Stavros Yangazoglou

This article examines the trinitarian theology of Father Boris Bobrinskoy, a major figure in contemporary Orthodox theology. The study offers a systematic analysis of his doctrinal thought, seeking to identify the fundamental articulations between trinitarian life, pneumatology, and ecclesiology in his work. The central idea is that Bobrinskoy's reflection on the Trinity does not constitute an abstract speculative treatise, but is rooted in the liturgical and sacramental experience of the Church. The theological contribution of the article lies in highlighting the internal coherence of a thought that articulates the communion of divine persons with the life of the Church, thereby helping to clarify Bobrinskoy's place in the renewal of Orthodox trinitarian theology in the twentieth century and its dialogue with the patristic tradition.

This article examines the relationship between eucharistic ecclesiology and monastic spirituality within contemporary Orthodox theology. Situated within a systematic theological study approach, it analyzes the major contributions of thinkers such as John Zizioulas and Christos Yannaras, who renewed Orthodox thought during the twentieth century. The central idea is that the Eucharist constitutes the ontological foundation of ecclesial life and of the conception of the human person, while the ascetic and philocalic tradition offers an ethical framework irreducible to any individualistic moralism. The theological contribution of the article lies in highlighting a complementarity between eucharistic ecclesiology and monastic heritage, making it possible to move beyond the pitfalls of a dogmatic theology disconnected from spiritual practice and to restore to ecclesial morality its properly theological foundations.

This article focuses on the pneumatic Christology developed by John Zizioulas, Metropolitan of Pergamon, one of the major figures of contemporary Orthodox theology. Stavros Yangazoglou offers a synthetic study of a historical and systematic nature, tracing the broad outlines of Zizioulasian thought. The central idea is that Zizioulas sought to overcome a structural tension in modern Orthodox ecclesiology, torn between a Christological approach privileging history and a pneumatological approach oriented toward eschatology. His response consists in articulating Christology and pneumatology in a relationship of mutual conditioning: it is through the Holy Spirit that Christ is present in the Church as a corporate person, that is, as a body gathering a multitude of members. The theological contribution of the article lies in highlighting this synthesis as a decisive contribution to the renewal of contemporary Orthodox ecclesiology.

This article examines the relationship between theological discourse and ecclesial experience through the lens of the fourteenth-century Hesychast controversy. The study adopts a historical and dogmatic approach, taking as its central object the thought of Gregory Palamas and his contribution to defining the foundations of Orthodox theology. The main argument put forward is that theological discourse does not constitute an autonomous and closed system, but necessarily proceeds from the concrete life of the ecclesial community and the lived experience of divine grace. The contribution of the article lies in the articulation between scholarly theology and mystical theology: dogmatic formulation is presented therein as the putting into words of an authentic spiritual experience, which gives the Hesychast controversy an epistemological significance that extends beyond the purely historical framework of the fourteenth century.

This article by Stavros Yangazoglou examines the poetic and aesthetic contribution of Paul Evdokimov to contemporary Orthodox theology. Through an analytical study of the Russian Orthodox theologian's work, the author shows how Evdokimov develops an original synthesis between the Eastern patristic tradition, Russian religious philosophy, and contemporary Western thought. The central idea is that beauty constitutes a fundamental theological category: personalized in Christ and transmitted by the Holy Spirit, it structures a "poetic theology" inseparable from the eucharistic and liturgical experience. Yangazoglou highlights Evdokimov's postmodern contribution, which goes beyond a literal return to the Fathers in order to recover their creative attitude, converts Bulgakov's sophiology into a theology of divine beauty, and proposes a response to contemporary nihilism through an eschatology in act, where culture, art, and holiness converge toward the transfiguration of the created world.

This article by Stavros Yangazoglou offers a systematic study of the soteriology of Saint Gregory Palamas, a fourteenth-century Byzantine theologian and defender of hesychasm. Drawing on the homilies and doctrinal writings of the holy Archbishop of Thessalonica, the author analyzes the anthropological, soteriological, and theological foundations of the Incarnation in his thought. The central idea is that salvation cannot be reduced to the redemption of Adamic sin: it constitutes the fulfillment of a pre-eternal divine plan aimed at the union of the created and the uncreated. The Incarnation of the Word, motivated by divine love and justice, makes possible the deification of humanity, which extends into the sacramental and ascetic life of the Church. The contribution of the article is to show that Palamite theology transcends the Western scholastic schema of "Fall-Redemption" by situating soteriology within a broader Christology oriented toward the Kingdom of God.