CFP: Greek Philosophy and Hellenization in the Bible and Christian Theology

The Verbum Vitae Journal of the Institute of Biblical Studies of the Faculty of Theology, at The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin,

invites you to contribute articles to the volume entitled:

“Greek Philosophy and Hellenization in the Bible and Christian Theology”

Editor of the issue: Dr. Damian Mrugalski OP

1. Explanation of the topic

In his lecture at the University of Regensburg in 2006, Benedict XVI stated that “The encounter between the Biblical message and Greek thought did not happen by chance. The vision of Saint Paul, who saw the roads to Asia barred and in a dream saw a Macedonian man plead with him: ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us!’ (Acts 16:6-10) – this vision can be interpreted as a ‘distillation’ of the intrinsic necessity of a rapprochement between Biblical faith and Greek inquiry”. The question of Hellenization, however, concerns not only nascent Christian theology but also the Bible itself. “The New Testament was written in Greek and bears the imprint of the Greek spirit, which had already come to maturity as the Old Testament developed”, the Pope also noted.

The problem of Hellenization is revived in contemporary theological debate and its evaluation may vary. The editors of the Verbum Vitae invite you to take part in such a debate. The articles we are waiting for may concern very detailed issues, concerning the analysis of Greek philosophical concepts, language, rhetoric and literary genres present in the Old and New Testaments and in early Christian theology, as well as more general topics concerning culture, intellectual climate, or certain educational, political and religious institutions formed in the Hellenistic era.

We also invite authors of articles to examine the interaction and circulation of ideas and concepts present in Greco-Roman religion and philosophy as well as those used by authors of the Bible books and Christian theologians. Polemics with contemporary researchers who positively or negatively evaluate the influence of Hellenization on the development of Jewish and Christian theology are also welcome. The subject matter of the volume is therefore very wide, but it should be remembered that the respective articles should in some way be related to one of the three thematic sections of which each volume of the Verbum Vitae journal consists: 1. The Old Testament, 2. The New Testament, 3. The Fathers of the Church and Theology.

2. The terms and conditions

Articles may be written in English or Polish.

Articles should not exceed 45,000 characters, including spaces. In exceptional, justified cases, the editorial staff may allow articles with more characters to be printed.

Detailed guidelines for authors can be found here: https://czasopisma.kul.pl/vv/about/submissions

Deadline for submission of texts:  June 30, 2021.

Date of publication: December 2021.

Texts should be sent through the journal’s website: www.verbumvitae.pl

Contact with the editor of the issue, Dr. Mrugalski: [email protected]

Contact with the editorial office of the Verbum Vitae journal: [email protected]

 3. Why publish with us

The Verbum Vitae journal is currently one of the three highest-scoring theological journals in Poland. In a new evaluation by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Poland (20.12.2019), our journal received 70 points. Moreover, the Verbum Vitae journal is present in SCOPUS, ATLA and EBSCO databases. The presence in the last two databases, in full text form, makes every text published in our journal available in PDF format in every university library in the world. In this way, the Verbum Vitae is an effective place to participate in the international academic debate.