Divine Essence and Divine Energies : Ecumenical Reflections on the Presence of God in Eastern Orthodoxy

A composite book of essays from ten scholars, Divine Essence and Divine Energies provides a rich repository of diverse opinion about the essence-energy distinction in Orthodox Christianity - a doctrine which lies at the heart of the often-fraught fault line between East and West, and which, in this book, inspires a lively dialogue between the contributors. The contents of the book revolve around several key questions: In what way were the Aristotelian concepts of ousia and energeia used by the Church Fathers, and to what extent were their meanings modified in the light of the Christological and Trinitarian doctrines? What theological function does the essence-energy distinction fulfil in Eastern Orthodoxy with respect to theology, anthropology, and the doctrine of creation? What are the differences and similarities between the notions of divine presence and participation in seminal Christian writings, and what is the relationship between the essence-energy distinction and Western ideas of divine presence? A valuable addition to the dialogue between Eastern and Western Christianity, this book will be of great interest to any reader seeking a rigorously academic insight into the wealth of scholarly opinion regarding the essence-energy distinction. A collection of philosophical and theological papers examining the way that the presence and knowledge of the Christian God is understood in the West and the East. (James Clarke & Co 2012) Acknowledgements Contents Introduction - Beyond Agnosticism and Pantheism: Christoph Schneider: Chapter 1 - The Concept of the Divine Energies: David Bradshaw Chapter 2 - St. Gregory Palamas as the Response of Orthodox Mystical Theology to (Neo-) Platonist and Aristotelian Metaphysics: Constantinos Athanasopoulos Chapter 3 - Pancreation Lost: The Fall of Theology: Roy Clouser Chapter 4 - The Woes of Originality: Discussing David Bradshaws Aristotelian Journey into Neo-Palamism: Antoine Lvy OP Chapter 5 - Striving for Participation: Palamite Analogy as Dialogical Syn-energy and Thomist Analogy as Emanational Similitude: Nikolaos Loudovikos Chapter 6 - The Significance of the Distinction between the Essence and Energies of God according to St. Basil the Great: Georgios Martzelos Chapter 7 - Christianity and Platonism in East and West: John Milbank Chapter 8 - The Sense and Reference of the Essence and Energies: N. N. Trakakis Chapter 9 - The Distinction Between Essence and Energy according to Maximus the Confessor Metropolitan Vasilios (Karayiannis) of Constantia-Ammochostos Chapter 10 - In Defence of the Essence/Energy Distinction: A Reply to Critics David Bradshaw Bibliography Notes on Contributors Index Foreword Introduction by Dr Christoph Schneider (IOCS) 1. Dr. Constantinos Athanasopoulos: St. Gregory Palamas, (Neo-)Platonist and Aristotelian Metaphysics: the response of Orthodox Mystical Theology to the Western impasse of intellectualism and essentialism. 2. Professor Roy Clouser: Pancreation Lost: The Fall of Theology. 3. Fr. Antoine Levy, OP: The woes of originality. 4. Prof. Dr. Georgios Martzelos: The significance of the distinction between essence and energies of God according to St. Basil the Great. 5. Professor John Milbank: Christianity and Platonism in East and West. 6. Dr N.N. Trakakis: The Sense and Reference of the Essence and Energies. 7. Metropolitan of Constantia - Ammochostos Vasilios (Karajiannis) PhD: The distinction between essence and energy according to St Maximus the Confessor. 8. Replies by Professor David Bradshaw. Biographies of Contributors Index A collection of essays that explore, from a multiplicity of viewpoints, the philosophical and theological dimensions of the essence-energy distinction in Orthodox Christianity.