AN UNKNOWN ARTICLE BY ARCHBISHOP MIKHAIL (MUDYUGIN) "THE NEW TESTAMENT UNDERSTANDING OF THE CHURCH AS THE BODY OF CHRIST, IN PARTICULAR IN THE ECCLESIOLOGY OF THE APOSTLE PAUL"

Georgy Vladimirovich Andrianov

Church Research Center of the Kostroma Metropolitanate, Kostroma, Russia

Email: director44@inbox.ru

ORCID: 0000–0001–7534–6776

Issue: № 1 (29), 2025

Pages: 19

Annotation

The article is devoted to the publication of a previously unknown work by one of the largest Russian theologians and ecclesiastical scholars of the Soviet era, Archbishop Mikhail (Mudyugin). The editorial board of the scholastic and theological journal "Ipatievsky Vestnik" timed the publication to the 25th anniversary of the death of Archbishop Michael. This work is accompanied by a preface and comments by Priest Georgy Andrianov, who discovered it in his own archive. The work of Archbishop Mikhail (Mudyugin) is devoted to the understanding of the concept of "Church" in the ecclesiology of the Apostle Paul. The author identifies the importance of the Church for modern Christians and argues with its inaccurate definitions. The study presents in an accessible form the evolution of the concept of "Church" in the apostolic era. A special value is attached to the work by comparing the ancient Christian idea of the Church with the author's contemporary in church situation. The archbishops’ work is a significant contribution to Russian biblical studies, in particular to the field of Orthodox interpretation of the ecclesiology of the Apostle Paul. Despite the fact that the article was written more than forty years ago, it does not lose its relevance due to the enduring importance of the Church in the life of an Orthodox Christian.

Keywords

Jesus Christ, the Church, ecclesiology, the Apostle Paul, the sacraments of the Church, the Body of Christ, Catechism, contradictory definitions of the Church, secularization

For citation

Andrianov G. V., priest. An unknown article by Archbishop Mikhail (Mudyugin) "The New Testament understanding of the Church as the Body of Christ, in particular in the ecclesiology of the Apostle Paul"// Ipatievsky vestnik. 2025. № 1. Р. 19–39 (In Russian). https://doi.org/10.24412/2309–5164–2025–1–19–39