Seeking peace in Greece | Opinion
Photo taken by SMU associate dean Anthony J. Elia during his recent trip to Greece for the International Orthodox Theological Association.Halfway between Athens and Thessaloniki, on the shores of the Pagasetic Gulf, is a mountainside city that graduates into Homer’s wine-dark sea, a place called Volos, home of the mythic characters Jason and the Argonauts, who, as the ancients believed, set sail from here in search of the Golden Fleece.
Traveling to Greece, one is struck by both the antique culture of Plato and Aristotle, and the Byzantine hierarchy of the Eastern Church. The remains of the ancient Greek world are among the most stunning examples of venerable art and architecture. And a climb atop the Acropolis in Athens is breathtaking and intense. To step among the ancient marbles where Socrates once taught conveys an overwhelming sense of meaning and presence that no high school textbook or college class can demonstrate.
We discussed everything from theological ethics, Byzantine chant and iconography to modern medicine, conspiracy theories and environmental stewardship in the Church. There were also debates about orthodoxy in the American context, the role of the body and sexuality, the perception of secularity, and the complex relationships that exist among political ideologies, the state and religious organizations.
I climbed with Germans, Americans, Belarusians, Russians, Ukrainians, Greeks, Italians, Ethiopians, Egyptians, Canadians and Romanians. Humans, brothers and sisters, with a common sense of our humanity. We sought common ground among differences, while a war with global implications raged a day’s drive north of us.
Indonesia Berita Terbaru, Indonesia Berita utama
Similar News:Anda juga dapat membaca berita serupa dengan ini yang kami kumpulkan dari sumber berita lain.
Protests erupt in Greece as death toll from train crash rises to 57Anger over deadly train crash in Greece prompted rail workers to go on strike to protest years of underfunding, which they say left the country’s train system in a dangerous state
Baca lebih lajut »
Anger, sorrow in Greece as train crash death toll risesAnger and sorrow grew in Greece on Thursday over a devastating train crash that killed dozens of passengers along with crew members near the central city of Larissa in the country's worst rail disaster.
Baca lebih lajut »
Trains reportedly on same track for 12 minutes before crash in GreeceAs emergency workers continued to pick through the charred carriages, Greeks were turning their focus to a rail system that had long been in worrisome shape.
Baca lebih lajut »
Station manager in deadly head-on train collision in Greece faces manslaughter chargesA station manager faces manslaughter charges following a deadly high-speed train collision that killed dozens of people in Greece, his attorney said Thursday.
Baca lebih lajut »
'A Crime Waiting to Happen': Rail Workers Go on Strike Following Train Crash in GreeceThe government has blamed the crash on human error, and a railway official was charged with manslaughter.
Baca lebih lajut »