Tarek Mitri

This article by Tarek Mitri offers a theological and ecclesiological reflection on Orthodox identity at the dawn of the third millennium. Drawing on the Johannine promise of the Spirit of truth, the author adopts a meditative and analytical approach to examine the challenges that globalization, nationalism and communitarianism place on the Orthodox Churches. The central idea is that identity-based fear leads Orthodoxy toward a sterile withdrawal, whereas faithfulness to the Holy Spirit demands openness and boldness. The article sheds particular light through the lens of the Church of Antioch, whose historical vocation of plurality and dialogue — with non-Chalcedonians, Catholics and Protestants — is presented as a relevant model for rethinking Orthodox identity in a changing world.

This article by Tarek Mitri, a Lebanese specialist in the Christian and Muslim Arab world, offers a critical analysis of the Islamist phenomenon in the context of Western fears regarding Islam. Adopting both a sociological and political approach, the author rigorously distinguishes between Islam, Islamism and fundamentalism, notions that are frequently conflated in the European public debate. He shows that Islamism is a modern movement, born out of the legitimacy crisis of postcolonial states and the failure of secular nationalisms, and not an archaic resurgence. The article examines its two main strategies — the conquest of the state or the gradual Islamisation of society — as well as its internal contradictions. On the theological level, Mitri highlights the attempts at reinterpretation of the Shari'ah and the Dhimmah within the Islamist movement itself, opening up prospects for interreligious dialogue and coexistence between Christians and Muslims.