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The article points to some interesting convergences between two schools, one philosophical, the other a central movement in Russian Orthodox theology. A first comparison of Hans Georg Gadamer’s Truth and Method and his “radicalised hermeneutics” and some works about tradition written by the emigrant theologians Georges Florovsky and Vladimir Lossky reveal similarities concerning the treatment of such central notions like tradition, authority, reason and freedom. Conclusions concern the idea of understanding itself. Marked by such notions, comprehension is achieved not by the mere application of intellectual capacities, but through a change of the human mind – in both cases, the claim to “partake in the truth” offers new horizons about what it means to understand.
In its first part, this article tries to systematize information about religious life and societal activities of Christian communities, mainly the Eastern rite churches in Ukraine since Ukrainian independence in 1991. What emerges from this attempt is a picture consisting of manifold initiatives to bridge and overcome old antagonisms formerly vigorously active in a borderland society, starting from grassroots ecumenism, inclusive approaches towards religiosity, up to conciliatory historical narratives and joint socio-political organizations. This “project Ukraine” in various respects came under threat since the outbreak of the Maidan protests in November 2013, and the crisis that followed. The second part of the article therefore analyses further developments up to June 2015, and tries to explore the prospects of the named “project” and its potential for de-escalation and peace-building.
This introductory survey tries to identify possible contributions of Patristic concepts about human nature to current debates concerning the actual meaning of the term “human dignity”. Eastern Orthodox theology, in particular in connection with 20th century’s “neo-patristic renaissance”, has offered concepts of personhood as a critical response to Western narratives about the emancipation of the human individual. Pure individualist concepts often, and in many respects have betrayed inherent weaknesses in modern debates. The current intellectual climate with its focus on normative anthropology appears to be favorable to the re-assessment of the value of the Father’s writings, but includes also certain temptations. Ancient Christian sources indeed do offer inspiring visions on human nature and destiny, but to make them fruitful for current debates requires certain hermeneutical operations to abstract from the specific historical and intellectual context from which these visions originate. As a thorough and critical examination of existing narratives concerning the genesis of “human dignity” reveals, such operation is not carried out for the first time, but has been a trade-mark of all epochs now considered to be important steps on the path towards modern “human dignity”. A review of existing studies about the adaptation of Patristic sources in these epochs forces to abandon stereotypical narratives of an East- West opposition expressed in antinomies like “personhood” versus “individual”, “religious” versus “secular” and the like. Both East and West in fact engaged the Fathers, often in mutual inspiration, on a way to modern concepts of the human person and his or her “dignity”.
The article explores several critical themes in the dialogue between Eastern Christian theology and the concept of Human Dignity and Rights. Despite the publication of a basic document on the issue by the Russian Orthodox Church in 2008 this dialogue currently has reached a dead end. There is some agreement with the Human Rights idea, but a mainstream among Orthodox theologians remains skeptical. Critical issues are to be found in divergent understandings of human dignity, and — more or less derived from that — in emphases on either ‘freedom’ or ‘morality’ as guiding principles structuring the system of law and the public sphere. As it is argued, existing antagonisms are not necessarily unbridgeable. Attempts to overcome existing divergences in recent times have been made both within the discourse about Human Right and from the part of Orthodox theology. To make use of such possibilities would require both interdisciplinary approaches and further reflection on how to translate spiritual terms into socio-political concepts.