Anthropological Orthodox principles for a theology of migration, in the present context of the Church's mission

Anthropological Orthodox principles for a theology of migration, in the present context of the Church's mission

15 September 2015

Today, in the context of Islamic State attacks against ethnic and religious communities in Syria and Iraq, which could be considered a genocide, the Church must intervene with the authority it has in the world, through the power of grace and the power of the word received from Christ, the Lord of peace and communion, to give from Heaven „the peace of the whole world, the good estate of the holy churches of God". A chance for these refugees would be that the Churches of Europe to offer them the possibility to live their spirituality in their native language. In their own community with its own national identity and own Church, the immigrant is not a stranger anymore, but he is like at home. Minority religious communities in the Diaspora are not and do not become ethnic ghettoes, but relying on their spiritual vitality, they can share values ​​and they can get rich through the diversity of local churches values. Migration is not and should not become just a social or economic phenomenon. It has a profound theological particularity, because the experience of emigration is the experience of seeking God, and the experience of immigration is the experience of finding Him in theologicus locus, that place of God's revelation and communion with Him.