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15 pages, 1027 KiB  
Article
Where God Is Becoming: Anime, Theosis, and the Sacred in Process
by Valentina-Andrada Minea
Religions 2025, 16(8), 1014; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16081014 - 5 Aug 2025
Abstract
This article explores how Japanese anime has become a space of theological imagination, where viewers encounter the divine not as fixed dogma but as a lived process. Through symbolic analysis of five spiritually resonant anime series: Puella Magi Madoka Magica, To Your Eternity, [...] Read more.
This article explores how Japanese anime has become a space of theological imagination, where viewers encounter the divine not as fixed dogma but as a lived process. Through symbolic analysis of five spiritually resonant anime series: Puella Magi Madoka Magica, To Your Eternity, Sunday Without God, Code Geass, and The Promised Neverland, the study examines how characters such as Madoka, Fushi, Ai, Lelouch, Emma, and Mujika embody a form of theosis that unfolds through memory, sacrifice, refusal, and care. Rather than representing God as omnipotent or remote, these narratives invite a vision of the divine as vulnerable, suffering, and becoming, emerging through grief, relationships, and transformations. Drawing on theological and philosophical frameworks, especially process theology and symbolic interpretation, the article argues that anime collapses the traditional boundaries between theology and philosophy by embodying both in story. In these narrative worlds, divinity is not merely represented, it is approached, co-created, and remembered. The sacred is not a theory to master, but an encounter to undergo. Anime, thus, does not offer theology as a system but rather theology as a journey: a reenchanted vision of the world where God is still becoming. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Between Philosophy and Theology: Liminal and Contested Issues)
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30 pages, 5026 KiB  
Article
Integration and Symbiosis: Medievalism in Giulio Aleni’s Translation of Catholic Liturgy in Late Imperial China
by Chen Cui
Religions 2025, 16(8), 1006; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16081006 - 2 Aug 2025
Viewed by 252
Abstract
This essay provides a fine-grained analysis of selected passages of Giulio Aleni (艾儒略 1582–1649)’s translation of Catholic liturgy into classical Chinese in late imperial China. It focuses on the hitherto underexplored relationships between Aleni’s resort to medieval Aristotelianism and Thomism, as well as [...] Read more.
This essay provides a fine-grained analysis of selected passages of Giulio Aleni (艾儒略 1582–1649)’s translation of Catholic liturgy into classical Chinese in late imperial China. It focuses on the hitherto underexplored relationships between Aleni’s resort to medieval Aristotelianism and Thomism, as well as his translation-based introduction of Catholic Eucharistic theology into China. The case studies here revolve around Aleni’s Chinese translation of Aristotelian-Thomistic hylomorphism, with a focus on his interpretation of “anima” (i.e., the soul, which corresponds largely to linghun 靈魂 in Chinese), which is a multifaceted Western concept that pertains simultaneously to Aristotelian-Thomistic philosophy and Eucharistic theology. It is argued that in his overarching project of introducing Western learnings (i.e., 西學) to sixteenth- and seventeenth-century China, Aleni’s attention is centered primarily on the body-soul and form-matter relationship. This is, as understood here, motivated to a great extent by his scholarly awareness that properly informing Chinese Catholics of the Aristotelian-Thomistic underpinning of Western metaphysics enacts an indispensable role in introducing Catholic liturgy into China, notably the mystery of the Eucharist and Transubstantiation that would not have been effectively introduced to China without having the Western philosophical underpinnings already made available to Chinese intellectuals. Aleni’s use of medieval European cultural legacy thus requires more in-depth analysis vis-à-vis his translational poetics in China. Accordingly, the intellectual and liturgical knowledge in Aleni’s Chinese œuvres shall be investigated associatively, and the medievalism embodied by Aleni offers a valid entry point and productive critical prism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Studies on Medieval Liturgy and Ritual)
57 pages, 7304 KiB  
Article
Alexandre de la Charme’s Chinese–Manchu Treatise Xingli zhenquan tigang (Sing lii jen ciyan bithei hešen) in the Early Entangled History of Christian, Neo-Confucian, and Manchu Shamanic Thought and Spirituality as Well as Early Sinology
by David Bartosch
Religions 2025, 16(7), 891; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16070891 - 11 Jul 2025
Viewed by 416
Abstract
The work Xingli zhenquan tigang (Sing lii jen ciyan bithei hešen) was written in Chinese and Manchu by the French Jesuit Alexandre de la Charme (1695–1767) and published in Beijing in 1753. The first two sections of this paper provide an [...] Read more.
The work Xingli zhenquan tigang (Sing lii jen ciyan bithei hešen) was written in Chinese and Manchu by the French Jesuit Alexandre de la Charme (1695–1767) and published in Beijing in 1753. The first two sections of this paper provide an introduction to de la Charme’s work biography and to further textual and historical contexts, explore the peculiarities of the subsequent early German reception of the work almost 90 years later, and introduce the content from an overview perspective. The third section explores the most essential contents of Book 1 (of 3) of the Manchu version. The investigation is based on Hans Conon von der Gabelentz’s (1807–1874) German translation from 1840. Camouflaged as a Confucian educational dialogue, and by blurring his true identity in his publication, de la Charme criticizes Neo-Confucian positions from an implicitly Cartesian and hidden Christian perspective, tacitly blending Cartesian views with traditional Chinese concepts. In addition, he alludes to Manchu shamanic views in the same regard. De la Charme’s assimilating rhetoric “triangulation” of three different cultural and linguistic horizons of thought and spirituality proves that later Jesuit scholarship reached out into the inherent ethnic and spiritual diversity of the Qing intellectual and political elites. Hidden allusions to Descartes’s dualistic concepts of res cogitans and res extensa implicitly anticipate the beginnings of China’s intellectual modernization period one and a half centuries later. This work also provides an example of how the exchange of intellectual and religious elements persisted despite the Rites Controversy and demonstrates how the fading Jesuit mission influenced early German sinology. I believe that this previously underexplored work is significant in both systematic and historical respects. It is particularly relevant in the context of current comparative research fields, as well as transcultural and interreligious intellectual dialogue in East Asia and around the world. Full article
15 pages, 239 KiB  
Article
Trinitarian Ontology of Freedom: David C. Schindler’s Philosophy and Theology of Freedom and Its Political Implications
by Petr Macek
Religions 2025, 16(7), 858; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16070858 - 2 Jul 2025
Viewed by 329
Abstract
Trinitarian ontology represents a dynamic and fast-evolving field of research in the scope of philosophical theology with a focus on the influence of Trinitarian doctrine on the development of the Western philosophical tradition. Within this framework, this article aims to make a probe [...] Read more.
Trinitarian ontology represents a dynamic and fast-evolving field of research in the scope of philosophical theology with a focus on the influence of Trinitarian doctrine on the development of the Western philosophical tradition. Within this framework, this article aims to make a probe into the specific question of freedom within the Christian tradition and Trinitarian teaching. For this purpose, it examines the notion of freedom as it is presented in the work of American philosopher and theologian David C. Schindler. It pursues two lines of argumentation. Firstly, it analyses Schindler’s notion of Christian freedom (as presented in Freedom from Reality and Retrieving Freedom) and brings them into dialogue with other authors grounded in Trinitarian ontology. The key concepts of this part of the paper are the metaphysics of the gift and the primacy of actuality over potency, which both acquire their true meaning in the context of the Trinitarian mystery. The final part of the essay analyses the implications of the Trinitarian ontology of freedom for the life of the political community (as presented in The Politics of the Real and in other texts) and shows how it calls us to the inner of transformation of thought not only at the personal but also at the social level. Here, the full Christian notion of freedom is contrasted with the reductive liberal approach. It analyses the limits of political life based on the autonomy and self-determination of the modern subject and also shows how Schindler’s more original and fuller notion of freedom might contribute to the further development of the project of a Trinitarian ontology and its social and political implications. Full article
18 pages, 232 KiB  
Article
Reason and Revelation in Ibn Taymiyyah’s Critique of Philosophical Theology: A Contribution to Contemporary Islamic Philosophy of Religion
by Adeeb Obaid Alsuhaymi and Fouad Ahmed Atallah
Religions 2025, 16(7), 809; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16070809 - 20 Jun 2025
Viewed by 1350
Abstract
This paper addresses the longstanding tension between reason and revelation in Islamic religious epistemology, with a focus on the thought of Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728/1328). It aims to reassess his critique of philosophical theology (falsafa and kalām) and explore his constructive alternative to [...] Read more.
This paper addresses the longstanding tension between reason and revelation in Islamic religious epistemology, with a focus on the thought of Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728/1328). It aims to reassess his critique of philosophical theology (falsafa and kalām) and explore his constructive alternative to rationalist metaphysics. The study adopts a descriptive–analytical methodology, combining close textual reading of Darʾ Taʿāruḍ al-ʿAql wa al-Naql and Naqd al-Manṭiq with conceptual analysis informed by contemporary religious epistemology and philosophy of religion. The findings reveal that Ibn Taymiyyah advances a triadic epistemological model centered on revelation (naql), reason (ʿaql), and innate disposition (fiṭrah). He refutes the autonomy of reason, redefines logic as a tool rather than a judge, and repositions fiṭrah as an intuitive foundation for belief. His approach emphasizes the harmony of sound reason with authentic revelation and challenges the epistemic assumptions of speculative theology. By presenting a comparative table of rationalist and Taymiyyan epistemologies, the study demonstrates how Ibn Taymiyyah’s framework anticipates key themes in Reformed Epistemology and the cognitive science of religion. The conclusions suggest that his vision offers a coherent, theocentric paradigm for religious knowledge that is highly relevant to the contemporary philosophy of religion and Islamic theology. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Problems in Contemporary Islamic Philosophy of Religion)
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12 pages, 7063 KiB  
Article
Nemesius of Emesa on Fate
by David Torrijos-Castrillejo
Religions 2025, 16(5), 573; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16050573 - 29 Apr 2025
Viewed by 312
Abstract
This paper analyses the section of Nemesius of Emesa’s treatise On the Nature of Man dedicated to fate. The main objective is to analyse Nemesius’s response to the supporters of a notion of fate within the framework of astral determinism, Stoicism, and Middle [...] Read more.
This paper analyses the section of Nemesius of Emesa’s treatise On the Nature of Man dedicated to fate. The main objective is to analyse Nemesius’s response to the supporters of a notion of fate within the framework of astral determinism, Stoicism, and Middle Platonism. Following a mainly descriptive method, the paper focuses on Nemesius’s own thought and not just on his treatment of his sources, as much of the existing literature has done until now. Without pretending to give a definitive answer on the originality of his own philosophy, we examine how Nemesius assigns some of the functions of fate in one of his Middle Platonic sources to divine providence. In doing so, he develops a personal theology in which he gives an innovative prominence to divine free will and transcendence in the traditional philosophical problem of providence. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fate in Ancient Greek Philosophy and Religion)
19 pages, 266 KiB  
Article
The Quest for Intelligibility as Mediation Between Science and Theology
by Dominique Lambert and Michał Oleksowicz
Religions 2025, 16(4), 421; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16040421 - 26 Mar 2025
Viewed by 381
Abstract
In this article, we explore how natural sciences can serve as sources of theological reflection. We do this by clarifying the notion of the intelligibility of the world and showing how it may work as the mediator between science and theology. In contrast [...] Read more.
In this article, we explore how natural sciences can serve as sources of theological reflection. We do this by clarifying the notion of the intelligibility of the world and showing how it may work as the mediator between science and theology. In contrast to the celebrated classification of the relationship between science and religion provided by I. Barbour, we elaborate our approach within the threefold division: concordism, discordism, and articulation (mediation). We opt for the articulation mode of relationship, arguing that the link between science and theology can be articulated by raising the issue of intelligibility from the epistemic and ontic points of view. From the epistemic perspective, it results that both science and theology are operating according to proper principles and are aimed at unifying their domains of discourse and giving proper understanding. From the ontic point of view, both are related to reality: science applies its own principles to the universe and works under empirical commitments, whereas theology discusses God himself, the relationship between God and all things (creatures), and God’s action in created reality. We emphasize how the articulation mode contributes to the formulation of a worldview, and we problematize the articulation by asking whether it is a convergent or divergent strategy. For this purpose, Kazimierz Ajdukiewicz’s philosophical approach is applied. Finally, we show that Georges Lemaître and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, who used two very different scientific and theological approaches, can come together if we consider them from the point of view of the intelligibility of the universe. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Sciences as a Contemporary Locus Theologicus)
12 pages, 184 KiB  
Article
Human Consciousness and the ‘Anthropological Turn’: Theological Perspectives on Evolutionary Anthropology
by Martin Breul
Religions 2025, 16(3), 346; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16030346 - 11 Mar 2025
Viewed by 738
Abstract
Recent discussions between evolutionary and theological anthropology have intensified, particularly through the work of Michael Tomasello. As a key figure in evolutionary anthropology, Tomasello synthesizes extensive empirical research into an accessible ‘natural history’ of core human abilities. He posits that a unique human [...] Read more.
Recent discussions between evolutionary and theological anthropology have intensified, particularly through the work of Michael Tomasello. As a key figure in evolutionary anthropology, Tomasello synthesizes extensive empirical research into an accessible ‘natural history’ of core human abilities. He posits that a unique human trait distinguishing us from our closest relatives is the capacity for “collective intentionality”, a concept he adapts from the philosophy of action. In this article, I show that Tomasello’s insights carry significant implications for philosophical and theological debates. Philosophically, his evolutionary framework invites a new understanding of the mind–brain problem, promoting a non-reductive view of human consciousness which questions the basic metaphysical assumptions of the debate by taking a genealogical perspective. Theologically, his work supports a “practical metaphysics”, suggesting that although morality is autonomous, it can lead to theistic interpretations of human existence. This supports the Kantian idea that religion does not precede morality but that religious views of the world are interpretations of human moral life. At the same time, religion is not just an add-on to morality but an interpretation of a human form of life as such. Both discourses exemplify the importance of a genealogical perspective in philosophy and theology, especially reinforcing the necessity of considering the ‘natural history’ of consciousness, free will or religiosity in anthropology. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consciousness between Science and Religion)
25 pages, 362 KiB  
Article
Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s Idomeneo
by Nils Holger Petersen
Religions 2025, 16(1), 86; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16010086 - 16 Jan 2025
Viewed by 1268
Abstract
This article discusses Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera Idomeneo: Re di Creta (1781, to a text by Giambattista Varesco) as a Christian parable in the historical context of its genesis. Mozart’s Idomeneo is based on a short episode in François Fénelon’s Télémaque, but [...] Read more.
This article discusses Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera Idomeneo: Re di Creta (1781, to a text by Giambattista Varesco) as a Christian parable in the historical context of its genesis. Mozart’s Idomeneo is based on a short episode in François Fénelon’s Télémaque, but also on Antoine Danchet’s adaptation of this episode for the theater in his tragédie lyrique Idoménée (1712; set to music by André Campra). In important aspects, Mozart’s Idomeneo changed the narrative with a marked independence of Fénelon as well as Danchet. In recent scholarship, important new information has come to light concerning Mozart’s composition of the Oracle scene, constituting the dénouement of the music drama. Based partly on these new insights, I attempt to provide a picture of a basic spiritual intention governing Mozart’s composition of the opera for the Carnival season of 1781 at the Munich court. Mozart’s Idomeneo is a Christian sacrifice drama modeled on the Aqedah (the sacrifice of Isaac; Gen 22: 1–14), which, in Christian traditions, is understood typologically as pointing to the Passion of Christ. Oppositely, Fénélon’s and Danchet’s versions rather correspond to the biblical story of Jephthah (Judges 11: 29–30). In a brief concluding section of this article, I also discuss the contemporary cultural importance of reading a classical opera such as Mozart’s Idomeneo as a conscious product of Enlightened Christianity. In modern times, ecclesiastical boundaries and religious doctrines often seem to matter little in the music and theater culture of the Western world; classical opera is often staged more in order to respond to contemporary political or social issues than to communicate the original intentions of its creators (the so-called Regieoper). I argue that Idomeneo, with its historical intention, potentially can have an impact in a cultural theology (or a theologically informed modern worldview), and further, in dialogue with a recent volume discussing the “music of theology”, that such a role for a piece of music must be developed in concrete musical (or music dramatic) contexts, not as a general philosophical contention. Mozart’s Idomeneo may work in a modern cultural context because it functions as a parable, easily understandable also in a modern political or social context, because of its deep human (psychological) insight and the empathy brought to bear on all the characters of the opera. Full article
24 pages, 323 KiB  
Article
Averroesian Religious Common Sense Natural Theology as Reflective Knowledge in the Form of Teleological Argument
by Kemal Batak
Religions 2024, 15(12), 1429; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121429 - 25 Nov 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1586
Abstract
In his Middle Commentary on Posterior Analytics, the great Aristotelian Commentator Ibn Rushd defines “knowledge” (scientific knowledge, epistemē, ‘ilm) as one of Aristotle’s five intellectual virtues and the faculty of reason, akin to the other virtues, in an Aristotelian [...] Read more.
In his Middle Commentary on Posterior Analytics, the great Aristotelian Commentator Ibn Rushd defines “knowledge” (scientific knowledge, epistemē, ‘ilm) as one of Aristotle’s five intellectual virtues and the faculty of reason, akin to the other virtues, in an Aristotelian way. Ibn Rushd defends the teleological argument, rooted in Aristotle’s teleological reading of nature, and supports the modal strong epistemic status of this argument, which is part of the concept of knowledge, in his early work (Short Commentary on Metaphysics), middle period work (al-Kashf) and late work (Long Commentary on Metaphysics), all in harmony with each other. Ibn Rushd, constructing the teleological argument based on the definition of knowledge, which fundamentally articulates the necessary or essential qualities inherent in objects in defense of de re modality, takes a step that seems quite radical within the context of the Aristotelian epistemic tradition to which he is affiliated: The teleological argument, strongly associated with the concept of knowledge—one of the five intellectual virtues—is presented as a form of deductive inference accessible not only to philosophers but also to ordinary public. In other words, according to him, the argument is both a philosophical and a religious way. This implies, for instance, that natural theology, typically viewed by Aquinas as an activity reserved for the higher epistemic class with talent and leisure, is seen by Ibn Rushd as a robust epistemic activity accessible to ordinary people. This new element, which can be referred to as common sense natural theology, contends that ordinary public knowledge and philosophers’ knowledge differ in details, such as whether it is a simple or complex deductive inference, while remaining the same in terms of their knowledge status. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Theology and Philosophy from a Cross-Cultural Perspective)
13 pages, 287 KiB  
Article
Relational Consciousness as Eco-Spiritual Formation: Interreligious Construction with Rosemary R. Ruether and Neo-Confucianism
by Joo Hyung Lee
Religions 2024, 15(12), 1417; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121417 - 22 Nov 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1028
Abstract
This study investigates the theological and philosophical interplay between Rosemary Radford Ruether’s ecofeminist theology and Neo-Confucian cosmology in the context of Korean Protestant Christianity. By exploring intolerant interpretations of the Christian creation story, it critiques the anthropocentric domination of nature and proposes a [...] Read more.
This study investigates the theological and philosophical interplay between Rosemary Radford Ruether’s ecofeminist theology and Neo-Confucian cosmology in the context of Korean Protestant Christianity. By exploring intolerant interpretations of the Christian creation story, it critiques the anthropocentric domination of nature and proposes a reformed ecological spirituality. The research integrates Ruether’s covenantal and sacramental traditions, arguing for the significance of “relational consciousness” as a framework for eco-spiritual formation. Drawing from Ruether’s examination of creation myths and Neo-Confucian perspectives, this study asserts the necessity in reshaping Christian theology to embrace human interdependence with nature and the cosmos. It proposes that Korean Christians, influenced by Calvinist theology, must move beyond human dominion over nature to a role of co-creator and nurturer of the ecosystem, advocating for an eco-theological renewal that centers on relational consciousness for spiritual formation. Full article
17 pages, 314 KiB  
Article
The Concept of Divine Revelation According to Ibn Sînâ and Al-Ghazālī: A Comparative Analysis
by İbrahim Halil Erdoğan and Sema Eryücel
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1383; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111383 - 14 Nov 2024
Viewed by 2936
Abstract
This article examines the conceptions of divine revelation held by two prominent figures in Islamic thought, Ibn Sīnā and Al-Ghazālī, through a comparative lens within the context of metaphysical and epistemological processes. Ibn Sīnā views divine revelation as a metaphysical process occurring at [...] Read more.
This article examines the conceptions of divine revelation held by two prominent figures in Islamic thought, Ibn Sīnā and Al-Ghazālī, through a comparative lens within the context of metaphysical and epistemological processes. Ibn Sīnā views divine revelation as a metaphysical process occurring at the highest level of intellect. According to him, divine revelation is an abstract reflection of divine knowledge transmitted to the prophet’s imaginative faculty through the Active Intellect. This process, explained within a philosophical framework, is grounded in the development of human intellectual capacity. In contrast, Ghazālī defines divine revelation as a mystical experience and considers it a divine encounter beyond the limits of human reason. For Ghazālī, divine revelation manifests as an expression of God’s attribute of speech and occurs solely by divine will. Moreover, this experience cannot be fully comprehended by reason. Ghazālī’s approach, imbued with Sufi depth, regards divine revelation as an integral part of spiritual growth. This article explores the fundamental similarities and differences between these two thinkers’ understandings of divine revelation and metaphysics. By analyzing how Ibn Sīnā’s reason-based approach intersects and diverges from Ghazālī’s intuition and inspiration-based Sufi approach, this study provides an in-depth examination of how the concept of divine revelation has been shaped within Islamic theology and philosophy, highlighting the contributions of both thinkers to the discourse on divine revelation. Full article
15 pages, 264 KiB  
Article
The Interweaving of Love and Truth: Bernard Lonergan, Intellectual Conversion, and the Synodal Process
by Gerard Kevin Whelan
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1369; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111369 - 11 Nov 2024
Viewed by 1219
Abstract
This article explores the relatively theoretical question of what contribution academic theology is making to the synodal process and how this interaction might deepen in the years to come. It stresses the importance of what it calls foundational theological questions, employing the thought [...] Read more.
This article explores the relatively theoretical question of what contribution academic theology is making to the synodal process and how this interaction might deepen in the years to come. It stresses the importance of what it calls foundational theological questions, employing the thought of the Jesuit philosopher and theologian Bernard Lonergan to define this term. It traces how a slow awareness of the importance of such questions, and an explicit attention to the question of theological method that is related to this, began emerging in the Second Vatican Council. It then suggests that such questions have come closer to the center of attention in the synodal process launched by Pope Francis. It proposes that the synodal process in the future will benefit by making further use of the thought of Lonergan. It leaves to a further study the question of how clarifying foundational and methodological questions in theology might have consequences for Catholic education in general. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Catholic Education and Pope Francis’ Dream for a Synodal Church)
22 pages, 349 KiB  
Article
Dialogue Between Theology and Science: Present Challenges and Future Perspectives
by Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1304; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111304 - 24 Oct 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3138
Abstract
In order to consider the natural sciences as a contemporary locus theologicus, I here examine the meaning and implications of the “dialogue between theology and the sciences”. Although widely used, this expression has different meanings. I try to clarify who the interlocutors of [...] Read more.
In order to consider the natural sciences as a contemporary locus theologicus, I here examine the meaning and implications of the “dialogue between theology and the sciences”. Although widely used, this expression has different meanings. I try to clarify who the interlocutors of the dialogue are, where the dialogue takes place, and what the goals of the dialogue itself are. A coherent agenda to encourage the use of the sciences in theological work should include (a) the design and implementation of interdisciplinary curricula to help those scholars who are seriously interested to be trained in this field; (b) an emphasis on the role of philosophy and philosophical sources in the study of the sciences and theology; (c) going beyond the epistemological level and developing the dialogue also at the anthropological level; (d) the identification of a number of key issues for theological and religious studies that are expected to become more urgent in the coming years. Finally, the use of the sciences as a locus theologicus is expected to bear two main fruits: first, to offer a positive, speculative insight to the work of theologians and, second, to contribute to a responsible development of the dogmatic teachings of the Church. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Sciences as a Contemporary Locus Theologicus)
10 pages, 221 KiB  
Article
AI: Anarchic Intelligence: On Epinoia
by Michael Marder
Religions 2024, 15(10), 1176; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15101176 - 27 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1119
Abstract
With a few notable exceptions, the word “epinoia” has not been heard with a philosophical ear since the time of Epicurus and the Stoics. In addition to the scarce mentions it had received in philosophy, epinoia was strewn across the plays of Euripides [...] Read more.
With a few notable exceptions, the word “epinoia” has not been heard with a philosophical ear since the time of Epicurus and the Stoics. In addition to the scarce mentions it had received in philosophy, epinoia was strewn across the plays of Euripides and Aristophanes and, more so, across the canonical body of Christian theology, from Patristics—Origen, Cyril of Alexandria, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, Maximus the Confessor—to the late Byzantine period. Straddling the divide between the authorities of the nascent Church and those they suspected of heresy, it made a spectacular appearance in Gnostic texts (The Apocryphon of John), cryptically embodying the reconciliation of knowledge and life. On the margins of the Christian tradition, first-century CE controversial religious figures such as Simon Magus associated epinoia with the great goddess and the womb of existence, even as, three centuries later, Eunomius of Cyzicus—the theological arch-enemy of the Cappadocian Fathers, Basil and Gregory—deplored it for its hollowness and pure conventionality. In this paper, I argue that epinoia is the figure of anarchic intelligence in theology and philosophy alike. The anarchy of epinoia is its note of defiance: the escape from power it plots is the most serious challenge to power, the royal road to liberation from the oppressive unity of Being, Mind, or Concept. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Between Philosophy and Theology: Liminal and Contested Issues)
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