03/07/2026 09:00
- 12:20
HALL: Parenzo - A18
Contact:
Bruckner I.
Chair:
Semenikhin N.
As inequalities sharpen into focus in contemporary life, the "relevant subject" of theological discourse expands: not only the universal concept of "human being" in abstract terms, but concrete, embodied, socially situated humans (and increasingly nonhuman creation). In other words, 20th/21st-century theological attention shifts from the subject in general to subjects marked by corporeality, vulnerability, power and injustices. The panel traces a movement from fundamental theological premises to their concrete ecclesial and socio-political expressions in contemporary times, their epistemological and finally to their cosmo-ecological implications. These discursive movements highlight how theology reorients itself, adapting patristic insights to address modern asymmetries while preserving its core concerns.
The panel begins with an exploration of postlapsarian metaphysical inequality through the patristic symbol of the "garments of skin", which provides the conceptual point of departure for the discussion as a whole. The panel then turns to contemporary theological "subjects" like institutional inequality by asking whether (and in what sense) there is a difference between laity and priesthood. From there it moves to gender inequality between men and women, before shifting to social inequality between rich and poor. The fifth contribution reflects the relation of mystic experience or contemplative knowledge and scientific knowledge in the theological discourse, whereas the sixth paper widens the scope beyond the human sphere by questioning species inequality, challenging anthropocentrism and reflecting on creation as a whole.
We are looking for two further contributions which are reflecting on the dimension of vulnerability and disability, or on the inequality of ratio and affectus in the theological discourse.
