Public Life

Publications: 71

Advice on the Future of Religion in America from a College Class
Education and Academia, Public Life

Advice on the Future of Religion in America from a College Class

When the New York Times recently asked readers to tell them why they had left their religion behind some 7,000 readers responded (“Why Do People Lose Their Religion?” June 7, 2023). Clearly there is a lot of painful pent-up feeling about this. But an equally intriguing question is, “Why do people keep their religion?” This…

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Martyrdom without Miracles <br><span style='color:#8D8381;font-size:18px;'>The 9th-Century Church Controversy in Córdoba and Modern Orthodoxy</span>
Church History, Public Life

Martyrdom without Miracles
The 9th-Century Church Controversy in Córdoba and Modern Orthodoxy

Between the years 850 and 859, something unexpected happened in Córdoba. Some forty-eight Christians were martyred. Contemporary church historians usually refer to them as “voluntary martyrs” because almost all of them, by their own will, presented themselves in front of the Muslim authorities and confessed themselves to be Christians, denouncing Islam and Mohammed as a…

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Economists vs. F.M. Dostoyevsky <br><span style='color:#8D8381;font-size:18px;'>The Role of Christ’s Church in Crime and Punishment</span>
Church Life and Pastoral Care, Public Life

Economists vs. F.M. Dostoyevsky
The Role of Christ’s Church in Crime and Punishment

It was Garry S. Becker who, in his seminal 1968 paper, introduced economics to the area of crime and punishment. Academic economists, who disagree among themselves about so many issues, concur about crime and punishment. Out of four main universally accepted motives of punishment (retribution, incapacitation, rehabilitation [i.e., resocialization], and deterrence), economists agree that deterrence…

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Wizards, Prophets, and the Archbishops and Bishops of the Christian Church
Environmental Ethics, Public Life, Religion and the Environment

Wizards, Prophets, and the Archbishops and Bishops of the Christian Church

In his 2018 book The Wizard and the Prophet, Charles C. Mann describes the work and approaches of two of the most important environmentalists of the 20th century: William Vogt and Norman Borlaug. Unfortunately, their “blueprints” are contradictory approaches to the problems of climate change. Mann categorizes those who follow Borlaug’s model of “techno-optimism” (that…

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The Spirit of Christian Freedom <br><span style='color:#8D8381;font-size:18px;'>Remembering Archbishop Artemy</span>
Public Life

The Spirit of Christian Freedom
Remembering Archbishop Artemy

The spirit of Christian freedom is a gift that in post-Soviet Orthodoxy has not, alas, been embraced or appreciated by many. Soviet-educated people, deprived of their experience of inner freedom, mostly failed to discover Orthodoxy as a liberating experience. Rather the opposite, immersion in church life became a convenient substitute for Soviet ideology. The path…

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Humble Abuse and Responsibility <br><span style='color:#8D8381;font-size:18px;'>Some Reflections on the Situation Around the UOC</span>
Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations, Public Life

Humble Abuse and Responsibility
Some Reflections on the Situation Around the UOC

First, I would like to say two things. From 2009 to 2019, I was quite involved in the life of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC)—from singing and helping a priest-monk at a local parish near Kyiv to assisting the bishop during international trips to translating for international ecumenical guests at Lavra, the metropolia, and the…

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Disclaimer

Public Orthodoxy seeks to promote conversation by providing a forum for diverse perspectives on contemporary issues related to Orthodox Christianity. The positions expressed in the articles on this website are solely the author’s and do not necessarily represent the views of the editors or the Orthodox Christian Studies Center.

Attribution

Public Orthodoxy is a publication of the Orthodox Christian Studies Center of Fordham University