Keywords: Gregory Palamas; Nasterea Domnului; Craciun; Intarea in templu; Maica Domnului; Fecioara Maria; Intrupare
O sinteză a acestei teologii palamite a Întrupării se regăseşte în finalul omiliei 53, mai întâi ca o concreştere a divinului cu umanul în Iisus Hristos, în cadrul mai larg al elogiului mariologic: „Ne-ai dat să-L vedem şi prin aceste simţuri pe Cel Născut într-o înfăţişare şi o formă ca a noastră, şi să ne atingem în materie de Cel Imaterial şi negrăit. L-ai hrănit cu hrană ca a noastră pe Hrănitorul îngerilor cu hrana cu adevărat cunoscută şi nestricăcioasă. I-ai făcut pe oameni să aibă aceiaşi viaţă cu îngerii, sau, mai bine, i-ai învrednicit de cinstiri încă şi mai mari, zămislind de la Duhul Sfânt şi născând în chip uimitor o formă divino-umnă (theandriken morphen) şi făcând în chip negrăit firea omenească cunoscută cu firea dumnezeiască şi aşa zicând codivină (homotheon)”. Iată că de la germenii săi liturgico-omiletici, logosul ia la Sfântul Grigorie Palama amploarea unei mistagogii a misterului Întrupării aprofundat neîncetat în viaţa duhovnicească. Lecţia sa omiletică pentru cei de astăzi este un îndemn de a depăşi logomahia spre o necontenită întrupare duhovnicească a cuvântului în viaţa cotidiană.
More...Keywords: simfonie bizantina; Eusebiu de Cezareea; crestinismul si Imperiul Bizantin; Ambrozie al Milanului;
La relation entre l’État et l’Église a subi une modification essentielle au début du IVème siècle, en même temps avec la promulgation de l’édit de Milan (313). C’est ainsi qu’une inédite communion a été réalisée entre l’État civil et l’Église chrétienne, une communion jusqu’alors inconnue. Dès le début, plusieurs conceptions ont été lancées par rapport à la manière de réaliser cette coexistence : une première conception, triomphaliste, soutenue par l’évêque Eusèbe de Césarée et une seconde plus modérée, mise en oeuvre par l’évêque Ambrose de Milan. De la confrontation des deux orientations et compte tenu des réalités historiques, la seconde a gagné le terrain.
More...Keywords: persoana; Dumitru Staniloae; sfintenie; indumnezeire; Sfanta Liturghie
The whole Theology of Father Dumitru Stăniloae may be considered a theology of love and prayer. His life and work are paradigms of love for God and for the human being. In his writings we find a true theological dialogue between man and God, which has two fundamental features: the fidelity to the Divine Revelation and the creative spirit, involving exploration and profound analysis in all the fields of theology. His thought is sacramental, the actions and symbols of liturgy being seen as effecting what they symbolize. Man ought to use his soul with its power of reason to reflect on the world and to meditate on the meaning of things. Man’s body becomes a temple when it is used to do the works of the commandaments and to practice the ideals of morality. The faithful who does God’s will becomes worthy of the indwelling of God and of bearing the splendor of grace. Expressing the confidence of Saint Maximus the Confessor, Father Stăniloae believes that it is the force of faith and love towards Christ that will bring about the unity of Christians, drawing them to one common center. That is why his theology has been called an open theology towards God and towards the world.
More...Keywords: omilie; Intrupare; Iisus Hristos; Craciun; Severian de Gaballa
Severian de Gaballa, Omilie la Naşterea Domnului, Traducere de Pr. Jan Nicolae
More...Keywords: colinde
Există, însă, un dezechilibru între istoria locală, cea naţională şi cea universală, la nivelul viziunii concepţiei pedagogice asupra programei şcolare. În acest punct, m-am gândit să intervin, să prezint „oferta mea de cunoaştere”, potrivit obiectivului cadru din programa şcolară „Cunoaşterea şi folosirea surselor istorice”. Am adus, astfel, colinda, ca document istoric, în lecţia „România în anii celui de-al doilea război mondial”, lecţie circumscrisă temei „România în secolul al XX-lea”.
More...Keywords: Saint Gregory of Nyssa; God`s birth; New Testament; exodus; homily; tabernacles; iconography
As it was edited in the modern period, this homily pervades the contemporary homiletic conscience enriching word’s approaching for Christmas Day. Christ fulfils all the figures from the Old Testament (the tree of life, the lemon tree), and this thing is proved by the establishment of the memorable Christian holidays which are the extension and the metamorphose of the ancient Jewish holidays. More episodes and moments of the New Testament are symbolically connected to the Messianic and eschatological expectations which were specific to the Tents Holiday (the Transfiguration, Palm Sunday). Between Christmas and Tents’ Holiday there is a specific correspondence because the coming of God (God’s Birth) is seen as an inauguration of the real Tents’ Holiday. This homily is one of the most profound and impressive patristic homilies dedicated to the Embodiment. It unifies the subtle typological lecture of the Embodiment as the real eschatological holiday of pitching Tents, with a fine presentation of the economy inaugurated at Christmas and completed at Easter.
More...Keywords: icons of Christ; iconographics symbols; iconoclasm; crucifix; Pantocrator; modern art
În vreme ce teologia Bisericii Răsăritului a început să definească imaginea Mântuitorului în reprezentarea lui Hristos tronând, Biserica Occidentului a concentrat această imagine în repre-zentarea Hristosului răstignit. Moartea sa, suferită în deplină libertate şi ca fapt al harului divin, este apariţia, expresia şi evidenţierea păcatelor lumii, este ca fapt al mântuirii miezul eshatologiei creştine. După ce transpunerile artistice ale acestei învăţături au fost marcate şi confirmate de reprezentările Bisericii până la schimbările din secolul 18 către 19, arta s-a eliberat de la începutul modernităţii de aceste legături. Hristos a devenit un simbol al oamenilor încercaţi deplin de suferinţă, al cărui chip intensificat prin mijloace artistice a devenit mijlocitorul unui Hristos personal experiabil. În aceasta constă semnificaţia metamorfozelor imaginii lui Hristos de la începutul modernităţii: ea scapă oricărui control. Fiecare persoană poate să caute şi să experieze într-un mod propriu imaginea sa personală asupra lui Hristos.
More...Keywords: iconography; iconoclasm; current liturgical practices; abusive practices
The Iconoclasm and Idolization trough some contemporary orthodox Christians. Points of view. The article points the dangerous position for the orthodox doctrine of the icons manifested into the present life of some Christians belonging to Romanian Orthodox Church. Some examples are invocated to prove the wrong understanding of iconographic doctrine by some clergy and priest. Even these examples can be just a sort of superficial and unconscious attachment to the icons, can involve o sort of idolatry and abusive liturgical practices.
More...Keywords: law; ecclesiastical possession; ecclesiastical properties; parish; patrimony
The problem of the property the places of cult in cases of the religious transition, in doctrine and practice of The Orthodox Romanian Church (ius precedens). The principle according to which ecclesiastical parochial possessions belonging to a parish, fact which does not allow the encroachment of the churches superior authorities’ administration and disposition of the possessions, throughout time, experienced various approaches in The Romanian Orthodox Church’s doctrine and practice, arriving to the conclusion that the locale administrative units (parish, deanery, monastery) are not absolute and independent rightful owners of these possessions. In the case of a religious conversion throughout time: from the transfer of the possessions proportional to the number of parishioners who make the transition, to the transfer of all possessions in the patrimony of the newly embraced confession by those who had made the transition. In cases of total transition it was made evident the transition of the Greek- Catholic parishioners to the orthodox religion since 1948, which practically led to the discontinuation of the former and the entering in possession of the Greek-Catholic church’s possessions by the administrative body of The Romanian Orthodox Church.
More...Keywords: Petru Pruteanu; Andrei Andreicut
Ieromonah Petru Pruteanu, Liturghia Ortodoxă. Istorie şi actualitate, Bucureşti, Edit. Sophia 2008, Recenzie de Dumitru Vanca; Arhiepiscop Dr. Andrei Andreicuţ, Dialog al vremii cu memoria. Slujind Domnului şi poporului său la începutul mileniului III, Alba Iulia, Editura Reîntregirea, 2009, Recenzie de Iosif Zoica
More...Keywords: Metropolitan Stefan of the Ungrovlah Country; old Romanian printings; predoslovias (forewords); Mystirio (1651); Îndreptarea legii (1652); Târnosanie (1652)
Metroplit Ştefan of Valachia – editor of some romanian books in the middle of XVIIth century. By showing passion for the written word from early adulthood, once appointed Metropolitan, Stefan of the Romanian Country continues the work started by his predecessor, Metropolitan Teofil and he also takes care of printing some important cult books. The two books that were printed during his first years of pastorate appeared under his spiritual patronage. He gave his consent to print, in Targoviste, Triod - Penticostar slavonesc (the Slavon Triod-Penticostar) (1649) and Pogribania preoţilor (the Priests’ Funeral Ceremony) (1650). Being well aware of the real problems his contemporary priests had to face, Metropolitan Stefan of the Romanian Country encouraged and supported the translation and the printing activities, especially of some very important Orthodox books, focusing his attention on those that dealt with the Holy Mysteries, the rituals and the laws of the church which were essential issues which all the church ministers were obliged to know and obey. We bring into attention his original texts, i.e. the predoslovia of the mentioned above printings, the firm and asseverate tone when he refers to the importance of obeying the rituals and the laws of the church, his effort to underline the importance of performing the Holy Baptism, to render the significance of the Holy Myrrh, to highlight the priests’ duties and the rituals that had to be carried out only by the bishop. One may remark Metropolitan Stefan’ s cultural opening, his great mastering of the laws of the church and of the history of the church as well as his concern for everything that means church culture.
More...Székely székek a 18. században (Scaune secuiești în sec. al XVIII-lea), vol. I-VI, ed., prefață, note, indici Pál-Antal Sándor, Tîrgu Mureș, Editura Mentor, 2007-2014 Liviu Neagoe, Cetățenie, națiune și etnicitate. O perspectivă comparată, Cluj-Napoca, Editura Avalon, 2014; Bárdi Nándor, Gidó Attila, Novák Csaba Zoltán, Primele forme de autoorganizare a maghiarilor din România 1989 - 1990, [The first forms of self-governing of the Hungarians in Romania 1989-1990], Cluj-Napoca, Editura Institutului pentru Studierea Minorităților Naționale, 2014; Luminiţa Corneanu, Leonid Dimov. Un oniric în Turnul Babel, București, Editura Cartea Românească, 2014 Istoria Banatului. Studii privind particularitățile unei regiuni transfrontaliere, coordonator Victor Neumann, București, Editura Academiei Române, 2015; Mircea Martin, Radicalitate şi nuanţă, Bucureşti, Editura Tracus Arte, 2015 Ciprian Glăvan, Presa de limbă germană din Banat. 1771-1867, Cluj-Napoca, Editura Argonaut, 2015 Intelectualii: ideologii și destin politic, coordonator Cornel Sigmirean, Tîrgu Mureș, Editura Arhipelag XXI, 2015.
More...Keywords: Transylvania; baroque; painting; Armenian-Catholic Churches; The Holy Trinity; The Stoning of Saint Stephen; Venice; Dumbrăveni; Gherla.
Some Remarks Regarding the Altar Painting in Armenian-Catholic Churches in Transylvania. The present study is an in-depth iconographic research of religious subjects preferred by the Armenian clergy and church-going patrons in Transylvania who, in 1689, as a result of the firm initiative of the Bishop of Aldala, Oxendie Verzerescu († 1715) took to the Catholic faith. From then on we can witness the astonishing ability of this group in adopting the new Catholic ways (a new baroque and neoclassical religious architecture, the complex and varied suppelectiles with altars, stalls, confessionals, wardrobes in the sacristies, tabernacles and baptismal fonts all made according to the new stylistic exigencies), including a painting done in accordance to the newly adopted cult, which substituted the superb oriental miniatures in the Armenian religious books of the medieval period (Homiliarium, Martyrologium, Codex, Gospel). Documents from the 18th century mention a number of iconographic themes and the cult of saints, specific to Armenian tradition and historic sensibilities: The Virgin and Child (with its iconographic variants Mariazell, Tyrnavia, Nicula, Máriapócs, Şumuleu), The Holy Trinity, St. Gregory the Illuminator, St. Stephen Protomartyr, St. Joseph, The Holy Family with Saints Joachim and Anna, and Infant Mary, St. Anthony the Hermit and Saint Paul the Hermit, Baptism of King Trdat/ Tiridates III, St. Elisabeth’s Charity etc. The old paintings are present even today in the main and side altars of the Armenian Catholic churches in Dumbrăveni, Frumoasa, Gheorghieni, Gherla or in the altars of several churches of the Franciscan and Piarist orders in Făgăraş, Dej, Sibiu, Odorheiu Secuiesc and Sighetu Marmaţiei for which Armenian believers had made important offering. The research proper is focused mainly on the works having as topic The Holy Trinity with Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael; the old oil painting in the main altar of the great Armenian-Catholic church in Gherla, a work existing by the sixth decade of the 18th century, a monumental work (639×286cm) which has some similarities stylistically and terms of composition with the productions of Venetian painting workshops present in some of the churches of the Transylvanian Armenians or with the Austrian masters educated in Italy, retaining the specificity of the late baroque permeated by the rococo (Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Sebastiano Ricci, Giovanni Battista Piazzetta, Antoni Pellegrini, Giovanni Battista Pittoni, Hubert Maurer, Johann Michael Rottmayr, Michelangelo Unterberger-Cavalese, etc.). In the case of the second work, The Stoning of Saint Stephen, a similar pattern is followed, from the remotest iconographic model of the series made by Giulio Romano in 1521 for the church of St. Stephen in Genoa, a work with an elaborate and monumental mise en scène much loved not only by the young Italian masters who knew and copied the work (Andrea and Ottavia Semino, Luca Cambiaso, Bernardo Castello and Giovanni Battista Paggi), but also by the next generations of painters in that country, and also French, Spanish, Flemish, German and, of course, Austrian (Viennese workshops), painters too. The side altar’s painting (Stoning of Saint Stephen) in the church Charity of Saint Elisabeth in Dumbrăveni shows the creative adaptation and remaking of the Genoese prototype and also influences received from masters of the late baroque from the Austrian empire (Paul Troger, Johann Baptist Enderle, Franz Xaver Wagenschön, Franz Anton Maulbertsch, Hubert Maurer).
More...Keywords: memorial;collective memory; public square;urban history;
Essay on the Monument of Loyalty built after the Revolution of 1848 in Liberty Square Timișoara by the Austrians, in remembrance of the victory of the Imperial Court over Hungarian revolutionaries, as well as of the loyalty of the fortress defenders to the Viennese administration. This monument, vandalized in 1918, was moved in 1935-1935 to a cemetery on the outskirts of Timișoara (today, Heroes’ Cemetery).
More...Keywords: medieval painting; technological particularities; unknown painters; Târnave; Evangelical churches; Ighișul Nou; Mălâncrav;
Throughout the last two decades we were able to research or evaluate the mural paintings from an impressive number of churches from Târnave area. These former catholic churches turned into protestant ones after the Reform and, therefore, they were conformed to the aniconic rigors of the community’s new adopted religion. Summarizing the conclusions of these studies, we are surprised by the large number of medieval mural paintings in a relative narrow geographical area and also by the fact that most of these paintings are unfamiliar to both owners and specialists. The paintings from Mălânclav, Ighișul Nou, along with the recently identified painting from Bratei, pan out a group of pictorial ensembles, the work of a group of painters unknown until today. Even though they were painted by the same group of painters, the pigments’ range being almost identical, one can notice considerable differences between the current appearance of the two ensembles as a result of circumstances and distinct interventions of the two monuments.
More...Keywords: Freemasonry;History of Banat;Medals;Lodge;Newspapers;
The history of Freemasonry in Banat still hides many unknown things. The historical course of many lodges in this region is not yet fully known. If we know enough data about some lodges such as the one in Reșița, those in Timișoara and others, we have too little data about some lodges, such as the one in Caransebeș or Lipova. Moreover, the museum artifacts that come from lesser-known lodges allow us to reconstruct their history and even the history of certain characters. In this sense, the museum institutions from Great Britain are very helpful; they keep in their collections medals of some lodges from Banat or even original documents, lists of lodges from Banat, etc. These artifacts and documents have not been studied so far and represent a novelty in reconstructing the history of Banat Freemasonry. Examples are the medals of the Irenea lodge in Caransebeș and Concordia in Lipova. The history of these lodges is known only in fragments, and the study of these medals allows us to complete the data on these little known lodges. Another piece unknown to the Romanian academic public is a medal of the "Three white lilies" lodge from Timișoara. The Museum of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Worcestershire and the Museum of Freemasonry in London are very helpful in this regard by offering the opportunity to study the pieces kept in their collections. In our study, we also present the work of a Serbian Freemason from Paris, D. Tomitch, on the rights and interests of Serbs in Banat Timisoara on certain territories within Romania.The English Masonic press is another resource that has not been fully exploited so far. Usually, studies on the history of Romanian Freemasonry cite foreign literature, but very little or almost no Masonic foreign press, especially the old press. However, in the British Masonic press, we find valuable references to Freemasonry in Romania and including Banat, from different historical periods. In the case of Banat Freemasonry, the references in the British press date from the second half of the 19th century. We find references regarding the lodges in Arad, Timișoara, Oravița, Lipova, and Caransebeș. All this information, compared to what we know so far, gives us the chance to detect the mistakes made in previous chronological dating but also to complete what we lacked in terms of information.
More...Keywords: Danube Gorge; Liubkova; Gornea; Liborajdea; periegesis;
A manuscript from the Florin Medeleț Fund at the MNaB is published (typed document, 9 A4 pages, undated, transcribed by Valentin Cedică). The author, Ion Dragomir (Gornea, November 23, 1927 – Reşita, August 13, 2011), graduated from Oravița High School and Arad Pedagogical Institute, worked as a teacher in Gornea. He was director of the General School and the Cultural House in Gornea. Passionate about history, he founded in 1969 the Village Museum in Gornea (officially inaugurated on July 27, 1969), which today bears his name. He was a close collaborator of archaeologists from Cluj, Reşița, Timişoara, Sibiu, Bucharest, who carried out archaeological research in the area. He was author and co-author of archeology and ethnology studies and author of the Gornea village monograph (2003). The present paper refers to archaeological materials resulting from field research carried out by the author in localities in the Danube Gorge: Liborajdea, Gornea, Liubcova etc.
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