TEOLOGIA anul XV, nr. 3 (48), 2011 The review publishes studies, translations from Holly Fathers, notes, comments and book reviews. REQUIREMENTS The authors are expected to send the studies that meet the specifi ed requirements 2.0 lines spacing. The authors assume the responsability of the contents of the articles. The unpublished studies are not returned. TEOLOGIA TEOLOGIA Orice corespondenţă se va adresa: Any correspondence will be sent to the fol- lowing address: FACULTATEA DE TEOLOGIE FACULTATEA DE TEOLOGIE 310096 ARAD 310096 ARAD Strada Academiei Teologice Nr. 9 Strada Academiei Teologice Nr. 9 Tel/Fax: 0040-257-285855 Tel/Fax: 0040-257-285855 Preţuri/ Prices: Uniunea Europeană (UE): 1 abonament (4 exemplare/ copies = 24 €; 1 exemplar/ copy = 6 €) Alte ţări/ Other countries: 1 abonament (4 exemplare/ copies = 40 €; 1 exemplar/ copy = 10 €) UNIVERSITATEA „AUREL VLAICU” ARAD FACULTATEA DE TEOLOGIE ORTODOXĂ TEOLOGIA ANUL XV, NR. 3 (48), 2011 Editura Universităţii „Aurel Vlaicu” A R A D EDITORIAL STAFF PUBLISHER The Orthodox Theology Faculty from “Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad PRESIDENT OF HONOR: M.R. Ph D. TIMOTEI SEVICIU, Archbishop of Arad CHAIRMAN OF EDITORIAL BOARD: Rev. PhD. IOAN TULCAN, „Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad [email protected] EDITOR IN CHIEF: PhD. CRISTINEL IOJA, „Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad [email protected] ADVISORY BOARD: Rev. PhD. ŞTEFAN BUCHIU, University from Bucharest ([email protected]); Rev. PhD. CON- STANTIN RUS, „Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad ([email protected]); Rev. PhD. ERNST CHR. SUTTNER, University from Wien ([email protected]); PhD. IRINI CHRISTINAKIS-GLAROS, Uni- versity from Athens ([email protected]); PhD. DIMITRIOS TSELENGIDIS, University from Thes- saloniki ([email protected]); PhD. ARISTOTLE PAPANIKOLAOU, Lincoln Theology Center of Fordham University (U.S.A.) ([email protected]); Rev. PhD. FADI GEORGI, University from Balamand ([email protected]); PhD. PYOTR MIHAILOV, St. Tihon’s Humanitarian University of Moscow ([email protected]); PhD. MICHEL STAVROU, “Saint Serge” Institute from Paris ([email protected]); PhD. ANDREAS HEISER, Humboldt University from Berlin ([email protected]); Rev. PhD. DANIEL BUDA, “Lucian Blaga” Univeristy from Sibiu ([email protected]) EDITORIAL BOARD: Rev. PhD. CAIUS CUŢARU, „Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad ([email protected]); Rev. PhD. ADRIAN MURG, „Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad ([email protected]); Rev. PhD. FILIP ALBU, „Aurel Vlai- cu” University of Arad (fi [email protected]); Rev. PhD. LUCIAN FARCAŞIU, „Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad ([email protected]); Rev. PhD. ŞTEFAN NEGREANU, „Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad ([email protected]) Text collection, correction, English translation summaries: Prof. ANCA POPESCU, GEORGIANA COSTESCU Desktop Publishing: CĂLIN CHENDEA “Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad Publishing House Romania, Arad, Complex universitar M, Etaj I, Sala 82, Tel. 0257/219555, http://www.uav.ro/ro/resurse/editura-uav Printing House: SC “TIPO STAMPA” S.R.L. Arad Tel. 0257.349.004 Email: [email protected] TEOLOGIA review is a quarterly scientifi c publication, recognized by CNCSIS Institution in C category (cod 545) TEOLOGIA review is indexed in the database Index Copernicus (cod 6666) e-mail: [email protected] website: www.revistateologia.ro ISSN 2247-4382 ISSN-L 1453-4789 CONTENTS EDITORIAL Methods, Requirements and Perspectives in the Theological Research (Cristinel Ioja) ...................................................................................................... 7 STUDIES AND ARTICLES Michael Welker Theologie und Recht ........................................................................................ 11 Sorin Cosma Gratitude as a Christian Virtue and it’s Involvement in the Mission of the Church .............................................. 27 Gheorghios D. Metallinos „Din apă şi din duh”– perspective teologice ale Tainei Botezului ............... 63 Theodoros Alexopoulos The Renewal-Regeneration of Human Existence and its Eccleciastical Intergration Through the Baptism According to Saint Gregory of Nyssa .... 73 Florin Dobrei The Exarchate of Bulgaria (1870-1945) ......................................................... 83 Lucian Farcaşiu The use of spoon for offering the Eucharist to the believers in the Orthodox Church ....................................................... 96 Florin Vâlcea Romanian Orthodox Parish Livezeni-Petroşani. Church Sanon .............. 108 5 TEOLOGIA 3 \ 2011 BOOK REVIEWS Paul Meyendorff, Taina Sfântului Maslu – ungerea bolnavilor, traducere, prefaţă şi note Cezar Login, Editura Renaşterea, Cluj-Napoca, 2011, 150 p (Lucian Farcaşiu). ................................................ 118 The Third Conference of International Association of Orthodox Dogmatic Theologians (Thessaloniki, Greece, 23-26 June, 2011) (Filip Albu) ............ 122 Thomas Laird, The Story of Tibet. Conversation with the Dalai LamaTrans- lated by Doina-Anca Târnoveanu, All Publishing House, Bucharest, 2011, 401 p. (Caius Cuţaru) ....................................................................................... 128 WRITING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE STUDIES INCLUDED IN THE “TEOLOGIA” REVIEW .........................................132 AUTHORS LIST ............................................................................................137 6 CONTENTS EDITORIAL Methods, Requirements and Perspectives in the Theological Research The neo-patristic theology of the last century made a substantial contri- bution to overcoming the patterns of scholastic theology, by emphasising the ascetic-mystical and ecclesiastical patristic theology and its spiritual signifi cance for the contemporary man. This reversal was done in several directions which aimed the ecclesial interpretation of Revelation and expe- rience: 1) historical-patristic-ecclesiological, 2) mystic-Palamite-Philoka- lical, 3) eucharistic-liturgical-ecclesiological (Ioan I Ică jr.). The Orthodox theologians of the twenty-fi rst century have to continue the neo-patristic synthesis that theologians of the twentieth century initiated and deepened it, but did not complete it. The big challenge of the orthodox neo-patris- tic theology of the XXI century is how it will manage to be understood through a paradoxical and interdisciplinary methodology. There is also a challenge to substantially contribute to overcoming the confusion and di- verse reductionism of contemporary man so that it acquires not only an ec- clesial and unitary-dialogic relevance, but also a social and practical one. In the Orthodox theology, the method comes out from of the paradoxi- cal structure of Revelation, of theology and of knowledge itself, being in correspondence to the theological, anthropological and cosmic dimension. The gnoseologic issue occupies an important place in the Orthodox theol- ogy, and it states that there is no separation between the natural and super- natural aspect of revelation, but a continuum. The same thing exists be- tween cataphatic and apophatic, the true knowledge being achieved in the context of personal communion. This complementarity of the two dimen- sions of revelation – natural and supernatural, wishes to emphasise that the beings are not only rational, or only mysterious, but they are rational and mysterious at the same time. Thus, the natural and the supernatural can not be split into two successive or parallel levels. Starting from here, the 7 TEOLOGIA Cristinel Ioja 3 \ 2011 Orthodox theology pleads for a balanced and paradoxical approach, the re- lationship between cataphatic and apophatic being not of exclusion or can- cellation, but of complementarity and mutual assumption. This synthesis between cataphatic and apophatic actually dissolves the old dilemma and separation between reason and experience, reason and mysticism, body and soul, spirit and word. It also shows that the vision of cataphatic and ap- ophatic seen together, leads to an antinomic reality in which rationality and mystery coexist. Reason is a part of the integral knowledge while “faith” is a more comprehensive reality, including other criteria and dimensions than of the reason. The theandrism of the Orthodox theology opposes to the dichotomy between matter and spirit, form and essence, sign and reality. The paradoxical structure of knowledge in Orthodox theology does not exclude the methods of scientifi c research that seeks to unravel the mea ning of texts, but exceeds them. In other words, these methods are use- ful in discerning the historical, literary, linguistic, semantic, and pragmatic meaning of the text to study, without being suffi cient in discerning the spiritual, spiritual and ecclesial meaning. Thus, in the theological research in general there are several methods such as: 1) historical-critical method comprising: textual criticism (the text reconstruction) literary criticism (identifi cation of written sources), criticism / history of traditions (oral transmission of texts), critical / editorial history (the collection and re- draft of the text). By these methods, the text is researched especially in its diachronic and evolutionary aspect, for thus capturing its meanings. 1.1) The applicability of diachronic method aims to discover the meaning of the text and it has the following stages: 1.1.1. Textual criticism; 1.1.2. Lit- erary criticism – it examines the text with reference to the written literary sources, 1.1.3 The history and criticism of forms and tradition – analysing