Witness of the Orthodox Church in the Political Context of the Secularized Modern State

Dear Colleagues,

The Orthodox Church, with its bimillenary history, has navigated through numerous historical periods, including the glories of the Byzantine Empire, persecutions under the Ottoman Empire, and challenges during the communist regime. Today, it remains a global presence within communities in traditionally Orthodox regions, as well as in new territories as a result of 19th and 20th century missions. The Church has experienced modernity in a unique way, maintaining its traditions while adapting to diverse cultural and political landscapes.

We are pleased to invite you to contribute the Special Issue “Witness of the Orthodox Church in the Political Context of the Secularized Modern State”, which aims to critically reflect on the complex relationship between the Church and the state. It will explore how the Orthodox Church deals with issues such as secularization, globalization, religious syncretism, migration and other challenges faced by Orthodox communities. It will also look in depth at local histories, contextual missiology, the interaction between the gospel and culture, and the theology of mission. This Special Issue will also address ecumenical and inter-religious relations within the Orthodox tradition, especially in the context of political dynamics in secularized modern states.

We welcome contributions that explore these themes and offer insights into how the Orthodox Church responds to and engages with the modern secular state.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Church History: Researchers in this field are called upon to analyze primary sources, theological writings, and other historical documents to understand how churches have developed over time.
• Missiology: It examines various aspects of mission work, including mission strategies, cross-cultural communication of the gospel, contextualization of theology and practice in different cultural settings, the impact of mission on societies, and the theology of mission itself.
• Ecumenism: Scholars of ecumenism are called to study theological dialogues between different Christian traditions, initiatives for interchurch cooperation and collaboration in mission and social issues, historical and contemporary ecumenical movements, and the theological principles and challenges involved in the search for Christian unity in the midst of doctrinal diversity.
• Sociology of religion: Researchers in this field are called to analyze how religion shapes and is shaped by social structures, cultural norms, political dynamics and individual behavior.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200-300 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the Guest Editor, or to the Assistant Editor of Religions. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purposes of ensuring that potential submissions are within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Examples of Special Issue can be found in the following links:

Religions | Special Issue : Pastoral Ministry, Spiritual Care and Counselling (mdpi.com);

Religions | Special Issue : Religiosity and Spirituality in the Orthodox Church Today (mdpi.com);

Religions | Special Issue : Rebooting Ecumenism - New Paradigms for the 21st Century (mdpi.com)

Prof. Dr. Paul Brusanowski
Prof. Dr. Cristian-Sebastian Sonea
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Church and state
• missiology
• Christian witness
• Secularization
• religious beliefs and practices
• ecumenism
• nationalisms
• identities