The role of the Church in Society

1. Entity type Lemma
2. Original titleUloga crkve u drustvu
3. Language term Serbian
4. Alternative title Silence and Bells (en)
5. lemma author Stevanovic, Aleksandra
6. lemma category Modes of interaction
7. Publication date 31-01-2019
8. lemma work Silence and Bells
9. lemma manifestations Silence and Bells : Interviews, Comments, Sermons, and Epistles - Niš: Bojović, Dragiša, 2016.
10. Keywords
    1. Centre for Church Studies (International organization) -- Appendix to the First Issue of the Journal Church Studies
11. Keywords Tesla, Nikola - Saint Sava - Pupin, Mihajlo
12. Lemma body

    1. The book is a result of the author’s ten years work (2006–2016) and includes his interviews, lectures, epistles and sermons. They span over religion, spirituality, science, politics and culture.

       Initially, the author presents the history of the Center for Church Studies: its establishment in 2002, activities, aims and numerous problems. One of the greatest results of the Center was its journal – Church studies. It was established in 2004 as the first academic journal in Serbia that fosters multidisciplinary research on theology, science, literature and arts. The author of the book explained how theology was excluded from many studies at the University since its value was not recognized (even though many Serbian scientists recognized its significance). The Center for Church Studies organized a number of seminars and lectures trying to connect diverse fields of cognition and create the interdisciplinary studies that would provide the platform for the intersection of theology and arts, theology and ethics, theology and medicine, theology and education and the like. Concluding the necessity of such a Center, the author firmly stated that the Church should be involved in all the spheres of human life: science, politics, arts and all social activities, even thought there is certain opposition to its involvement.

       The book has an interdisciplinary character and presents a sort of call for the fruitful intersection of different areas. One of the most important chapters refers on “Science of Saint Sava and Faith of Nikola Tesla”, a very unusual and thought-provoking title on the significance of these two prominent Serbian persons. The author sees them as people of similar mental strength, high intellect and spirituality. While Sava was canonized by the Church and proclaimed Saint, Tesla was referred to as the “Saint of Science” by New York Times upon his death in 1943. The author emphasized how the Tesla said that his mother had taught him to search for truth in the Bible and that Tesla was always dedicated in reading it. The author sees the divine dedicated learning not only in Tesla’s work, but also in Pupin’s thoughts. Both scientists were always truly connected to their religion that helped them enhance and excel their scientific work, always serving to the universal goodness, as their religion taught them.

       The book is a very testimony to the dedicated attempt to bring the Church closer to social reality and effectively reconnect it with other areas of human cognition so as to better perceive the contemporary problems on an interdisciplinary level.