THEME OF THE CONFERENCE
The word communion is used in religious and secular
discourses and embraces several meanings, all of which
imply that those who are involved in communion have
something they share, something in common. In its
religious usage this word implies a “horizontal” and a
“vertical” dimension, the former referring to the relations
between people or communities, the latter to the
relations between the human being and God.
People can share thoughts and feelings they have as
well as actions they do, and in its religious or theological
sense this kind of communion implies that these
thoughts, feelings and actions are somehow related to
the divine. Thus inter-human religious communion – be
it communion between Christians or between
representatives of different religions – is based on a
common understanding of God or a common reverence
for the divine mystery. This is the most fundamental
level of inter-human communion, communion “at
grassroots level” through which people – however
different they are in their personal character, cultural
background and religious views – can achieve mutual
understanding or resolve their conflicts on the basis of
love, compassion, tolerance etc. On a practical level, this
can find its expression in common prayer, common
works of charity, etc. This does not mean however that a
deeper reflection on this kind of communion is not
necessary. In fact, this kind of communion is in many
aspects similar to ordinary, non-religious
communion/communication between people, so that the
theology of communion can learn a lot from secular
discourse on the same subject. Yet any religious
communion between people takes the idea of the divine,
i.e. the “vertical” dimension, as its explicit
presupposition, so this should be the starting point for
theological meditation.
Communion between churches is another important
aspect of the “horizontal” communion. This implies not
only common sentiments towards God but also a
common faith which is usually clearly formulated in
credos and other authoritative statements. It is here that
the theology of communion is often applied and has a
long history going back to the first centuries of
Christianity. However, ancient ways of solving the
problem of division between churches (such as church
unions between the Roman Catholic Church, on the one
hand, and Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, on
the other) are not usually considered today to be an
appropriate model for the restoration of inter-church
communion, so the theology of communion has to look
now for new ways of overcoming existing obstacles and
healing ancient wounds.
Both aspects of the “horizontal” dimension of
communion – the inter-human and the inter-church
ones – presuppose communion with God, “vertical”
communion, as the basis that makes any communion
between people and between churches possible. At the
same time, it is the ultimate goal of any “horizontal”
communion. Different forms of communion with God,
from Eucharistic communion open to every Christian, to
the communion which great mystics of Christianity and
of other religions achieved through prayer,
contemplation and ascetic exercises, always presuppose
communion with other people. This is especially obvious
in the case of liturgical communion but can be seen also
in the case of solitaries who do not leave their cell, yet
pray for the whole world. As 1 John 4:20 says, “those
who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen,
cannot love God whom they have not seen” (NRSV).
The aim of the forthcoming Conference is to reflect on
different dimensions and forms of communion from a
theological perspective, especially in view of ecumenical
dialogue today
PAPERS AND PUBLICATION
Those who wish to present a paper should send a
summary (500 words at most) by email to St. Andrew’s
Institute by 1 August 2014. The Organizing Committee
selects papers for the Conference and sends invitations
to the speakers. The full texts of all selected papers will
have to be submitted by 1 October 2014. The working
language of the conference will be English.
Upon arrival at the conference every participant will
receive summaries of all the papers and the conference
programme. Papers are scheduled for 30 minutes each.
Some of the papers will be published in St. Andrew’s
quarterly Pages: Theology, Culture, Education.
Registration form can be found on St. Andrew’s website
www.standrews.ru. Registrations, summaries and
papers should be sent to:
Mikhail Tolstoluzhenko
St. Andrew’s Biblical Theological Institute
Jerusalem St. 3, Moscow, 109316, Russia
Tel/Fax: +7 495 6702200; +7 495 6707644
Email:
standrews@yandex.ru,
info@standrews.ru
ORGANIZATION AND ACCOMMODATIONS
The Conference will assemble on Monday, 20 October
for the opening ceremony and the first session in the
evening. Participants will depart after breakfast on
Thursday, 23 October.
The Conference will be held in the recognised spiritual
and academic centre – the Monastery of Bose.
Accommodation and meals will be provided by the
organizers.