Stavros Yangazoglou is the Director of the journal Theologia and editor of the Greek edition of the French text series Sources Chrétiennes for Indiktos Publications. Furthermore, he is advisor to the Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs, and Director of the 1st Bureau of the Institute for Educational Policy. His work includes more than 80 articles and studies in Greek, French, English, Italian and Serbian language, and has been involved in the development of the new Religious Education school textbooks.
During our encounter with Dr Yangazoglou, we had a brief discussion on SOW’s aims, focusing on the need for the dialog between Science and Orthodoxy to first establish a dialog between the various Orthodox interested parties. He also referred to the important phases, the characteristics and the people involved in the development of modern Orthodox Theology, as well as the reception of Florovsky’s “neopatristic synthesis” by Greek-speaking Theology, stressing the need to bring this reception into a dialog with the contemporary world, freed of any anti-Western connotations and any ideologization of patristic thought that could fuel introversion.
Stemming from his specialization on Gregory Palamas, as a student of the Metropolitan of Pergamos John Zizioulas, he focused on the importance for a careful and ‘open’ re-reading of Palamas concerning the relation between science and religion. Other topics stressed was whether the Orthodox Tradition incorporates the knowledge of the Cosmos in the path towards a knowledge of God, and how he realizes the relation between Science and Wisdom (Σοφία).
Finally, given his role in the development of new R.E. curricula for secondary education, we had the opportunity to discuss the educational dimensions of Project SOW and his future involvement in a workshop for primary and secondary education functionaries.
