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Cited by 20Historical Philosophy and ScienceByzantine Studies and HistoryHistory of Science and Natural History

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Science and Orthodox Christianity: An Overview

Nicolaidis, Efthymios, Delli, Eudoxie, Livanos, Nikolaos, Tampakis, Kostas, Vlahakis, George·2016·Isis
DOI 10.1086/688704
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Abstract

This essay offers an overview of the history of the relations between science and Eastern Christianity based on Greek-language sources. The civilizations concerned are the Byzantine Empire, the Christian Orthodox communities of the Ottoman Empire, and modern Greece, as a case study of a national state. Beginning with the Greek Church Fathers, the essay investigates the ideas of theologians and scholars on nature. Neoplatonism, the theological debates of Iconoclasm and Hesychasm, the proposed union of the Eastern and Western Churches, and the complex relations with the Hellenic past all had notable impacts on the conception of science held by the Byzantine Orthodox. From the sixteenth through the eighteenth centuries, the Christian Orthodox world did not actively participate in the making of the new science that was developing in modern Europe. It had to deal with the assimilation of scientific ideas produced by Western Christianity, and its main concern was the “legitimacy” of knowledge that did not originate directly from its own spiritual tradition. Finally, with regard to the Greek state, beyond the specific points of contact between the sciences and Orthodox Christianity—pertaining, for example, to materialism, evolution, and the calendar—the essay presents the constant background engagement with religion visible in most public pronouncements of scientists and intellectuals.

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Metadata

Authors
Nicolaidis, E., Delli, E., Livanos, N., Tampakis, K., & Vlahakis, G.
ORCID
Livanos, Nikolaos
Venue
Isis
Publisher
University of Chicago Press
Published
2016-09-20
Volume
107
Issue
3
Pages
542-566
ISSN
  • 0021-1753 (ISSN-L)
  • 1545-6994
DOI
10.1086/688704
OpenAlex
W2511397721
Semantic Scholar
05ca8a15ab43ae52ebd6d5ed5b0f42612f784c6e
Cited by
20
References
16
Citations by year
2025: 1 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 5 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1
FWCI
6.64
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Isis (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History and Philosophy of Science › Historical Philosophy and Science
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Classics › Byzantine Studies and History
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History and Philosophy of Science › History of Science and Natural History
Keywords
science and religion, Orthodox Christianity, Eastern Christianity, Byzantine Empire, Ottoman Empire, Greek Orthodox community, Neoplatonism, iconoclasm, hesychasm, ecumenical councils, reception of Western science, legitimacy of knowledge, materialism, evolution, calendars, Church Fathers
MeSH terms
Christianity, Humans, Religion and Medicine, Science, Eastern Orthodoxy

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