The Orthodox Understanding of Salvation brings together some of Dr. Veniamin’s talks and articles, hitherto available in relatively little-known theological journals and periodicals, which pertain to the fundamental question of the purpose of human existence, to Salvation, as understood in the age-old and unbroken tradition of the Orthodox Christian Faith – the faith of the Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, Martyrs and Saints of our Lord, God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
This is a scholarly work, which aims to initiate the reader into the fundamental theological presuppositions of Patristic theology. The juxtaposition of works delivered to diverse audiences is deliberate, inasmuch as it is designed to demonstrate that the same principles are applicable to the sermon and theological treatise alike, that in the Orthodox Christian tradition there is no separation between ethics and doctrine, but rather that Christian living and theology are one indivisible reality, because Christ – the measure of all things human and divine, created and uncreated – is One. Divided into two parts, Praxis and Theoria, this book covers a wide range of topics, based on key Scriptural passages and the writings of some of the greatest masters of the Christian spiritual life, all of which are held together by criteria which are born not of speculation but of the face to face encounter with the living God.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface
Part I: Praxis
- The Orthodox Understanding of Salvation: “Theosis” in Saint Silouan the Athonite and Elder Sophrony of Essex
- The Power of Repentance: The Ethos of “Metanoia” in the Orthodox Tradition
- Holy Relics: The Deification of the Human Body in the Christian Tradition
- The Sinlessness of the Mother of God According to St. Nicholas Cabasilas
- The Orthodox Interpretation of Holy Scripture: St. Gregory Palamas and the Key to Understanding the Bible
- The Significance of Greek Independence Day for America in the 21st Century
- Euthanasia: A Theological Approach
Part II: Theoria
- The Light of Tabor: St John Chrysostom and the Language of Holy Scripture
- The Resurrection of the Human Body: In the Christology of St Cyril, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria
- The Transfiguration of Christ and the Deification of Man in St Maximus the Confessor
- The Spiritual Father and Child Relationship in St Symeon the New Theologian
- The Interplay Between Mystical and Dogmatic Theology in St. Gregory the Sinaïte
- Partakers of Divine Nature: St Gregory Palamas and the Centrality of the Transfiguration
By Way of Conclusion
- On Becoming Theologians: “Hesychia” as a Prerequisite for the Encounter with God