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8/6/2019 Hcgost Patsavos Simion Nobletask

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1989 & 2008What Have We Learned?

E Marian Gh. Simion, BTI A D

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In terms of critical comments over the contents of Professor Patsavosbook, while the historical background is rather sparse in terms of offeringcorrelations with political and social events, speculative interpretationis purposely elusive perhaps in an attempt to highlight the dominantImitatio Cristi principle of conformity to the original narrative. In fact, theabsence of historicity reects also the wider Orthodox understanding of history as kairos rather than chronos (cyclical rather than linear ), where,in a theological sense, history no longer represents a sequence of linearevents geared towards the fulllment of a prophecy, as the messianicprophecy of salvation has been fullled.

Another important aspect in need of clarication is the understandingof Canon Law in the Or thodox Church something that Professor Patsavoshas made a life time commitment in his work as an academic and Churchconsultant. In Orthodox Christianity, Canon Law should not be understoodin a Hobbian sense, as laws dominated by the power principle, but asfunctional guidelines, meant to serve as educational and pastoral tools,crucial on ones path towards salvation. This is because in EasternChristianity the spirit of law and justice is restorative in nature, in linewith the spirit of Gospel and the thinking of the prominent Roman juristssuch as Celsus (+129AD) and Ulpianus (170-228AD) (Justinian, Institutes, I,I,3: Digest, I, I, 10 ). As a result, lawbreaking in the Orthodox Canon Lawis viewed in clinical terms, as a reection of human weakness, rather thanas a deliberate behavior contrary to commonly accepted standards.

In conclusion, A Noble Task (1 Timothy 3:1) is a book written witha prolic sensibility a trait easily found in the personality of the authorfor those who know him personally. For an Orthodox Christian, wishing tojoin the clergy, this book serves as a key refreshing guide, while for a non-Orthodox or non-Christian, A Noble Task is a magnicent compendiumthat denes what the Orthodox Church expects from its clergy.

A N OBLE T ASK : Entry into the Clergy in the First Five Centuries

1989 and 2008 represent two landmarks in history,pointing to the collapse of two extreme ideologies: Sovietcommunism and laissez-faire capitalism as they bothfailed the historical test of credibility. In 1989 communismfailed not because it was not strongly implemented (asall communist regimes were totalitarian in nature), butbecause of deliberate ideological mistakes related toprivate property. On the same token, in 2008, the laissez-

faire capitalism failed because of the misguided ideologicalclaim that markets do best when left alone. This claim ledto deregulations on the nancial sector, which led to thelowering of interest rates, thus allowing unprecedentedlevels of liquidity, only on the grounds of pure marketspeculation. (cf. Altman, Roger C. The Great Crash, 2008A Geopolitical Setback for the West in Foreign Affairs(Jan-Feb. 2009.) The collapse of laissez-faire capitalismwas visible not only in the crush of Lehman Brothers, butalso at the polls in November 2008, and more so throughthe monumental changes in public policy, which ironicallyproved that we privatized gains and nationalized losses,deecting losses mainly on the poor and the middle class.

The question is what have we learned, particularly asreligious educators?

Perhaps the more simplistic answer is that extremesare always harmful and prone to failure. Therefore, it is inthis climate of uncertainties that the missions of the BTIschools should become more acute in terms of allowingreligion to serve the collective good. Yet, in order forinstitutions providing religious education to succeed, theyneed to increase mutual cooperation, and expand theirvision through functional complexity that involves consortiasuch as the BTI. The contents of this current issue of theBulletin attempts to make this case. This is because, as

the ATS Executive Director, Daniel O. Aleshire, emphasizedin his BTI 40 th Anniversary lecture, [t]he future will bemultidirectional, and schools will reect more varied andvariegated educational forms than they do now. Increasein cooperation among BTI schools is further expressed inthe listing of the new faculty publications, through bookreviews written by colleagues from the BTI schools, aswell as by raising questions related to pragmatic use of theological education, such as in the interview with RamiG. Khouri. It is through collaboration that theological

suspicion decreases across confessional lines, and newfriendships are created. Cooperation not only assists schoolsin bypassing current scal complexities, but does serviceto the collective good. Theological education throughconsortia as the BTI, have and will remain motivated bysustainable educational vision through common programswhich expand opportunities for the students in allschools.

In conclusion, what we should probably learn from theevents of 1989 and 2008 is that no ideology survives unlessit is based on a collaboration anchored on the principlesof social justice such as equity, honesty, and compassion.In fact, a Roman jurist, Uplianus (170-228AD), is known forhaving said that, the precepts of justice are these: to livehonestly, to harm no one, and to give everyone his dues.