Vasileios Ioannidis
Encyclopedia
Vasileios Ioannidis was a Greek theologian and professor. His research was focused on the analysis and the understanding (hermeneutics) of the New Testament
. Ioannidis also participated in first three Assemblies of the World Council of Churches
(1947, 1955 and 1961) and was involved in the movement of Ecumenism
.
, modern southern Albania
(Northern Epirus
). He initially studied at the Halki seminary
in Constantinople (Istanbul
) and then continued his studies at the University of Oxford
and Humboldt University of Berlin
. He became a professor of Theology
at the University of Thessaloniki (1942–1951), and later at the Kapodistrian University of Athens (1952–1963).
In 1952 Ioannidis became a member of the Northern Epirus lobby, headed by the exiled bishop of Gjirokastër
, Panteleimon Kotokos
, which propagated the rights of the Greek population in southern Albania. Ioannidis' research was focused on the interpretation (hermeneutics) of the New Testament, while in 1961 he cooperated with the reformist in the field of education and supporter of the Demotic Greek
language, Alexandros Delmouzos. He is considered among the most important 20th century theologians in Greece, along with the former Archbishop of Athens Ieronymos I
, Christos Androutsos, Panagiotis Trembelas, Panagiotis Bratsiotis and Ioannis Karmiris.
: in Amsterdam
(1948), in Evanston
, Illinois
, United States
(1954), as well as in New Delhi
, India
(1961). Ioannidis together with another theologian, Amilkas Alivizatos, contributed significantly to the debates that led to the drafting of the "Toronto Statement", a foundational document which facilitated Orthodox participation in the organization and constitutes today its ecclesiological charter. Ioannidis was against the view that the Orthodox church should participate in discussions about Dogmatic theology
. On the other hand he believed that the discussions among the representatives of the various Churches should focus on social and political issues. In general Ioannidis claimed that the Eastern Orthodox Church
should play a leading role in the Ecumenism
movement.
In a number of reports about the Second Vatican Council
(1962) Ioannidis addressed the importance of such an event, although the results of this, according to him, did not change the relations between the Roman Catholic
and the Eastern Orthodox Church
.
(1960) - Introduction to the New Testament (1934, 1957) - The Doctrine of Predestination in St. Paul and the Stoic Philosophers
(1936, 1957) - Mysticism of Saint Paul and religious ideas and trends of the Hellenistic era (1955) - The Kingdom of God according to the instruction of the New Testament (1960) - The Gospel and the Social Problem
Ioannidis also published a number of works about the movement of Ecumenism
, as well as articles in various journals.
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
. Ioannidis also participated in first three Assemblies of the World Council of Churches
World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...
(1947, 1955 and 1961) and was involved in the movement of Ecumenism
Ecumenism
Ecumenism or oecumenism mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater Christian unity or cooperation. It is used predominantly by and with reference to Christian denominations and Christian Churches separated by doctrine, history, and practice...
.
Life
Ioannidis was born in PërmetPërmet
Përmet is a town in Albania, capital of Përmet District. The population is 7,717. It is flanked by the Vjosë river, which runs along the Trebeshinë-Dhëmbel-Nemërçkë mountain chain, between Trebeshinë and Dhëmbel mountains, and through the Këlcyra gorge....
, modern southern Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
(Northern Epirus
Northern Epirus
Northern Epirus is a term used to refer to those parts of the historical region of Epirus, in the western Balkans, that are part of the modern Albania. The term is used mostly by Greeks and is associated with the existence of a substantial ethnic Greek population in the region...
). He initially studied at the Halki seminary
Halki seminary
The Halki seminary, formally the Theological School of Halki , was founded on 1 October 1844 on the island of Halki , the second-largest of the Princes' Islands in the Sea of Marmara. It was the main school of theology of the Eastern Orthodox Church's Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople until...
in Constantinople (Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
) and then continued his studies at the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
and Humboldt University of Berlin
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
. He became a professor of Theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
at the University of Thessaloniki (1942–1951), and later at the Kapodistrian University of Athens (1952–1963).
In 1952 Ioannidis became a member of the Northern Epirus lobby, headed by the exiled bishop of Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër is a city in southern Albania with a population of 43,000. Lying in the historical region of Epirus, it is the capital of both the Gjirokastër District and the larger Gjirokastër County...
, Panteleimon Kotokos
Panteleimon Kotokos
Panteleimon Kotokos was the Greek Orthodox bishop of Gjirokastër and a member of the exiled Northern Epirus lobby after the end of World War II....
, which propagated the rights of the Greek population in southern Albania. Ioannidis' research was focused on the interpretation (hermeneutics) of the New Testament, while in 1961 he cooperated with the reformist in the field of education and supporter of the Demotic Greek
Dimotiki
Demotic Greek or dimotiki is the modern vernacular form of the Greek language. The term has been in use since 1818. Demotic refers particularly to the form of the language that evolved naturally from ancient Greek, in opposition to the artificially archaic Katharevousa, which was the official...
language, Alexandros Delmouzos. He is considered among the most important 20th century theologians in Greece, along with the former Archbishop of Athens Ieronymos I
Archbishop Ieronymos I of Athens
Ieronymos I was a Greek monk and theologian, who served as the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece and as such the primate of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Greece in 1967–1973, during the Greek military junta of 1967–1974.- Life :...
, Christos Androutsos, Panagiotis Trembelas, Panagiotis Bratsiotis and Ioannis Karmiris.
Ecumenism and World Council of Churches
He was one of the representatives of the Orthodox Church of Greece that participated in the World Council of ChurchesWorld Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...
: in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
(1948), in Evanston
Evanston
Evanston may refer to locations:in Australia:* Evanston, South Australiain Canada:* Evanston, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Calgary, Alberta* Evanston, Nova Scotiain the United States:...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(1954), as well as in New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(1961). Ioannidis together with another theologian, Amilkas Alivizatos, contributed significantly to the debates that led to the drafting of the "Toronto Statement", a foundational document which facilitated Orthodox participation in the organization and constitutes today its ecclesiological charter. Ioannidis was against the view that the Orthodox church should participate in discussions about Dogmatic theology
Dogmatic theology
Dogmatic theology is that part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and his works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Church, Dutch Reformed Church, etc...
. On the other hand he believed that the discussions among the representatives of the various Churches should focus on social and political issues. In general Ioannidis claimed that the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
should play a leading role in the Ecumenism
Ecumenism
Ecumenism or oecumenism mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater Christian unity or cooperation. It is used predominantly by and with reference to Christian denominations and Christian Churches separated by doctrine, history, and practice...
movement.
In a number of reports about the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
(1962) Ioannidis addressed the importance of such an event, although the results of this, according to him, did not change the relations between the Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
.
Work
His main works are:(1960) - Introduction to the New Testament (1934, 1957) - The Doctrine of Predestination in St. Paul and the Stoic Philosophers
Stoicism
Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium in the early . The Stoics taught that destructive emotions resulted from errors in judgment, and that a sage, or person of "moral and intellectual perfection," would not suffer such emotions.Stoics were concerned...
(1936, 1957) - Mysticism of Saint Paul and religious ideas and trends of the Hellenistic era (1955) - The Kingdom of God according to the instruction of the New Testament (1960) - The Gospel and the Social Problem
Ioannidis also published a number of works about the movement of Ecumenism
Ecumenism
Ecumenism or oecumenism mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater Christian unity or cooperation. It is used predominantly by and with reference to Christian denominations and Christian Churches separated by doctrine, history, and practice...
, as well as articles in various journals.