INSTITUTE FOR STUDIES IN EASTERN CHRISTIANITY
AT UNION THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK
ENGAGING ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY
WITH TODAY'S WORLD
INSTITUTE FOR STUDIES IN EASTERN CHRISTIANITY
AT UNION THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK
ENGAGING ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY WITH TODAY'S WORLD.
The Institute for Studies in Eastern Christianity (ISEC) of Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York, with the blessing of Bishop Jerome (Shaw), is happy to announce the upcoming fall 2024 conference on the theme of
HESYCHASM: PHILOSOPHY, PRACTICE AND MODERNITY
The Conference will be held online on Saturday, Dec 14th, 2024.
Contemplative prayer is one of the key aspects of Christian Orthodoxy. Normally understood as part and parcel of monastic spirituality, the tradition of silent prayer initially known as prayer of the heart or noetic prayer, has recently moved beyond the limits of monastic compounds, thus penetrating social and political spheres of life. It is nowadays practiced by various lay communities all around the globe. Yet, its history was not uncontroversial. This tradition has been often subject to contention. This conference aims to explicate its historical and conceptual underpinnings along with its role in communal well-being.
We call on scholars, religious leaders, lay people and social activists to offer academic papers related to the conference theme. Please email us a short abstract (200 words), including your email address and mailing address, before November 15, 2024.
A half-day conference (Dec 14th: 8:00am – 3:00pm EST) will focus on the various ways the Eastern Orthodox Churches, over past centuries and in recent times, have theologized on the significance of hesychastic practices and on their ramifications for well-being. This conference will thus address the central topics of spirituality, liturgical studies, asceticism, ethics, and canon law.
The Rev. Dr. Conrad Fischer
Chair, Institute for Studies in Eastern Christianity (ISEC)
Please email your submission to:
Peace, tranquility, and calm, both physical and mental, are necessary is centered on eirenic topics. We constantly pray and supplicate for peace. Yet, the real life of human beings is often deprived of peace. Ongoing military clashes, revolutions, rebellions, and civil unrest are common phenomena of our civilization. Hence, peace is not to be easily found on earth.
Once this exterior peace is found, we rejoice. Yet, the exterior calm is only part of the whole blessed life. The enemy can also approach us from within, bypassing the body and infesting the soul through corrupted logoi.
Even the most distinguished spiritual athletes, i.e., the ascetic monks, thus engage in a continuous contest with the corrupted logoi, induced by malignant spiritual powers, to obtain peace. Hence, a dispassionate state, a tranquil and blessed contemplative repose, is the eschatological expectation and hope for us.
Even more to this: as soon as we give up our spiritual contest, as soon as we lose ground, we face spiritual death. The questions of this conference are about the meaning of peace, calm, and tranquility; about the legitimacy of violent response to corrupted societal structures from the Orthodox perspective; about violence in general; about our theological and metaphysical apprehension of peace and war; and about our spiritual contest to achieve true peace and harmony with the neighbor in and through God.
The Rev. Dr. Conrad Fischer
Chair, Institute for Studies in Eastern Christianity (ISEC)
