Gregorios Papamichael ( el, Γρηγόριος Παπαμιχαήλ) (1875–1956) was a

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

of the Orthodox

Church of Greece The Church of Greece ( el, Ἐκκλησία τῆς Ἑλλάδος, Ekklēsía tē̂s Helládos, ), part of the wider Greek Orthodox Church, is one of the autocephalous churches which make up the communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. It ...

and a renowned professor at the Theology School of the

University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...

(1918-1920, and 1923-1939). He examined diligently various cultural aspects of church life and is jointly credited, together with his close friend

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdio ...

Chrysostomos I (Papadopoulos) of Athens (1923-1938), for establishing the two basic academic journals of Neohellenic theology: ''Theologia'' and ''Ekklesia.''Panagiotes K. Christou.
Neohellenic Theology at the Crossroads
'' The Greek Orthodox Theological Review. 28, n. 1, Spring 1983, p. 39-54. In addition, he was responsible for the modern rediscovery of two almost forgotten great personalities of Orthodoxy, namely Gregorios Palamas and Maximos (Trivolis) the Greek.

Biography

Early life and education

Gregorios Papamichael was born in the village of Íppeios on

Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Asia Minor by the nar ...

in 1875. Δημήτριος Μπαλάνος (Εθνικόν και Καποδιστριακόν Πανεπιστήμιον Αθηνών).
Εκατονταετηρίς 1837-1937, Τόμος Α', Ιστορία της Θεολογικής Σχολής
'' Αθήναι: Πυρσός Α.Ε., 1937. σελ. 15. He completed his education at the Gymnasium of

Mytilene Mytilene (; el, Μυτιλήνη, Mytilíni ; tr, Midilli) is the capital of the Greek island of Lesbos, and its port. It is also the capital and administrative center of the North Aegean Region, and hosts the headquarters of the University o ...

, as well as in

Samos Samos (, also ; el, Σάμος ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the -wide Mycale Strait. It is also a sepa ...

, and also at the Holy Cross School of Jerusalem. He then studied theology at the

Theological School of Halki The Halki seminary, formally the Theological School of Halki ( el, Θεολογική Σχολή Χάλκης and tr, Ortodoks Ruhban Okulu), was founded on 1 October 1844 on the island of Halki ( Turkish: Heybeliada), the second-largest of the ...

. Later he worked as a teacher in the Greek community of

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

, Bulgaria.
ΓΡΗΓΟΡΙΟΣ ΠΑΠΑΜΙΧΑΗΛ (1874-1956)
'' Εκκλησία της Ελλάδος (Περιοδικό ΘΕΟΛΟΓΙΑ). Retrieved: 2013-08-27. Finally he continued his theological studies at the Theological Academy of St. Petersburg,

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

, where he was granted his Master of Theology degree in 1905 for his thesis: ''"St.

Gregory Palamas Gregory Palamas ( el, Γρηγόριος Παλαμᾶς; c. 1296 – 1359) was a Byzantine Greek theologian and Eastern Orthodox cleric of the late Byzantine period. A monk of Mount Athos (modern Greece) and later archbishop of Thessaloniki, he ...

, Archbishop of Thessaloniki."''

Academic career

From 1905-1907 he taught as professor at the Theological School of the Cross in Jerusalem, publishing studies in the journal ''"New Zion".'' Over the next ten years, he took over management of the two periodicals of the

Patriarchate of Alexandria The Patriarch of Alexandria is the archbishop of Alexandria, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation "pope" (etymologically "Father", like "Abbot"). The Alexandrian episcopate was revered as one of the three major episco ...

, ''"Clerical Lighthouse"'' and ''"Pantainos",'' to which he added significant prestige, publishing valuable articles and studies. In 1918 he was unanimously elected ordinary professor of Apologetics and of the Encyclopedia of Theology, at the Theological School of Athens University (1918-1920, and 1923-1939), while also teaching at the Rizarios Ecclesiastical School in Athens, where he served as Dean from 1937-1940. He served concurrently as the Dean of the School of Theology, as well as the Rector of the University of Athens from 1936-1937, and organized the celebrations for the University's centenary (i.e. 1837-1937). In 1945 he was elected a member of the Academy of Athens, later serving as the president of the Academy in 1954.
Πρόεδροι της Ακαδημίας Αθηνών από την ίδρυσή της
.'' Ακαδημία Αθηνών. (Academy of Athens). Retrieved: 2013-08-27. Parallel to his didactic and literary labours, Gregorios Papamichael undertook ecclesiastical and social activities, taking charge of the periodicals ''Ecclesiastical Herald'' and ''New Didache'', and later the periodicals ''Theologia'' and ''Ekklesia'', publishing many articles and studies. Professor Gregorios Papamichael died in 1956.

Literary production

His literary production was vast and rich, covering many theological disciplines. He published seventy (70) major theological works in the fields of

apologetics Apologetics (from Greek , "speaking in defense") is the religious discipline of defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and discourse. Early Christian writers (c. 120–220) who defended their beliefs against critics an ...

ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concer ...

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...

Patrology Patristics or patrology is the study of the early Christian writers who are designated Church Fathers. The names derive from the combined forms of Latin ''pater'' and Greek ''patḗr'' (father). The period is generally considered to run from ...

, and history, as well as over a thousand smaller publications, ecclesiastical articles and book reviews. As a theologian and academic instructor Gregorios Papamichael combined scientific profundity with literary grace. His ecclesiastical columns in the theological journals, especially in the journal ''"Theologia",'' testify to his great love and devotion to the work and the mission of the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...

Notes

References

Sources

* Panagiotes K. Christou.
Neohellenic Theology at the Crossroads
'' The Greek Orthodox Theological Review. 28, n. 1, Spring 1983, p. 39-54. *
ΓΡΗΓΟΡΙΟΣ ΠΑΠΑΜΙΧΑΗΛ (1874-1956)
'' Εκκλησία της Ελλάδος (Περιοδικό ΘΕΟΛΟΓΙΑ). Retrieved: 2013-08-27. * Δημήτριος Μπαλάνος (Εθνικόν και Καποδιστριακόν Πανεπιστήμιον Αθηνών).
Εκατονταετηρίς 1837-1937, Τόμος Α', Ιστορία της Θεολογικής Σχολής
'' Αθήναι: Πυρσός Α.Ε., 1937. σελ. 15. *
Πρόεδροι της Ακαδημίας Αθηνών από την ίδρυσή της
'' Ακαδημία Αθηνών. (Academy of Athens). Retrieved: 2013-08-27. *
Τακτικά μέλη της Ακαδημίας Αθηνών κατά σειρά εκλογής
'' Ακαδημία Αθηνών. (Academy of Athens). Retrieved: 2013-08-27.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Papamichael, Gregorios 1875 births 1956 deaths 20th-century Greek writers Eastern Orthodox writers Eastern Orthodox theologians Greek theologians Academic staff of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Members of the Church of Greece Members of the Academy of Athens (modern) Theological School of Halki alumni People from Lesbos