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Pantelis Kalaitzidis (ed.), Why “Religion in School” Today?Records of the Two-Day Seminar: The Religious Course in the Unified Lyceum (A’ Meeting of Theology Teachers), Volos, 16-17 April 1999, Domos Publ. Athens, 2000, 236 pages.

           The book begins with a foreword by P. Kalaitzidis, the invitation and timetable of the seminar and the opening addresses of welcome. Then, follows a text by P. Kalaitzidis, who analyses the current situation, the difficulties and potential of the religious course and the issue of the students’ assessment. He proposes changing the course from a confessional-catechetic to a cultural one. The second text by Apostolos Barlos presents the results of a research conducted among B’ grade Lyceum pupils on the book and lesson of religion. Afterwards, follows an extensive discussion of the papers presented at the Seminar’s first Session.

Alexandros Kariotoglou’s presentation focuses on the issue of the new assessment method, but also on the aims of the course. Georgios Ketikidis’ presentation also concerns the students’ assessment for the religious course, which he considers a necessary precondition for a creative perspective in the modern Lyceum. Following is an extensive discussion of the papers presented at the Seminar’s second Session.

The opening presentation of the third Session is by Thanasis Papathanasiou and deals with the preconditions and terms of writing the schoolbook of the religious course, while Stamatis Portelanos examines the spiritual coming-of-age as described by the Neptic Fathers in relation to the religious course.

In his text, titled “Christ extended in the 21^st Century, the word and work of the theology teacher in a changing school”, Aris Kourtis argues that the religious course ought to be catechetic and confessional and that the role of the theologian is missionary, drawing his identity from Christ and the Church. Following is an extensive discussion of the papers presented at the Seminar’s third Session.

The book concludes with the Seminar’s Press Release, a list of the participants and an Appendix with the invitations and timetable of the Second and Third Session of Theology Teachers.

P. Kalaitzidis, N. Ntontos (eds.), Gender and Religion. The Position of Woman in the Church, Academy for Theological Studies, Indiktos Publ. Athens, 2004.

         The editor of this volume, Pantelis Kalaitzidis, in his introductory text, sets in a critical way the theological positions of the modern Orthodox problematic on the issue of woman’s place in the Church. Marios Begzos analyses the issue of “Gender and Religion” from the scope of the Philosophy of Religion, while Nikos Dodos discusses aspects of gender in various philosophical and socioanthropological trends and comments on the eschatological approach of gender as a new and liberating “construction” of inter-gender relations.

From the scope of an ecclesiastical anthropology besides, according to Konstantinos Agoras, the sexist way of life can be transcended in the Eucharistic context of personal relations. A patristic study by Georgios Skaltsas examines the views of theologians of the first Christian centuries about the non-gender condition of God and human sexuality and concludes in a variable morality away from abstract generalizations and authoritarianisms. The questions about woman’s position in the Orthodox Church, the ordination of women and the contribution of the Orthodox Church to facing the problems of women in Greek society are dealt with in the text by Ioannis Petrou. Evanthia Adamtziloglou realizes a historical, Christological and Trinitarian consideration of the issue of women and the creation in His image, while Evangelos Theodorou examines historically the institution of the Deaconesses.

The text by Katerina Karkala-Zorba is an introduction to feminist theology, expressing the view that eastern Orthodoxy can inseminate it in its current crisis, while Stavros Yagazoglou considers that feminist theology and the ordination of women in the western Church are the results of a secularised ecclesiology. Konstantinos Yokarinis conducts an extensive historical and theological analysis of the issue of women’s ordination, highlighting its anthropological and Christological dimensions. Eleni-Kasselouri Hatzivasiliadi presents the issue of woman in the Orthodox Tradition and Worship in the frame of the modern theological research on the “gender” factor, while Dimitris Passakos studies the concepts of purity and impurity in Judaism, the New Testament and the life of the Church. Fr. Antonios Kalligeris discusses the issue of woman’s position in the Church from a pastoral point of view, while Sister Theodekti discusses the equality of the sexes from the point of view of the female Orthodox monasticism.

This collective volume concludes with texts from a debate on the issue of “Religions and Woman. The Problem of Violence and Fundamentalism”, where Anna Karamanou represented the political side, Teny Pirri-Simonian made a Christian-ecumenical contribution, Marilyn Pizante took part on behalf of the Jewish tradition, Méhrézia Labidi-Maiza offered an Islamic view and Pigi Kazlari an Orthodox perspective.

P. Kalaitzidis - N. Ntontos (eds.), Islam and Fundamentalism, Orthodoxy and Globalization, Academy of Theological Studies of the Holy Metropolis of Demetrias, Indictos Publ. Athens, 2004, 132 pages.

           The introductory text in this collective volume by editor Pantelis Kalaitzidis examines the phenomenon of religious fundamentalism in the context of globalization. Furthermore, he recognises fundamentalism as a child of modernity, to which fundamentalism is radically opposed. He thoroughly analyses the deficient adoption of modernity, except by Islam, by the Orthodox Church, as well, considering the eschatological conscience of the Church as a criterion for theologically dealing with such matters.

The Metropolitan of Demetrias Ignatios in his text, commenting on the evangelical parables of the Good Samaritan and the Final Judgement, proves fundamentalism to be incompatible with the philanthropic, ecumenical and open to the world Orthodoxy. He supports dialogue against violence in the relations with religions, particularly with Islam. Andreas Andrianopoulos focuses his approach on modern Islam, its anthropogeography, its schisms and divisions, as well as the sources and reasons for the religious fanaticism and fundamentalism within Islam.

Marios Begzos analyses the phenomenon of fundamentalism and finds the solution for overcoming violence, in the long run, in justice in the international relations and the balanced development. Tarek Mitri’s text deals mainly with the inter-religious dialogue, particularly the one between Christians and Muslims. He addresses these issues in the differentiated from the traditional, modern globalized environment.

Giorgos Karabelias seeks critical resistance against the liberal and homogenizing globalization, with special reference to the position of Hellenism in the globalized environment, while Nikos Mouzelis points to the fact that besides the financial globalization, the cosmopolitan values are also flourishing, as do human rights, social solidarity and the respect to cultural otherness. According to Mouzelis, the Orthodox Church ought to rid itself of nationalist limitations and project its ecumenical dimension.

In the last text, Dimitris Bekridakis examines the re-appearance of religion in the conditions of globalization, the propagation of the trend of the new religious conscience and the fundamentalist withdrawal, stressing that right now the Church ought to emphasise the ecumenicity of the truth and love of Christ and its eschatological account.

Pantelis Kalaitzidis (ed.) Church and Eschatology, Holy Metropolis of Demetrias, Academy for Theological Studies, Kastaniotis publ. Athens, 2001, 443 pages.

          In the foreword of this collective volume Metropolitan of Demetrias Mr. Ignatios and in his introductory note editor Pantelis Kalaitzidis refer to the Academy of Theological Studies and especially to the Eschatology thematic. Metropolitan of Pergamos Ioannis Zizioulas locates in Eucharist and the eschatological ethos the identity of the Church, that which defines and differentiates it from any other secular or religious institution, while Petros Vasiliadis, after substantiating the Christological basis and the Eucharistic application of Eschatology, highlights the eschatological deficit in the modern Church and theology.

N. Matsoukas, in his text, analyses the relationship between the Church and Kingdom of God, History and Eschatology, while St. Yagazoglou examines the theological presuppositions of the Church as eschatological community. G. Patronos approaches man as a person in protology, history and Eschatology and M. Begzos differentiates the Christian from the Jewish eschatology, while N. Dodos, in his text, highlights the historicity and eschatological integrity of time in Christianity. D. Arkadas, in a biblical-theological study delves into the eschatology of John’s Gospel and Al. Kariotoglou negotiates the Islamic eschatology in the version of Al-Ghazali, while Th. N. Papathanasiou examines the relationship between (church)mission and eschatology.

The text by D. Moschos deals with eschatology in Egyptian monasticism, while D. Bekridakis offers an eschatological reading of the ecclesiastical icon and art. B. Adrachtas’ text sheds light on the political dimension of Eschatology, while in the next two extensive texts G. Skaltsas underlines the proposition of Gregory of Nyssa for a new Ontology with a dynamic and social dimension through Eschatology and P. Kalaitzidis the relationship between Church and Nation on the basis of Eschatology.

The  last three texts of the volume examine the eschatology of new religious movements by St. Papalexandropoulos, eschatological points in modern literary texts by Fr. Evangelos Ganas and the juxtaposition of natural and eschatological time by Georgios Pavlos.