Restoration of the true meanings of education. Book review: Theology of education in the Christian paradigm / Ed. by Prof. D. V. Shmonin. SPb.: SPTHA Publishing House, 2023. 479 p. (Theology: history and modernity)

The article represents a review of the collective monography “Theology of education in the Christian paradigm”, published by SPThA Press within the “Theology: History and Modernity” book series along with SPThA Theology Faculty. The book is published under prof. D. V. Shmonin common edition - SPbSU Theology Institute director, Theology professor of St Petersburg Theological Academy. The article shows the authors, whose works are presented on the volume pages, consider the crucial moments of the Christian educational paradigm history. In particular, special attention is paid to the articles dedicated to theology of education in Antiquity, education during the Byzantine humanism and also the Russian orthodox Enlightenment ideas given in the texts of Russian literature masters, religious thinkers and statesmen of XVIII-XIX c. Apart from the common axiological substrate search of education as cultural-religious phenomenon, that is the Divine and humanistic service practice (theosis), the main differences between the three paradigms are emphasized via a comparative analysis and presented as the following brief formulae: theosis as the telos of education (Antiquity), education as the ascetical way to realize theosis (Byzantine humanism) and education as the way to serve the state, monarch and Church (Russian Enlightenment). It is emphasized that the monography is a new step in Russian historical-theological science.