Orthodox Theology facing the challenges of science

1. Entity type Lemma
2. Original titleLa théologie orthodoxe face aux défis de la science
3. lemma author Delli, Eudoxie
4. lemma category Modes of interaction - Orthodox Anthropology - Various approaches to the problem of correlation between science and theology
5. lemma work Ionescu, Razvan Andrei [Author]. Orthodox Theology facing the challenges of science
6. lemma manifestations Science et Religion
7. Keywords biblical tradition - apophatisim - Evolution - Anthropic principle - patristic tradition
8. Citations
   1. <p>Ionescu, R. (2016). <em>La théologie orthodoxe face aux défis de la science. </em>Retrieved from http://www.science-et-religion.fr/cat-general/81-p-razvan-ionescu-la-theologie-orthodoxe-face-aux-defis-actuels-de-la-science</p>
9. Lemma body

   1. F. Razvan Ionescu raises, from the point of view of the Church, the question of the impact of sciences on Christian anthropology looking for a possible dialogue between science and theology in the light of the “new paradigm” emerged in contemporary sciences.

      His development is focused on three challenges that Orthodox theology must encounter:

      a) the search for the appropriate way to conceive the relation between scientific and theological discourses, defining clearly their different methods but also their convergences in the quest for the meaning of the surrounding multilevel reality,

      b) the ways science and theology apprehend reality inviting Man to discover the profoundness of the cosmos which cannot be captured by human intellect in its entirety,

      c) the presence of human consciousness in the Universe as an active response to its intelligibility.

      His purpose is to avoid both a passive concordism and unfruitful disconcordism between the scientific and theological approaches of cosmos and Man providing a channel of communication between them, mediated by philosophy and a theological discourse, which is closely related to the prayer and to the liturgical life of the Church.

      By a selective use of theological and spiritual authorities (Fathers of the Church, Archimandrite Sophronios, P. Bouteneff) and of modern theoreticians of sciences and philosophers (B. Nicolescu, B. d’Espagnat, Jean Staune, R. Penrose) as well, the author deals with a number of significant issues such as the «evolution» and the «anthropic principle», in an attempt to locate complementarities and potential affinities between science and Orthodox theology, taking at the same time into account the interpretations of the biblical narratives of Genesis and assigning a higher precedence to the patristic tradition which is grounded upon the lived experience of the Church.