Mystical Theology: Introducing the Theology and Spiritual Life of the Orthodox Church

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Series: Mystical Theology
Episode 45: Dionysius the Areopagite, Authorship & Dating, C. Veniamin
In Episode 45 of our Mystical Theology, we continue our overview of the theology of Dionysius the Areopagite, one of the most challenging figures in the history of Christian doctrine. This episode also contains personal reflections on aspects of the spiritual life learned from St. Sophrony the Athonite. For a list of the various themes contained therein, see the Timestamps below.
Q&As available in The Professor’s Blog: https://mountthabor.com/blogs/the-professors-blog
Recommended background reading: Christopher Veniamin, ed., Saint Gregory Palamas: The Homilies (Dalton PA: 2022); The Orthodox Understanding of Salvation: "Theosis" in Scripture and Tradition (2016); and The Transfiguration of Christ in Greek Patristic Literature (2022).
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In Episode 44 of our Mystical Theology, we begin our overview of the theology of Dionysius the Areopagite, one of the most challenging figures in the history of Christian doctrine.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: I wish to express my indebtedness to the spoken and written traditions of Mtp Kallistos Ware, Vladimir Lossky, Fr. John Romanides and Mtp Hierotheos Vlachos. Responsibility for the content of my presentations is of course mine alone. ©Christopher Veniamin 2026
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Dr. Christopher Veniamin
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Series: Mystical Theology
Episode 25bis: Members-only. The Original Version of “What is Meant by The Spiritual Life?”, Part 6 of Augustine of Hippo: An Orthodox Perspective, Dr. C. Veniamin

Episode 25: Members-only: By Popular Demand, the Original Version - In Part 6 of “Augustine of Hippo: An Orthodox Perspective”, Episode 25 of our series in “Mystical Theology”, we attempt to outline some of the distinguishing characteristics of the Orthodox spiritual life. Other themes broached in this episode are listed in the Timestamps below.

Q&As available in The Professor’s Blog: https://mountthabor.com/blogs/the-pro...

Recommended background reading: Christopher Veniamin, ed., Saint Gregory Palamas: The Homilies (Dalton PA: 2022): https://mountthabor.com/products/sain... ; The Orthodox Understanding of Salvation: "Theosis" in Scripture and Tradition (2016): https://mountthabor.com/products/the-... ; The Transfiguration of Christ in Greek Patristic Literature: https://mountthabor.com/products/the-... (2022) ; and Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos, Empirical Dogmatics of the Orthodox Catholic Church: According to the Spoken Teaching of Father John Romanides, Vol. 1 (2012), Vol. 2 (repr. ed. 2020).

Further bibliography may be found in our "Scholar's Corner" webpage: https://mountthabor.com/pages/the-pro....

Join the Mount Thabor Academy Podcasts and help us to bring podcasts on Orthodox theology and the spiritual life to the wider community.
Dr. Christopher Veniamin
Join The Mount Thabor Academy
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In "Members-Only: St. Sophrony - Seminaries - Fr. Romanides," Dr. Christopher Veniamin shares some personal views with our YouTube channel members on certain questions relating to his spiritual father, Sophrony the Athonite, Orthodox theological education in North America, and the influence of his professor of Dogmatics, Fr. John Romanides. 
Q&As available in The Professor’s Blog: https://mountthabor.com/blogs/the-pro...

Recommended background reading: Christopher Veniamin, ed., Saint Gregory Palamas: The Homilies (Dalton PA: 2022): https://mountthabor.com/products/sain... The Orthodox Understanding of Salvation: "Theosis" in Scripture and Tradition: https://mountthabor.com/products/the-... (2016); and Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos, Empirical Dogmatics of the Orthodox Catholic Church: According to the Spoken Teaching of Father John Romanides, Vol. 1 (2012), Vol. 2 (repr. ed. 2020).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: I wish to express my indebtedness to the spoken and written traditions of Sts Silouan and Sophrony the Athonites, Fr. Zacharias Zacharou, Fr. Kyrill Akon, Fr. Raphael Noica, Fr. Symeon Brüschweiler; Fr. Pavlos Englezakis, Fr. Georges Florovsky, Prof. Constantine Scouteris, Prof. George Mantzarides, Prof. John Fountoulis, and particularly to Mtp Kallistos Ware, Prof. Panayiotes Chrestou, Fr. John Romanides, and Mtp Hierotheos Vlachos: certain sentences and phrases utilized in these presentations are taken directly from my notes of some of their lectures. My presentations have been enriched by all of the above sources, owing to the adoption of certain structures, lists, schemata, and the paraphrasing of themes taken from them. Responsibility for the content of my presentations is of course mi
Join the Mount Thabor Academy Podcasts and help us to bring podcasts on Orthodox theology and the spiritual life to the wider community.
Dr. Christopher Veniamin
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Following the teachings of St. Cyril of Alexandria, who gives us the foundations of Orthodox Christology, Dr. Christopher Veniamin expounds upon the significance of the asymmetrical union of the two natures of Christ in the single and unique “prosopon-hypostasis” of the Son and Word of God; and in the process of doing so, offers a corrective to the erroneous Christologies of both past and present.

Jesus Christ, our Lord, God and Saviour, is a divine being, not a human being: He is the Son and Word of God incarnate. As Cyril of Alexandria explains, "Scripture does not say that the Logos united the "prosopon" of a man to Himself, but that He became flesh (John 1:14).

It is our intention to present the Christology of St. Cyril of Alexandria more fully, in order to provide a wider context for the points made in this Special Episode on the Christology of the Holy Fathers.

Some of the themes touched upon in this episode are noted in the Timestamps below.

Q&As available in The Professor’s Blog: https://mountthabor.com/blogs/the-pro...

Recommended background reading: Christopher Veniamin, ed., Saint Gregory Palamas: The Homilies (Dalton PA: 2022): https://mountthabor.com/products/sain... The Orthodox Understanding of Salvation: "Theosis" in Scripture and Tradition: https://mountthabor.com/products/the-... (2016); and Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos, Empirical Dogmatics of the Orthodox Catholic Church: According to the Spoken Teaching of Father John Romanides, Vol. 1 (2012), Vol. 2 (repr. ed. 2020).
Join the Mount Thabor Academy Podcasts and help us to bring podcasts on Orthodox theology and the spiritual life to the wider community.
Dr. Christopher Veniamin
Join The Mount Thabor Academy
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2232462/support
THE MOUNT THABOR ACADEMY (YouTube)
THE MOUNT THABOR ACADEMY (Patreon)
Print Books by MOUNT THABOR PUBLISHING
eBooks
Amazon
Google
Apple
Kobo
B&N

Further Info & Bibliography
The Professor's Blog
Further bibliography may be found in our Scholar's Corner

Contact us: info@mountthabor.com...