Orthodox Assessment of Environmental Problems

Holy Scripture and the Quest for Authority at the End of the Middle Ages

Анализируется научное описание 300 рукописных книг из собрания Е.Е. Егорова, подготовленное сотрудником Российской государственной библиотеки Т.В. Анисимовой. Собрание, хранящееся в отделе рукописей (ф. 98), имеет исключительную ценность для изучения книжной культуры средневековой Руси. Рассмотрены структура и методика описания, информативность представленных сведений. Показано, как благодаря тщательной работе археографа могут быть уточнены или даже изменены представления о датировке или происхождении рукописных книг собрания. Отмечен высокий профессиональный уровень издания, выполненного с опорой на результаты актуальных научных исследований. The review is devoted to the scientific description of manuscripts from the collection of E.E. Egorov, prepared by T.V. Anisimova, an employee of the Russian State Library. The three published volumes cover the first 300 manuscripts (100 in each volume) of a collection that includes over 2000 items and is of exceptional value for the study of the book culture of medieval Rus’. The bulk of the described handwritten books date back to the 15th–17th centuries. These are liturgical books and ecclesiastical writings (homilies, sermons, commentaries on holy scriptures, hagiographies of saints), the content of which is closely related to the annual liturgical cycle. Many of the books are remarkable for their decoration (the publication is accompanied by colored illustrations). The structure of the description includes elements such as dating by watermarks of paper, characteristics of the book block, handwriting, binding, ornamental features, a detailed list of works included in a book or of parts of one work, inscriptions and owner’s notes, information about preservation, bibliography of works dedicated to either the study of the described handwritten book, or the works included in it. Thanks to the compiler’s consistent use of modern methods of archaeographic description, the information presented in the catalogue is extremely informative. Thus, taking all the watermarks of a manuscript into account helps to correct its research dating in some cases. A distinctive feature of the catalogue is its thorough research component: the catalogue contains a lot of specific archaeographic and bibliological information identified during the work on it, which will be useful to manuscript researchers. Some of these results are reflected in the scientific publications of T.V. Anisimova. The catalogue by itself accumulates current results of the collection’s manuscripts studies by a wide range of specialists. The catalogue not only testifies to the high professional level of its creator, but clearly demonstrates the wide capabilities and methods of modern archaeography in determining the composition, origin and existence of manuscripts.

The article actualizes the problem of registration in a separate scientific field of teaching the bases of the Orthodox Faith, and as part of it - the methodology of working with hagiographic literature. The purpose of the proposed article is the justification of the pedagogical aspect of working with hagiographic literature, with its emphasis on the semantic, ideological framework of hagiography to solve problems of spiritual and moral development and education of students in the lessons of the basics of the Orthodox Faith. Materials and methods. The leading research methods were the analysis and synthesis of information from contemporary scientific articles, historical and pedagogical literature, normative documents in the field of education, school textbooks; comparison of scientific ideas and concepts, pedagogical experience of the past and the present. Results. The article substantiates the importance of hagiographic literature for solving the problem of spiritual and moral development and education of schoolchildren. The authors of the article proceed from the fact that the task requires at the first stage of its solution the formation of value representations of students, which have a high degree of abstraction, uncertainty in the wording of the relevant concepts. These problems can be solved by hagiographic literature, illustrating in visual and verbal form spiritual and moral qualities of personality, values which are difficult to define precisely, but whose manifestations can be observed through thoughtful reading and analysis of hagiographic literature. The authors of the article offer readers an analysis of pre-revolutionary editions of hagiographic literature for children and focus on the diversity of modern books on the lives of saints, as well as features of the modern presentation of hagiographic text that complicates the work of the teacher and requires him to carefully select books in accordance with the tasks, age and individual characteristics of children. Also the authors offer a sequence and the maintenance of stages of work with hagiographic literature at a lesson with the purpose of realization of a knowledge component, the emphasis on relevance and simultaneously complexity of work on a conclusion of a moral conclusion from the read hagiography is made. Conclusions. The proposed ideas about the importance of hagiographic literature for the formation of ideas about the spiritual and moral qualities of personality and the value foundations of Christianity can be put into the development of a separate topic of scientific research related to the study of hagiographic literature in the pedagogical aspect. To do this you must, firstly, to explore the moral meanings, worldview framework of the lives of saints, and secondly, to develop a method to work with these meanings and worldview attitudes consistent with age, social experience of children and their experience of church life, establishing interdisciplinary links and rationally linking the study of hagiography with other subjects of the school curriculum

Having moved from Protestantism to Orthodoxy at a conscious age, David Bradshaw begins to scrupulously explore the Orthodox Church multifaceted teachings. The theological and philosophical categories of mind and heart are one of the aspects of church doctrine. Philosopher indicates that his research interest is focused on understanding the parallels and the division between the Greek-speaking (Eastern) and Latin-speaking (Western) branches of Christianity, as well as between the three great monotheistic traditions of the Middle Ages — Christian, Jewish and Islamic. The book ‘Aristotle in East and West: Metaphysics and the Division of the Christian World’ (2004) ‘examines these East-West differences through the lens of ‘energeia,’ a Greek term lying at the root of both the concept of the divine energies (in the East) and that of God as pure act (in the West)’ [30]. This book was translated into Russian in 2012. The philosopher’s subsequent works continued this comparative study in the context of such theological issues as Divine freedom, time and eternity, predestination and election, etc. In the study ‘Mind and Heart in Understanding the Christian East and West’ David Bradshaw attempts to consider the paradigms of Eastern and Western understanding of mind and heart, starting from their common origins in biblical and classical antiquity. Special attention is paid to the psychosomatic holism of the biblical perception of environment. The philosopher defines it as both the central core and one of the conditions for the interaction of mind and heart in the position of the Eastern Christian Church. Speaking about the interpretation of the mind and heart in the texts of the West and the East, David Bradshaw emphasizes the importance of the connotative field of their perception, and the different interpretation of concepts determines the level of their relevance. Actualizing the position of Eastern Christianity in relation to the bodily state of man, David Bradshaw speaks about the internal dependence of holism on the concept of ontological dualism of mind and heart, which is very unexpected from the traditional Western philosophy’s point of view. Nevertheless, based on the logic of the development of Eastern Christian theological thought, such dependence seems consistent and convincing. Moreover, the author concludes his reflection saying: ‘…it seems both coherent and plausible, at least given Christian presuppositions; and it offers real hope that the mind and the heart need not always stand apart, but can in fact be reunited.’ Since the text of David Bradshaw’s paper uses a series of quotations from Holy Scripture and patristic writings as an illustration, we decided to follow the Old and New Testaments in Synodal Translation. While translating other texts we use existing translations into Russian. References to the used publications are noted in the comments.

Introduction. In the second half of the 20th century, radical changes occurred in humanity’s attitude toward the body. Unlike the classical Christian tradition, which opposed the bodyas the source of sin-to the spirit, postmodern thinkers advanced the thesis of the body as an object of consumption. In the works of one of the most prominent representatives of postmodernism, Jean Baudrillard, an inversion of key concepts related to corporeality takes place. This transformation raises the question of the relationship between the concept of the body in Baudrillard’s philosophy and in the Christian tradition. The present article aims to identify the essence of these philosophical inversions. Content. The study reveals how Baudrillard’s philosophy inverts the Christian understanding of the body. The theoretical basis of the research consists of Baudrillard’s works as well as Christian philosophical and theological sources (the Holy Scripture, Patristic writings, and works of 21st-century theologians) that summarize Christianity’s view of the nature and purpose of the body. Methodologically, the research combines analytical and conceptual-logical approaches with the method of comparative analysis. Conclusions. Four levels of philosophical inversion of the concept of “body” are identified in the context of Baudrillard’s philosophical framework: anthropological (the substitution of the soul by the body), ontological (the loss of a transcendent foundation and the transformation of the body into a sign), eschatological (the replacement of the hope for resurrection by the project of self-salvation of the body), and ethical (the shift from ascetic norm to the duty of enjoyment). The results of the theoretical analysis present a comprehensive comparison of Christian and postmodern conceptions of corporeality, revealing their structural differences. They also provide a foundation for further studies in the philosophy of the body and for developing the concept of a “new ethics of corporeality”.

The aim of this study is to review the multi-volume scientific publications and monographs (single and collective) from 1993-2021 that examine the sacred art of the Roman Catholic Church in Ukrainian territories. The methodology and specifics of the main works are clarified, and problematic issues and difficulties encountered by researchers during their work are identified. Methodology. The study employs an integrated approach that utilises scientific analysis methods such as systematisation and generalisation. It also combines historical, cultural, art historical, and theological methods. This approach is appropriate, considering the liturgical purpose of sacred art and the requirements set by the Catholic Church based on the Holy Scriptures. Research results. A review of scientific works in multi-volume publications, as well as individual monographs, suggests that the sacred art of the Roman Catholic Church in Western Ukraine was formed over many centuries. Researchers have studied over 500 shrines and tens of thousands of liturgical items of significant historical, cultural, and artistic value. Renowned scholars, including Jan K. Ostrowski, A. Betlej, T. Zaucha, K. Brzezina, P. Krasny, R. Quirini-Poplawski, J. Petrus, S. Lenartowicz, M. Biernat, M. Walczak, J. Skrabski, M. Kurzej, R. Nesteruw, T. Kukiz, and others (Polish edition), M. Buchek, I. Sedelnyk (Polish, Ukrainian edition), D. Antoniuk (Ukrainian edition), and others, conducted a comprehensive study, inventory, and attribution of these monuments. Scientific novelty. The obtained results highlight the challenges of studying sacred art monuments in Ukraine during the specified period. The specifics and methodology used by Ukrainian and foreign scholars in scientific research are identified through multi-volume scientific publications and monographs (individual and collective). Recommendations. Further historical, cultural, and art historical research is required to complement previous publications and enhance our understanding of the specifics of sacred art, particularly painting. This research will also reveal the methodology and technology used in creating these monuments. It is crucial to preserve these sacred monuments from destruction, especially during the period of military invasion by the Russian Federation since 24 February 2022.

The aim of this study is to review the multi-volume scientific publications and monographs (single and collective) from 1993-2021 that examine the sacred art of the Roman Catholic Church in Ukrainian territories. The methodology and specifics of the main works are clarified, and problematic issues and difficulties encountered by researchers during their work are identified. Methodology. The study employs an integrated approach that utilises scientific analysis methods such as systematisation and generalisation. It also combines historical, cultural, art historical, and theological methods. This approach is appropriate, considering the liturgical purpose of sacred art and the requirements set by the Catholic Church based on the Holy Scriptures. Research results. A review of scientific works in multi-volume publications, as well as individual monographs, suggests that the sacred art of the Roman Catholic Church in Western Ukraine was formed over many centuries. Researchers have studied over 500 shrines and tens of thousands of liturgical items of significant historical, cultural, and artistic value. Renowned scholars, including Jan K. Ostrowski, A. Betlej, T. Zaucha, K. Brzezina, P. Krasny, R. Quirini-Poplawski, J. Petrus, S. Lenartowicz, M. Biernat, M. Walczak, J. Skrabski, M. Kurzej, R. Nesteruw, T. Kukiz, and others (Polish edition), M. Buchek, I. Sedelnyk (Polish, Ukrainian edition), D. Antoniuk (Ukrainian edition), and others, conducted a comprehensive study, inventory, and attribution of these monuments. Scientific novelty. The obtained results highlight the challenges of studying sacred art monuments in Ukraine during the specified period. The specifics and methodology used by Ukrainian and foreign scholars in scientific research are identified through multi-volume scientific publications and monographs (individual and collective). Recommendations. Further historical, cultural, and art historical research is required to complement previous publications and enhance our understanding of the specifics of sacred art, particularly painting. This research will also reveal the methodology and technology used in creating these monuments. It is crucial to preserve these sacred monuments from destruction, especially during the period of military invasion by the Russian Federation since 24 February 2022

Quran is Muslims’ Holy Scripture and came in an environment in which humans were bewildered and in a bias and ignorance having a culture composed of correct and incorrect elements. This environment of ignorance covered various tribes and different cultures and traditions. Those people whom were governed by a certain tribal system had a firm social and belief foundations. To understand the vision of Quran toward Arab’s ignorance culture, the present work is performed in social category. Quran’s vision in this regard can be classified into three classes: reject, modulation and confirmation of that culture. Research method is documentary and library which studies Quran’s vision using interpretations. Eight indices of Arab’s ignorance culture and Quran’s vision toward them are “covenant” confirmed by Quran, “slavery and group nemesis” modulated by Quran, “women in age of ignorance”, “burying girls”, “Arab’s food”, “Azlam and Meisar” and “wine” rejected by Quran.

The article is devoted to the study of domestic and foreign trends in environmental justice. To solve the set goal, the following research methods were used, in particular: the method of scientific observation is to form the topic and purpose of the research; comparative legal method in the study of foreign experience of environmental justice; logical method – for theoretical generalization and formulation of research conclusions. The main models of environmental justice that exist in the world include such as consideration of environmental cases by courts of general jurisdiction, consideration of environmental cases by judges specializing in environmental issues or specialized environmental divisions of courts, consideration of environmental cases by specialized environmental courts. Environmental courts, as specialized judicial authorities, deal with the resolution of environmental conflicts and the protection of the environment and function in particular in countries that are members of the European Union, such as Sweden and Austria. In Ukraine, environmental justice is carried out in the form of civil, economic, administrative and criminal proceedings. At the same time, civil, economic, administrative and criminal cases in the environmental sphere differ among themselves in terms of the type of offense, the subject of the dispute, the composition of subjects, etc. Judicial practice in the environmental sphere covers a wide range of environmental relations, in particular on atmospheric air protection, land protection and use of land resources, subsoil protection and use of minerals, protection of forests and use of forest resources, protection and use of territories and objects of the nature reserve fund, access to environmental information, waste management, etc. Environmental justice in Ukraine may be limited to the functioning of certain specialized environmental units in courts, or involve the formation of a system of specialized environmental courts throughout the country, including a higher specialized court. At the same time, the implementation of environmental justice will be more or less time-consuming and costly (depending on the model chosen for implementation).

The article presents the results of the authors’ content analysis of the Upbringing Syllabi of four universities in Penza. Methodology and research methods: the theological method, the Orthodox approach to upbringing, methods of qualitative and quantitative analysis of documents. The relevance of the research lies in the need to overcome crisis trends in the spiritual and moral sphere of modern Russian society. The problem of the research is the blurring of the ideals, goals and objectives of spiritual and moral education in secular universities, one of the ways to overcome which is to integrate elements of the Orthodox approach into this area of educational activity of universities. The subject of the research is the spiritual and moral education implemented in Penza universities. The research material was provided by Upbringing Syllabi posted on the official websites of educational organizations of higher education. The sample included the programs of the following universities: Penza State University, Penza State Technological University, Penza State Agrarian University and Penza State University of Architecture and Construction. The novelty of the research consists in analyzing and generalizing the experience of organizing spiritual and moral education in the higher education system in Penza through the analysis of Upbringing Syllabi.

The purpose of the research: This research builds upon the author’s previous work focused on exploring the reflection of Mongolian imperial ideology in sources from various countries that were influenced to varying degrees by the Mongolian expansion during the 13th and 14th centuries. The objective is to search for and systematically categorize the manifestations of Mongol ”world-organizing” ideas within Russian sources. Research materials: The primary sources for this study were the oldest Russian chronicles, including the Laurentian, First Novgorod, and Hypatian chroniclew, along with several others. Valuable information was also extracted from collections of yarlyqs (edicts) from Mongol khans to Russian metropolitans, hagiographic literature, and religious records. Comparative materials from Eastern and European sources were utilized to elucidate the identified elements of Mongolian ideology. The works of both Russian and foreign historians, specializing in Russian and Mongolian history, were extensively referenced. The results of the research and scientific novelty: This research reaffirms conclusions made by other experts regarding the limited interest among Russian scribes in the material and spiritual culture of the Mongols. Ideological aspects of Mongolian power are scarcely documented in Russian sources, although in some instances, they can be reasonably reconstructed. The foundations of Mongolian ”universalism,” such as the concept of Eternal Heaven, the deification of Genghis Khan, and the Great Yasa attributed to him, have left traces in chronicles and other historical sources. Russian sources also provide supplementary information highlighting Mongolian “imperialism,” including the Mongol Empire’s system of titles, interactions between the Ulus of Jochi and Karakorum, and the steppe rituals that princes were compelled to perform within the Horde. Overall, Russian materials do not support the notion that the Mongols aimed to conquer ”the whole world.”

This article deals with the development of environmental and ecological issues in Germany since the 1970s, and how these issues are represented in works of street art since the beginning of the development of modern graffiti, and later street art, in Germany. The purpose of this research is to identify differences in the ecological and environmental issues in works of graffiti and street art from the 1970s to present day in Germany. This has been done by examining general themes of environmental and ecological issues in graffiti and street art and by studying some of the specific examples of artwork, using research methods by visual analysis based on study “Reading Images: The Grammar of Visual Design” by Gunther Kress and Theo van Leeuwen, and visual analysis of iconography and iconology, described by Marion G. Müller in “The SAGE Handbook of Visual Research Methods” by Eric Margolis and Luc Pauwels. The first phase of the research involves an overview of the socio- political background of the ecological and environmental issues in Germany since the 1970s, as well as development of modern graffiti and street art in Germany in the context of ecology and environment, using the method of iconology. The second phase involves examining physical examples of graffiti and street art in Germany. The final phase deals with regional differences reflected in artists’ work in Germany. This article will provide general insights in graffiti and street art in Germany and it will explore how German artists tackle the environmental and ecological issues in their works.

The article contains the results of the authors’ theological understanding of the phenomenon of social networks as a modern factor in the socialization of adolescents. Methodology and research methods: the Orthodox approach to education, the theological method, the method of secondary data analysis. The relevance of the study lies in the popularity of social networks among teenagers and their intense influence on adolescents’ spiritual and moral development. The significance of the research topic is also explained by the importance of the adolescence period for people’ spiritual and moral development. According to statistics from Mediascope in 2025, 97% of teenagers aged 12 to 17 use the Internet every day, and a fourth of their time on the global web is devoted to social media. Social networks can serve both as a means of spiritual and moral development of teenagers, which means that they are introduced to the Gospel law, and as a tool to distance them from God and lead to spiritual and moral degradation. Such figures indicate the importance of the influence of social networks on teenagers, and the duality of their influence makes it important to evaluate and comprehend them from the standpoint of Orthodox theology. The problem of the study is that, despite the existence of many opportunities for the positive influence of social networks on the development of adolescents’ spiritual and moral spheres, in most cases, due to unreasonable and uncontrolled use, their influence turns out to be negative. The subject of the research is the possibilities of positive impact and the risks of negative influence of social networks on the spiritual and moral spheres of adolescents. The research material is the current empirical data on the use of social networks by modern adolescents. The novelty of the research lies in the fact that the article provides theological assessment of the benefits and risks of the impact of social networks on the spiritual and moral development of adolescents.

The primitive purity of the early Church soon yielded to a Church hierarchy. In those early times, before the New Testament was admitted to equal canonical authority with the Old, the Church became the supreme authority and the Bible was subordinate. After the incorporation of the New Testament into the Bible, the Scriptures and the Church appear to be coördinate authority in the patristic writings of that period. During the Middle Ages the Church grew rapidly in political power and the influence of the Scriptures waned accordingly, so that Dante complains of the way in which not merely creeds and fathers but canon law and the decretals were studied instead of the gospels. It is true that pious people, ever since the days of Pentecost, had believed that “the inward spiritual facts of man's religious experience were of infinitely more value than their expression in stereotyped forms recognized by the Church,” and that, too, “ in such a solemn thing as the forgiveness of sin man could go to God directly without human mediation.” These pious souls had found the pardon they sought, but the good majority were under the dominion of the Church, which at last degraded the meaning of “spiritual ” so that it signified mere ritualistic service, and “thrust itself between God and the worshipper, and proclaimed that no man could draw near to God save through its appointed ways of approach. Confession was to be made to God through the priest; God spoke pardon only in the priest's absolution. When Luther attacked indulgences in the way he did he struck at the whole system.” After the Reformation a reaction set in. New and better translations of the Bible were made, and the Word became accessible to every-body. The successors of the Reformers emphasized “the verbal inspiration of the Scripture and its infallible authority (more) than had been done for the most part by the first Reformers, Luther and Calvin and their contemporaries, who never seemed to have sanctioned the famous dictum of Chillingworth, ‘the Bible, and the Bible only, is the religion of the Protestants.‘” The Reformers took the Holy Scriptures, because they are the divine word, and require no further supplement from tradition and custom, merely as the rule and canon of their faith. Traditions, dogmas, ordinances established by the Church, were null and void. This freedom of the religious conscience and the Holy Scriptures as the living, pure source of religion brought a rich blessing to Christians. Religion was elevated above that sphere in which mere morality and outer ordinance were the determining principles, and raised man to a new spiritual life. The real motive principle of this new life is justification by faith.

Cultivating a Constituency for Conservation