John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon

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Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon

His Eminence John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon (b. 1931) is a modern theologian, titular Metropolitan of Pergamon, under the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. He was consecrated as a bishop on June 22, 1986, and is currently the co-chair of the Catholic-Orthodox dialogue.

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Biographical timeline

• 1931: The future metropolitan is born January 10.
• 1965: Doctorate in theology, University of Athens.
• 1986 Jun 22: Archim. John is consecrated a bishop.
• Became a key figure in major ecumenical dialogues between the Orthodox Church and other Christian traditions.
• Leading theologian in a theology of ecology, played a central role in making the Orthodox Church one of the most active religious religious communities involved with development and environmental issues.
• Held professorships at Glasgow University and King's College, London.
• 2006: Succeeded Archbishop Stylianos of Australia as president of the Commission of Orthodox in the Dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church.

Books

• Being and Communion: Studies in Personhood and the Church (Crestwood, NY: St Vladimirs Seminary Press, 1997). ISBN 978-0881410297.
• Eucharist, Bishop, Church: The Unity of the Church in the Divine Eucharist and the Bishop During the First Three Centuries (Brookline, MA: Holy Cross, 2001). ISBN 978-1885652515
• Communion & Otherness: Further Studies in Personhood and the Church (London: T & T Clark, 2007). ISBN 978-0567031488.
• Remembering the Future: An Eschatological Ontology (T&T Clark, 2008). ISBN 978-0567032355.
• Lectures in Christian Dogmatics (T&T Clark, 2009). ISBN 978-0567033154.

Studies

• Fox, Patricia A. God as Communion: John Zizioulas, Elizabeth Johnson, and the Retrieval of the Symbol of the Triune God (Michael Glazer, 2001). ISBN 978-0814650820.
• Knight, Douglas, ed. The Theology of John Zizioulas: Personhood and the Church (Ashgate, 2007). ISBN 978-0754654308.
• Papanikolaou, Aristotle. Being with God: Trinity, Apophaticism, and Divine-Human Communion (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 2006). ISBN 978-0268038304.

Criticisms

Academic and Theological

Like many theologians, particularly those involved in theological dialogues, Metropolitan John has undergone some level of criticism for his theological works.

• Lucian Turcescu argues in "'Person' versus 'Individual' and Other Modern Misreadings of Gregory of Nyssa" 1 that "Zizioulas is ... in error when he contends that the Cappadocians did not understand a person as an individual or when he credits them with having had the same concerns we moderns have when combating individualism today." 2 These criticisms have been answered by Aristotle Papanikolaou in the same journal3 and by Metropolitan John himself. 4

• Rodoljub Lazic, in his book, Innovatory Theology of Metropolitan Zizioulas (In Serbian, ATOS - Missionary Center, Belgrade 2002), explains why he believes the work of Zizioulas differs from traditional Orthodoxy and argues that there is a connection between Zizioulas' ecumenical orientation and his theology.

Regarding Ecumenical Relations

• In an interview with Maria Antoniadou, Archbishop Stylianos of Australia criticizes John Zizioulas for his stance on Uniatism, questioning his status as a systematic theologian.

Notes

¹ Modern Theology 18:4, October 2002, 527-539.

² Ibid, p.537.

³ "Is John Zizioulas an Existentialist in Disguise? Response to Lucian Turcescu," Modern Theology 20:4, October 2004, pp. 601-607).

&sup4; In Communion and Otherness, pp. 171-177.

External links

• List of Works by John of Pergamon
• His Eminence John, Metropolitan of Pergamon from the Orthodox Research Institute
• Dogmatics notes - "These are the notes that were taken from the lessons of Professor I. Zizioulas (current Metropolitan of Pergamus and Chairman of the Athens Academy) at the Poemantic Division of the Thessaloniki University's School of Theology, during the academic year 1984-1985. They are published with the blessing and the permission of the reverend Metropolitan."
• The Holy and Sacred Synod
• John Zizioulas (Wikipedia)
• Resources for Christian Theology: John Zizioulas
• Page with many dogmatic treatises written by H.G. John Zizioulas, Metropolitan of Pergamon

Succession box: John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon
Preceded by: ?	Metropolitan of Pergamon 1986 - present	Succeeded by: —

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