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Papers by Alexander Chernyavsky
Christian reading, 2024
Studies of Christian literature of the first seven centuries have shown that the ecumenical counc... more Studies of Christian literature of the first seven centuries have shown that the ecumenical councils, although they did not allow distortion of the Christian message, nevertheless did not consider the essence of the problems that were created by the Chalcedonian definition and became the subject of Christological disputes of the VI-VII centuries. As a result, these problems, which in traditional (classical) theology were considered solved long ago, appeared again in all their complexity. In addition, in the last 150 years, Christian theology has faced new difficulties that have arisen in the course of scholarly study of the New Testament texts. The article lists these problems and shows that the modification of the Chalcedonian definition proposed by Karl Barth makes it possible to solve them.
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, No 2, 2024
The theological problems of the ethics of love for one's neighbour are considered: the impossibil... more The theological problems of the ethics of love for one's neighbour are considered: the impossibility of literal fulfilment of the commandments and doubtfulness of their applicability in public and state life. One of the approaches to solving these problems is based on the principle of reverence for life, proposed by Albert Schweitzer and expressing, in his opinion, the essence of love for one's neighbour. Subsequently, this principle was borrowed by Karl Barth, who gave it a theological justification. Although Barth's texts on reverence for life are well known, some fundamental issues are still insufficiently investigated. Why did Barth claim that reverence for life does not fully express the essence of Christian ethics? What is the fundamental difference between the Barth's and Schweitzer's approaches to Christian ethics? How was this difference of approaches manifested in the practical recommendations? The article provides a comparative analysis of Barth's and Schweitzer's ethics and answers the above questions.
European Journal of Science and Theology, No 2, 2024
When Christian theology is reconciled with scientific data on the origin of man, the following qu... more When Christian theology is reconciled with scientific data on the origin of man, the following questions arise: If man appeared about 100 thousand years ago, can he be responsible for death and suffering of previously living beings in the struggle for the existence? If death, suffering and predation have already been, what is fundamentally new added by the fall of man? The article discusses a number of theological answers to these questions: Teilhard de Chardin's attempt to eliminate them by a complete rejection of the biblical myth; answers of modern theologians offering non-traditional interpretations of the biblical myth; the answer of Tillich, who understands the Fall as a symbol of the universal human situation. If one distracts from the chronology of these answers, then the logic of the development of theological thought can be described as a transition from a mythological understanding of the Fall to a symbolic one.
Issues of Theology, No 1, 2023
Some of the sayings of Jesus show that he did not possess omniscience. But this is incompatible w... more Some of the sayings of Jesus show that he did not possess omniscience. But this is incompatible with the Chalcedonian definition according to which in Christ the divine and human natures are united in one person. Traditional theology has therefore concluded that Christ's ignorance was only apparent. However, the New Testament studies proved that Christ as man did not really know the time of the end of the world and his Second Coming. Moreover, he expected these events to come in the very near future. The article shows that the arguments of the New Testament scholars are so convincing that the incompatibility of the gospel testimony about Christ with the Chalcedonian definition can be considered a scientifically established fact. These results of New Testament studies significantly change the situation in modern Christian theology: a literal understanding of the Chalcedonian formula has now become not only difficult for modern man, but simply impossible. However, the Chalcedonian definition is only one of the possible ways to describe the unity of the divine and the human in Christ. Alternative ways are not only theoretically possible, but have already been proposed and actually exist in Christian theology. The final section of the article briefly describes three such ways proposed by Karl Barth, Albert Schweitzer and Paul Tillich.
Issues of Theology, No 3, 2021
Christological controversies of the VI-VII centuries (for example, the polemic of Leontius of Byz... more Christological controversies of the VI-VII centuries (for example, the polemic of Leontius of Byzantium with Nestorians and Eutychians and of Maximus the Confessor with monoenergistes/monothelites) showed that the Chalcedonian definition generates a number of problems that cannot be solved within the framework of traditional theology: the unclear ontological status of the human nature without human hypostasis; the problem of reconciling the ontological models underlying the trinitarian doctrine of the Cappadocians and the Chalcedonian definition; the need to resort to an artificial interpretation of the Gospel testimonies; the difficulties of explaining how the influence of the divine nature on the human nature of Christ spreads to all people. However, the Chalcedonian definition is only one of the possible ways to describe the unity of the divine and the human in Christ. As an example of an alternative description in which the above problems do not arise, the christology of Paul Tillich is considered. Tillich's idea is to replace the traditional concept of the Logos incarnated in man with the concept of the Spirit of God transforming man. According to this view, God does not act on human nature without hypostasis, but on the hypostasis of man through its unifying center. During the earthly life of Christ, this effect occurred only in the hypostasis of Christ as man. And after (and thanks to) the death of the cross and the resurrection of Christ, it spreads to all people.
Social Sciences Vol. 51, No. 1, 2020
This article deals with the dialog of Christian ethics and Jewish ethics as different versions of... more This article deals with the dialog of Christian ethics and Jewish ethics as different versions of biblical ethics. Seeking to demonstrate the potential of such a dialog, the author compares the positions of two outstanding thinkers: Albert Schweitzer (Christianity) and Emmanuel Lévinas (Judaism).
Christian reading, 2024
Studies of Christian literature of the first seven centuries have shown that the ecumenical counc... more Studies of Christian literature of the first seven centuries have shown that the ecumenical councils, although they did not allow distortion of the Christian message, nevertheless did not consider the essence of the problems that were created by the Chalcedonian definition and became the subject of Christological disputes of the VI-VII centuries. As a result, these problems, which in traditional (classical) theology were considered solved long ago, appeared again in all their complexity. In addition, in the last 150 years, Christian theology has faced new difficulties that have arisen in the course of scholarly study of the New Testament texts. The article lists these problems and shows that the modification of the Chalcedonian definition proposed by Karl Barth makes it possible to solve them.
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, No 2, 2024
The theological problems of the ethics of love for one's neighbour are considered: the impossibil... more The theological problems of the ethics of love for one's neighbour are considered: the impossibility of literal fulfilment of the commandments and doubtfulness of their applicability in public and state life. One of the approaches to solving these problems is based on the principle of reverence for life, proposed by Albert Schweitzer and expressing, in his opinion, the essence of love for one's neighbour. Subsequently, this principle was borrowed by Karl Barth, who gave it a theological justification. Although Barth's texts on reverence for life are well known, some fundamental issues are still insufficiently investigated. Why did Barth claim that reverence for life does not fully express the essence of Christian ethics? What is the fundamental difference between the Barth's and Schweitzer's approaches to Christian ethics? How was this difference of approaches manifested in the practical recommendations? The article provides a comparative analysis of Barth's and Schweitzer's ethics and answers the above questions.
European Journal of Science and Theology, No 2, 2024
When Christian theology is reconciled with scientific data on the origin of man, the following qu... more When Christian theology is reconciled with scientific data on the origin of man, the following questions arise: If man appeared about 100 thousand years ago, can he be responsible for death and suffering of previously living beings in the struggle for the existence? If death, suffering and predation have already been, what is fundamentally new added by the fall of man? The article discusses a number of theological answers to these questions: Teilhard de Chardin's attempt to eliminate them by a complete rejection of the biblical myth; answers of modern theologians offering non-traditional interpretations of the biblical myth; the answer of Tillich, who understands the Fall as a symbol of the universal human situation. If one distracts from the chronology of these answers, then the logic of the development of theological thought can be described as a transition from a mythological understanding of the Fall to a symbolic one.
Issues of Theology, No 1, 2023
Some of the sayings of Jesus show that he did not possess omniscience. But this is incompatible w... more Some of the sayings of Jesus show that he did not possess omniscience. But this is incompatible with the Chalcedonian definition according to which in Christ the divine and human natures are united in one person. Traditional theology has therefore concluded that Christ's ignorance was only apparent. However, the New Testament studies proved that Christ as man did not really know the time of the end of the world and his Second Coming. Moreover, he expected these events to come in the very near future. The article shows that the arguments of the New Testament scholars are so convincing that the incompatibility of the gospel testimony about Christ with the Chalcedonian definition can be considered a scientifically established fact. These results of New Testament studies significantly change the situation in modern Christian theology: a literal understanding of the Chalcedonian formula has now become not only difficult for modern man, but simply impossible. However, the Chalcedonian definition is only one of the possible ways to describe the unity of the divine and the human in Christ. Alternative ways are not only theoretically possible, but have already been proposed and actually exist in Christian theology. The final section of the article briefly describes three such ways proposed by Karl Barth, Albert Schweitzer and Paul Tillich.
Issues of Theology, No 3, 2021
Christological controversies of the VI-VII centuries (for example, the polemic of Leontius of Byz... more Christological controversies of the VI-VII centuries (for example, the polemic of Leontius of Byzantium with Nestorians and Eutychians and of Maximus the Confessor with monoenergistes/monothelites) showed that the Chalcedonian definition generates a number of problems that cannot be solved within the framework of traditional theology: the unclear ontological status of the human nature without human hypostasis; the problem of reconciling the ontological models underlying the trinitarian doctrine of the Cappadocians and the Chalcedonian definition; the need to resort to an artificial interpretation of the Gospel testimonies; the difficulties of explaining how the influence of the divine nature on the human nature of Christ spreads to all people. However, the Chalcedonian definition is only one of the possible ways to describe the unity of the divine and the human in Christ. As an example of an alternative description in which the above problems do not arise, the christology of Paul Tillich is considered. Tillich's idea is to replace the traditional concept of the Logos incarnated in man with the concept of the Spirit of God transforming man. According to this view, God does not act on human nature without hypostasis, but on the hypostasis of man through its unifying center. During the earthly life of Christ, this effect occurred only in the hypostasis of Christ as man. And after (and thanks to) the death of the cross and the resurrection of Christ, it spreads to all people.
Social Sciences Vol. 51, No. 1, 2020
This article deals with the dialog of Christian ethics and Jewish ethics as different versions of... more This article deals with the dialog of Christian ethics and Jewish ethics as different versions of biblical ethics. Seeking to demonstrate the potential of such a dialog, the author compares the positions of two outstanding thinkers: Albert Schweitzer (Christianity) and Emmanuel Lévinas (Judaism).