Benescu Sorin
- The Divine Attribute of Transcendence in Schopenhauer’s Work
- Being and Nonbeing: The Structure of the Absolute Transcendent, a Kabbalistic Perspective
The Evolution of Yves Congar’s Thought Regarding the Church’s Catholicity and its Implications
This article studies the evolution of Yves Congar’s thought regarding the catholicity of the Church over the period of two decades (1937-1959). According to his understanding, catholicity is not a quantitative dimension of the Church (which is present in all parts of the world), but rather a qualitative dimension. However, even as such, he defines catholicity in two ways: first, catholicity is understood as a qualitative universality of the Church in which all humanity is assimilated and taken up to God. This understanding is present mainly in the early writings of Congar. Second, catholicity is presented as a differentiated unity animated by the Holy Spirit, and is found preponderantly in the late works of Congar. This study aims to show the implications of this evolution: different understandings of catholicity point to different models of the Church. It means that Congar moves from a Christological model of the Church (based on the Incarnation) in which diversity can be assumed by the church towards a pneumatological (and therefore, trinitarian) model in which diversity is stimulated by the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, the relation between the economic missions of the Son and of the Holy Spirit is understood clearer and more nuanced. This study presents also some of the theological reasons and historical conditions that contributed to the development of Congar’s thought regarding the catholicity of the Church: ecumenism, eschatology, pneumatology, and the relationship between the world and the Kingdom of God.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53438/POIH1936
La teologia dionisiana in Tommaso d’Aquino e Jean-Luc Marion
In this article, we examine the influence of negative theology on the thought of Thomas Aquinas and Jean-Luc Marion. We will analyze the question of the similarity or difference between apophatic theology and deconstructionism, drawing synchronic comparisons between Dionysian theology, Thomistic thought, and the deconstructionist challenge. These topics bring the discussion to the boundaries between philosophy and theology; therefore, we will see whether Marion’s thought is philosophical or theological, and by what right phenomenology can address the theme of revelation in general, and of the Name of God in particular. Marion focuses on a historical-genetic investigation of the term “negative theology.” The conclusions of his study show that neither the Alexandrians nor the Cappadocian Fathers, nor even Irenaeus or Augustine – as well as Bernard, Bonaventure, or Thomas Aquinas – although they employ negations when naming God and adopt an apophatic approach in their theology, none of them actually use the expression negative theology.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53438/OKSJ8792
Catholic religious writings in the Pavlichean dialect existing at the time of the establishment of the Archdiocese of Bucharest
Charlton Laird’s assertion that “dialectal peculiarities […] can be used to describe how languages became what they are and which peoples went on to build what communities” suggests a deeper significance than the mere linguist’s fascination with the revelations of a semantic study. Indeed, he suggests that an archeology of language can prove extremely useful in conveying certain testimonies about a community that historical sources may have omitted. This aspect becomes even more evident when religious writings and communities are under discussion.
Although the official establishment of the Archdiocese of Bucharest occurred at the late 19th century, in 1883, it is appropriate to consider that this process had its origins in the early years of that century, when Bishop Francisco Ferreri, in collaboration with a substantial number of Bulgarian Pavlichean Catholics, founded the village of Cioplea. Despite its modest size, the locality soon became the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Nicopole, thereby paving the way for jurisdictional autonomy.
One of the pastoral urgencies of the clergy of foreign origin who served this community was to familiarise themselves with the dialect spoken by these believers and to fix it in written form. Consequently, this dialect became a prevalent medium for religious texts, including prayer books, catechisms, and brochures disseminated within the community. The Pavlichean dialect – associated with what were considered Illyrian language – was distinguished by its affiliation to the Slavic language, yet it is written using the Latin alphabet. Beyond the mystery that still surrounds, in some cases, their authors or the degree of accuracy with which the written forms reflected the spoken language, their analysis will reveal that the Pavlichean dialect constituted a lexical infrastructure capable of supporting a substantial Catholic theology. If we consider the phenomenon of inculturation – of which Catholic missionary work during the Counter-Reformation made use and proposed as a means of evangelisation – which sometimes raised questions about the orthodoxy of the teaching transmitted within new cultures and through new languages, the present study will attempt to demonstrate that the Pavlichean dialect – part of a minor culture – did not encounter such a problem.
Finally, the legacy of religious written sources in circulation at the time of the establishment of the Archdiocese of Bucharest, which has hitherto been overlooked by researchers, constitutes a veritable antitypos of the universal character of Catholicism, as will be explored in depth in the future Second Vatican Council.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53438/LXOV9562
Being and Nonbeing: The Structure of the Absolute Transcendent, a Kabbalistic Perspective
This article examines the Kabbalistic view of God (the Absolute) as a dynamic interplay between Nonbeing (Ein Sof, the infinite abyss) and Being (the Sefirot, divine attributes). Using René Guénon’s metaphysics and Emmanuel Lévinas’s ethics, it argues this structure isn’t just abstract. Instead, the transcendent is experienced immanently through the ethical responsibility to other people. The divine is ultimately found in our ethical encounters.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53438/LHOI8256
Fraternità e umanità nel rapporto tra vescovo e sacerdoti
The Synod on Synodality (2021–2024), through its deepening of the concepts of communion, participation, and mission, has generated reflections and debates concerning the revision of relationships within the Church. Naturally, the synodal process could not overlook an analysis of the relationship between bishops and priests, viewed within a horizon of fraternity and humanity.
The relationship between bishops and priests constitutes a fundamental aspect of the Church’s structure and life, being essential for ecclesial communion and the effectiveness of pastoral mission. However, the significance and implications of this relationship, so crucial in practical terms, are not exhausted by canonical and administrative regulations, as they are rooted in Revelation and in the very being of the Church, as well as in the humanity created by God and sanctified by grace.
This is precisely the theme of our article, which seeks to explore a theological and spiritual perspective specific to the priesthood. The structure of the article will include a brief reflection on the development of this theme in Catholic theology, followed by an exposition of the theological foundations of fraternity between bishops and priests and an emphasis on the importance of human values in the concrete experience of this fraternity.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53438/YTQG7840
Budău Iulian
Les amis du Ressuscité dans le siècle des menaces et de la solitude
L’amitié avec Jésus dans les Évangiles. Une interprétation
Les amis du Ressuscité dans le siècle des menaces et de la solitude
In a global context marked by the pervasive threats of armed conflict, pandemics, and environmental depletion, the proclamation of Jesus’s resurrection demands linguistic and conceptual frameworks capable of rendering its message both audible and theologically resonant. This study proposes an interpretation of the Resurrection beginning from the premise that the disciples’ encounter with the Risen Christ was shaped, in part, by the relational intimacy cultivated during their shared experience of friendship with Jesus in his public ministry. The Gospels’ resurrection narratives reflect traces of this personal proximity, suggesting a continuity between historical companionship and post-resurrection revelation. By engaging these narratives through the hermeneutical lens of friendship – augmented by speculative theological insights – this article seeks to delineate conditions under which contemporary individuals might approximate an experiential encounter with the Risen One. Such a theological approach offers renewed possibilities for engaging Christ relationally in a world beset by alienation and solitude. The spiritual appropriation of this relational dynamic is posited as a potential response to the existential afflictions of fear, disorientation, discouragement, and defeatism endemic to modernity.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53438/OSLA8337
Mary Ward’s Embodiment of the Ignatian Meditation on the Two Standards
This article explores the link between the meditation known as the Two Standards from the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) and its embodiment in Mary Ward’s (1585-1645) spiritual life. The Two Standards is meant to help retreatants to understand that their life is under the influence of the forces of both good and evil and that their decisions always have a spiritual dimension. Focusing on the Ignatian concept found in the Two Standards of spiritual battle between the standards of Christ and those of Lucifer, the paper explores key moments in Mary Ward’s spiritual life through the lens of the integration of Christ’s call to poverty, humiliation and freedom, the grace asked by the retreatant in this meditation. This finds full expression in Mary Ward’s prayer life and actions and in her growth in spiritual life.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53438/ECJA5956