Summary
V.M. Lurje: History of Byzantine Philosophy
The enormous wealth of topics and historical experiences covered in the book by Lurje and Baranov significantly exceeds the scope of theological interest. This is primarily evidenced by the abundance of historical insights that improve our knowledge regarding the Jewish spiritual tradition, as well as the complex process of the constitution of the Christian church and its departure from that tradition. In addition, with the help of the most modern knowledge, the authors demonstrate the necessity of Christian joining the heritage of ancient philosophy, especially when it comes to its inevitable terminological achievements.
Pointing out that without Byzantine spirituality today we would most likely be deprived of the great contribution of ancient thought, the authors rightly devote the greatest attention to the gradual but far-reaching process of "translating" ancient thought foundations to Christian spiritual soil. One of the unusual qualities of this book consists in the thesis that it is not a mere translation from a philosophical to a theological register. The undoubted and indisputable theological context, in which Byzantine thought was formed, by no means implies the deprivation of any other theoretical interest. In contrast to established and dominant opinions, the authors claim that one can speak of a double weaving of thoughts in the Byzantine world, that is, of the existence of ancient, together with Byzantine philosophy.
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