Remembering the Future

This long-awaited, posthumous book by Metropolitan of Pergamon John Zizioulas, with an insightful and heartfelt prologue by Pope Francis, is a comprehensive exploration of eschatology and its profound implications for theology and ontology. It is divided into five chapters, each addressing a specific aspect of eschatology and its relationship with various theological themes. Through rigorous analysis and theological insight, the book explores how eschatology shapes our understanding of existence, purpose, and ultimate destiny. This scholarly work offers a deep dive into the theological and philosophical aspects of the Eschaton, providing readers with valuable insights into the Christian understanding of the future and its implications for the present. With meticulous attention to detail and a rich array of topics, this book is invaluable for theologians and scholars seeking a deeper grasp of eschatological thought. It is written for those who have accepted the fact of the Resurrection of Christ and are interested in the "logical" consequences that follow the acceptance of this fact: "credo ut intelligam".

Table of Contents:
Foreword by Pope Francis Preface by Bishop Maxim Vasiljevic Introduction I. Between the "Already" and the "Not Yet" II. The Eucharistic Remembrance of the Future III. God's Remembrance IV. The Light of the Post-Easter Experience V. The "Earnest" of the Future Kingdom VI. The Reversal of the Direction of Time VII. From the Omega to the Alpha VIII. An Epiphanic Ontology IX. Eschatological Hermeneutics X. Death and Resurrection XI. Towards an Eschatological Ethic XII. Toi, tu ne mourras pas Chapter One Eschatology and Ontology Introduction 1. Ontology and Theology 2. Ontology and Eschatology The Birth of Eschatological Ontology 1. From "de principiis" to "ex nihilo": The Will as "Cause" of Being 2. From Teleology to Eschatology: The End as the Cause of Being Appendix: The Eschatologization of History Chapter Two Eschatology and Creation Introduction: The Ontological Content of the Eschata I. The Mortality of Creation II. The Sustainment of Creation III. The Ever-being of Creation 1. The Incarnation and the Eschata 2. The Ontological Significance of the Resurrection 3. The Holy Spirit and the Eschata 4. Creation as Eucharist IV. Existential Consequences 1. Eschatology and Ecology 2. Eschatology and Natural Science a) The Idea of Relationality b) The Anthropic Cosmological Principle 3. Eschatology and Art Conclusions Excursus: Historization of the Eschaton: The Significance of Iconic Ontology 1. Greek and Biblical View of Eikon: A Comparative Examination 2. Eikon and Being Chapter 3 Eschatology and the Fall I. Fall from What? II. Fall to What? III. The Problem of Evil 1. The Reply of Psychology 2. The Reply of Vindication 3. The Ontological Reply IV. The Elimination of Evil 1. The Judgement of Evil 2. The Purification of History Appendix I: Slaves of Reality Appendix II: A Note on Perfection Chapter Four Eschatology, Hell, and Final Judgment Introduction I. Judgement and Existence II. Hell and Freedom III. Being and the Demonic IV. Hell as the Presence of the Other V. The Eternity of Hell VI. Eschatology and Ecclesia 1. The Ontology of the Person 2. The ontology of Love 3. The Ontology of Mercy Chapter Five Eschatology and Liturgical Time Introduction I. Time as an Existential Problem II. Toward a Liturgical Conception of Time III. The Liturgy as the "Un-Ending Age" 1. The Biblical Evidence 2. The Kingdom which is to come-the Cayse and Archetype of the Eucharist 3. Liturgical Practice a) The Gathering "in one place" b) Passage through the ascetic and baptismal experience c) The Eucharist as movement and Progression d) The sacrifice of the Paschal Lamb e) A Festival of the Resurrection f) Remembrance (?v?µv?s??) of the future g) The structure of the Church's "institution" h) Communion of the Holy Spirit IV. Liturgical Time and Ordinary Existence Conclusion Select Bibliography Index of Scriptural References Index of Names Biographical Note

About the Author :
John D. Zizioulas (1931-2023), a renowned modern theologian and former Metropolitan of Pergamon in the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, is known for his significant contributions to Christian theology. He earned his doctorate in theology from the University of Athens and held academic positions at various universities. He was a professor of Systematic Theology at the Universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Thessaloniki and a visiting Professor at King's College in London. Metropolitan John became a regular member of the Academy of Athens in 1993 and its president in 2002-2003. His extensive ecumenical involvement and scholarly work resulted in several influential publications, solidifying his reputation as a leading Orthodox theologian of our time. He is generally recognized as the most brilliant and creative theologian in the Church, dealing with the most contemporary issues facing humanity today. ?t the culmination of his theological journey, John Zizioulas, has bestowed upon the academic world his magnum opus, a work that surpasses all his previous endeavors in depth, insight, and scholarly rigor. The insights presented in his celebrated Being as Communion and Communion and Otherness provided the groundwork for the extensive exploration undertaken in this seminal piece that will likely be dissected and referenced even more extensively than the author's prior contributions. This Zizioulas' work presents a holistic Christian "theory of everything," as he underscores how eschatological ontology deeply influences the entirety of Christian doctrine. Metropolitan Zizioulas acknowledged the profound challenge of articulating the influence of the future on the present. In 1999, he remarked, "I realize that this concept is most difficult to grasp and to experience," attributing this difficulty to the fact that "we still live in a fallen world in which protological ontology is the dominant form of rationality." The future of things in this perspective is defined by its origins and the "given" or the "factum."

Review :
To hold this book by John Zizioulas, Metropolitan of Pergamon, in my hands is for me still to clasp his hands in the friendship that bound us together. A posthumous book, as the title tells us, it comes to me as a sign springing from a past that has been liberated in the Future of God.. The eschaton knocks at the door of our daily life, seeks our collaboration, loosens the chains, liberates the transition to a good life. And it is at the heart of the eucharistic canon that for Zizioulas the Church remembers the future, completing as he does in the chapters of this book a doxology to Him who comes, a theology that he has written on his knees, in expectation. The posthumous book Remembering the Future, by the late Metropolitan of Pergamon John Zizioulas of blessed memory, is a truly remarkable book. Through its impressive documentation and abundant bibliographical references, it opens exciting and challenging perspectives for theological dialogue, for discussing Biblical hermeneutics and for evaluating practices existing in the life of the Church related to preaching the Gospel and teaching the essentials of Christian Faith. The decisive achievement of the book is that it brings the reality or activity of eschatology, i.e., Christ's teaching about His second coming and about the resurrection of the dead and the last judgment, to the center of serious discussion, comprehensively in terms of biblical, systematic, liturgical or practical Theology. The truly unforgettable late Metropolitan of Pergamon successfully transfers eschatology from the end of the books of systematic theology to the center of them and makes the teaching about eschatological ontology a relevant and vital topic for our Church today. Metropolitan John Zizioulas is the most recognizable and ecumenically impactful Orthodox theologian since St. John of Damascus. He carries forward the patristic tradition in a way that meets his mentor's (Florovsky) call for a neo-patristic synthesis, but without shying away from bold and creative proposals that respond to contemporary questions and challenges. This book, his final monograph, is a gift that clarifies and extends his profound insights in Trinitarian theology, theological anthropology, creation theology, ecclesiology, and, of course, eschatology. His theological legacy is sure to endure not only in Orthodoxy, but in the history of Christian theology. To hold this book by John Zizioulas, Metropolitan of Pergamon, in my hands is for me still to clasp his hands in the friendship that bound us together. A posthumous book, as the title tells us, it comes to me as a sign springing from a past that has been liberated in the Future of God.. The eschaton knocks at the door of our daily life, seeks our collaboration, loosens the chains, liberates the transition to a good life. And it is at the heart of the eucharistic canon that for Zizioulas the Church "remembers the future," completing as he does in the chapters of this book a doxology to "Him who comes," a theology that he has written on his knees, in expectation. The posthumous book Remembering the Future, by the late Metropolitan of Pergamon John Zizioulas of blessed memory, is a truly remarkable book. Through its impressive documentation and abundant bibliographical references, it opens exciting and challenging perspectives for theological dialogue, for discussing Biblical hermeneutics and for evaluating practices existing in the life of the Church related to preaching the Gospel and teaching the essentials of Christian Faith. The decisive achievement of the book is that it brings the reality or activity of eschatology, i.e., Christ's teaching about His second coming and about the resurrection of the dead and the last judgment, to the center of serious discussion, comprehensively in terms of biblical, systematic, liturgical or practical Theology. The truly unforgettable late Metropolitan of Pergamon successfully transfers eschatology from the end of the books of systematic theology to the center of them and makes the teaching about eschatological ontology a relevant and vital topic for our Church today. Metropolitan John Zizioulas is the most recognizable and ecumenically impactful Orthodox theologian since St. John of Damascus. He carries forward the patristic tradition in a way that meets his mentor's (Florovsky) call for a "neo-patristic synthesis," but without shying away from bold and creative proposals that respond to contemporary questions and challenges. This book, his final monograph, is a gift that clarifies and extends his profound insights in Trinitarian theology, theological anthropology, creation theology, ecclesiology, and, of course, eschatology. His theological legacy is sure to endure not only in Orthodoxy, but in the history of Christian theology. In his Remembering the Future: Toward an Eschatological Ontology, the late Metropolitan John Zizioulas revitalizes theological discourse by reintroducing the overlooked concept of eschatological ontology, placing it at the forefront of contemporary theological thought. Drawing from biblical, patristic, and Eucharistic sources, Zizioulas reexamines theological concepts like creation, humanity, evil and the fall, science and art, the Church and liturgical time, the ontology of the person and love through the lens of the coming Kingdom and the risen Christ. This work introduces an iconic ontology, emphasizing that our current, partial experience of truth will ultimately culminate in a perfected and complete state in the last days. I am delighted and excited to have received a copy of Metropolitan John's "Remembering the Future". Congratulations on the splendid appearance of the volume-its striking and dramatic cover befits the momentous contents within. I have always been captivated by Metropolitan John's understanding of eschatology. As aptly noted in the Preface, this book represents his Grand Unified Theory. I am already quite familiar with the book's final chapter, and I cannot wait to delve into it again, now within the proper context of Metropolitan John's comprehensive eschatological vision. A copy of Metropolitan John's book, "Remembering the Future," is a priceless gift. I hope his reflections from this book will continue to fertilize the Church and enable it to reach out prodigiously to human beings and all creatures in the present from the future. The late Metropolitan watches over us from Heaven. In his Remembering the Future: Toward an Eschatological Ontology, the late Metropolitan John Zizioulas revitalizes theological discourse by reintroducing the overlooked concept of eschatological ontology, placing it at the forefront of contemporary theological thought. Drawing from biblical, patristic, and Eucharistic sources, Zizioulas reexamines theological concepts like creation, humanity, evil and the fall, science and art, the Church and liturgical time, the ontology of the person and love through the lens of the coming Kingdom and the risen Christ. This work introduces an iconic ontology, emphasizing that our current, partial experience of truth will ultimately culminate in a perfected and complete state in the last days.