Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople Patriarch
The article examines views of the leading theologian of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in the second half of the 20th — early 21st century, Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon, namely his teaching on the primacy of the Patriarch of Constantinople. This topic is particularly relevant in con...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Russian Orthodox Church. Ekaterinburg Theological Seminary of the Ekaterinburg Eparchy
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Вестник Екатеринбургской духовной семинарии |
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| Online Access: | https://epds.ru/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/1-03_N49-2025_Shlenov.pdf |
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| author | Hegumen Dionysius (Alexey V. Shlenov) |
| author_facet | Hegumen Dionysius (Alexey V. Shlenov) |
| author_sort | Hegumen Dionysius (Alexey V. Shlenov) |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The article examines views of the leading theologian of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in the second half of the 20th — early 21st century, Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon, namely his teaching on the primacy of the Patriarch of Constantinople. This topic is particularly relevant in connection with the difficult relations between a number of Orthodox Local Churches after the recognition by the Constantinople Patriarchate of two schismatic denominations in Ukraine in 2018 — early 2019. In many ways, Metropolitan John stood at the origins of the «theory of primacy», which in his person received a theologian-ideologist who developed the basic postulates of primacy based on a comparison of the role of the Constantinople Patriarch in relation to the Heads of other Local Churches with the monarchy of God the Father — the first Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity. This comparison is considered in the context of the broader theological teaching of Metropolitan John. The triadology of Metropolitan John does not correspond to the traditional patristic triadology either in the question of primacy or in the description of the hypostatic properties of the Persons of the Holy Trinity and, obviously, is a serious, unacceptable theological innovation. In addition to this main topic, the article examines several related topics: Eucharistic ecclesiology, the 34th Apostolic Canon and its subsequent interpretations, and the right to convene an Ecumenical or Pan-Orthodox Council, each of which was misused by Metropolitan John to prove the «primacy theory». The article suggests the selected examples from the patristic tradition that make it possible to protect the conciliar structure of the Church from distortion. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-602673b2a04c450fbdb67855e21edc66 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2224-5391 2782-7496 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Russian Orthodox Church. Ekaterinburg Theological Seminary of the Ekaterinburg Eparchy |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Вестник Екатеринбургской духовной семинарии |
| spelling | doaj-art-602673b2a04c450fbdb67855e21edc662025-08-20T02:24:59ZengRussian Orthodox Church. Ekaterinburg Theological Seminary of the Ekaterinburg EparchyВестник Екатеринбургской духовной семинарии2224-53912782-74962025-04-0149618110.24412/2224-5391-2025-49-61-81Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople PatriarchHegumen Dionysius (Alexey V. Shlenov)0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0910-3092Moscow Theological AcademyThe article examines views of the leading theologian of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in the second half of the 20th — early 21st century, Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon, namely his teaching on the primacy of the Patriarch of Constantinople. This topic is particularly relevant in connection with the difficult relations between a number of Orthodox Local Churches after the recognition by the Constantinople Patriarchate of two schismatic denominations in Ukraine in 2018 — early 2019. In many ways, Metropolitan John stood at the origins of the «theory of primacy», which in his person received a theologian-ideologist who developed the basic postulates of primacy based on a comparison of the role of the Constantinople Patriarch in relation to the Heads of other Local Churches with the monarchy of God the Father — the first Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity. This comparison is considered in the context of the broader theological teaching of Metropolitan John. The triadology of Metropolitan John does not correspond to the traditional patristic triadology either in the question of primacy or in the description of the hypostatic properties of the Persons of the Holy Trinity and, obviously, is a serious, unacceptable theological innovation. In addition to this main topic, the article examines several related topics: Eucharistic ecclesiology, the 34th Apostolic Canon and its subsequent interpretations, and the right to convene an Ecumenical or Pan-Orthodox Council, each of which was misused by Metropolitan John to prove the «primacy theory». The article suggests the selected examples from the patristic tradition that make it possible to protect the conciliar structure of the Church from distortion.https://epds.ru/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/1-03_N49-2025_Shlenov.pdftriadologyhypostases of the holy trinitypersonalismpatriarchate of constantinoplepatriarch bartholomew of constantinoplemetropolitan john (zizioulas) of pergamon«theory of primacy»orthodox church of ukraineunity of world orthodoxy |
| spellingShingle | Hegumen Dionysius (Alexey V. Shlenov) Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople Patriarch Вестник Екатеринбургской духовной семинарии triadology hypostases of the holy trinity personalism patriarchate of constantinople patriarch bartholomew of constantinople metropolitan john (zizioulas) of pergamon «theory of primacy» orthodox church of ukraine unity of world orthodoxy |
| title | Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople Patriarch |
| title_full | Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople Patriarch |
| title_fullStr | Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople Patriarch |
| title_full_unstemmed | Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople Patriarch |
| title_short | Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) as a Supporter of the “Theory of Primacy” of the Constantinople Patriarch |
| title_sort | metropolitan john zizioulas as a supporter of the theory of primacy of the constantinople patriarch |
| topic | triadology hypostases of the holy trinity personalism patriarchate of constantinople patriarch bartholomew of constantinople metropolitan john (zizioulas) of pergamon «theory of primacy» orthodox church of ukraine unity of world orthodoxy |
| url | https://epds.ru/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/1-03_N49-2025_Shlenov.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT hegumendionysiusalexeyvshlenov metropolitanjohnzizioulasasasupporterofthetheoryofprimacyoftheconstantinoplepatriarch |