"Real wars always begin with culture wars." Theologian Aristotle Papanikolaou discusses Eastern Orthodox perspectives on war and violence; the impact of Communism on Eastern Orthodox theology; the complicated ecclesial structures of Eastern Orthodoxy, where bishops, patriarchs, and nation-states interact in unpredictable ways; he reflects on Eastern Orthodoxy in Russia and Ukraine, the ways Christianity is enmeshed and caught up in the authoritarian, nationalist regime under Putin, and the idea of  "Russkii Mir" (the Russian world), which has come to motivate and justify a great deal of violence and aggression in the name of peace and unity.

About

Aristotle Papanikolaou is Professor of Theology and the Archbishop Demetrios Chair in Orthodox Theology and Culture at Fordham University. He co-directs the Orthodox Christian Studies Center, and is author of The Mystical as Political: Democracy and Non-Radical Orthodoxy and has edited several volumes of Eastern Orthodox theological and political perspectives.

Show Notes

• The long, complicated relationship between Eastern Orthodoxy and Communism in the former Soviet Union
• David Bentley Hart on Orthodoxy and Communism (NYT article)
• Eastern Orthodoxy on the ethics of war (book: Orthodox Christian Perspectives on War)
• What's a patriarch? What's a patriarchate?
• What does that mean for autonomy and power?
• How does Ukraine factor in Orthodox patriarchates?
• Autocephalous Ukrainian Church
• 2022 Sunday of Forgiveness sermon. Kirill states: Russia promotes traditional values, Ukraine led astray by western liberals and Nazis.
• How does theology function in this conversation?
• "Russkii Mir" as a political idea: we're one people with a common heritage
• "To be Russian meant to be Orthodox."
• Russian "Democracy"
• Heresy of "Russkii Mir"
• "A God given mission to save Ukrainians from themselves."
• Theology of History
• Formal and Material levels
• Christian faith is a trans-national faith
• Greece: "So in your country, are you Orthodox?"
• Saving Ukrainians
• Long-term implications
• Dynamics within Orthodox Church
• The hope for reconciliation: "that will take decades in my opinion"
• Culture wars
• Visit Public Orthodoxy online
• Visit Fordham's Orthodox Christian Studies Center

Production Notes

• This podcast featured theologians Aristotle Papanikolaou and Ryan McAnnally-Linz
• Edited and Produced by Evan Rosa
• Hosted by Evan Rosa
• Image Credit: An Orthodox church in Malyn, Ukraine, northwest of Kyiv, destroyed by Russian warplanes. Miguel A Lopes/EPA, via Shutterstock
• A Production of the Yale Center for Faith & Culture at Yale Divinity School https://faith.yale.edu/about
• Support For the Life of the World podcast by giving to the Yale Center for Faith & Culture: https://faith.yale.edu/give