The Faculty of Orthodox Theology of the University of Babes-Bolyai (Cluj-Napoca, Romania) and the Center of Nomocanonical Studies of the same University organized from April 26 to 28, 2017 an international conference on “The Holy and Great Council: Eschatological event or canonical normality?”. The conference was under the Auspices and Blessing of His Eminence Andrei, Metropolitan of Cluj, Maramureş and Sălaj and was organized with the support of the State Secretariat for Religious Affairs of the Romanian Government, and the Orthodox Center for Studies and Research “Dumitru Stăniloae” (Paris). The conference was attended by theologians from both Romania and other countries (USA, Switzerland, Greece, Serbia, Poland, Georgia).

The conference aimed to examine and discuss issues such as: the preconditions and complex aspects related to the convening of the Holy and Great Council; the adoption of the texts of the Holy and Great Council of Crete; the ongoing debate on the decisions of the Holy and Great Council; the outline of the theological perspectives in general and the position of the Synodal texts in the dogmatic and canonical Tradition of the Church; the reception of these texts by the local Orthodox Churches, as well as the innovation and importance of the texts of the Holy and Great Council for the life of the Church; the theological and ecumenical prospects after the Great and Holy Council of Crete, and more.

The Director of the Volos Academy for Theological Studies Dr. Pantelis Kalaitzidis, took part in the conference as invited speaker with a paper on “The Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church between Synodal Inertia and Great Expectations: Achievements and Pending Issues on the Way of its Reception.”

To visit the conference website click here

To see the program and the conference speakers, click here and here