Foreword [The Great Councils of the Orthodox Churches: Decisions and Synodika: Crete 2016]

Abstract dell'opera: The two tomes of this volume comprise the critical edition - sometimes the very first critical edition - of the Councils of the Eastern Orthodox Churches, namely those sharing the profession of faith defined in the first seven Ecumenical Councils (ed. COGD 1). Among them one may find the Protodeutera (861), the Council of Constantinople of 879, the Tomos Unionis (920), the Local Synods of Constantinople against the Syro-Jacobites (1030) and against John Italos (1082), the Councils on 'My Father is greater than me' (1166), on the Filioque (1285) and on Palamas (1341-1351), the Synod of 1484, annulling the so-called union of Florence (ed. COGD 2), the Synods about Lucaris, the Panorthodox Synods of Jerusalem (1672) and Constantinople (1872), the Local Synods of Constantinople (1691 and 1755), and additional materials, like the Patriarchal decision of annulment of the Excommunications between Rome and Constantinople (paralleled in COGD 3). It also includes the first publication of five synodika of Orthodoxy: Georgian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Russian and the Greek synodikon with a new edition of the oldest surviving version of the latter (eleventh century), which was the basis for the subsequent translations. Moreover, the volume represents the Conciliar tradition of the Patriarchate of Moscow and of all Russias, including the Stoglav (1551), and the Councils of Moscow of 1666/7 and 1917/8 and more recent Councils of the 21st century. The first printed edition of the June 2016 Council of Crete will be published as a separate, third tome.