- Analytic History of Philosophy, Analytic Philosophy of Religion, Systematic Theology, Patristic Studies, Analytic Theology, Philosophical Theology, and 18 morePatristics, Greek Patristics, Latin Patristics, Historical Theology, Patristic Theology, Athanasius, Gregory of Nazianzus, Basil of Caesarea, Boethius, Trinity, Trinity (Theology), Trinitarian Theology, Doctrine of the Trinity, Tertullian, Patristics and Late Antiquity, Early Church Fathers, St Basil the Great, and Lutheran Theologyedit
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Рационализм и иррационализм в античной философии / В.П. Горан, М.Н. Вольф, И.В. Берестов, Е.В. Орлов, Е.В. Афонасин, П.А. Бутаков. Новосибирск: 2010. 396 с. (Rationalism and Irrationalism in Ancient Philosophy / V. Goran, M. Volf, I. Berestov, E. Orlov, E. Afonasin, P. Butakov. Novosibirsk, 2010)more
"The book includes a series of studies dedicated to two opposite tendencies in Ancient Greek epistemology and ontology, the rational and irrational. Vasily Goran discusses the rational and irrational approaches in Ancient philosophy in... more
"The book includes a series of studies dedicated to two opposite tendencies in Ancient Greek epistemology and ontology, the rational and irrational. Vasily Goran discusses the rational and irrational approaches in Ancient philosophy in two contexts. In Chapter I he studies Early Greek philosophy, while in Chapter IV he turns to Socrates and Plato. He shows that ontological monism in such early writers as Thales and other representatives of the Ionian school of thought, led them to take explicitly rationalistic stanza, while (proto-)dualist tendencies in Early Pythagoreanism became the nourishing soil for irrationalism. Socrates’ predominantly rationalist approach to philosophical inquiry is contrasted with this by Plato, marked by distinctive irrational elements. Still, one can prove that the rational approaches were dominant both in Early Pythagoreanism and Plato.
Chapter II by Marina Volf concerns the epistemological doctrine of Heraclitus of Ephesus. The author discusses his concept of dizesis (taken to mean inquiry), cognitive means for acquiring true knowledge as well as their hierarchy: relations between manifest (emphanes) and latent (haphanes) entities, the role of empiric knowledge, and the place of mathesis, ksynesis and phronesis in the cognitive process. We examine the relationship between such intellectual faculties as noos and ksynesis, noos and mathesis, and reveal essentially rationalistic nature of Heraclitan doctrine.
In Chapter III Igor Berestov deals with two modes of thinking in Parmenides. If Parmenides did distinguish the two modes of thinking, then his position would be immune to some very serious critical attacks. Nevertheless, it appears that there are some logical difficulties, inherent in this distinction. And even if this is the case, the alternative “non-Parmenidean” distinctions between the modes of thinking and existence seem to be as dubious as the supposed Parmenidean approach.
Chapter V by Eugene Orlov analyses cognitive faculties and states of the soul. Aristotelian notions of logismos-calculus, logos and alogon are discussed against the contemporary perception of ‘rational’ and ‘irrational’ with special reference to the so called meta-logou, which cannot be placed in the context of such traditional concepts as rational, irrational, non-rational and a-rational.
In Chapter VI Eugene Afonasin approaches philosophical mythology in the Derveni papyrus which contains a very curious commentary to an Orphic theogony and in this capacity is of great interest for understanding religious and philosophical developments at the end of the fourth – the beginning of the third century B. C. E. (or even earlier). The author discusses two interpretative strategies adopted by the Derveni commentator in order to “save” the Orphic myth and give it new value, namely, naturalization” of traditional Greek deities, first of all Zeus, and “etymologization” of their names.
Finally, in Chapter VII Pavel Butakov shows that the formation of Christian philosophy happened in the world where the highest academic standards of theology were set by the Platonic tradition. The mainstream Christian theologians formulated their teaching within the framework of Platonic thought, while those who used other philosophical approaches were considered to be erring or even heretical. A good example of such an unconventional approach can be seen in the teaching of Tertullian who built his theology, ontology, and anthropology upon the foundation of Stoicism. Unfortunately, many Christian theologians, who were oriented towards Platonism, interpreted Tertullian’s Stoic ideas as a digression from the true faith."
Chapter II by Marina Volf concerns the epistemological doctrine of Heraclitus of Ephesus. The author discusses his concept of dizesis (taken to mean inquiry), cognitive means for acquiring true knowledge as well as their hierarchy: relations between manifest (emphanes) and latent (haphanes) entities, the role of empiric knowledge, and the place of mathesis, ksynesis and phronesis in the cognitive process. We examine the relationship between such intellectual faculties as noos and ksynesis, noos and mathesis, and reveal essentially rationalistic nature of Heraclitan doctrine.
In Chapter III Igor Berestov deals with two modes of thinking in Parmenides. If Parmenides did distinguish the two modes of thinking, then his position would be immune to some very serious critical attacks. Nevertheless, it appears that there are some logical difficulties, inherent in this distinction. And even if this is the case, the alternative “non-Parmenidean” distinctions between the modes of thinking and existence seem to be as dubious as the supposed Parmenidean approach.
Chapter V by Eugene Orlov analyses cognitive faculties and states of the soul. Aristotelian notions of logismos-calculus, logos and alogon are discussed against the contemporary perception of ‘rational’ and ‘irrational’ with special reference to the so called meta-logou, which cannot be placed in the context of such traditional concepts as rational, irrational, non-rational and a-rational.
In Chapter VI Eugene Afonasin approaches philosophical mythology in the Derveni papyrus which contains a very curious commentary to an Orphic theogony and in this capacity is of great interest for understanding religious and philosophical developments at the end of the fourth – the beginning of the third century B. C. E. (or even earlier). The author discusses two interpretative strategies adopted by the Derveni commentator in order to “save” the Orphic myth and give it new value, namely, naturalization” of traditional Greek deities, first of all Zeus, and “etymologization” of their names.
Finally, in Chapter VII Pavel Butakov shows that the formation of Christian philosophy happened in the world where the highest academic standards of theology were set by the Platonic tradition. The mainstream Christian theologians formulated their teaching within the framework of Platonic thought, while those who used other philosophical approaches were considered to be erring or even heretical. A good example of such an unconventional approach can be seen in the teaching of Tertullian who built his theology, ontology, and anthropology upon the foundation of Stoicism. Unfortunately, many Christian theologians, who were oriented towards Platonism, interpreted Tertullian’s Stoic ideas as a digression from the true faith."
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Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox theologians claim that the unique event of Christ's sacrifice on Calvary is present in Eucharistic liturgies. A popular explanatory strategy for this miraculous presence suggests that due to its... more
Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox theologians claim that the unique event of Christ's sacrifice on Calvary is present in Eucharistic liturgies. A popular explanatory strategy for this miraculous presence suggests that due to its supernatural character the Eucharist " conquers time, " transcends its boundaries, and allows for temporal coincidence of two chronologically distant events. I discuss the four main approaches within this strategy that can be discovered in contemporary theological writings. The first approach implies a time travel of the Calvary event. The second suggests the time travel of Eucharistic participants. The third eliminates the chronological distance by relocating one of the events into a timeless reality. The fourth assumes multilocation of the event across time. I argue that each of these approaches is untenable on philosophical or theological grounds.
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The Greek model of the Trinity, based on the Theological Orations of Gregory of Nazianzus, treats the Trinitarian relations as connections between the Father and the two other persons: the Son and the Holy Spirit. The two relations have... more
The Greek model of the Trinity, based on the Theological Orations of Gregory of Nazianzus, treats the Trinitarian relations as connections between the Father and the two other persons: the Son and the Holy Spirit. The two relations have to be heteronymous (“generation” and “procession”), and have to be interpreted from the extreme realistic position. The Latin Trinitarian model, based on Boethius’ De Trinitate, treats relations as three subsistent persons. The relations have to be unidirectional: from the Father to the Son, and from both of them to the Holy Spirit. Both models are adequate and effective, but incompatible. One of the consequences of this incompatibility is the problem of filioque: the introduction of an additional relation of procession into the Greek model as well as the exclusion of this relation from the Latin model result in the inadequacy of the models. From the point of view of the complementability of a model, the Greek model allows introduction of new elements, while the Latin model does not. The soteriological consequences are such that the Greek model welcomes a human person to establish a unique relation with the person of the Father, which leads to the theosis of a creature. The Latin model requires the saving relation to be established with the whole Trinity, and theosis is not supported.
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Alvin Plantinga has played a pivotal role in bringing theological questions and ideas into the broad philosophical, predominantly non-theistic community. His “Advice to Christian Philosophers” (1983) was the turning point in the history... more
Alvin Plantinga has played a pivotal role in bringing theological questions and ideas into the broad philosophical, predominantly non-theistic community. His “Advice to Christian Philosophers” (1983) was the turning point in the history of philosophical theology. In his “Advice” Plantinga talks about how best to be a Christian in philosophy. He suggests that Christian intellectuals should become more autonomous from the rest of philosophical world, display more unity, and express greater Christian self-confidence. These advices, however, are addressed not to just any intellectual of a Christian affiliation. He addresses them to those 1) who have graduated from a conservative Christian college, 2) who have obtained a PhD in philosophy, and 3) who continue their career as professional philosophers. That means that the person should be well acquainted with the traditional Christian doctrine and practice, should be well versed in the contemporary analytic philosophy, and should be an acknowledged member of the established philosophical community. Thus, it would be a mistake to apply Plantinga’s “Advice” to a person who does not meet all of the three requirements.
The present day situation in Russia is such that there is a dramatic shortfall of those intellectuals who satisfy all of the three Plantinga’s requirements. It is still premature for Russian Christian philosophers to become autonomous from the rest of the philosophical community, to establish Christian philosophical clusters, and to display Christian self-confidence in the face of the non-theistic majority. Philosophical theology in Russia is currently in its “pre-Plantingan” phase. In order to improve this situation I suggest reversing Plantinga’s advices into their opposites. Russian Christian philosophers ought to learn how to operate within the broad philosophical community. They should familiarize themselves with the contemporary analytic philosophy and its methods, and they should become acknowledged members of the established professional circles. Then, and only then, philosophical theology in Russia can enter its post-Plantingan era.
The present day situation in Russia is such that there is a dramatic shortfall of those intellectuals who satisfy all of the three Plantinga’s requirements. It is still premature for Russian Christian philosophers to become autonomous from the rest of the philosophical community, to establish Christian philosophical clusters, and to display Christian self-confidence in the face of the non-theistic majority. Philosophical theology in Russia is currently in its “pre-Plantingan” phase. In order to improve this situation I suggest reversing Plantinga’s advices into their opposites. Russian Christian philosophers ought to learn how to operate within the broad philosophical community. They should familiarize themselves with the contemporary analytic philosophy and its methods, and they should become acknowledged members of the established professional circles. Then, and only then, philosophical theology in Russia can enter its post-Plantingan era.
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It is often claimed that Plato’s definition of knowledge as “true opinion with an account” is in agreement with the contemporary analysis of knowledge as “justified true belief” (JTB). Some scholars disagree with the attribution of JTB to... more
It is often claimed that Plato’s definition of knowledge as “true opinion with an account” is in agreement with the contemporary analysis of knowledge as “justified true belief” (JTB). Some scholars disagree with the attribution of JTB to Plato. I analyze three influential arguments against the assumption of Plato’s agreement with JTB, and refute them. Then I provide my own argument against the assumption. I argue that the contemporary interpretation of the JTB formula understands “belief” not in the sense of an “opinion,” but rather of a “degree of confidence.” Accordingly, “justification” is understood not as applying to the opinion itself, but rather to the person having a certain degree of confidence. I support this claim by showing the difference between the traditional and the contemporary understanding of “evidence,” the former referring to a property of the proposition, while the latter meaning the body of reasons, which supports the person’s confidence to a certain degree. Thus, I conclude that Plato understands knowledge as “correct opinion validated by a rational explanation,” and it has very little in common with the contemporary understanding of knowledge as “sufficiently supported subjective degree of confidence in the truth of a proposition.”
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The paper is a part of the panel discussion with John Greco about his theory of the transmission of religious knowledge. My goal here is not to argue with Greco's theory, but to find out whether it requires any adjustment. I argue that... more
The paper is a part of the panel discussion with John Greco about his theory of the transmission of religious knowledge. My goal here is not to argue with Greco's theory, but to find out whether it requires any adjustment. I argue that Greco's theory of the social transmission of knowledge requires the transmitted knowledge to be socially verifiable, that is, to be subject to those means of confirmation that pertain to the social system. Unfortunately, some kinds of religious knowledge are not socially verifiable; therefore, they cannot be transmitted via Greco's social mechanism. I conclude that Greco's theory turns out to be applicable to the socially verifiable religious testimonies, and not applicable to the rest.
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Peter Forrest claims that his “Personal Pantheist” conception of God is in agreement with the Stoic pantheism. The traditional interpretation, however, treats the Stoic God as the non-personal universal law. I demonstrate that arguments... more
Peter Forrest claims that his “Personal Pantheist” conception of God is in agreement with the Stoic pantheism. The traditional interpretation, however, treats the Stoic God as the non-personal universal law. I demonstrate that arguments in favor of the personal interpretation typically imply either a personalist or an anthropocentric metaphysical foundation. I also argue that the Stoics were neither personalists nor anthropocentrists, therefore those arguments should be rejected
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Analytic philosophers produced two rival interpretations of Aristotle’s discussion of the tomorrow sea battle (De Int. IX). According to the traditional interpretation, Aristotle claims that the principle of bivalence is not applicable to... more
Analytic philosophers produced two rival interpretations of Aristotle’s discussion of the tomorrow sea battle (De Int. IX). According to the traditional interpretation, Aristotle claims that the principle of bivalence is not applicable to propositions about the contingent future. The alternative interpretation insists that Aristotle does not limit that applicability. The paper suggests an argument in favor of the traditional interpretation, based on the intrinsic connection between semantics of the propositions about future contingents and ontology of the future. We argue that Aristotle followed the open future ontology and therefore could not approve of the bivalence of the propositions about contingent future.
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Classical theists believe that God has foreknowledge, that God gives promises, and that God does not lie. The notion of promise, however, implies that the giver of a promise does not know the future. Consequently, God either pretends to... more
Classical theists believe that God has foreknowledge, that God gives promises, and that God does not lie. The notion of promise, however, implies that the giver of a promise does not know the future. Consequently, God either pretends to give promises, or he does not know the future. It seems to be impossible to find a solution to the problem within the framework of classical theism, which is an argument in favor of open theism.
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Available manuscripts of Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians have a variant reading of Jesus’ words at the Last Supper in 11:24. The longer reading contains “take, eat” while the shorter reading does not. The two readings have a... more
Available manuscripts of Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians have a variant reading of Jesus’ words at the Last Supper in 11:24. The longer reading contains “take, eat” while the shorter reading does not. The two readings have a noticeable difference in meaning. The longer one highlights the individual value of the Eucharist; the shorter version, however, favors its institutional significance. The existence of both readings can be interpreted as a witness to an ideological dynamics in the early church. Depending on which of the two readings is considered prior, the church history would be seen either as an increase of clerical authority, or as an increase of value of the individual.
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The Greek word ‘schesis’ in the works of Gregory Nazianzen has generally been translated as ‘relation’ and interpreted as a programmatic term for his doctrine of Trinitarian relations. Although this may be a valid interpretation of the... more
The Greek word ‘schesis’ in the works of Gregory Nazianzen has generally been translated as ‘relation’ and interpreted as a programmatic term for his doctrine of Trinitarian relations. Although this may be a valid interpretation of the terminology of other 4th century theologians, this is not true of Gregory. His usage of the word ‘schesis’ does not correspond with the traditional Aristotelian or Stoic ways of designating a relation. It denotes a status or a disposition, it may even mean a place in a relation, but it is not the relation itself, and not a disposition towards another. Therefore all the interpretations of Gregory’s teaching on the Trinitarian relations are to be revisited and reformulated more carefully, keeping in mind the peculiarity of his usage of ‘schesis.’
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The paper discusses three approaches to negative theology: of Maimonides, of Wittgenstein, and of Putnam. It demonstrates how for all the three philosophers negative theology is validated not on the theoretical but on practical grounds,... more
The paper discusses three approaches to negative theology: of Maimonides, of Wittgenstein, and of Putnam. It demonstrates how for all the three philosophers negative theology is validated not on the theoretical but on practical grounds, and is justified by the religious life. It reveals the pragmatist features of Maimonides’ philosophy, and mystical tendencies of Putnam’s philosophy.
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Analysis of argumentation that was used in the crucial Christian dogmatic debates reveals two fundamental principles of evaluation of theological theories – the principle of maximal perfection of God, and the principle of maximal... more
Analysis of argumentation that was used in the crucial Christian dogmatic debates reveals two fundamental principles of evaluation of theological theories – the principle of maximal perfection of God, and the principle of maximal salvation, or the "soteriological principle". The former was inherited from the platonic tradition, while the latter is unique for Christian philosophy. In the decisive debates the most influential arguments were based on the primacy of the soteriological principle.
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There are two approaches that currently dominate the studies of patristic philosophy: the teleological approach and the approach of classical history and philology. None of the two approaches aim to reconstruct the philosophical content... more
There are two approaches that currently dominate the studies of patristic philosophy: the teleological
approach and the approach of classical history and philology. None of the two approaches aim to reconstruct the philosophical content and the argumentation of the ancient Christian writers. As an alternative, it is suggested to
apply the analytic approach to the history of patristic philosophy.
approach and the approach of classical history and philology. None of the two approaches aim to reconstruct the philosophical content and the argumentation of the ancient Christian writers. As an alternative, it is suggested to
apply the analytic approach to the history of patristic philosophy.
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The paper discusses the characteristics of the analytic approach to the history of Ancient philosophy, distinguishing it from the more popular approaches or genres. This approach is based on finding out an implicit argumentation and... more
The paper discusses the characteristics of the analytic approach to the history of Ancient philosophy, distinguishing it from the more popular approaches or genres. This approach is based on finding out an implicit argumentation and problems in the philosophical texts, and establishing logical connections between them. The paper also considers the perspectives of application of this approach to the Patristic literature. Besides it shows the necessity of formalization and symbolization in the analytic history of philosophy.
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Gregory of Nazianzus and Boethius build their theoretical models of the Trinitarian relations using the philosophical category of relation. While Gregory interprets relation as a connection between the divine Persons, and introduces two... more
Gregory of Nazianzus and Boethius build their theoretical models of the Trinitarian relations using the philosophical category of relation. While Gregory interprets relation as a connection between the divine Persons, and introduces two kinds of relation, Boethius uses only one relation and locates relation in the Persons themselves. As a result Gregory’s model does not allow an insertion of a relation between the Son and the Holy Spirit, while Boethius’ model does not permit to exclude this relation.
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The paper examines the theoretical structure of the Trinitarian doctrine of Gregory of Nazianzus and his ways of argumentation. Gregory’s prohibition to philosophize about God is interpreted not as a result of his epistemological... more
The paper examines the theoretical structure of the Trinitarian doctrine of Gregory of Nazianzus and his ways of argumentation. Gregory’s prohibition to philosophize about God is interpreted not as a result of his epistemological position, but rather as a rhetorical method. His successful synthesis of values of ancient rationality, classical education, and Christian ideals, requires taking into account the richness of his rhetorical style, in order not to limit our understanding of his teaching by a literal interpretation of separate statements.
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Кандидатская диссертация, 2007 г. (Ph.D. Thesis, 2007)
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The paper discusses the characteristics of the analytic approach to the history of Ancient philosophy, distinguishing it from the more popular approaches or genres. This approach is based on finding out an implicit argumentation and... more
The paper discusses the characteristics of the analytic approach to the history of Ancient philosophy, distinguishing it from the more popular approaches or genres. This approach is based on finding out an implicit argumentation and problems in the philosophical texts, and establishing logical connections between them. The paper also considers the perspectives of application of this approach to the Patristic literature. Besides it shows the necessity of formalization and symbolization in the analytic history of philosophy.