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Orthodox Identity in India: Essays in Honour of V.C. Samuel

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Orthodox Identity in India: Essays in Honour of V.C. Samuel ORTHODOX IDENTITY IN INDIA . v, • V\, ■f , ( [ Jr Essays in honour of ■) : V. C. Samuel % l Edited by \ M. K. Kuriakose * ft »x.O ^ 1 yQ^Ot *X> 11 c^sv V>^ €x libris iictlj jflarbutbo Xibrarp The Malphono George Anton Kiraz Collection loirf ^so L»oi baKAS. c*X ja°Lio^ LG ^^-3 I >« vi\ ^ l.\mvi loou poo rx I Vi n m O) Oi yio ^°>< ouL^h !o-coo 11°>\o. .. i ,_*a L;_oa>o i 5-h o £s-^a Iojcd oG. |oou Ouui lo-oo CnX ,£Xi, “ S-, V ❖ oiiv_ao^>. ©G. ^_2>ou^ LaoO' —oioi»~i :r- © X £ “ Anyone who asks for tills volume, to $ read, collate, or copy from it, and who 2 O r~. appropriates it to himself or herself, or « 3 cuts anything out of it, should realize C5h ^H i a that (s)he will have to give answer before 3 God’s awesome tribunal as if (s)he had = 2 5 -e 3« _ robbed a sanctuary. Let such a person be •S U "3 held anathema and receive no forgiveness o <D CQ until the book is returned. So be it, V Amen! And anyone who removes these anathemas, digitally or otherwise, shall himself receive them in double. ORTHODOX IDENTITY IN INDIA Essays in honour of V. C. Samuel Edited by M. K. KURIAROSE Rev. Dr. V. C. Samuel 75th Birthday Celebration Committee, Bangalore, 1988 ORTHODOX IDENTITY IN INDIA : ESSAYS IN HONOUR OF V. C. SAMUEL Edited by : M. K. KURIAKOSE, United Theological College Bangalore-560 046 Published by : REV. DR. V. C. SAMUEL 75th BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION COMMITTEE Bangalore. First published: 1938 No. of copies 1000 Copyright: REV. DR. V. C. SAMUEL Ramohally P. O. Bangalore-560 060 India. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Copyright owner. Printed at : IMPRINT, 71, Kammanahally Circle Bangalore-560 084 India. Preface The Orthodox Christian community in Bangalore is, in a special way, indebted to Dr. Fr. V.C. Samuel for all what he has been and for all what he has done. Having got settled in Bangalore, Fr. Samuel was in close fellowship with the growing community of the Orthodox Christians in the City. The commu¬ nity owes him a lot for the pastoral and intellectual guidance he bestowed. In every important conference of the Youth and Student movements, retreats. Holy Week services. Women's League meetings and many other activities of the various parishes in Bangalore, Fr. Samuel has been an efficient leader. His ability as a teacher has been lauded everywhere; his counsel has been guiding the people; his depth of comprehension of faith and practices of the Orthodox Church has been imparting knowledge to the people; his revolutionary, relevant and thought-provoking theological insights in terms of Christian theology in general and Christology in particular have been in¬ spiring them and his uninhibited, straight-forward and open- hearted inter-religious and inter-denominational outlook has been a model to them. His contribution to the Orthodox Church in general and specially to the Indian Orthodox Church is unique. It is not only through his excellent writings but also through his participation in international conferences where he represented Orthodoxy that he proved his calibre. His untiring urge for imparting knowledge to the people is energetically continuing. His tea¬ ching services extended to the Orthodox Theological Seminary even at the age of 75 is not only an explicit mark of his yearning to serve his Church but also a vivid indication as to how much the Episcopal Synod of the Indian Orthodox Church recognizes the authenticity of his thinking, teaching and writings. The Orthodox parishes in Bangalore, in gratitude to the exemplary service of Fr. Samuel, decided to celebrate the 75th Birthday in a befitting manner. Therefore the committee de¬ cided to bring out this volume in honour of Fr. Samuel, in a public meeting on 26th January 1988. The invitation given to the contributors to this volume was happily accepted by most of them. We feel proud of having incorporated the writings of these world-renowned scholars. The committee deems it a sign of their unreserved appreciation of and affection to Fr. Samuel. The committee is immensely grateful to all the contributors. The committee also takes this opportunity to thank all the members of the Bangalore Orthodox parishes, St. Gregorios, St. Mary's, St. George, St. Thomas and St. Peter and St. Paul, and all others far and wide who spon¬ sored the celebration, especially the publication of this book. On behalf of the committee, I take this opportunity to thank The Editorial Committee Members, Mr. Sunny Kulathakkal, Mr. P. M. Kurian and Mr. Eapen Panickar, The Celebration Com- 4 « mittee: its Chairman V. Rev. A. C. Koshy Cor-episcopa, Convener, Fr. C. M. Philipose, Treasurer-cum-secretary Mr. Chacko Tharakan and other priests and laymen who extended their boundless co-operation. 26th January, 1988. Editor. Contents Contributors to this Volume i-iv A select list of publications v-xvi Introduction 1-12 A short biography of Rev. Dr. V.C. Samuel Sunny Kulathakkal 13-25 Opening Indian Orthodoxy for Dialogue about its future M.M. Thomas 26-35 Rev. Dr. V.C. Samuel : Some of his cheif concerns K.M. Tharakan 36-47 Selfhood of the Indian Christians A.M. Mundadan 48-58 Indigenization of the Church in India: Some reflections M. Jacob Kurian 59-66 Orthodox Churches and the World Council of Churches J, Russell Chandran 67-84 The Indian Church and autonomy V.C. Samuel 85-104 The last steps to unity John Meyendorff 105-117 What do you say that I am? Elements for an ecumenical Christology today Paulos Mar Gregorios 118-128 Chrlstological Controversy and the division of the Church V.C. Samuel 129-164 Some Comments on Chalcedon and its Orthodox Critics Dietrich Ritschl 165-174 Violence and Non-violence Lukas Vischer 175-191 Contributors to this Volume Chandran, J.R. Dr. A minister of the Church of South India and a theologian of high reputation, Dr. Chandran was professor and principal of the United Theological College, Bangalore, from 1950-1983. He has served as a member of the Central Committee and the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches for many years and made his mark in the field of ecumenism. Currently he is a professor at the Pacific Theological College, in Fiji. Gregorios, Mar Paulos, Dr. The principal of the Orthodox Theological Seminary, Kottayam, and the metropolitan of the Delhi diocese of the Indian Orthodox Church, Dr. Paulos Mar Gregorios is a widely recognized ecumenical stalwart. Currently one of the presidents of the World Council of Churches, he is a leader of world fame and a scholar of outstanding accomplishments. Kulathakkal, Sunny Sunny Kulathakkal is an able organizer and talented writer. He is a publicist, author and free-lance journalist. Served as the development Director of the United Theological College, II Mr. Kulathakkal has been an active member and organizer of Y.M.C.A., instrumental in the formation of many of its units. The son of an Orthodox priest, he himself is a lay-leader. Kuriakose, Fr. M.K. A priest of the Indian Orthodox Church, Fr. Kuriakose is the chief librarian of the United Theological College, Bangalore, interested in study of history of Christianity, he has compiled an important source book on History of Christianity in India. He is also serving as convener of various committees and projects connected with library and documentation services. Kurian, Jacob, Dr. A professor of the Orthodox Theological Seminary Kottayam, Father Jacob Kurian is a priest of the Indian Orthodox Church . He is a penetrating scholar in the area of study of religions and a careful thinker. He is an expert in Indian Christian and Hindu theological thinking and an advocate of renewal of Christian Theological thinking in the Indian Context. Meyendorff, John, Dr. A recognized scholar, author and leader of Orthodoxy, Father Meyendorff is a priest of the Russian Orthodox Church in the U.S.A. He is a professor at the St. Vladimir Orthodox Theological Seminary' New York. As a member and Ill president of the Faith and Order Commission for a number of years, he took a keen interest in the ecumenical movement, and participated in the unity dialogues. Mundadan, A.ML, Dr. A distinguished historian of Christianity, Father Mundadan is a well known author and recognized scholar. He is a member of the Carmelite Society of Mary the Immaculate (CMI) and a priest of the Roman Catholic Church, who is a senior professor at the Dharmaram College, Bangalore. Ritschl, Dietrich, Dr. A grandson of the famous German theologian of the last century, Albrecht Ritschl, Dr. Ritschl is an outstanding theological professor of the Heidelberg University, Germany, in the memorable tradition of his illustrious grand father. Samuel, V. C , Dr. Apart from the biography, two papers of Dr. V. C. Samuel reflecting his thinking on two important issues are also included in this volume. Tharakan, K. Ml., Dr. A highly appreciated university professor. Dr. K M. Tharakan is a literary man endowed with the gift of theolo¬ gical discernment and clear expression. Currently he is working IV as the editor of the Malayala Manorama Weekly, trying in a remarkable way to conserve religious values in everyday life. There are many works to his credit. Thomas, Dr. M.M. An Indian Christian theologian of remarkable eminence. Dr. M.M. Thomas has shown great ability in bringing to bear the message of the Bible on contemporary social, political and religious reality, with a profound prophetic sense.
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