Oikumene
The word Oikumene , German also Ökumene , ( ancient Greek ἡ οἰκουμένη "the inhabited", from οἰκέω oikéō "living") referred to the entire inhabited world in Greco-Roman antiquity , as far as it was known at that time.
For the Greek term, the term Orbis terrarum (earth circle) became established in the Roman Empire , which refers to the conquests of Alexander the Great from Macedonia and the Roman Empire on all three continents (Europe, Asia, Africa).
Oikumene in Christianity
In the New Testament the word Oikumene is mostly used as a synonym for the whole world or stands for the Roman Empire (see Lk 2,1 LUT , Mt 24,14 LUT ). In Hebrews 2.5 EU the word describes a "future world".
In the old church , the word had a political meaning ( Roman Empire ) as well as a church meaning and referred to the totality of Christians . In the time of Constantine the Great , this distinction faded into the background. The so-called Ecumenical Councils , whose decisions were to apply to the whole of Christianity and the whole kingdom, played an essential role .
After the end of the Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire , the word only had an ecclesiastical meaning. In the 6th century, the Patriarch of Constantinople called himself “ecumenical” to emphasize his primacy among various Eastern churches. This aroused violent opposition from Pope Gregory the Great in Rome.
The word ecumenism has been used for the Christian ecumenical movement since the 20th century . Here the dialogue and cooperation between denominations , churches and monotheistic religions is sought.
literature
- Friedrich Gisinger : Oikumene. In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume XVII, 2, Stuttgart 1937, Col. 2123-2174.
- Julius Kaerst : The ancient idea of the “ecumenism” in its political and cultural significance. Teubner, Leipzig 1903.
- Ernst Pitz: The Greco-Roman Ecumenism and the Three Cultures of the Middle Ages. History of the Mediterranean part of the world between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, 270–812. Akademie-Verlag, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-05-003564-1 .
- Lothar Gassmann: Small ecumenical handbook. Mabo-Verlag, Schacht-Audorf 2005, ISBN 3-9810275-2-3 .
- James S. Romm: The edges of the earth in ancient thought. Geography, exploration, and fiction. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ 1992, ISBN 0-691-06933-6 .
- Tassilo Schmitt: Oikumene. In: The New Pauly .
- Wolfgang Speyer: Real and Ideal Oikumene in Greek and Roman Antiquity. In: Vienna Studies. Journal for Classical Philology and Patristics 114 (2001), pp. 449–462.
- Wesley M. Stevens: The Figure of the Earth in Isidore's “De natura rerum”. In: Isis, Vol. 71, No. 2 (June 1980), pp. 268-277.