Eugène Khvalkov

This article examines the relationship between the heavenly Kingdom and the earthly imperium in Orthodox theological thought, within the broader framework of the doctrine of the symphony of powers. The approach is that of a theological and historical study that interrogates the scriptural foundations of the state institution. The author demonstrates the absence of direct biblical legitimation of the State before analyzing the ways in which Christianity articulated itself with the various imperial and monarchical forms that have marked its history. The article argues that any assimilation of divine attributes to secular political authority constitutes a deviation from authentic Eastern Orthodox tradition. The main contribution lies in a rigorous theological clarification of the boundaries between divine power and human power, thereby contributing to the debate on the ecclesiological and political foundations of Orthodoxy.

This article examines the question of the eschatological destiny of animals in light of the Hexaemeron of Saint Basil the Great, a fourth-century patristic treatise devoted to the six days of Creation. The study is based on an in-depth textual and theological analysis of this major work of the Cappadocian tradition. The central idea is that Basilian thought offers a coherent and articulated vision of the status of animals in the divine plan, integrating their own nature and their possible participation in the eschatological finality of creation. On the theological and historical level, the article highlights the contemporary relevance of Basil of Caesarea's reflection, showing that his patristic insights on the origin and specificity of animal life resonate with the findings of modern natural sciences, thus opening a fruitful dialogue between Orthodox tradition and current scientific thought.

This article by Eugene Khvalkov examines the compatibility between contemporary scientific theories on evolution and the Orthodox doctrine of creation. Belonging to the field of systematic theological study, it draws on patristic exegesis of the first chapter of Genesis to demonstrate that no fundamental contradiction exists between evolutionism and Orthodox faith. The author first establishes that scientific creationism is a Protestant fundamentalist import foreign to the Orthodox Tradition, before analyzing the interpretations of Saint Augustine and Saint Basil the Great on the Hexaemeron. He shows that the Hebrew notion of yom, the biblical description of the firmament, and the creative activity attributed to matter allow for a non-literalist reading of the creation narrative. The main contribution of the article is to methodologically ground, on the basis of patristic consensus, the principle of independence and non-contradiction between the scientific and theological domains.