Maximus the Confessor as a European Philosopher: 25 (Veritas)

The study of Maximus the Confessors thought has flourished in recent years: international conferences publications and articles new critical editions and translations mark a torrent of interest in the work and influence of perhaps the most sublime of the Byzantine Church Fathers. It has been repeatedly stated that the Confessors thought is of eminently philosophical interest. However no dedicated collective scholarly engagement with Maximus the Confessor as a philosopher has taken place--and this volume attempts to start such a discussion. Apart from Maximus relevance and importance for philosophy in general a second question arises: should towering figures of Byzantine philosophy like Maximus the Confessor be included in an overview of the European history of philosophy or rather excluded from it--as is the case today with most histories of European philosophy? Maximus philosophy challenges our understanding of what European philosophy is. In this volume we begin to address these issues and examine numerous aspects of Maximus philosophy--thereby also stressing the interdisciplinary character of Maximian studies. This groundbreaking volume correctly identifies an odious convention in the division of disciplines: while major thinkers such as Augustine or Aquinas self-evidently make their way into being part of philosophys legacy equally major thinkers that are categorized as religious are exiled to the hermetically sealed domain of theology even if their contribution to classical philosophical problems is unique pertinent and most fecund. The book at hand delivers on its promise of reclaiming Maximus the Confessor for philosophy and of recognizing his oeuvre as a critical contribution to its history; as such it is one of those endeavors that contribute to nothing less than a paradigm change. --Grigory Benevich The Russian Christian Academy for the Humanities This rich and diverse set of essays goes far in demonstrating not only the depth and nuance of Maximus the Confessors philosophical theology in its own context but its relevance to a wide array of contemporary theological concerns. They indicate very well why the study of Maximus has experienced a profound renaissance in the past several years as this is a thinker whose stature matches the far more studied figures of Augustine and Aquinas. From metaphysics to theological anthropology from apophaticism to ethics this collection is a fine contribution to the expanding research on Maximus and will further generate interest in the Confessor among historical theologians philosophers and scholars from a wide variety of disciplines. --Paul M. Blowers Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan College Sotiris Mitralexis is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the City University of Istanbul and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Winchester. Georgios Steiris is Assistant Professor of Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Marcin Podbielski is Editor-in-Chief of Forum Philosophicum an international journal for philosophy and teaches philosophy at the Jesuit University Ignatianum in Cracow Poland. Sebastian Lalla is Assistant Professor (Privatdozent) at the Freie Universitat Berlins Institute of Philosophy and Guest Professor of Philosophy at the National University of Mongolia.