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In our present times, a search for widespread certainty over a sound understanding of ecumenism must be acknowledged. While questions on the vision for communion among the Christian churches or on the commitment to witness and to social justice are more than justified, the appeal to “turn to God” reverberates strongly throughout the witness of (ecumenical) prophets today as it did in the past. Although a real process of entering into spiritual communion with one another takes time to happen until it becomes real and visible, ecumenism must continually start afresh from God. Ecumenism is above all God’s will that “all may be one” (John 17:21). All human efforts in the ecumenical movement are to find their origin and inspiration from God alone. The aim of this paper is a modest one. It seeks to place all ecumenical discourse in the light of the mystery of God who is the source of communion. In this light, recent discourse on reception, recognition, and spirituality should be grounded in God’s very nature and call to become one in him. This article features four main steps: 1. to contextualise the quest for Christian unity in postmodern times, 2. to emphasise the necessity of a relationship between ecumenism and Christian mysticism, 3. to learn from central concepts of the mysticism of the Church Fathers, and 4. to reconfigure ecumenism on prayer, trust and hospitality., peer-reviewed

For Thomas Aquinas, the imagination, being one of the “inner senses”, is a doorway to attain true knowledge. In this paper, we first analyze his lexicon in this regard (imaginatio and phantasia). Second, we discuss imagination as the subject matter of the intellectual virtues, which facilitate cognition and judgment. The development of imagination is the foundation of his vision of education not only on the natural but also on the supernatural level. Third, we explore Aquinas’ moral assessment of imaginative art and finally its influence on shaping the character. This influence occurs on two levels: it is assessed from the perspective of charity, justice, prudence and purity, namely to what extent the art serves these values, whereas the second criterion is beauty.

The composition of the human person is a central issue for Augustine. He addresses it in a philosophico-theological way; particularly in The Soliloquies and in The Confessions. What is at stake here is his exposition of “what” constitutes a person’s being human. This paper refers to some of his key ideas in this regard and attempts to identify and establish what this great thinker understands by specific terminology: the soul, the mind, and the self. His hunger for knowledge of the self helps his readers to ponder on the shifting emphasis between interiority and exteriority as well as a person’s consciousness and selfhood. Augustine wrestles with the concept of the soul, but at no point does he minimise the role of the intellect. After examining four definitions given by Augustine of the human person, this paper attempts to clarify all underpinnings related to this subject, as to be able to answer the topic in question., peer-reviewed

Pope Francis’ double-invitation to embrace God’s love and to be its witnesses requires human beings to have a spiritual readiness that reflects the grammar and the logic of being Christian. This paper aims to re-propose a fresh discourse on Christian witness. This is particularly imperative in the light of recent acts of heroic witness of those Christians who courageously stand up to hatred, even when it means giving up their lives. This paper proceeds in three steps. First, there is a contextualisation of Christian witness with an emphasis on the need to appreciate the fullness and the meaning of the Christian faith. Secondly, the paper sets out to discuss the grammar of witness particularly in the light of the Gospel of John. Lastly, there follows a presentation of the logic of being Christian despite often described as folly by those who have not yet know to know of God’s love in real terms. Becoming Christian witnesses is a demanding process, which whenever undertaken, it leads the Christian to be a living-expression of God’s unconditional love to all.