The Third Annual Symposium in Honor of Fr. Florovsky: What is the Bible: What is the Bible? The Doctrine of Creation in the Patristic Tradition.

Princeton University & Princeton Theological Seminary
Friday, February 15, 2013 at 2:00 p.m. to Saturday, February 16, 2013 at 4:30 p.m.

Now in its third year, the “Florovsky Symposium” is known for combining churchly piety with high-level scholarly inquiry. It attracts a large and diverse cohort of established scholars, clergy, graduate students, seminarians, and Christian believers from around the country and the world.

The purpose of this year’s symposium is to re-open a consideration of the doctrine of Scripture for contemporary theology, rooted in the tradition of the Church Fathers (Greek, Latin, and Oriental), an endeavor inspired by the theological vision of the 20th century’s foremost Orthodox Christian theologian, Fr. Georges Florovsky. That is: our interest is not in mere description of historical uses of Scripture or interpretive methods, but rather in the very nature of Scripture itself and its place within the whole economy of creation, revelation, and salvation. The symposium is organized by the Fr. Georges Florovsky Orthodox Christian Theological Society at Princeton University and the School of Christian Vocation and Mission at Princeton Theological Seminary. The co-chairs are Matthew Baker and Seraphim Danckaert.

Featured Speakers
His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios

Archbishop Demetrios (Ph.D., Harvard) is Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America. He has had a long and distinguished career in ministry and academia. He is the recipient of numerous degrees, earned and honorary, and the author of 7 books and 100s of articles. His lecture will focus on St. John Chrysostom.

Fr. John McGuckin (Ph.D., Durham) is Professor in Late Antique and Byzantine Christian History at Union Theological Seminary, as well as a Professor of Byzantine Christian Studies at Columbia University. Some of Fr. John’s 23 books and many articles examine the thought of Origen, about whom he will be speaking.
Dr. Kathleen McVey

Dr. Kathleen McVey (Ph.D., Harvard) is Joseph Ross Stevenson Professor of Church History at Princeton Theological Seminary. The author of many publications and a noted scholar of Syriac Christianity, she will lecture on the doctrine of Scripture in St. Ephrem the Syrian.
Dr. Michael Legaspi

Dr. Michael Legaspi (Ph.D., Harvard) is Instructor in Philosophy & Religious Studies at Phillips Academy. He received the 2011 John Templeton Award for Theological Promise for his book, The Death of Scripture and the Rise of Biblical Studies. He will lecture on related matters.

Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor of All Saints Orthodox Church in Chicago and holds graduate degrees from St. Anselm’s College and the Pontifical Biblical Institute, both in Rome. Fr. Pat is an engaging speaker and prolific author, having published 7 books and well over 1000 articles. He will offer the public lecture on Friday night.
Dr. Paul M. Blowers

Dr. Paul Blowers (Ph.D., Notre Dame) is Dean E. Walker Professor of Church History at Emmanuel Christian Seminary. He is the author and editor of many publications, especially in the field of patristic hermeneutics and St. Maximus the Confessor, about which he will be speaking.
Dr. George L. Parsenios

Dr. George Parsenios (Ph.D., Yale) is Associate Professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary. His teaching and publications include work on the interpretation of the New Testament in the early church. He will moderate the closing panel discussion.