging the use of the Internet and underground publications. An example is the so-called Islamic State (the Daesh). It uses legitimate violence against any actual or alleged opponents of the ruling group, such as not only Christians, or Jews, but also people arbitrarily considered as non-Muslims. For this purpose, they create formations that can be called religious-moral police, and used traditional security institutions as well. Salafi vision of the World resembles a totalitarian concepts which Hannah Arendt writes about, as this interpretation of Islam vividly explains both past, present and forecast the future, and also presents a seemingly logical model of the state of God, which wants to put into practice. If we consider Salafi ideology as totalitarian, then we will need to apply the same methods to combat the Salafi preachers as those used to fight the followers of totalitarian regimes after World War II. Declarations of similar firmness in the fight against "Jihadism" appear at various levels of government of countries such as Germany for many years. However, there is lack of sufficient firmness and consistency in their effectiveness.

The Illustrated Slavonic Miscellanies of Damascenes Studite’s Thesauros – a New Context for Gospel Illustrations in the Seventeenth Century

Илюстрираните славянски сборници, съдържащи „Съкровище“ на Дамаскин Студит – нов контекст за евангелските илюстрации през ХVІІ век

Author(s): Elissaveta Moussakova / Language(s): English,Bulgarian / Issue: 1/2017

Looking at the older tradition of illustrating the South Slavonic Gospel manuscripts, which was rather poor with regard to themes and iconography, one becomes aware of the late adoption of a common narrative cycle, representing Christ’s life, miracles and parables in the so called damaskini. These seventeenthcentury books with their miniatures, however simplified and naïve, went a long way towards extending the limited range of Gospel illustrations that had dominated the artistic representations of the preceding decades and centuries.

THE IMAGE OF EASTERN TRADITIONS IN SLOVAK AND CZECH MEDIA

Author(s): Slavomíra Rapčanová,Katarína Henčová / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2017

The nature of the contemporary globalized world, migration trends and environmental concerns bring along new issues, cultural patterns and religious models that are little known in our geographical region. This paper focuses on presentation of two Eastern traditions, Hinduism and Buddhism, in the media environment in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. An analysis was made of the content, frequency and way of presentation and the potential educational nature of presented information. Questions arise about how much we can stay immune to knowledge of Eastern cultural and religious traditions and whether they should get more attention and media coverage as well.

The Image of God in Ascetic Literature: Anthropomorphic Controversy According to Saint John Cassian’s Conferences

Author(s): Cosmin Ionel Maftei / Language(s): English / Issue: 2/2017

According to Holy Bible, God cannot be seen by man, man can see The Face of God only from an eschatological perspective. Although, „the glory of God” canbe seen in certain conditions, more precisely in a mystical ecstatic state. In the second conference held by Father Isaac on the topic of the payer (Conference X), Saint John Cassian tells about the outburst of the anthropomorphic controversy. Here he rejects the anthropomorphic representation of God during prayer time, and so brings into discussing the topic of „the face of God”referred to in Genesis 1, 26. From an allegorical point of view, he stresses the Christological perspective of the seeing God and warns about the anthropomorphic trap that leads to the loss of salvation. Following Holy Tradition and the most important Fathers, Saint John Cassian opposes the anthropomorphic „heresy” and becomes the most important witness of this event.

The image of God in the Old Testament

Author(s): Hristea G. KARAIANNIS / Language(s): English / Issue: 08/2018

Although in the Old Testament there is no image and no representation of God in the creation text it is written that God created man in his own image and likeness.Is Man’s form God’s image? The image and likeness cannot be man's body because God is spirit and has no body and animals have bodies but are not in the image of God. The image refers to the soul and to the mind. The likeness of man to God must be limited to the immaterial part of man. The functional interpretation of the „imago Dei” understands the image to relate to humanity’s role as God’s agents in the world. The image of God cannot be regarded as an idiom of man’s attitude. It is not a quality in man but a declaration that God had the will to bring to existence a partner. Thus, man becomes God’s partner. Nowhere does the Old Testament indicate that the divine image and likeness are lost because of the Fall.The image of God constitutes all that differentiates man from the lower creation.Man has the will, the freedom of choice, self-consciousness, self-transcendence,self-determination, rationality, morality, and spirituality. The image declares the immovable relationship between God and man. Excludes the natural affinity to this relationship and accepts the heterogeneity of the creation with reference to the creator. It is a creation in the image of God rather than a creation as an image of God.

THE IMAGE OF GOD IN THE WORKS OF FRANZ WERFEL

Author(s): Natalia Volokitina / Language(s): English / Issue: 2/2017

F. Werfel (1890-1945) – a representative of Austrian expressionism. A Jew by birth, he was interested in theology from an early age. One of the main themes of his work was the theme of man’s faith in God. The religious quest of Franz Werfel, depending on his life circumstances (military service, marriage to a Catholic, the death of his son) and world cataclysms (World War I, the breakup of Austria-Hungary) passed through periods of faith in God, his strength, and doubts about his justice (“The Creation of Music” 1913, “The Death of Moses” 1914, “Theology” 1914, “The Creation of Joke” 1918, “The Blasphemy of Madness” 1918) and the denial of the existence of God in general (“The Black Mass” 1919, “The Man from the Mirror” 1920). God appears in the novels and dramas of Werfel then as an evil and unjust judge and executioner, then as a mad beggar, and then as the creator of beauty. In this work, we want to explore in detail the causes of Werfel’s religious offerings, the stages in the evolution of his attitude towards God, and changes in the image of God in his novels and plays.

THE IMAGE OF JESUS IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF VLADIMIR JANKÉLÉVITCH

Author(s): Sándor Béla Visky / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2018

Does Jankélévitch identify the Source of creation with that thorne-crowned one of the nonsense of the cross? It seems that Jankélévitch is not only very close to the teaching of the church, but also identifies himself with its most important element, the redeeming death of Christ. And this is not only valid for the young philosopher before the War, but also for the mature thinker in the years following the Holocaust, the author of the Moral philosophy.But in his writings an existence defined by the gaze directed to God, or simply the existence in front of him, coram Deo, is not an ontological basis that makes everything possible and is an inexhaustible source of love for every virtue, but – strangely – a competitor for the attention and love directed to man. He does not recognize the drama of the cross as the infinite, divine repository of the solidary love of anyone humiliated and tormented. He also does not see the prayer as a possibility and gift of grace of a personal relationship with the Quod which is able to refill the easily emptying spiritual reserves of the commitment to the starving and persecuted. Jankélévitch’s hyperbolic ethics cannot be rooted in the soil of eternity.

The Image of the Stranger in the Writings of Plato, Saadi, Ibn Bajja, Suhrawardi

Author(s): Silviu Lupaşcu / Language(s): English / Issue: 03/2004

This essay epitomizes the history of an idea: the stranger. The almost inexhaustible meanings of the word allowed the author to trace a fascinating trajectory of this notion within the history of culture and the history of ideas. The archaic significance defines the stranger in the political and legal context of the Greek polis, a status which is described by Plato in The Laws. The system of thought of the Hellenistic Gnosticism incorporates the image of the stranger as a symbol revealing the traumas and beatitudes of the human soul on the way towards redemption. In this respect, The Hymn of the Pearl stands as a masterpiece of the Gnostic literature. Furthermore, the symbol of the stranger was borrowed into the spiritual realm of philosophical and mystical Islam, in the Middle Ages. Towering figures of Sufi wisdom, such as Ibn Bajja, Saadi and Suhrawardi, used the image of the stranger in order to create priceless literary and religious brilliance.

The Impact of Anti-Terrorism Laws on Religious Freedom: Cameroon’s Approach in Combating Terrorism

Author(s): Eric Che Muma / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 0

Recent developments in international human rights law have revealed that humanity is at great risk of instability and a likely effect of World War III, which may result from Terrorism; the world’s most challenging problem and the biggest threat to international peace and security. The world at large and Cameroon in particular, has suffered from great atrocities caused by terrorist groups. One of such groups is Boko Haram in the Northern part of Nigeria. In a similar vein as Nigeria, Kenya, Chad, United States of America, Belgium, France, Turkey, Britain, Germany and just to name a few, have also been affected by militant groups such as Alshabab, al-Qaeda and ISIS. The devastating effects now echo negatively on fundamental human rights and freedoms, most especially on religious freedom and migration-related issues. Cognizant of its impact and with the aftermath of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attack in the United States, several States, if not all, in an attempt to protect national security, have developed measures to fight against this outrageous act-terrorism. In an attempt to protect national security and curtail terrorism, states have gone beyond their obligations to take steps in line with their constitutional processes by intruding in some basic freedoms. What remains questionable is whether counter-terrorism laws adopted by states are applied for the purpose for which they are intended. The significance of this paper is to critically analyze and assess the impact of anti-terrorism measures on religious freedom (human rights) with Cameroon’s approach in a comparative perspective and the role of the church in peace building and policy making for a better world and development.

The Impact of Cosmic Forces on Human Mind

Author(s): Pratibha Gramann / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2019

Considerable focused attention has been given to the differences and oppositions between science, religions, theologies, and spirituality. Could there be a cause or substratum among these that is shared, yet unexplored? Little attention has been directed to the possibilities of cosmic forces that preceded the creation of the universe, and our world of time, space, forms, processes, creatures, science, religion, theologies, philosophies, humankind, and thought processes. This paper aims to delve behind the created universe to a cosmological dimension that existed prior. During the earliest period of creation, there may have been cosmic forces responsible for the first subtle substances, processes, stages, and all creation. Some peoples claim that creation was performed by a divine being or God; others claim that creation of the universe was a natural process of cosmic intelligence. Either due to a divine cosmic being orchestrating a substratum of cosmic forces, or due to a phenomenon of cosmic intelligence, the entire creation occurred. Science and theologies both have interest in what exists beyond materiality. Perhaps the concept of consciousness referred to by science is synonymous with what religious and spiritual systems refer to as transcendence.