About the Name: The Light Comes From the East 光从东方来

ex oriente lux is a Latin phrase, meaning the sun raising from the east. Our aim is to introduce the eastern churches to the Chinese audience. From a historical and geographical perspective, the eastern churches primarily includes the Orthodox churches (Greek, Russian, Romanian and so on), Syriac churches, Coptic churches, Armenian churches, Ethiopian churches, and even Chinese churches (since it is located in East Asia).

Our Vision

First, We take a historical and geographical approach——that is the perspective of eastern churches.

Second, academic research is our means and foundation, but it is not our purpose. Our purpose is to pleasing God in our real life.

Third, Our purpose is mainly to introduce the tradition of the eastern churches to Chinese audience through translations and academic lectures.

Fourth, our co-workers and scholars should be Christians. All of them have the basic methodology of “building the house on the rock” (cf. Matt. 7:24-27).

We have four free and public projects for the general Chinese audience

First, Free and Public lectures ( the most important one): we will invite the Christian scholars, bishops and monks to offer lectures for Chinese audience. We will offer simultaneous interpretation for English speaking scholars, for example, Dr. Dimitri On Paideia. 

Second,  The general education curriculum  of Areopagus Workshop: that is the Church history (from the perspective of eastern churches) and general introduction of the Bible. 

Third, the excerpts of the tranlations of Patristic fathers from their  original language: including the first draft of Philokalia introduction (《爱神集导读版》), The Long Rules of St. Basil, The Hymns On Paradise by St. Ephrem the Syrian. Plus some translatoins of secondary sources:

• Ware, Kallistos. “St. Nikodimos and the Philokalia .” In The Philokalia : A Classic Text of Orthodox Spirituality, edited by Brock Bingaman, Bradley Nassif, and Inc ebrary, 9–35. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.

• Fr. Maximos Constas. “Nothing is Greater than Divine Love’: Evagrios of Pontos, St Maximos the Confessor, and the Philokalia.” In Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth, edited by Andreas Andreopoulos and Graham Speake, 57–74. New York: Peter Lang, 2016.

• The Jesus Prayer: Method from Sophrony, Archimandrite. His Life Is Mine (Crestwood, N.Y.: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1977), 112-120.

Fourth, The blogs and short videos for general Chinese audieance. we catagorized as following seven themes: 1) spirituality; 2) theology; 3) Bible; 4) Biographies of saints and icons; 5) Liturgy and Church Canons; 6) History; 7) Others. 

We have two charged projects for Pro-Chinese audience

First, the professional classes and language classes of Areopagus Workshop

For example, Philokalia introdcution class, the Saying of desert fathers: an introduction class. the elementary Greek, the Intermediate Greek.

Second, the membership for Chinese who are willing to dive deeper. 

We offer following services for the subscribers: 

• We will offer our tranlsatoins (full-text) of patristic works and moder studies weekly to our subscribers.
• We will offer discount or free of charges to our paid-classes. 
• We will bulid a group to serve our subscribers. 

If  Christan scholars, Parishes, Bishops, Monks and Priests are interested in having a lectures to Chinese audience, please let us know through this email: areopagusworkshop@gmail.com.

If you want to make a donation for our ministries, please click here.

About me

• 2021-2024                      SOAS University of London, MPhil/PhD Candidate

• 2019-2021                      Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, MTS (Syriac Christianity)

• 2017-2018                      Hellenic College Holy Cross, ThM (Greek Patristic Spirituality)

• 2015-2017                      Hellenic College Holy Cross, MTS (Christianity and History)